The casino in Venice.Two venues, two sets of rules.

Ca' Vendramin Calergi or Ca' Noghera?

“The casino in Venice” can mean either building. Ca' Vendramin Calergi is the historic venue in the city itself. Ca' Noghera, opened in 1999 next to Marco Polo airport, describes itself as the first American-style casino in Italy.

At Ca' Noghera the slots open at 11:00 and run until 03:00 from Sunday to Thursday and until 04:00 on Fridays, Saturdays and the days before public holidays; the tables open at 15:30 and close at 02:45, or 03:15 on Fridays, Saturdays and the evenings before holidays.

ACTV waterbuses stop at San Marcuola every ten minutes, on lines 1 and 2 from Piazzale Roma and line 1 from the railway station, and the casino runs its own free shuttle boat from Piazzale Roma. For Ca' Noghera, the casino's free shuttle timetable from the Mestre railway station forecourt lists departures from 16:15 into the early hours, the last ones only on Fridays, Saturdays and days before holidays.

Getting in: age, ID and admission cards

The casino accepts an ID card, a driving licence or a passport as the original ID document, so a visitor from the UK needs to bring one of those rather than a photocopy or a phone photo.

The admission card is what you pay at the door. At Ca' Vendramin Calergi the €50 card includes a €20 chip or slot credit that cannot be exchanged for cash, the cloakroom, a drink, parking (listed as “€10.00 at the AVM”) and the shuttle boat between Piazzale Roma and the palazzo. At Ca' Noghera the €10 card includes a €10 non-convertible chip for the tables (or, after registering your details, €10 loaded “on fingerprint or black card”, in the casino's words) and the cloakroom; a €5 card leaves the services out.

Heavy overcoats and jackets, suitcases, luggage, holdalls, umbrellas and hats must go to the coat check, and the management reserves the right to refuse admission at its own discretion.

The Venice casino dress code

The two venues publish separate dress codes. Women may wear casual clothes at both. The difference is for men, and it is sharper than the word “casual” suggests.

• Ca' Vendramin Calergi: men should dress respectably in casual but proper clothes. Short trousers, tank tops, sandals and beach flip-flops are not allowed; in summer the casino also bars beachwear, which it lists as short trousers, tank tops, sandals, flip-flops, slippers and tracksuits.
• Ca' Noghera: men may wear leisurewear, which the casino defines as shorts just above the knee, T-shirts, polo shirts or shirts and trainers. Tank tops, sandals and beach flip-flops are still not allowed.

Neither venue admits animals. If you are spending a summer day in Venice before an evening at the Grand Canal venue, the list above is the practical reason to change first.

The Grand Canal palazzo and its history

The casino dates its origins to 1638 and says it moved to Ca' Vendramin Calergi in the 1950s. It describes the building as a Renaissance-style stately home that was once a residence of the doges and Richard Wagner's last dwelling place, and its restaurant is the Wagner Restaurant. Ca' Noghera has since added a newer area with its own entrance, a café, a restaurant and an open-air terrace.

Paying for chips and collecting winnings

Chips can be bought in euros, or in foreign currency during table opening hours, up to the limit current Italian law allows, and by card: the casino lists Pagobancomat, Visa, Mastercard, Maestro and China UnionPay. Winnings are paid in cash within the legal limits, by a non-transferable cheque in the player's name, or in gaming chips. The casino says that from 1 January 2023 the legal limit on cash transfers in Italy was raised to €4,999.99. Both venues have a cashier and card payment points.

If gambling stops being fun

The casino's own “Informagioco” page carries a warning that gambling can lead to addiction and points to the local health authority's “Chiama & Vinci” service for gambling disorder, reachable in Italy on the free number 800 180 030. If you are back home in the UK, GamCare runs the National Gambling Helpline on 0808 8020 133; our safer gambling page lists what else is available.