doge's palace guided tour

Doge’s Palace, Venice (2024): How to Visit, Tickets, Tours & Tips (Palazzo Ducale)

By Author Jurga

Posted on Last updated: January 26, 2024

Thinking of visiting Doge’s Palace in Venice and wondering what to expect and if it’s worth it? In this guide, you can read all about it and learn our top tips for your first visit. Find out!

Doge’s Palace in Venice, Italy, ( Palazzo Ducale di Venezia ) is one of the main landmarks of the city . We have been to Venice many times and always admired the exterior of the stunning Gothic-style palace, but somehow never took the time to visit inside. We thought it was just another overhyped museum, but we couldn’t have been more wrong!

We finally visited Doge’s Palace on our recent trip to Venice and wow – the interior of the palace took our breath away! We also learned so much about the captivating history of the city that we never knew before.

If you are also wondering whether Doges Palace is worth seeing inside, what to expect, and how to make the most of your visit, this article should answer all your questions. We also include information about Doge’s Palace tickets and some of the best guided tours. Find out!

Best ticket & tour options for Doge’s Palace:

• Skip-the-line entrance ticket (same price as the official site and so much simpler to book).
• Guided tour .
• Exclusive after-hours tour of Doge’s Palace & St. Mark’s Basilica .

Why Visit Doge’s Palace

One of the top attractions in Venice and an integral part of the Venice waterfront, Doge’s Palace has a rich and fascinating history.

Visiting Doge’s Palace is key to understanding the city’s history. In addition, it’s well worth seeing its impressive architecture and lavish interior. It also gives you a unique opportunity to walk on the famous Bridge of Sighs.

For almost 1000 years it was the building from which 120 Doges (or chief magistrates) wielded their awesome power and decided Venice’s fate. This seat of government housed a Senate, court facilities, the secret police, and also prisons. It was also the residence of the Doge of Venice, who – once elected – would remain in his position for life.

By the end of the 13th century, Venice was one of Europe’s richest cities, mostly due to trading spices, silks, and wool between Europe and the Middle East. Its wealthy citizens became patrons of the arts, commissioning fabulous sculptures and paintings to decorate their palaces.

The building is an unmistakable testament to Venice’s wealth and power at the time! Its breathtaking facade – featuring gorgeous pink Verona marble – is a real Gothic masterpiece.

Inside you can see beautiful stone arches, magnificent sculptures, grand chambers, and historical artifacts. The museum also houses some of the most famous works of art in the world, including pieces by Titian, Veronese, and A. Vittoria.

Tintoretto’s masterpiece ‘Paradise’ – the largest oil painting in the world – hangs in the Hall of the Great Council.

Further below, you can find more information about the history of the Doge’s Palace, its most important features, and the main things not to miss on your visit. But first – some practical information and tips for your visit.

Location & Getting There

The Doge’s Palace is located on the famous St. Mark’s Square and right next to St. Mark’s Basilica. Since most of Venice’s must-see attractions are also located here, you don’t need to make any special effort to get to Doge’s Palace – it’s the main area of the city that everybody visits.

The entrance to the Palace is located on the wide waterfront promenade Riva degli Schiavoni. Nowadays, you enter the Palace through the Grain Gateway (Porta del Frumento).

You can reach Doge’s Palace on foot or by boat. If you are visiting Venice by car or by train and are walking from the Piazzale Roma area, simply follow the signs for ‘San Marco’. Count about 30-45 minutes of walking time without any stops.

A faster way to get there is by taking a public waterbus Vaporetto . Many lines stop at San Marco and you can easily get here from any part of town. Alternatively, you can also opt for a water taxi, which is by far the most luxurious and the most convenient way to travel around Venice (but also very expensive).

Opening Hours & Tickets

Doge’s Palace is open daily, in the high season from 9 AM to 7 PM (the last admission is an hour before the closing time). In the lower season, it closes at 5-6 PM.

At the moment of the last update, tickets to Palazzo Ducale cost around 30-33 EUR. There are discounts for kids, students, and senior citizens.

You can buy tickets online on the official website (see below), but the whole interface looks quite complicated. We bought our tickets on GetYourGuide . You can reserve timed-entry fast-track tickets on Tiqets as well. Both these sites have the same price as the museum itself (but these websites are so much easier to use!).

Good to know: All Doge’s Palace tickets also include the Correr Museum, National Archeological Museum, and Biblioteca Marciana.

For up-to-date practical information, please check the official website of the museum .

TIP: If you are planning to visit Doge’s Palace and St. Mark’s Basilica, consider this digital Venice Pass . It allows you to prebook timed entry tickets and also includes a gondola ride or the islands tour – a very good value.

How to Visit & Tours

You can get your tickets in advance, there are informational panels inside, and so it’s very easy to visit Doge’s Palace on your own. However, it only looks simple on paper!

Together with St. Mark’s Basilica, Doge’s Palace is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the city. No matter when you come, it will always be busy here. So if you want to make the most of your visit, it’s essential to plan in advance!

If you decide to visit on your own , it’s best to go here early in the morning or an hour or two before closing time. Make sure to get skip-the-line tickets in advance . We were in Venice on an extremely quiet day when there were almost no foreign tourists in town. Still, we had to wait over 45 minutes in line at Doge’s Palace. On a busy day, queues can take up to several hours. However, there’s a separate entrance for those with skip-the-line tickets. It’s absolutely worth it!

The best way to visit Doge’s Palace is by taking a guided tour . Not only do you get priority access, but going with a local guide also allows you to better appreciate everything you see. Furthermore, it’s often so busy inside that you don’t even know where to go first and you might easily skip some of the main sights without even realizing it.

So if you want to see as much as possible in a short time and also learn more about the history of Venice and the Doge’s Palace, then definitely consider going with a guide. Here you can book a guided tour for Doge’s Palace only . But I recommend going on a tour that also includes St. Mark’s Basilica . It’s the best use of your time and money!

INSIDER TIP: If you are looking for an unforgettable experience in Venice, take a look at this exclusive after-hours guided tour . It brings you to Doge’s Palace and St. Mark’s Basilica in the evening, after it closes to the general public. It’s magical!

How Much Time Do You Need

You need at least 1-1.5 hours for a quick visit to Doge’s Palace. This does not include queuing times. If you want to explore it deeper you will need 2-3 hours.

TIP: Going with a guided tour, you can usually visit both – Doge’s Palace and St. Mark’s Basilica – in just 2-2.5 hours. You’d never be able to see that much in such a short time on your own. If your time in Venice is limited, this is by far the best option. Here you can see availability and book the best-rated skip-the-line tour for these two main Venice attractions.

READ ALSO: How to See the Best of Venice in One Day

Doge’s Palace with Kids

If you are wondering whether it’s a good idea to visit Doge’s Palace with kids, I’d say go ahead. There is enough variation in what you see that even younger kids shouldn’t get bored.

Our boys were truly impressed by the sheer size of the Palace, the huge painted halls, and the armory exhibits. They also enjoyed visiting the prison cells and walking over the Bridge of Sighs. If you tell your kids some history of the place and give some explanation of what you see, they’ll enjoy the visit more.

That being said, all three of our kids (age 9-12) were quite tired after a visit here. So younger children will probably find a visit here quite tiring as well. There are lots of stairs and walking slowly can be more tiring than hours of hiking outdoors. So if you are visiting Venice with a baby or a toddler , Doge’s Palace might not be the best place to take them.

Is Doge’s Palace Worth It?

Yes, Doge’s Palace is absolutely worth a visit, even if you only have a day in Venice. Not only is it the best place to learn more about the fascinating history of Venice, but its splendid interiors will take your breath away. It’s also your chance to walk on the iconic Bridge of Sighs!

Knowing that very few citizens of Venice were ever allowed to enter this building, a visit here feels even more special.

What left the biggest impression on us was the contrast between the opulence of the luxurious residential apartments and lavish council chambers and the grim desperate conditions of its prisons. It’s an eye-opening experience that will help you to better appreciate what a fascinating city Venice really is.

Below, you can read more about the history of Doge’s Palace and find a short list of the main points of interest to see inside. Take a look!

