<P> It is estimated that there were eight to ten thousand gondolas during the 17th and 18th century . There are just over four hundred in active service today , virtually all of them used for hire by tourists . Those few that are in private ownership are either hired out to Venetians for weddings or used for racing . Even though the gondola , by now , has become a widely publicized icon of Venice , in the times of the Republic of Venice it was by far not the only means of transportation ; on the map of Venice created by Jacopo de ' Barbari in 1500 , only a fraction of the boats are gondolas , the majority of boats are batellas , caorlinas , galleys , and other boats . Now , only a handful of batellas survive , and caorlinas are used for racing only . </P>
<P> It is estimated that there were eight to ten thousand gondolas during the 17th and 18th century . There are just over four hundred in active service today , virtually all of them used for hire by tourists . Those few that are in private ownership are either hired out to Venetians for weddings or used for racing . Even though the gondola , by now , has become a widely publicized icon of Venice , in the times of the Republic of Venice it was by far not the only means of transportation ; on the map of Venice created by Jacopo de ' Barbari in 1500 , only a fraction of the boats are gondolas , the majority of boats are batellas , caorlinas , galleys , and other boats . Now , only a handful of batellas survive , and caorlinas are used for racing only . </P>
what is a famous mode of transport in venice
what is a famous mode of transport in venice
the gondola
the gondola