Venice must-see: Doge's Palace, Golden Basilica and St.Mark's area-Guided tour | La Vacanza Travel

Venice must-see: Doge's Palace, Golden Basilica and St.Mark's area-Guided tour

Duration: 3 hours 30 minutes
Destination: Italy, Veneto, Venice
from
166.4

Check Availability

  • 3 hours 30 minutes
  • Venice
  • E-Voucher
  • Lowest Price
  • Not-Cancellable

Overview

Join to the half day tour in the heart of Venice: walking tour of Piazza San Marco and visit to the Doge’s Palace and St. Mark’s Basilica.

The guided visit begins in Piazza San Marco where you will discover the history of the main highlights and, then proceeds until Rialto bridge, admiring the lovely spots and fascinating place as Campo Santa Maria Formosa and Basilica of S. Giovanni and Paolo.

Later, the guide will bring you inside the marvelous Doge’s Palace with the fine decorated halls of power, the Golden Staircase and the most famous artworks of Tiepolo. Cross the infamous Bridge of Sighs to reach the old prisons where only Casanova managed to escape!

The last but not the least point of the visit is the breathtaking St. Mark’s Basilica: enter inside the Basilica to see its golden mosaics! Discover its secrets, history and admire the many artworks as the five domes covered by gold.

Enjoy the audio guide to visit more than 200 Venice highlights by yourself!

Itinerary
This is a typical itinerary for this product

Stop At: Piazza San Marco, 31024 Venice Italy

Learning about the past of this charming city while walking along the historical streets of Venice!

Walk through the Piazza San Marco with a qualified and experienced guide in order to learn Venetian history before the viewing of the main monuments in this area, including the Basilica San Marco, Palazzo Ducale, Bell Tower, Clock Tower and Procuratie. You will admire Campo Santa Maria Formosa, Campo SS. Giovanni e Paolo (the “Pantheon” of Venice), the Great School of Charity before viewing Marco Polo’s House and the Malibran Theatre. Visit the stunning Rialto Bridge with its traditional market.

Coming back to San Marco through the main shopping area known as Mercerie!

Duration: 1 hour 30 minutes

Stop At: Doge's Palace, Piazza San Marco, 1, 30124 Venice Italy

The Palazzo Ducale has been for centuries the seat of the Venetian political power. In its splendid rooms, plastered and immersed in hundreds of painting masterpieces, the Duke and his Council controlled the fate for thousand-years in the old Republic. You’ll live it together with a guide who will show you the halls of power, plunging you into a very special historical context: the European Middle Ages. You’ll be surprised by the details of the gold staircase and of the realism of the scenes depicted by many artists who have decorated this building.

Duration: 1 hour 15 minutes

Pass By: Ponte dei Sospiri, Piazza San Marco, 1, 30100 Venice Italy

Relive the anguish of the prisoners crossing the famous Bridge of Sighs, and entering the Venetian prisons, famous for hosting Giacomo Casanova.

Stop At: Basilica di San Marco, San Marco, 328, 30124 Venice Italy

Follow a tour guide through St. Mark's Basilica, one of the most majestic cathedrals in the world. Learning about byzantine art and its religious background while taking a glimpse at the gold mosaics and marble floors.

After the visit of the Basilica you will have the opportunity to visit a Glass Factory close to Saint Mark’s Square where you can see a Glass Craftsman at work. Please note this is a free of charge optional tour of approximately 20 minutes and it is not a part of the tour.

Duration: 1 hour

Pass By: Museo Correr, Piazza San Marco San Marco 52, 30124 Venice Italy

You may visit by yourself the other magnificent palaces around St. Mark’s Square as known as Procuratie. You will discover the Venetian way of life, Venetian paintings, library, coinage, sculpture. You will go back directly to the secrets of Venetian Empire and you will visit the area built by Napoleon and the rooms restored for Sissi Empress Austria

Inclusions
  • Guided walking tour of Piazza San Marco and Venice city
  • Guided tour of Doge's Palace and St. Mark Basilica
  • Skip the line entrace to Doge's Palace and Basilica of Saint Mark
  • Ticket valid to visit by yourself the Palaces in St. Mark's Square
  • Acces to the Bridge of Sighs and the Piombi Prisons.
  • Mobile audio guide with commentary for a self-guided tour of the 5 districts of Venice
  • Entrace to the San Marco Museum and the Basilica Terrace
  • Entry/Admission - Basilica di San Marco
  • Entry/Admission - Doge's Palace

