What was Venice's reputation among the major cities of the world during the Elizabethan period and its stance towards people of different cultures and faiths?

During Elizabethan times, Venice had garnered fame as the epicenter of maritime trade in Europe. It was one of the most important sovereign states in Italy and had achieved the admiration of all the great cities of the time. It stood out as the hub of the latest fashion and trends since it was visited by so many foreigners. This also meant that the independent city-state was enormously wealthy, and its citizens benefited richly from this. Venice was probably the envy of Europe and was a competitor in trade with cities such as London and Genoa.
Because of its mercantile status and location, the city attracted individuals from all over the continent and elsewhere. It became a cornucopia of different cultures, attracting Turks, Greeks, Spaniards, Slavs, Jews, Moors, and, of course, Englishmen. English visitors to Venice were particularly struck by the city's beautiful architecture and the fact that it is spread over a number of islands. Some scholars conjecture that Shakespeare may have written The Merchant of Venice and Othello during his visits there.
Venice was, however, not free from prejudice. Since the overwhelming majority of Venetians were Christian, there was much discrimination against Jews especially, as can be witnessed by the creation of a Jewish ghetto in 1516. The Jewish community continued to flourish despite the prejudice shown by Christian leaders who curtailed their activities.
Both Shakespeare's plays that are set in Venice, Othello and The Merchant of Venice, explore the multicultural and vibrant nature of the city and also depict the kind of bias and stereotyping that must have been common at the time.

Venice in the Elizabethan era was a multicultural hub of commerce, rivaling London as a port city and surpassing it in terms of its reputation for beauty. The setup of Venice was an attraction then as today, and the Byzantine architecture, brought back to the city by crusaders in the fifteenth century, was renowned. As a port city, people of many races intermingled in Venice, including Moorish and Arabic people, and there was generally an atmosphere of tolerance by comparison to other towns. Unfortunately, this tolerance did not really extend to the Jewish population of the city, who were confined to ghettos, namely Ghetto Nuevo, and who were forced to demarcate themselves as Jews when traveling outside their ghettos. This would usually involve wearing yellow scarves or accessories. Jews were also limited to certain occupations and viewed with suspicion.