The Doge’s Palace – with its strategic location at the point of access to the sea – was built around the 9th century as a fort. Originally with a tower at each corner, the building has seen many changes over the years. This is reflected in the mixture of architectural styles from several periods.

In the 12th century, Doge Sebastiano Ziani transformed the fort into a palace. It was gradually expanded throughout the 13th and 14th centuries.

Unfortunately, a number of destructive fires did enormous damage to the building in the 16th century. However, because of this, the palace was restructured and improved. Some of its most beautiful additions, such as the Stairs of the Giants , were made at that time.

The original building already housed prisons – known as ‘ Piombi ‘. In the 17th century, new prisons were built to supplement them. The Bridge of Sighs connecting the new prisons to the palace across the canal also dates from this time.

In the 18th century, the Palace was slightly remodeled to house administrative offices and it was still used as a prison. After 1866, when Venice was annexed to Italy, Doge’s Palace was restructured several times. It finally became a museum in 1923.

Things to See Inside

There is so much to see inside the Doges Palace! If you follow the indicated route, you’ll pass all the main sights. However, it can get so overwhelming that it’s easy not to notice some of the nicest features. So here are the main points of interest that you shouldn’t miss when visiting Doge’s Palace:

Courtyard & Staircase of the Giants

The impressive courtyard is the first place you see when you enter the Palace. The highlight of the courtyard has to be the Staircase of the Giants ( Scala dei Giganti ), at the top of which the doge’s coronation would take place.

In the 15th century, the Great Council came up with an idea for creating a ceremonial staircase. The Giants Staircase takes its name from the two enormous statues of Mars and Neptune that symbolize Venice’s power by both land and sea.

To the right of the Giant’s Staircase is the Senator’s Courtyard . This is where the members of the senate would gather before government meetings. In the middle of the courtyard, you can see two well-heads dating from the middle of the 16th century.

Golden Staircase

Golden Staircase ( La Scala d’Oro ) is a very impressive ceremonial staircase leading up to Doge’s apartments and to the chambers of the state government.

The staircase was completed in 1559 and is indeed decorated with real 24-carat gold.

Doges’ Apartments

The Doges’ Apartments on the second floor are very impressive but quite modest in size (especially when you consider the power of the various doges that occupied them). This was probably a deliberate reminder that although the doge was a state symbol, he was – more importantly – its first servant.

The original rooms were destroyed by fire in 1483 and the apartments were rebuilt in Renaissance style. They were individually furnished by each incoming doge, using items from his previous home. On his death, his furnishings would be removed to make way for his successor.

Today they still house some incredible artwork, including the 16th-century fireplace and the carved ceiling of the Sala degli Scarlatti .

Senate Hall

Senate Hall ( Sala del Senat o) is an imposing and lavishly decorated Hall. It was used for various governmental functions, including the appointment of new ambassadors and the making of important decisions on foreign policy.

Venice’s Senate was founded in the 13th century and was one of the city’s oldest public institutions. It was made up of members chosen from the city’s wealthiest families. Its areas of responsibility included financial and political affairs, trade, and manufacturing.

In 1574, a fire damaged much of the Hall and it was refurbished in the 1580s. Its ceiling was beautifully decorated with Tintoretto’s ‘ Triumph of Venice ‘, whilst the main focus of the Hall became another of Tintoretto’s works, ‘ Christ ‘.

This painting was likely commissioned in acknowledgment of the Senate’s ‘conclave’. Responsible for electing the doge, the conclave was seen as being protected by the Son of God. Under the painting, you will see the ornamental seat in which the doge would sit during meetings.

Chamber of the Great Council

The Great Council Hall ( Sala del Maggior Consiglio ) is an even bigger hall with stunning paintings on all walls and ceilings. The Great Council, the most important political body in the Republic of Venice, held its meetings here.

This room is huge and measures 53 meters in length and 25 meters in width. It was one of the largest halls in Europe and could fit up to 2000 people. It was clearly built and decorated to show power and wealth and to impress whoever visited here. Its lavish decorations and beautiful paintings reminded me of the Painted Hall in London .

There are 35 painted panels on the ceiling. The most famous of them all is the Apotheosis of Venice , a painting by Paolo Veronese, dating from 1585. Just under the ceiling, you can see portraits of the first 76 doges of Venice . The portraits of the later doges can be found in the Sala dello Scrutinio.

Tintoretto’s painting ‘Il Paradiso’ – the world’s largest oil painting on canvas – can also be found in this room.

Bridge of Sighs

One of the most famous bridges in the world, the Bridge of Sighs ( Ponte dei Sospiri ) was designed by Antonio Contino. It was built in 1600 in order to connect the interrogation rooms and courts of the Palace to the new prisons on the other side of the canal. This is the route that convicted prisoners would have taken to their cells after sentencing.

Lord Byron mentioned the bridge in 1812 in his book ‘Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage’, saying “ I stood in Venice, on the Bridge of Sighs; A palace and a prison on each hand .” It is this reference that likely led to the bridge’s fame.

The Bridge of Sighs got its name in around the 18th century. It refers to the sighs of the prisoners who took a last glimpse of the outside world through the tiny openings of this enclosed bridge on their way to the prison cells.

In reality, looking across Venice from this enclosed bridge is actually quite difficult. There are just a few small openings from which you can get a glimpse of the hustle and bustle of the canal below.

Interesting to know: The interior of the enclosed bridge is divided into two separate corridors. That way, prisoners walking in one direction wouldn’t meet anyone coming from the other side. When you are visiting Doges Palace, you’ll walk over the bridge twice without even realizing that there is another side of it.

Despite its grim history, the bridge – made of white limestone – is quite beautiful. Happily, it has now become a symbol of romance. According to a popular legend, couples sailing beneath it on a gondola – kissing as they pass – will experience eternal love.

TIP: You can also see the Bridge of Sighs from the bridge at Riva degli Schiavoni and also from the other side. And indeed, if you take a gondola ride in St. Mark’s area, you can pass under the bridge in a gondola.

READ ALSO: Tips for a Gondola Ride in Venice

Prison Cells

The cold dark prison cells form a sharp contrast with the luxurious chambers of the Doge’s Palace. It’s almost hard to believe that this is the same building!

Dating back to the 12th century, the prison cells of Doge’s Palace are composed of the Piombi, the Pozzi, and the Prigioni Nuove (New Prisons). Conditions in the prisons were truly terrible, and few of those who entered them would ever see the light of day again.

It was very easy to end up in prison in Venice at that time! The Palace was surrounded by mailboxes shaped like lions’ mouths, into which citizens could post pieces of paper bearing the names of neighbors they suspected of wrongdoing. All accusations were thoroughly investigated and tried by the dreaded Council of Ten, one of the main governing bodies throughout the 14th – 18th centuries. Those who were convicted were sent to the cells within the Palace walls.

In English, the Piombi is known as the ‘Leads’, because the cells were located directly under the lead-covered roof. This made them unbearably hot in summer and bitterly cold in winter. As bad as they were, they were still better than the ‘Pozzi’ on the ground floor. These cells were damp, tiny, and barely lit, with just a bucket for excrement. The conditions in the New Prisons were somewhat better, though still incredibly harsh.

Though notoriously difficult to escape, one famous prisoner managed to do so. That was Casanova, who escaped the prison in 1756.

The Paper Gate ( Porta della Carta ) was originally the main entrance to the Palace and links the Palace to St Mark’s Basilica. Nowadays, you leave the Palace via this gate. It’s most impressive when viewed from St. Mark’s Palace, so make sure to look back as you are leaving!

TIP: Even if you are not visiting inside the Doge’s Palace, you can still see this gate. You can find it on the right side of St. Mark’s Basilica; where it connects to the Doge’s Palace.

The origin of its name is not clear. Some say it is the ‘Paper Gate’ because it is near the area in which the scribes would put up their desks, or where people waited to hand their petitions to council members. Others believe that its name came from the ‘cartabum’ – the archive of state documents that is located nearby.

