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The island of cypresses is separated from the main body of Venice by St Mark’s Basin and retains a quiet meditative air, unconcerned with the bustle in the city. An ancient vineyard and salt pans were replaced by a landmark church by Andrea Palladio, adjoining an elegant Benedictine monastery. It is now a scientific and cultural foundation and conference centre. At the rear is the open-air amphitheatre Teatro Verde, revived by the Biennale for performances of contemporary dance and music (see Biennale Art Exhibition).

An S-shaped slice of land facing the sun-blessed Zattere, this residential garden island was first known as “Spina longa” for its fishbone form. It was renamed either after an early Jewish community, or the giudicati (radical aristocrats) exiled here. Renaissance artist Michelangelo spent three peaceful years here in voluntary exile from 1529. Much later it became an important industrial zone with shipbuilding and the immense Molino Stucky flour mill (see Molino Stucky). Usually quiet and neighbourly, it comes to life with a vengeance for the mid-July Redentore festivities (see Festa del Redentore).

The northern end of the Lido littoral, a key point in the Republic’s defence, used to be equipped with impressive naval fortifications and chains would be laid across the lagoon mouth as a deterrent to invaders. The historic Sensa celebration (see La Sensa) is held offshore from the church of San Nicolò, founded in 1044 and a former Benedictine monastery, now a study centre. One visitable site is the 1386 Jewish cemetery. Alternatively, take a 35-minute mini-cruise on the car ferry between Tronchetto car park and San Nicolò. Its high decks give great views all over Venice.

Manicured sand raked daily and neat rows of multicoloured bathing cabins and beach umbrellas sum up the Lido from June to September, made famous in Thomas Mann’s novel Death in Venice (see Thomas Mann). Venetians spend their summers socializing in style here. Things liven up considerably for the 10-day International Film Festival in September (see Films in English), when the shady streets are filled with film buffs and critics on bicycles.

About midway along the Lido is the pretty, quiet village of Malamocco and it’s now hard to imagine that it used to be the most important lagoon settlement soon after Roman times and the main port for Padua. A storm and giant waves washed away the entire town in 1106, later rebuilt in the vicinity on a smaller scale. It is appreciated for its 15th-century buildings, peaceful nature and rustic trattorias.

Venice made a gift of this erstwhile leper colony to the Armenian monk, the Venerable Mechtar, forced out of the Peloponnese during one of his country’s diasporas. Intent on fostering the Armenian culture and language, he founded a religious community here and set up a printing press which operated until 1994, publishing works in 36 languages. Multi-lingual monks instruct visitors in their history and lead guided tours through a small museum and an impressive library of more than 100,000 volumes and precious illuminated manuscripts.

Close to San Giorgio, this abandoned island used to be a hospice for pilgrims and was named after a miraculous image of the Virgin brought back from Constantinople and attributed to St Luke. Its colourful history features a series of religious orders and churches, devastating fires, allotments, luxuriant gardens and, until recently, the city’s infectious diseases hospital. It is now private property with no public access.

In 1648, 200 nuns exiled from Candia, Crete, by the Turks were lodged on this island, but after their numbers dwindled in 1725 it was given over to a sanatorium for psychiatric cases, although exclusively those of “comfortable circumstances”. The roomy buildings are now shared by an international university and a trade school for artisans from all over Europe interested in restoration of traditional stone and stucco techniques.

This narrow 11-km (6.5-mile) central strip of land, linked to the Lido and Chioggia by ferry, is dotted with picturesque sleepy fishing communities, once famous for lacemaking and now renowned for champion rowers and a shipyard. The Genoese wiped out the villages during the 14th century, an event almost repeated during the disastrous 1966 floods – powerful waves broke over the seawall, forcing full-scale evacuation. The massive defensive barriers with their 14-m (46-ft) broad base were first erected in the 1700s but have consequently needed large-scale reinforcement.

A lively fishing town, with elegant bridges over navigable canals. The friendly inhabitants have a reputation for lawlessness and bickering, and speak a distinctive dialect with a singsong inflection. Chioggia has a rich history, but its greatest moment came as the arena for the decisive battle in the 1378–9 war, when the Genoese came close to conquering Venice. In flat-bottomed boats the crafty locals enticed the enemy into the lagoon, thus gaining the upper hand.