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Doge’s Palace Tour: Secret Itineraries and Dark Secrets
4.6
173 Ratings
Venezia
Uncover the hidden secrets of Venice on a VIP Doge’s Palace tour. Explore secret archives, torture chambers, and top-security prison cells with an expert guide.
Duration:
2 hours, 30 minutes
Cancellation:
1 day
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Highlights
- Doge’s Palace - With your guide, a Venetian art expert and historian, enjoy skip-the-line access to the Doge’s Palace and make a beeline for backstage. After a guard opens a special door, enter the hidden side of the palace to see the prison cell where Casanova was held, hear the unlikely tale of his escape, and visit the archives to learn how secrets were kept. See hidden council rooms to learn of the system of checks and balances that made Venice the world’s oldest republic and enter the best general access areas such as huge audience rooms, ballrooms with incredible paintings by Veronese and Tintoretto, and the private apartments of the Duke of Venice. You even cross the famed Bridge of Sighs to see the New Prisons on this small-group tour.
What's Included
- Small groups ensure a more personal experience
- Guidance from an expert tour guide
- Exclusive access to the Doge’s Palace Secret Itineraries
- All tickets and reservation fees included
- Headsets provided for better hearing
What's Not Included
- Gratuities
- Hotel Pick-Up/Drop-Off
Additional Information
A visit to Venice wouldn’t be the same without delving into its long and fascinating history as the world’s oldest republic. We take you beyond the traditional route, going behind the scenes of the Doge’s Palace to explore the secret archives, offices, torture chambers, and the palace attic, home to top-security prison cells, including that of the famed Casanova!
Gain exclusive VIP Access to the secret itineraries of the Doge’s Palace, a hidden labyrinth of secret archives, offices, torture chambers and top-security prison cells.
The only tour in Venice that visits all these sites and explores the backstage of the Doge’s Palace with a small group.
Your expert guide reveals Venice’s dark secrets, fascinating stories, and entertaining anecdotes.
- Due to Doge’s Palace regulations, children under the age of 6 are not permitted inside the secret itineraries and therefore cannot take this tour.
- The prisons and secret itineraries are not wheelchair-accessible, nor is the route suitable for those with walking disabilities or for pregnant women.
- Tour not suitable for people that are claustrophobic.
- Walks / Devour complies with all local government regulations. Please refer to local government guidelines for the most up-to-date information.
Location
Museo Correr
Piazza San Marco
Please note we meet in front of the entrance of Museo Correr, which is at the opposite side of the St. Mark's Basilica in St. Mark's square. The group will meet just outside the entrance of the Correr Museum in Piazza San Marco. Your guide will be holding a Walks sign.
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.6
(173 Ratings)
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867alexak
Jul 22, 2024
Lovely tour for group of 15 with Alessandro - We took this tour with our family of 15, and Alessandro was a lovely tour guide. He was super knowledgeable and passionate and made our tour so much fun. We are a group that ranges in age from 15 - 98, and he was incredibly accommodating. We highly recommend this enjoyable, informative tour, and hopefully, you'll get Alessandro. Thanks, Alessandro!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jennifer_c
Jul 14, 2024
The Best Tour Guide! - Excellent tour! Marie-Therese was a personable guide and made the tour interesting. If you want to visit Doge palace, I recommend this tour-you will get much more out of the visit than if you walk around on your own. She pointed out details and explained art work. The secret itineraries was worth it! It does get hot up in the top floors, so plan an early morning tour.
Review provided by Viator
Lynn_o
Jul 13, 2024
Best experience!! - This was an amazing experience for us. My daughter and I booked the 8pm grand canal rowing tour and it was absolutely beautiful and worth the price. Anna was our guide and she was extremely kind and so informative about venice and pointed out many sights. My daughter rowed our gondola-like boat under the Rialto bridge!
Review provided by Viator
Phildubo
Jul 9, 2024
In the footsteps of Giacomo Casanova - The 90-minute tour can be done with a Guide speaking Italian, English or French. She follows a special itinerary to visit some unusual places in the Ducal Palace that are otherwise inaccessible: the torture room, the secret archives room, and above all the bullet holes, these prisons in the attic from which the famous Casanova escaped. The tour then gives access to the regular circuit of the ducal palace, with the large ceremonial rooms, the bridge of sighs and the new prisons.
This visit is a must for casanovists. It remains very interesting for history buffs and privileged visits. Book through the official website several days in advance. Plan a good ascent (about 5 floors on foot on small stairs).
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Sheila_p
Jul 2, 2024
Doge’s Palace Secret Itineraries Tour - What an incredible tour. Our guide, Pamela was so knowledgeable and friendly. We highly recommend her, as her presentation was full of historical information about the Doge palace and explained the political significance of the doges, noblemen, and bourgeois. Casanova’s imprisonment and escape story was quite entertaining.
We are so glad to have booked this tour.
Review provided by Viator
John_p
Jun 26, 2024
Truly a VIP experience - Getting a personal, behind the scenes tour of this magnificent piece of history was well worth it. The guide was impressively well versed and handled all of the questions thrown their way. We truly felt like VIPs, being escorted through areas closed to the general public, and learning details that no guide book could provide. Only caution is that the wireless headsets didn't work perfectly in some of the narrow stone prison hallways, so try to be up front to hear everything during this first portion of the tour!
Review provided by Viator
Kim_r
Jun 25, 2024
Great experience - Really interesting tour and neat to see the prison areas, the attic had a bunch of armor and weapons and we got to see quite a few secret rooms of the palace. Bring a small fan as some areas were small and quite warm. Heard this tour is not offered in late summer months due to the heat. Overall, a really good tour.
Review provided by Viator
Laura_c
Jun 8, 2024
Fascinating, highly recommend - Hearing the history of Casanova's escape and the doges over the centuries. Fascinating tour. Seeing the old cells.
Review provided by Viator
Lynn2275
Jul 31, 2024
Very Informative - Very informative guide and there were only 10 people on our tour which was nice. It was very interesting but I felt a bit too long. It lasted 2 1/2 hours which would have been more enjoyable except for the heat. Recommend you go as early as possible and take a bottle of water. Give yourself plenty of time to find the meeting location. You need to be in the big square of St Marks and not the small square which is where you end up if you walk in from the water bus. Also, there are multiple museums and it took some time to find the meeting point. The “Walks” tour guide is holding a green sign.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Luann_b
Jun 26, 2024
Doge Palace History - After a terrible vaporeto think a bus on water. We missed the tour due to a lack of assistance from the guide from Viators local people. I had paid for the trip and was looking forward to sharing the experience of a prior trip with my family. I purchased 4 tickets to the Doge Palace as I was not going to ruin the day for my family. The Doge place is a must see excursion when visiting Venice.
Review provided by Viator