Considered to be one of the finest examples of Venetian Gothic architecture, the 15th-century Paper Gate features ornate carved figures. Its most remarkable feature is the sculpture of Doge Francesco Foscari kneeling in front of the lion of Saint Mark . This sculpture is actually a 19th-century copy of the original, which was destroyed in 1797 when Venice was invaded by Napoleon’s army. The sculpture is said to be symbolic of the fact that even the mighty doge must bow before the power of the state.

So, this is our guide to visiting the famous Doge’s Palace in Venice. If you plan well and get your tickets (or book a tour ) in advance, a visit here only takes an hour or two of your time. So don’t miss it! This is truly one of the must-see places in Venice.

If you are visiting Venice soon and are wondering how to plan your time, take a look at these suggested itineraries:

• 1 Day in Venice
• 3 Days in Venice (it will also work for 2 days – just pick the sights that interest you the most).

READ ALSO: What to See & Do in Venice (all the top sights and attractions that you shouldn’t miss)

Some travel guides and inspiration for Italy:

• Best Places to See in Italy
• Best Italian Cities to Visit
• Rome 1 day itinerary
• Milan 1 day itinerary
• Naples 1 day itinerary
• Florence 1 day itinerary
• Rome 2 days itinerary
• Rome 4 days itinerary
• Best towns in Tuscany
• What to see and do in Rome
• What to see and do in Florence
• What to see and do in Milan
• What to see in Siena
• What to see in Verona
• What to see in Ravenna
• What to see in Naples
• For more tips and inspiration for a variety of popular destinations in Italy, take a look at our Italy travel guide .

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Sunday 11th of June 2023

Thank you for this! All your information was very helpful!! I was trying to book tickets on their website & found it very confusing as you mentioned too! I wasn’t quite sure what I was buying even though I had selected “ English”. I used one of the links you listed to grab the tickets ahead with it being the same price! Love, love all the info about Doge’s Palace that you wrote! Very helpful & relevant ( even the fact that Doges palace means Palazzo Ducale!)

Monday 12th of June 2023

Thank you for your kind feedback, Sabrina. Appreciate it. And yes, it's often so much easier to get tickets via Tiqets or GetYourGuide than direct. We get all our tickets/tours via these companies nowadays and it makes any trip planning much simpler. Enjoy your trip!

Sunday 30th of April 2023

Is it possible to visit the courtyard without purchasing tickets to go inside the apartments and museums?

Hi Tanya, the entrance and the security check are located before you enter the courtyard, so no, you cannot see it without a ticket.

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Guided Tour of the Doge's Palace

• 8.10 / 10 1,188 reviews | 12,431 travellers Very good guide, it is a shame that the meeting point for departure is very far from the Doge's Palace and difficult to find for tourists who do not know the city. The plan is not clear and poorly done. Possibilities for sitting in the rooms could be provided because all possible seats are prohibited and for some elderly people this is difficult 10 Marc
• Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the service starts

This tour takes you back to the golden age of the city , passing through the surprising living rooms of the Doge's Palace, residence of the Duke of the Venetian Republic and seat of Venetian political power through the centuries.

Description

During this guided tour of the Doge's Palace, we'll pass through the incredible art-filled rooms from where the Doge and his advisors controlled the republic for more than 1,000 years .

Visiting the various different halls, going up the golden stairs , and enjoying the  grand paintings of the era , you'll have the opportunity to travel back in time and breathe the atmosphere of the Middle Ages . 

Having immersed yourself in this luxury, the tour goes down into the old prison , to get to know the anguish of the prisoners who, having crossed the Bridge of Sighs , found themselves in the darkness of the dungeons . The most famous prisoner to be interred in the Doge's Palace was Casanova.

After the guided tour, you can revisit the Palace at your own leisure.

What does the visit include?

• By booking the guided tour of the Doge's Palace, you'll get  priority access , allowing you to avoid the long queues.
• With the entrance ticket to the Doge's Palace, you'll also have free access to the other museums in St. Mark's Square : Correr Museum, Archaeological Museum, Monumental Hall, and National Martian Library. The tickets to the museums will be valid on the same day of the visit to the Doge's Palace, and you'll have access to each museum only once.
• If you visit the Palazzo Ducale in the morning, you must visit the Correr Museum in the afternoon. If you visit the Doge's Palace in the afternoon, you must visit the Correr Museum the following morning.

More Information

1 hour 15 minutes.

The activity takes place with a guide that speaks in English and other languages.

English–speaking guide

Priority access ticket to the Doge's Palace

Ticket to the 4 museums in St. Mark's Square: Correr Museum, Archaeological Museum, Monumental Rooms of the National Library, and National Martian Library

When to book?

You can book up to the start time, as long as there are places remaining. Book now to guarantee your spot.

Type of voucher

Electronic. Show the voucher on your phone.

Accessibility

Only some areas are accessible. Accessible toilets. Accessible toilets. An accompanying person is required. An accompanying person is required. This must be indicated in the reservation. This must be indicated in the reservation.

Sustainability

All services published on Civitatis are carried out in accordance with our Sustainability Code .

Our providers commit to:

• Provide a safe and satisfying experience.
• Reduce, reuse, recycle.
• Incorporate eco-conscious technologies.
• Uphold fair employment standards.
• Foster the growth of local communities.
• Preserve the integrity of local culture.
• Safeguard both cultural and environmental heritage.
• Ensure ethical treatment of animals.
• Operate with honesty and transparency.
• Encourage sustainable behaviors among customers and staff.

This particular activity contributes as follows:

• Printed material is avoided.
• No single-use plastics are used.
• Reusable headsets are used.
• The activity helps the dissemination of local cultural heritage.
• No printing of documentation required.

Park Viaggi S.r.l. | Venice Tours Show more

Corporate name: PARK VIAGGI SRL

Corporate name: VENICE TOURS S.R.L.

Not permitted.

Frequently asked questions

Q - Why do this activity with Civitatis?

A - At Civitatis we guarantee the best quality and prices, click here if you want to know how we select our activities.

Q - How to book?

A - To reserve the activity, choose the date and complete the form on this page. You will receive your confirmation immediately.

If you have any other questions please contact us.

Free cancellation

Meeting point.

Calle larga de l'Ascension

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The Doge’s Palace…A masterpiece of Gothic architecture, the very symbol of Venice…

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From 27 March, on display in the Sala del Magistrato alle Leggi “The Pier towards Riva degli Schiavoni with the Column of Saint Mark” by Canaletto, as part of the “Guests at the Palace” exhibitions

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Doge’s Palace Guided Tour

Meet the local guide and start an incredible journey through history and art to discover one of the most famous museums in the city: Doge’s palace . This guided tour will take you inside what used to be the political power in Venice, it is a stunning building embellished by the most famous Italian artists of 1500.

Masterpieces of Italian painters such as Tintoretto, Tiziano and Veronese are preserved in this palace, now a museum. Discover the secrets of Venice governments, visit the prisons and listen to legends around this palace.

Read more…

Your local guide will show you the most interesting paintings , the most beautiful and interesting rooms such as the majestic Sala del Maggior Consiglio , an incredible hall which is one of the largest in the world.

In this enchanting palace you will lose track of time and you will fly with your imagination to the past when these beautiful halls were full of people discussing the destiny of Venice. Many legends and stories populate the palace and the prisons. See how the prisoners lived and cross the Bridge of Sighs, like they used to do in the past.

Duration 2 hours

Venice, Piazza San Marco 1, in front the entrance of Doge’s palace

Language English

Max Number of People 16

Full Refund Full refund for cancellations received at least within 24 hours in advance

More Details  ↓

• See the best of Doge’s palace in just a 2-hours guided tour
• Skip-the-line entrance
• Listen to stories and legends about this charming place
• Admire Tintoretto, Tiziano and Veronese masterpieces

Tour Includes

• Licensed guide
• Entrance ticket to the Doge’s palace

Do you need more insight into this tour? Would you like to change something? Feel free to get in touch!

