Alberoni and Malamocco Pass Other
One of the three passes connecting the lagoon to the Adriatic, the deepest of the three, used by large ships to reach Marghera.
Alberoni and the Southern End of the Lido
As you head towards the southern end of the Lido of Venice, the landscape becomes markedly less urban. Around Alberoni, villas and beach establishments gradually give way to dunes, pine forest, beaches, and natural areas bordering the Adriatic. This part of the island thus offers a very different face from the fashionable Lido of Santa Maria Elisabetta.
The Alberoni Dunes Oasis protects one of the best-preserved coastal areas of the lagoon. With its shifting dunes, pioneer vegetation, pine forest, and beach, it is an important habitat for coastal flora and birdlife. Paths allow you to explore part of this environment without truly leaving the Venetian urban area.
The area indeed retains traces of the ongoing struggle to stabilize the coastline. The Murazzi, imposing Istrian stone works built by the Republic of Venice in the 18th century, as well as several former military installations, bear witness to this long history of defense against the sea. Further south, the natural landscape suddenly gives way to a maritime infrastructure of a completely different scale: the Malamocco Pass.
The Malamocco Pass, Gateway for Large Ships
Located between Alberoni and Pellestrina, the Malamocco Pass is one of the three openings connecting the Venice lagoon to the Adriatic, along with those of the Lido and Chioggia. It is the deepest of the three: the channel reaches about 14 meters deep and is the main access for large ships to the commercial and industrial area of Porto Marghera.
From Malamocco, ships reach Porto Marghera via the Malamocco-Marghera Canal, about 20 kilometers long. This maritime role was established in the 19th century: after projects initiated as early as the Napoleonic period, two long jetties were built between 1840 and 1872 to stabilize the pass, limit sand accumulation, and maintain a sufficiently deep channel. Malamocco thus gradually became one of Venice's great maritime gateways.
The contrast with Alberoni is particularly striking. Near the dunes, the pine forest, and the calm of the Lido's southern tip, container ships, bulk carriers, and other large vessels pass by on their way to Marghera. This juxtaposition of natural environment and port infrastructure reveals a facet of the lagoon far removed from the palaces of the Grand Canal, yet essential to the contemporary economic functioning of Venice.
Visit: Alberoni is easily explored on foot or by bike, especially around the beach and natural areas. The Malamocco Pass can be observed from the southern end of the Lido and certain accessible coastal areas; however, the technical installations of the MOSE and the port are not open to the public. From Malamocco, you need to continue several kilometers south to reach Alberoni and the pass.
Sources and Further Information
WWF Italia - Oasi Dune degli Alberoni ; MOSE Venezia - Project and Lagoon Passes ; Autorità di Sistema Portuale del Mare Adriatico Settentrionale.
Map and route
In the village of Malamocco and Alberoni
