Our Boats: Belle Batele
It’s not a gondola! You’ll learn the Venetian voga in this rare, traditional craft called the Batela coda di gambero, the shrimp-tailed batela. Once one of the most numerous in the city and throughout the lagoon, it’s the perfect craft for first-timers.
You can easily spot these traditional, hand-crafted “shrimp-tailed” boats in many paintings by Carpaccio, Guardi, and Canaletto: once one of the most numerous in the city, these all-purpose boats begain to disappear after WWII with the advent of the private outboard motor.
Operating four of the seven replicas in existence today (we had two of them built ourselves), Row Venice and their collaborators are striving to put this splendid craft back in primo piano, at center stage.
These batele are not too big and not too small; whether you’re an expert sculler or have never seen water, you find these wonderful craft spacious, comfortable, and stable.