• Availability All year round
• Timing Everyday at 3:30 PM
• Important notes – Minors must be accompanied by an adult; – This tour is guaranteed with a minimum number of 2 participants.
• Meeting point – The guide will be ouside the main entrance holding a yellow sign with “TOUR” written; – Please arrive at the meeting point 10 minutes in advance.
• Adverse conditions/unforeseen circumstances Please note that in case of adverse weather conditions (eg. bad storms, unexpected extreme events), or unforeseen circumstances (eg. monuments sudden closures, train/flight cancellations or delays) we do not guarantee a full refund. The company will examine each case and act accordingly.
• Mobility impairments and disabilities Please note that some parts of the tour may not be easily accessible for people with reduced mobility (or any kind of disability), if you are unsure of the details, feel free to contact us at [email protected] .
• In case of delay In case of delay, contact the emergency number +39-327-4674179
• Rain Policy This tour runs rain or shine. However, please note that Doge’s Palace can be closed to the public in case of high tides. In this case, we will inform the participants and we will provide an alternative for the whole group. Please be aware that refunds will not be guaranteed to those who won’t accept the offered alternative.

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St. Mark’s Basilica & Doge’s Palace Half-Day Tour with Gondola Ride

Explore st. mark's square's most iconic attractions with skip-the-line tickets and an expert guide.

Only have a few hours to spend on a guided tour in Venice? Then we have you covered. You’ll get skip-the-line entry at both St. Mark’s Basilica and the Doge’s Palace to maximize your time while you learn about the incredible centuries-old histories of these remarkable monuments. Then finish off with a must-do gondola ride in the Grand Canal. Your day in Venice can’t get much more perfect!

• Skip the line tour of Doge's Palace and St. Mark's Basilica
• Skip-the-line entry and guided tour of Doge’s Palace
• The Golden Staircase
• The Grand Ballroom
• Prison cells and dungeon
• Bridge of Sighs
• Skip-the-line entry and guided tour of St. Mark’s Basilica
• The Church of Gold
• 30-Minute Gondola Ride

You’ll meet up with your local guide and the rest of your group in the famous St. Mark’s Square near the two columns by the canal. Skip the long lines at St. Mark’s so you can get right inside to learn about this magnificent golden church. Then explore the Doge’s Palace where you’ll see the golden staircase, prisons, and Bridge of Sighs. Finally, your guide will escort you to your gondola ride that might just become your favorite activity of the day!

St. Mark’s, Doge’s Palace, and Gondola Tour Description

Your 3.5-hour tour includes:

Skip-the-line entry and guided tour of St. Mark’s Basilica

Skip-the-line entry and guided tour of Doge’s Palace

30-minute gondola ride

Maximum group size of 20

A local, English-speaking guide

St. Mark’s Basilica

You’ll begin your tour of Venice in St. Mark's Square, or Piazza San Marco, which is perhaps one of the most famous public squares in the world. Then follow your guide past the crowds for your skip-the-line entry into St. Mark’s Basilica to see why it’s nicknamed the “Church of Gold”. With over 45,000 square feet of gilded mosaics constructed over eight centuries, the interior of St. Mark's Basilica is unlike anything you've ever seen.

Please note that St. Mark's is a sacred place, so we ask both men and women to cover knees and shoulders, otherwise you might be refused entry and you’ll miss out on a portion of your tour. We understand the summers in Venice can be hot, so a great alternative is to bring a shawl/scarf/sweater with you. That way you can cover your knees and shoulders when necessary.

Doge’s Palace and Bridge of Sighs

The Gothic building right next to St. Mark’s Basilica is the infamous Doge’s Palace that has a storied past of tyranny, torture, and an iron fist of rulers. From the 15th to 18th centuries, the Doges of Venice lived and ruled from this palace that includes paintings from Titian, Tintoretto, and Veronese.

The interior of the Doge's Palace is grand to say the least. Inside you’ll find marble fireplaces, friezes and stucco adorning the walls. Some works of art stand out over the rest, including iconic pieces by Titian, Tintoretto, and Veronese, and your guide will explain the stories and interpretations behind the art. You'll also pass through the awe-inspiring Great Council Chamber, which is one of the largest rooms in Europe and the place where the most important decisions were discussed.

One of the palace's most impressive features is the Golden Staircase, considered the most valuable staircase ever built. It connects the first floor of the palace to the third, where the Doge's offices were located. Your guide will show you the grand offices from which Venice was ruled for centuries, including the rooms that housed the powerful Council of Ten—the city's governing body.

Linking the palace to the prison cells, you'll cross the infamous Bridge of Sighs ( Ponte dei Sospiri ). Prisoners walked across this enclosed bridge before spending years or even the remainder of their lives behind bars. If that wasn’t enough to sigh about, look out from the small windows carved into the bridge that once offered convicts their last glimpse of beautiful Venice. That's plenty to sigh about. 

Traditional Gondola Ride

You might think it’s a super touristy thing to do—and it is—but taking a gondola ride through the Venetian canals really is a fun activity. Actually, it’s a must-do. That’s why it’s included on this tour to make sure your time in Venice is filled with the best opportunities. Enjoy lazily gliding through the canal while your gondolier poses for photos or even serenades you!

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Frequently Asked Questions

What to bring?

We recommend bringing comfortable walking shoes, a camera, and a water bottle. Large bags and backpacks are not allowed and will have to be checked before entering the Doge's Palace. It's best to leave them at your hotel if possible.

We recommend bringing comfortable walking shoes, a camera, and a water bottle. Large bags and backpacks are not allowed and will have to be checked before entering the Doge's Palace. It's best to leave them at your hotel if possible.

What if I have concerns about my mobility on this tour?

This is a walking tour that includes several sets of stairs, and you will be on your feet for most of the 3.5 hours.

Does this tour skip the line?

During the busy months, this tour has skip-the-line access. When there are fewer crowds in the winter, St. Mark's doesn't offer skip-the-line access, but the lines aren't long.

Free 24-hr cancellation on group tours! Learn more

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• Venice Guided Tours

The Doge’s Palace Tour

electronic voucher accepted

The Itinerary: The tour takes place inside one of the most important symbol of the politic life in Venice: the Doge’s Palace.

The Doge’s Palace Tour. The Doge’s Palace is a masterpiece of Gothic Architecture and its structure includes the original foundations, the fourteenth/fifteenth-century structure, remarkable additions from the Renaissance and Mannerist details. The structure is composed in three different blocks that absorb previous constructions. The oldest wing is the one looking towards the St. Mark’s Basin, contains the Hall of the Great Council and has been rebuilt starting from 1340. The Court Rooms, included in the wing which faces the Saint Mark’s Square, hosts the Sala dello Scrutinio and it was erected in its actual form from 1424 onwards. The wing facing the canal side and hosting the Doge’s apartments and several gouvernment offices, was erected between 1483 and 1565, during the Renaissance. The entrance to the Doge Palace reserved to public is located in Via Porta del Frumento (Forage Gateway), so called because the “Ufficio delle Biade” (Fodder Office) was situated nearby; it opens under the portico of the fourteenth-century facade overlooking the "Bacino San Marco". The public services and the Museo dell'Opera (Museum of the work done on the building) are located on the ground floor; the ancient palace kitchens now house the Cafeteria and a space for the temporary exhibitions.

ATTENTION PLEASE: for security reasons is strictly forbidden to enter the museums with backpacks, large handbags and luggage. We suggest you not to bring them with you since queues to leave them at the wardrobe are very long.

The Doge’s Palace Group Guided Tour

Starting Time: 11.45 am - During the high season also at 3:45 pm Frequency: every day Duration: about 1:15 Language: English (multilingual tour) Meeting Point: Calle Larga de l'ascension 1256 Price: 64.00 Euro per person.Children between 6 and 14 years old : 46.00 Euro. Children under 6: free.

The price includes: guide service, headphones, entry ticket for the Doge’s Palace (skip the line).

CANCELLATION POLICY In case of cancellation, please contact us .

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Doge’s Palace Venice: Self Guided Walking Tour

Have you decided to visit the Doge’s Palace in Venice but don’t know what this marvel of Italian artistic heritage has to offer? 

You’ve come to the right place! I am Paolo from the Doge’s Palace Venice, and in this post I will tell you about the visit and special itineraries of the Doge’s Palace, also known as the Doge’s Palace, a monument that is a symbol of Venice and Italy. 

