The Lido, or Venice Lido (Lido di Venezia), is an 11-kilometre-long (7-mile) sandbar in Venice, northern Italy; it is home to about 20,000 residents. The Venice Film Festival takes place at the Lido every September.
The island is home to three settlements. The Lido itself, in the north, is home to the Film Festival, the Grand Hotel des Bains, the Venice Casino and the Hotel Excelsior Venice Lido. Malamocco, in the centre, was the first and, for a long time, the only settlement. It was at one time home to the Doge of Venice. Alberoni at the southern end is home to the golf course. Frequent public buses run the length of the island along the main street.
At least half the Adriatic side of the island is a sandy beach, much of it belonging to the various hotels that house the summer tourists. These include the renowned Hotel Excelsior and the Grand Hotel des Bains, setting for Thomas Mann's classic novel Death in Venice, currently undergoing major renovation. These beaches are private, though towards the northern and southern ends of the island there are two enormous public beaches. The Adriatic Sea is fairly clean and warm, ideal for children, with only the occasional jellyfish to disturb swimming.
The heart of the island is the Gran Viale Santa Maria Elisabetta, a wide street approximately 700 m long that leads from the lagoon and vaporetto (water bus) stop on one side across to the sea on the other. It houses hotels, shops, and tourist-centric restaurants.
