Forty eight hours prior to travelling, I gave my husband his surprise birthday present. Two days away in Venice over Valentine’s Day. We have been to Paris many times; I have been to other Italian cities such as Rome and Florence, so I was looking for something special where neither of us had travelled to before.

After leaving Birmingham with a torrential downpour, we had a flight change at Prague which on our return journey, allowed us enough time to visit the ancient city itself. I was glad to be embraced by spring sunshine as we touched down at Marco Polo airport in Venice. So sunglasses at the ready, we headed down to the pier to catch our private water taxi and headed for the City of Venice.

As we approached the city from the water, it made you feel that you were somewhere special. The clear blue skies and the famous landmarks that you see in many brochures, was now becoming apparent. As you entered the Grand Canal, the city bursts into life as you see the different coloured gondolas and the hustle and bustle over the Rialto Bridge. It felt like a step back in time, an old sixties spy movie or similar.

Our water taxi took us directly to the hotels water platform and we quickly checked in. From here we tried to get our bearings, realising that our hotel was in an excellent location, positioned between the Rialto Bridge and St. Marks Square. We were on a high floor and in the morning we could throw open the shutters and look across the tiled roof tops at a city steeped in history. So beautiful!

The great thing about Venice is that you either have to walk, get a water bus or a gondola as it is a non-motorised city. The fact that there were no cars rushing around was great and walking was the order of the day.

Our first evening we ventured out towards the Rialto Bridge and found a traditional Italian restaurant where we sat at the window and watched the locals heading home via waterbus. After a great meal and a lot of wine we headed back to the hotel via the Opera House. That particular evening there was an Opera being held and all you could hear was a Soprano singing – this was better than Paris anyday!

The following day we headed off to enjoy the sights, the history and the atmosphere. We went to the Doges Palace, the Bridge of Sighs and St. Mark’s Square with its bell tower. We sat and had coffee in the famous Square watching children feed the pigeons, mind you this was very expensive and should of done what a lot of other couples did, buy a bottle of Champagne!

That evening we decided to explore some of the lanes which run off from St. Mark’s Square. The shops here were fabulous for traditional Venetian items such as masks and costumes. We had dinner at a fantastic Chinese place, enjoying an all you can buffet, which pleased my husband no end.

One tip regarding the restaurants, if you eat on or near the main tourist attraction then be prepared to pay over the top for your evening meal. If you wander around some of the narrow lanes off the beaten track, then you can get a decent evening meal at a reasonable cost including drinks.

The weather for February was warm but you needed a jumper or jacket in the evening. It really did exceed my expectations and a journey that we both thoroughly enjoyed and hope to return again soon, but with the rest of the family next time.

From the warm days in Venice, we were prepared for the heavy snow in Prague on our return journey, however, warm clothes were not required as the flight was cancelled due to the extreme weather conditions, and so we travelled directly back to Manchester, and our journey into Birmingham International from there was by rail.