Here I will explain the route of the visit that you can take on your own or by following a professional guide.

Are you ready? Let’s get started!

Before we start, a brief preamble: if you plan to visit the Doge’s Palace in Venice, (either by guided tour or on your own) it is strongly recommended to buy your ticket online , to avoid the long queue that may form at the ticket office. By purchasing the ticket in advance, you will be able to access the Palace by skipping the queue at the entrance.

Doge’s Palace Venice skip-the-line ticket: quick access

Buy online. Choose your preferred time. Visit Venice’s Doge’s Palace, Bridge of Sighs, prisons and more.

You can cancel for free up to the day before your visit.

Table of content

• 1 Visit the Doge’s Palace: the route in brief
• 2.1 Courtyard
• 2.2 Opera Museum
• 2.3 Loggias Floor 
• 2.4 Doge’s Apartments
• 2.5 Institutional Chambers (Part I)
• 2.7 Institutional Chambers (Part II)
• 2.8 Bridge of Sighs and New Prisons
• 2.9 Institutional Halls (Part III)
• 3.1 Secret Itineraries
• 3.2 The Doge’s Hidden Treasures
• 4 Doge’s Palace tour Venice: FAQ
• 5 Doge’s Palace self guided tour: conclusions

Visit the Doge’s Palace: the route in brief

Looking at the Doge’s Palace, or Palazzo del Doge, you will notice that it consists of four wings extending around the central porticoed courtyard . In height, however, it has three floors (the loggia, first and second noble floors) in addition to the prison building, which is external and accessible via the Bridge of Sighs between the first and second floors. In this context, you do not follow a linear route but find yourself going up and down the floors in stages.

To enter the Palace, you have to go to the Porta del Frumento – South Wing, overlooking St Mark’s Basin – from which you access the large porticoed courtyard .

Here, you can admire the two wellhead buildings, the majestic Giants’ Staircase and the clock façade of the Renaissance wing. 

This floor is also home to the Opera Museum , where you can discover the ancient capitals of the Palace, replaced and displayed here following a renovation in the 19th century. To continue your visit, cross the courtyard to the west wing and take the Censors’ Staircase leading to the upper floors.

A short passage to the first floor, called the Piano delle Logge , will allow you to stroll through the loggia and admire the large inner courtyard from above. From here, continue following the signs to access the sumptuous Golden Staircase leading to the first and second piano noble. 

On the first piano noble is the Doge’s Apartment located in the west wing. Here you can walk through the state rooms and learn more about the figure of the Doge through the works on display. Exhibitions and temporary exhibitions are also held in these rooms. 

The last flight of the Golden Staircase will take you to the second piano noble (top floor) where you will visit the first part of the Institutional Chambers . On this floor is the Sala delle Quattro Porte (Hall of the Four Doors), named after its four finely ornamented marble doors, and the Sala del Senato (Senate Hall) , where the senators whose job it was to control Venice’s finances and foreign policy gathered.

On the same floor, you can continue to the Armory, a former weapons depot divided into four rooms, which today displays more than two thousand pieces of weapons, armor and even instruments of torture.

After leaving the armory, descend back to the first floor through the Censors’ Staircase to visit the second group of institutional rooms .

On this floor the Halls also extend to the south wing, almost entirely occupied by the majestic Great Council Chamber , and to the west wing with the Scrutiny Room .

These rooms are the largest in the Palace:

• the first hosted the meetings of the Great Council, the highest political order of the Venetian Republic, chaired by the Doge;
• the second , originally used as a bookshop, later became the place for counting elections .

The exploration of the first piano noble ends in the Sala del Magistrato delle Leggi (Hall of the Magistrate of Laws) : from here you descend via the small staircase to the famous Bridge of Sighs .

Cross the bridge and you will arrive at the New Prisons , located in a separate building on the other side of the Rio di Palazzo. In the building, erected in the second half of the 16th century, you will be able to see the former prisoners’ places of detention .

Retracing the Bridge of Sighs – via a second walkway – return to the Piano delle Logge to visit the last institutional rooms. From the last room, the Sala Milizia del Mar , you will finally reach the Bookshop.

At the end of the visit, descend back down to the courtyard to arrive in the 16th-century Senators’ Courtyard – where they gathered to await government meetings – to the right of the Giants’ Staircase.

From here, passing under the Renaissance Arco Foscari, you can finally reach the exit of the palace through the monumental Paper door , which I recommend you observe carefully from the outside to admire its magnificence . 

The tour is free , but guided tours are also organized.

In addition, you can visit the Museum at night (times vary according to the season) to get a unique and evocative perspective of the Palace and the works inside.

Venice Doge’s Palace self-guided tour

In this section we discuss the visit route in detail . You can follow this guide as an indication for a visit on your own , or as an anticipation for a visit together with a professional tour guide .

We begin our tour of the Doge’s Palace from the wonderful courtyard .

To enter the Museum you will have to pass through the 14th-century south wing, which overlooks the Bacino di San Marco, and go through the Porta del Frumento , named after the Ufficio delle Biade that once stood nearby. Pass the ticket office and enter the courtyard to begin your visit!

Interior facades

Inside, on the left side is the wing facing Piazzetta San Marco to the west, on the right side is the Renaissance wing to the east, and finally the courtyard is closed off by a fourth side to the north, where the Doge’s Palace borders St Mark’s Basilica , which was once the Doge’s chapel.

If you look around, you will notice that the southern and western interior brick façades retain the characteristic Venetian Gothic look of the corresponding exterior façades.

The eastern façade of the courtyard, on the other hand, is decorated with Renaissance marble and was designed by architect Antonio Rizzo after the radical reconstruction of the wing following the devastating fire of 1483.

Arco Foscari and the Paper door

By continuing the tour of the Doge’s Palace , on the north side is the Porticato or Arco Foscari : a round arch made of white Istrian stone and red Verona marble. 

If you look up, you will notice a large clock at the top of the façade, the work of the German watchmaker Johan Slim, who made it in 1614 with a mechanism made of weights that reached down to the foundations of the palace and touched the water of an underground canal.

The Arco Foscari connects the inner courtyard to the majestic Paper door : once the main entrance to the palace, now the museum’s exit.

The Giants’ Staircase and the Senators’ Courtyard

As you stroll through the courtyard, you will see two massive and ornate bronze well-casters from the mid-16th century in the center and the imposing Giants’ Staircase : a natural extension of the Arco Foscari and the ancient entrance to the upper floors, it houses at its summit the statues of Mars and Neptune , sculpted by Sansovino in 1565, symbolizing the power of Venice.

To the right of the Giants’ Staircase you will find the 16th-century Senators’ Courtyard , where senators used to gather for government meetings.

The Censors’ Staircase

Also on the same side, but in the opposite direction to the majestic staircase, stands the Scala dei Censori under the elegant portico. This was built in 1525 to an architectural design by Antonio Abbondi, known as Scarpagnino. 

Just by climbing the Censors’ Staircase you can continue your visit to the upper floors and immerse yourself in the rich artistic and historical heritage offered by the Doge’s Palace.

Opera Museum

The Opera Museum housed a technical office responsible for the maintenance of the building , located in the south-west corner of the ground floor.

In the 19th century, the Doge’s Palace was in a terrible state of disrepair, so it was decided to carry out a major intervention in 1876 . A major restoration project was initiated in which 42 capitals of the exterior colonnade and other architectural elements were removed from the palace’s outer walls and courtyard and replaced with replicas.

The originals were restored and housed in the Opera Museum.

The capitals in the Museo dell’Opera are a precious and important part of the extraordinary sculptural apparatus that enriches the medieval facades of the Doge’s Palace . It is not just a simple decorative apparatus, but an articulate allegorical, religious, moral and political cycle that was certainly easier for a 14th and 15th century citizen to understand than it is today. 

The sculptures on the capitals represent a veritable poem in stone, peopled by women, men, children, animals, plants, zodiac signs, myths, symbols, vices, virtues, grouped in tales, parables and demonstrations, allegories and moral foundations, along a path that, in a typically medieval process, combined history and legend, astronomy and astrology, the sacred and the profane.

