re: Is gondola ride at Venice worth it?

There's a few cheap, short gondola rides without the singing if you just want to say you rode one. There's a few places that offer basically a ferry like crossing in a gondola. I think there's one at the Mercato di Rialto seafood market. It's like $2 and you get a ride across the grand canal. I'd rather pay for one of the cool water taxis than a gondola ride. They hustle tourists one after the other in those things. If it's right before dark when all the cruise ship travelers and people staying off the island leave and it's less crowded, it may be worth it and you can probably find a better deal.