Exclusions
  • Hotel pickup
  • Not wheelchair accessible
  • Near public transportation
  • Not recommended for travelers with back problems
  • Not recommended for pregnant travelers
  • No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
  • Most travelers can participate
  • Tour does not operate in case of exceptional high tide or in case of unexpected religious functions (in these cases it can be postponed the days after otherwise it will be refunded)
  • For the visit of the Basilica suitable clothing is required (no shorts)
  • You must download the audio guide with digital map on your mobile phone.
  • You will receive the audio guide with digital map by e-mail. If you have any problems with this, please come to Venice Tours office (San Marco 1093/B) for assistance.
  • Due to the security reason, luggage and bags are not allowed inside the Basilica
  • Admire mosaics, the San Marco Museum and enjoy a breathtaking overview of St. Mark's Square from the Terrace.
  • 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
  • This tour/activity will have a maximum of 10 travelers
  • Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Departure Point

Calle larga de l'Ascension, 30124 Venezia VE, Italy


Departure Time

09:00 AM


Return Details

Returns to original departure point

Voucher info

You can present either a paper or an electronic voucher for this activity.

Duration

3 hours 30 minutes


User's Reviews

Nishaan_N

05 Apr, 2024

Don’t waste your time or money on this tour. WORST experience ever. We had only 1 day in Venice and it was completely wasted. We booked a tour that clearly stated group of 10 or less. When we arrived we realised that there were 22 people. When we questioned the tour operator he was rude and dismissive. The headsets were not working trying to resolve this took over half an hour. Most importantly the guide could not speak English properly so we couldn’t understand a word. 5 minutes into the tour we left. We walked forever to find Venice tours offices. There we explained the issues and they were just as unhelpful. We had to call La Vacanza Travel and hold 3 times while in their office. We confirmed with Venice tours and La Vacanza Travel that we shall be refunded and we proceeded to buy our own tickets to see the one attraction that we had time to visit. Despite not going for the tour and not using any of the tour operators tickets and cancelling because we were lied to about the group size and the tour guide being fluent in English we still haven’t received a refund.

Rose_C

01 Apr, 2024

The tour was supposed to be 3 1/2 hours and they sent us for lunch in the middle. We didn’t get to see the dome and they didn’t offer a refund.

Kavita_K

30 Mar, 2024

Tour didn't start on time. Golden Basilica was closed on the day I booked by trip. The operators could have informed us by SMS or emails it's closed on that day,I could have arranged for something else than. But they never informed until we started the tour. Disappointed.

Anthony_D

30 Mar, 2024

This was our fourth of five tours booked through La Vacanza Travel and the only experience that did not meet expectations. Despite paying for it, we were not permitted to tour the inside of the Basilica. Before we started the walking tour, I informed our tour guide, Max, that my husband is disabled and struggles with long periods of walking and to please be cognizant of how far behind we would be. On every other tour, the guides would periodically wait for us to catch up. Not only did Max not keep track of who was with him, he did not care and we became lost in Venice in the pouring rain. We had to ask several people for help in order to find our way back. We finally made it back to the piazza a half hour before the tour resumed with the Doge Palace. We returned our headsets to Max and told him we were done with him. It was such a bad experience, that we refused to continue on to the Doge Palace. He did not even offer an apology. We will be seeking a refund

Vikram_A

30 Mar, 2024

We had a mixed experience. St Marks Basilica was closed during our visit. Despite the tour company knowing in advance we were not given an option to cancel or reschedule. Furthermore after the tour started we were told we had to take a “break” and then return to complete the Doge Palace portion. They also extended the walking tour without giving any sense of how long it would be. Given we had elderly family members and young children (plus rain!) we may have opted to do something else / shorter. In the positive, the tour guide was extremely knowledgeable even though his style was a bit pedantic.

User's Picture Gallery

Image

Venice Walking Doge & Basilica Tour

Image

Similar Packages


Other Populars

Some popular Sightseeing Tours, Activities and Holiday Packages.

Italy - SightSeeing Tours and Activities View All

Venice - Holiday Packages View All

- Where To Stay View All

- Top Tourist Attractions View All