The Opera Museum offers an itinerary based on this tale in stone and is currently divided into six rooms.

This room contains six capitals and their columns from the 14th century portico of the palace overlooking St. Mark’s Basin. These are the oldest in the building, which was begun in 1340. 

The first one you meet on your way, on the right, represents Solomon and the seven scholars .

Unlike the capitals in the previous room, the four capitals in this room , with their columns, were originally located on the façade facing the Piazzetta.

The reliefs, of great sculptural quality, are very rich in allegories and moral teachings , dealing with topics related to work, the fruits of the earth, astrological correspondences, etc. On the entrance wall is a late 16th-century infill of one of the arches of the portico overlooking Ponte Paglia.

After the great fire that broke out in 1577, it was decided to plug the last arches for structural reasons.

This room houses three capitals with columns . The first on the right, described by Ruskin as ‘the most beautiful in Europe’, was located in the corner between the square and the pier, under the sculptural group of Adam and Eve.

Approach the sculpture of The Creation of Adam, the planets and their houses : it is from this position that one can appreciate the importance of this sculptural group in the great iconographic program of the Palace.

The reading begins with the creation of the first man , visible on the left with his back to the entrance, and continues with the depiction of the planets and corresponding constellations. The image of God seated on a throne has just completed the formation of Adam, followed by the elderly and bearded Saturn, seated in Capricorn, with his precious Aquarian vessel, counterclockwise.

His attribute, the sickle, is still visible, making him the protector of work in the fields and reminding the government of his old age and death; next to it, Jupiter, with a cloak around his neck and a doctor’s hat, touches the sign of Pisces and sits above Sagittarius, armed with a bow and arrow.

Mars sits in Aries , flanked by Scorpio, like an armored warrior with sword and shield. A beautiful young man with his head covered in rays of light occupies the fifth floor. The Sun sits in Leo , holding a star in his left hand.

Venus is elegantly dressed with a belt across her chest, sitting in Taurus with Libra in her arms, admiring her beauty in the mirror. Next to her is Mercury , dressed in a toga and holding an open book. It is located between Virgo and Gemini .

Finally, the Virgin is placed on a boat , lifting the Moon’s hawk and touching the crab, symbol of Cancer . The boat and the canopy, moved by the wind, recall the Moon’s influence on the tides and the wind. At the end of the room, the last capital represents the deadly sins.

Moving away from the entrance and proceeding counter-clockwise, we find Pride , in the form of a warrior armed with sword and shield and wearing Satan’s horned helmet; Wrath, an old man tearing his clothes and cursing the heavens; Avarice , closing two bags with his fists; and Sloth, trapped between the branches in a lazy, passive posture. The next page depicts ‘ vanity ‘, which is not included in the seven main vices.

She is depicted as a maiden , her head adorned with flowers. She looks at herself in a mirror placed in her lap and touches her breasts. The jealousy that follows shows that she is aware that she is no longer an object of desire for others and is tormented by anger. The serpent above her head and the dragon grasping her breasts emphasize her demonic appearance. Desire exposes her breasts in the mirror and finally her throat lifts the glass and brings her thighs to her mouth.

In this room are two porch shafts and a massive stone wall with large rough-hewn and juxtaposed boulders, dating from an earlier phase of the building.

Along the wall of the entrance are two other columns of the portico , while the one on the adjacent wall, with the foliate capital, belongs to the loggia of the façade facing the Piazzetta; a part of the gallery of the loggia was also placed in this room, with its succession of capitals resting on the pointed arches that give life to the quadrilobe surmounted by the rosette cornice . In the wedges of the arches are lion heads. 

There are 29 loggia capitals in this room.

Turning back along the right wall, one comes across a bust . This is all that remains of the group depicting Doge Cristoforo Moro with the Marcian Lion, which was placed in the niche in front of the Scala dei Giganti, demolished during the fall of the Venetian Republic in 1797.

At the same end, the group with Doge Francesco Foscari kneeling in front of Bartolomeo Bon’s Lion above the Paper door, of which only the Doge’s head can be seen on the same side, goes towards the exit.

The group currently on the Paper door is a copy made in 1885 .

Loggias Floor 

From the floor of the loggias, the route begins along the three wings east, south and west of the palace , with fascinating views of the courtyard and Piazzetta San Marco.

It is precisely the loggias that give the palace’s architecture that characteristic lightness effect .

Today, the loggia floor houses the offices of the Soprintendenza per i Beni Ambientali e Architettonici di Venezia (Venice’s Environmental and Architectural Heritage Office) and some of the offices of the palace management, the Venetian Civic Museums, as well as one of the museum’s bookshops .

Doge’s Apartments

In 1556, as a continuation of the Giants’ Staircase , Doge Lorenzo Priuli gave Jacopo Sansovino the task of designing a staircase leading to his flats and state rooms.

The staircase was called the ‘ Golden Staircase ‘ because of the preciousness of the stuccoes covered in gold leaf and the fresco panels decorating the vault of the staircase.

At the top of the first ramp are two further ramps, one to the west and one to the east, both leading to the Doge’s Apartment on the First Noble Floor . The staircase served as a separation between the area of the Palace reserved for institutional functions and the Doge’s private area. 

The Doge’s Apartment was located in the northern part of the Renaissance wing and ran between the mezzanines and hidden rooms, such as the antichiesetta and the chapel, which are not visible on the standard tour (Special Routes).

In 1505, the small Church of St Nicholas by Giorgio Spavento was built to close off the courtyard on the north side.

Today, the flats house a permanent exhibition dedicated to the figure of the doge and the city of Venice.

Institutional Chambers (Part I)

The tour of the institutional halls begins on the third floor of the palace . All you have to do is walk down the Golden Staircase and you will find yourself in the first room of the tour .

Square Atrium

The last step of the golden staircase leads to the square atrium.

This room leads to the hall where the most important meetings of the political life of the Venetian Republic took place.

In the center of the ceiling, Doge Girolamo Priuli (1559-1567), the eponymous saint and the symbols of peace and justice are depicted on an octagonal canvas by Tintoretto.

Eight side paintings with putti symbolizing biblical episodes and seasons were also painted by Tintoretto’s workshop. Currently on display are sacred scenes painted in the second half of the 16th century : the ‘Annunciation to the Shepherds’ by Girolamo Bassano and three canvases attributed to Veronese: ‘Adam and Eve Driven from Paradise’, ‘Prayer in the Garden’ and ‘St. John Writing the Apocalypse’.

Hall of the Four Doors

The Hall of the Four Gates was a solemn hall that filled the entire width of the floor , from the courtyard to the Rio. This hall served as a place for high-ranking representatives waiting to be admitted to the Council and as a link between the halls where the highest executive offices of the Republic met.

After a fire in 1574 , it was restored according to plans by Andrea Palladio and Giovanni Antonio Rusconi. The barrel vault is decorated with gold and stucco work by Giovanni Battista Cambi, known as Bombarda.

The iconographic program of the ceiling is the work of the polyglot Francesco Sansovino.

Above the vault are allegorical figures, gods, putti, winged spirits, sirens, tritons and other grotesques .

The frescoes by Jacopo Tintoretto , of which little remains because they had to be restored due to weather and humidity problems, emphasize the strong symbolism.

The canvas, elliptical in shape, shows the personification of Venice and its subordinate cities (Verona, Brescia, Istria, Padua, Friuli, Treviso, Vicenza and Altino), with broad strokes depicting Jupiter ceding control of the Adriatic to Venice, Juno bestowing Venice with the insignia of power, and Venice removing the yoke of slavery.

There are canvases by Giambattista Tiepolo, Neptune Offering a Gift to Venice , made in 1758, and Venice Leaning on the World, by Niccolò Bambini.

Each of the four doors designed by Andrea Palladio features a sculptural group that recalls the activity of the governing body of the hall accessed:

• Vigilance, Eloquence, Ease of Hearing for the College
• Peace, Pallas, War for the Senate
• Authority, Religion, Justice for the Council of Ten
• Secrecy, Diligence, Loyalty for the Chancellery.

