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Venice Grand Tour: Explore Doge's Palace & St. Mark's Basilica with Expert Guide
4.6
23 Ratings
Venezia
Discover Venice’s secrets with an expert guide. Explore St. Mark’s Basilica and Doge’s Palace in an exclusive small group tour.
Duration:
3 hours
Cancellation:
1 day
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Highlights
- Basilica di San Marco - This tour takes you inside the center of the religious power of Venice, the beautiful Basilica of St Marks with our skip-the-line access, where our expert history guide will give you a comprehensive and informative tour of this astonishing landmark-church that boasts a profusion of polychrome domes, walls clad in marbles and, inside, over 8000 square meters of glittering ceiling mosaics, many made with 24-carat gold leaf.
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Doge’s Palace - The highlight of the tour is our exclusive special visit of the Doge’s Palace, the very symbol of political Venice, an impressive structure composed of layers of building elements and ornamentation, from its 14th and 15th century original foundations to the significant Renaissance and opulent Mannerist adjunctions and today hosting paintings from world renown artists like Titiano, Tiepolo, Tintoretto and Veronese and set to the grand ball of Venice Carnival.
We’ll have a very exclusive access to the closed-to-general-public secret passages including the old torture chambers and prisons.
From the prisons you will visit the courtyard and then the noble areas of the Doge’s public and private areas, to visit the great ballrooms, the great Councils hall, and the Doge’s lavish apartments and the “Opera Museum” boasting astonishing collection of portrait including Renaissance and Mannerism with prominent “Venitian school” paintings by Titian, Tintoretto and Veronese. - Ponte dei Sospiri - You will also have the chance to walk the famous bridge of sighs and learn the story behind the origin of its name.
What's Included
- Access to the Prisons of the Doge’s Palace
- Licensed English speaking guide
- Palazzo Ducale visit
- St. Mark’s Basilica visit with exclusive access to terraces
- Skip the line entrance to St. Mark’s Basilica
What's Not Included
- Gratuities
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
Additional Information
THE CAPTIVATING MARVELS OF VENICE: Distinctive, enigmatic and captivating, Venice is among the world’s most awe-inspiring and remarkable cities. Delve into its essence via a small group exploration of exceptional quality, led by an Art Expert Guide, visiting the two primary and stunning locations of Venice’s Political and Religious power: the majestic St Mark’s Basilica - the principal cathedral, adorned with Venetian-Byzantine domes – and the Doge’s palace, a hub of governance, mysteries, carnival and masterpieces. The most thorough dive into the art and history of the two most significant political and religious monuments of Venice. It’s a must-experience in Venice, enjoyed in a small group with a highly trained licensed history guide. Only for lovers of art!
- Please let us know in advance any special need or impaired mobility of the clients and we will do our best to accomodate them.
- A dress code is required to enter places of worship and selected museums. No shorts or sleeveless tops allowed. Knees and shoulders MUST be covered for both men and women. You may risk refused entry if you fail to comply with these dress requirements.
- We are sorry to inform you that pets are not permitted on our tours
- On certain dates, most travelers staying outside of Venice who are planning to visit for the day will be required to pay a €5 access fee. For further details (including exemptions) and to learn what days this fee is applicable, please visit: https://cda.ve.it
Location
St. Mark's Square
Piazza San Marco
meet Florencetown tour leader under the column with the lion on the top, in front of the Doge's Palace.
Please be at the meeting point 15 minutes before the scheduled departure time.
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.6
(23 Ratings)
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Anniegirl605
Aug 16, 2024
Great tour of San Marco Basilica and Doge’s Palace! - Our guide Monica was excellent. Her knowledge of the basilica and Doge’s Palace was amazing. It was evident how much she loved the history of both . The tour was very thorough and we all enjoyed it.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Mospeedy
May 24, 2024
Interesting historical tour - Our tour guide, Mina Randy, did a great job showing us st Marks Plaza and Doges palace. His knowledge was vast and you could tell he enjoyed his job. He guided us through all the various sights and we never felt rushed
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Stay786446
May 22, 2024
Fabulous- would give 10 stars if I could. - Fabulous tour of the most beautiful buildings with a true art historian expert.
Amazingly knowledgeable and enthusiastic guide who bought the paintings to life with his stories of the artists and their subjects.
Highly recommend to anyone interested in art or history!
Well worth the price.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Robert_m
May 18, 2024
Best tour guide ever - One of the most insightful toys we’ve had. Our guide was so informative and friendly. Be prepared for lots of steps but what you expect with buildings this old.
Review provided by Viator
Vanatori
Oct 1, 2023
if you want to learn more about the Doges - Well done, can be recommended - not cheap, but value for money! The Guide, Octavia, is a very pleasant and polite Girl who give us a real good and comprehensive ipression about the Venecian History.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Heather_s
Jun 18, 2023
Informative Art Tour - I highly recommend this tour if you are an art lover. Our guide, Lorenzo, was very interesting and informative. He was animated and made the tour interesting and fun. The artwork in the palace and church are truly breathtaking. A must-see if you are visiting Venice.
Review provided by Viator
Charles_p
May 31, 2023
Great experience and a... - Great experience and a very knowledgeable and entertaining guide. Would definitely recommend this small group tour.
Review provided by Viator
Shane_s
May 24, 2023
Ottavia was the best... - Ottavia was the best guide, informative, detailed, humorous and thoughtful when answering questions. We have done many tours over the last month and this one was the best.
Review provided by Viator
Sarae_c
Jul 12, 2022
Amazing your, amazing guide, amazing experience - I learned so much about the Venetian Republic and the history of Venice. Our guide Ericka was amazing. On the last portion of the tour we walked around Venice and Ericka answered all our questions about past and local life in Venice. The best tour ever!
Review provided by Viator
Zachary_m
Sep 18, 2023
Not what we were expecting but still worth it - This was a good tour and worth the extra to skip the lines. However, everyone on the tour had a different package the bought. One had three hours, ours was two, another was four. Also it seemed like there was supposed to be more stuff on the tour that we skipped.
Review provided by Viator
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