There's a balmy beauty to little walled Isola di San Servolo, positioned between Castello and the Lido. Exotic palms and mature trees rise above peaceful gardens, and there are lots of interesting sculptures scattered about.
Isola di San Servolo feels like a delicious secret – birdsong and empty park benches only 10 minutes from San Zaccaria – but there’s a dark history to uncover as well.
Hang Out on Campus
Aside from the occasional Armenian monk making his way back to San Lazzaro, your vaporetto to the island will likely be full of students. That’s because San Servolo is now the main campus of Venice International University. Visitors are welcome to wander around the park-like grounds and dine in the cafe and restaurant. There’s often an exhibition to check out as well. Like many of Venice’s smaller islands, San Servolo was once a monastery, and most of the buildings date from that time.
Museo del Manicomio
San Servolo is also home to one of Venice’s most poignant specialist museums. From 1725 until 1978, the island served as an institution for mentally ill men, and the Museo del Manicomio pulls no punches, in either its name or contents. Visits start with a 30-minute guided tour taking in the church, an 18th-century pharmacy and a dissection room full of skulls and preserved brains. A small museum displays a disturbing array of paraphernalia once used on patients, including chains, cages for ice showers and early electro-therapy machines.