The decorations on the walls include votive scenes and re-enactments of historical events.

Antichamber of College 

The Antichamber of College was the antechamber of honor where foreign delegations, Venetian ambassadors and magistrates returned from their duties to be received by the Serenissima Signoria .

This room was also damaged by fire in 1574 and was restored according to plans by Palladio and Vincenzo Scamozzi. On the pedestal above the monumental fireplace with the two marble telamons is a relief of Venus asking Vulcan for weapons for Aeneas.

The same technique is used for the wall and ceiling decorations , made by Marco D’Agnolo in 1576-77. In the centre of the ceiling is an image of Venus asking Vulcan for weapons for Aeneas.

In the centre of the ceiling is an octagon frescoed by Paolo Veronese depicting the distribution of wealth and honours by Venice.

On the walls are four mythological canvases by Jacopo Tintoretto, originally made for the square atrium: Mercury and the goddesses, Pallas driving out Mars, Arianus being picked up by Bacchus and The Forge of Vulcan . The allegories of these seasons can be interpreted as signifying the wise and reflective politics of the Republic.

Above the tympanum of the portal leading to the College Hall are three sculptures by Alessandro Vittoria personifying Venice, Concordia and Glory.

Senate Hall

The Senate, also called the Council of Pregates , consisted of a committee of 60 nobles and an equal number of nobles called Zonta.

During the meetings, the Senate was joined by the Small Council, the Quarantia, the Avogadori di Comun, the Council of Ten, the Saviours and, if necessary, other magistrates, making a total of 200 members.

This room was also restored by Antonio da Ponte after the fire.

The ceiling is wooden , with a central painting of the Triumph of Venice by Domenico Tintoretto, surrounded by various autographs depicting the virtues of the Republic.

The walls of the hall are decorated with two clocks , one of which depicts the twelve signs of the zodiac, allegorical scenes and votive paintings from the late 16th century.

Above the courtyard is a painting by Jacopo Tintoretto and Officina della morte di Cristo, supported by angels worshipped by Abbots Pietro Lando and Marcantonio Trevisan, and the triumphal return of Christ by Parma the Younger to Abbots Lorenzo and Girolamo Priuli.

Other paintings in this room are by Tintoretto, Parma the Younger, Tiepolo and Marco Vecellio .

Hall of the Council of Ten

This room housed a committee of ten, a small council and a commission consisting of at least one avogador from the comun .

Secret meetings were held here on sensitive issues such as national tranquility and prosperity, public order and morality, the punishment of crimes committed by political prisoners and nobles, and the morals and manners of citizens.

To achieve its goals, the commission could also resort to torture .

There are wooden bumps around the room where the deputies sat, but the bumps on the semicircular platform are missing.

A door led to the office behind and, via a staircase, to the prison.

The walls are painted with putti, allegorical figures and the coat-of-arms of Doge Francesco Dona on a frieze by Giambattista Zelotti, the Adoration of the Three Doctors by Antonio Ariense and the Peace of Bologna between Charles V and Clement VII from 1530 by Marco Vecellio, canvases from the late 16th and early 17th century adorn the walls.

They are by Giambattista Poncino da Castelfranco and Paolo Veronese. A series of chiaroscuro paintings with allegorical and symbolic subjects surround large panels depicting the gods and greatness of the Republic.

Compass Hall

The name of this room comes from the compass door in the corner of the room. The compass leads to two hidden passages above the statue of Justice .

From here, witnesses, lawyers and defendants could enter and leave the room where the trials of the three heads of the Supreme Court of the Republic, the Council of Ten and the Magistrate’s Court took place.

The place where the magistrate’s organs sat was connected to the old prison by a staircase that ascended from the well to the ponds .

In the center of the ceiling is a canvas depicting St. Mark Crowned with the Theological Virtues , a 19th-century copy of Paolo Veronese’s original, now in the Louvre after it was stolen by the French in 1797.

Down two flights of stairs you will find yourself inside the armory .

The armory collection consists of four rooms and includes more than two thousand weapons for the most diverse uses.

The first exhibition room , called the ‘Gattamelata Room’ after the armor of the condottiere Erasmo da Narni, known as Gattamelata, contains profiles of horses and their armor from the 16th century. Also on display are models of swords from various epochs, a model of a crossbow, a typical painted leather tulkassi for storing arrows and a lantern from a Turkish ship taken from the enemy (with its characteristic crescent moon).

The second gallery is decorated with the triangular Turkish flag at the famous Battle of Lepanto in 1571. In the center is an inscription in honor of Allah and his prophet Muhammad, with a verse from the Koran embroidered on the border. Of particular note is the armor donated to the Republic by Henry IV of France during his visit in 1604. Also in this room are two ornate fire lances, several broadswords and a 15th century horse’s head armor.

Room III takes its name from the bust of Francesco Morosini in the back niche; during the war against the Turks from 1684 to 1688, the admiral was appointed supreme commander of the Venetian fleet and was given the honorary nickname Peloponnesian; in 1688 he became doge. This room contains numerous swords, pikes, arrowheads and crossbows, often inscribed or painted with CX’s initials. A culverin from the mid 16th century, a small decorated cannon and a 17th century arquebus with 20 barrels (10 long and 10 short) can also be seen in this room.

Various types of weapons are displayed in Room IV, including a 16th century fire crossbow, a fire club, an axe, a fire sword and an arquebus from the 17th century. Of interest are the so-called ‘Devil’s Box’, a trap that conceals poisoned arrows, four gun barrels that explode when opened and a trap. In this room are torture instruments, chastity belts and various weapons that were banned because they were small and easy to hide. They belonged to the Carrara family of Padua, exterminated by the Venetians in 1405.

Institutional Chambers (Part II)

From the armory, you will descend a few flights of stairs to the second floor of the palace to continue your tour of the institutional rooms.

This room was used as an antechamber to the Great Council Hall .

The gilded beamed ceiling dates back to the 16th century and features works by Domenico Tintoretto (Governor Giovanni Bembo in front of Venice, depicting sailors, transformations and allegorical figures presenting a model of a galley in Santa Giustina), Jacopo Palma (in front of the Virgin with figures representing the city, religion and discord, Patriarch Marcantonio Memmo), among others.

On display in the adjacent vestibule are the sketch of the mosaic for the second external portal of St. Mark’s Basilica by Sebastiano Ricci (‘Arrival in Venice of the Body of St. Mark’) and three sculptures by Antonio Rizzo (‘Adam and Eve’, ‘The Shield Bearer’), intended to decorate the Foscari Arch.

Hall of the Quarantia Civil Vecchia

The room housed the Magistracy of the Council of Forty , which operated in judicial matters. In the 15th century, the Council was divided into three councils:

• The Criminal Quarantine for Criminal Offences
• The Quarantia Civil Vecchia for the Lawsuits and Appeals of the City Venice
• The Quarantia Civil Nuova for the Lawsuits and Appeals of the Mainland

The space, which took on its original conformation in the 17th century, is dominated by the large Gothic window on the side of the river , and preserves behind the wooden dossals on the perimeter, traces of a fresco from the previous decoration.

The 17th-century canvases depict themes related to the celebration of Venice.

Guariento Hall

This small room was used as an ammunition depot, as well as a resting place for the military corps that supervised the meetings of the Great Council.

The interior houses the large 14th-century fresco by Guariento , which was found under Tintoretto’s painting of Paradise, and then detached and relocated in 1903. The work represents the Coronation of the Virgin seated on a throne next to the Redeemer.

Great Council Hall

The wing of the Doge’s Palace facing St. Mark’s Basilica is almost entirely occupied by the Hall of the Great Council , where the Plenary Council of the Republic was held.

The Doge sat in the center of the hall with his councillors, surrounded by the three heads of the Council of Ten , the Quarantia Criminale, the Avogadori di Comun and the censors, while those entitled to vote sat on the side seats surrounding the hall and on the double seats in rows of nine.

The huge hall, measuring 53 meters long and 25 meters wide , could seat more than 2,000 people , occupying almost the entire wing of the palace facing St. Mark’s Basilica.

The wooden ceiling is completely covered with gilded and painted canvases , and its structure consists of a system of beams and trusses capable of supporting the heavy ceiling without the aid of columns.

The walls are covered with large canvases depicting episodes from the history of Venice, such as the Fourth Crusade in 1202 and The Peace of Venice, which concerns relations with the Papacy and the Holy Roman Empire.

The canvases that adorn the roof of the room depict the deeds and virtues of valiant Venetian citizens , while in the center is the Triumph of Venice Crowned with Victory , an allegorical eulogy of the Republic by Veronese. It depicts a Venice crowned with glory and surrounded by honor, peace and happiness, with the entire Venetian society, from the nobility to the people, protected by mounted guards.

Toward the courtyard are depicted twelve episodes relating to the events of Alexander III and Frederick Barbarossa .

Under the ceiling is a frieze by Tintoretto , with portraits of the first 76 doges of Venice (804-1556).

At the end of the room is a painting of “Paradise” painted by Jacopo Tintoretto between 1588 and 1592.

The painting features Jesus and Mary as protagonists, with the light descending on them and the Holy Spirit descending right on the tympanum of the throne on which the Doge sits.

The theme is not only religious, but also an allegory of good governance , of the light that enters the figure of the Doge and the divine essence that enables him to always make the right decision.

Scrutiny Hall

By trespassing through the corridors and adjoining rooms where the Quarantia Civil Nuova was opened, one arrives at the voting room .

Before being destined for this purpose, it housed precious manuscripts donated by Francesco Petrarca and Cardinal Bressanone to the Venetian Republic and later transferred to the Biblioteca Marciana.

The original works in this room were destroyed by fire in 1577 . The new design was created by Cristoforo Forte.

The wall paintings depict the illustrious exploits of the citizens of Venice . Of particular note is the painting of the Last Judgement by Jacopo da Palma il Giovane (1594 – 1595).

The Picture Gallery

Starting in 1615, a nucleus of paintings owned by Cardinal Domenico Grimani, and acquired by the Venetian Republic after his death, was exhibited to the public in the rooms of the Doge’s Palace. The Flemish easel paintings, which had nothing to do with the history of the place, were soon permanently exhibited in the rooms of the Palace.

Marco Boschini, in his ‘ Guide to Paintings ‘ in Venice in 1664, mentions ’15 small paintings by Civetta (Heri de Bresse) in the path leading to the Council of Ten room, and a triptych of crucified saints, the Martyrdom of Santa Liberata, by Jeronymus Bosch’.

In 1773, Anton Maria Zanetti confirmed that the 15 paintings Boschini had seen a century earlier were in the palace.

Zanetti stated that these were eight landscapes in the antique style , a triptych and four compositions ‘with eccentric inventions’, which he attributed to Civetta, and which were exhibited in the Sala dei Tre Capi of the Council of X from 1771, together with the triptych of Santa Liberata.

In the 1770s, in an attempt to re-establish this tradition, a space was created in the hall of the Magistrate of Laws , together with the hall of the Three Chiefs, to display the original paintings existing in the palace, including the panels by Yeronymus Bosch , now in the Accademia Gallery in Venice.

The building was also used as the main exhibition space of the Palace .

The current layout of the Hall of the Criminal Quarantia , the Hall of the Hides and the Hall of the Magistrate of Laws was part of this tradition, where easel paintings from private collections were also exhibited, alongside decorative apparatus.

The Vision of the Apocalypse , the only Flemish work visible to the public in the palace after 1615, had previously been attributed to Owl, but is now attributed to an anonymous follower of Bosch.

Next to it is a 16th century Flemish painting by Maarten de Vos . Next to it are 16th century Flemish paintings by Maerten de Vos, Quentin Metsys and Frans Floris .

The other rooms display masterpieces by the best of Venetian art – Giovanni Bellini, Titian, Jacopo Tintoretto and Giambattista Tiepolo – Anthony van Dyck . The exhibition also includes works by the ‘heroine’ painter Artemisia Gentileschi .

Criminal Quarantia and Leather Hall

This room was one of the three Quarantia (the highest courts of appeal in the Venetian state); the Quarantia Criminal, founded in the 15th century, dealt with criminal decisions .

Its members were also members of the Senate, which also gave them legislative powers. The hall is decorated with wooden stalls dating back to the 17th century .

The next room was the archive of this judiciary.

It is assumed that the walls were lined with shelves and cupboards , of which the one on the back wall is an example. The gold-embroidered leather called ‘cuoridoro’ on the other walls is not original furniture.

Hall of the Magistrate of Laws

This room housed the authority of the administrators and enforcers of the laws and orders of the municipal offices of St. Mark’s and Rialto, created in 1553 and entrusted to three patricians whose task was to enforce the laws that regulated the legal profession.

In Venice, a pre-eminent commercial city, the judicial branch was of great importance (one thinks first of all of the enormous number of lawsuits, disputes and trials caused by the existence of such a vast market as the Rialto).

Bridge of Sighs and New Prisons

The construction of the bridge took place in the early 17th century, in conjunction with the renovation of the prison of the Doge’s Palace in Venice, which had been devastated by the great fire of 1577.

The interior consists of two narrow corridors separated by thick walls , the first leading to the Hall of the Magistracy and the second to the Hall of Avogadria and the Parlatory.

In 1602, Doge Marino Grimani commissioned the Swiss-Italian architect Antonio Contin, grandson of Antonio da Ponte, the architect who built the Rialto Bridge .

The plan was to build new prisons of modern design , on the opposite bank of the Rio di Palazzo, and to connect them to the Doge’s Palace by means of the bridge , designed as a completely closed suspended passage to prevent prisoners from escaping.

After crossing the Rialto Bridge, you will find yourself directly inside the New Prisons, where you can observe the old prison cells of the building until you reach the inner courtyard.

The last room of the prisons displays archaeological finds with interesting examples of handicrafts, especially ceramics, from different eras, from Roman to modern times, collected during excavations carried out by the Venice Environmental and Architectural Heritage Office as part of the restoration of the historic center and the lagoon.

The oldest specimens come from the deepest part of the excavations carried out in 1902 in St. Mark’s Square after the collapse of the bell tower, where fragments of Roman, late antique and early medieval amphorae and numerous food remains (animal bones and mollusk shells) were found, as well as other more recent artefacts dating back to the 16th and 17th centuries.

Excavations in the church of San Lorenzo di Castello, on the other hand, yielded Byzantine and Middle Eastern vases from the 11th and 12th centuries, as well as locally produced common pottery from the 9th and 10th centuries and Middle Eastern ceramics from the 11th-12th centuries.

A large quantity of graffito ceramics was also found. Bowls, plates, basins and jugs; most of the material, estimated to date between the 14th and 16th centuries, comes from the excavations at Malamocco and from the National Archives in Venice (formerly the Frari Monastery), where a few shards of imported ceramics, in particular of Hispano-Moorish origin, were recovered in association with local pottery.

Findings from the restoration of the New Prisons and the restoration of the National Archives document the continuity and consistency of local manufacturing over the centuries until the early 19th century.

Institutional Halls (Part III)

After crossing the Bridge of Sighs and the New Prisons you will be taken back inside the Doge’s Palace, where you can complete your tour of the institutional rooms .

Hall of Censors

Here is a room dedicated to judicial bodies : the figure of the Censor was established in 1517 on the initiative of Marco Foscari di Giovanni, cousin of Doge Andrea Gritti (1523-1538) and nephew of the great Francesco Foscari.

In reality, the censor was not a judging body but a moral advisor . A series of paintings by Domenico Tintoretto depict various magistrates on the walls, with the coats of arms of those who held this office underneath.

Avogaria Hall

The Avogaria de Comun, as its name suggests, is a very old judicial institution, dating back to the Commune period (12th century), where the task of the three avogadors was to uphold the principle of legality , i.e. the correct application of the law.

Until the fall of the republic, it constituted, after the Council of Ten, the most authoritative administrative body for the defense of the law.

They also controlled the purity of the nobility , i.e. the legitimacy of noble marriages and births recorded in the Golden Book. In this room, the avogadors are depicted performing acts of devotion in the presence of the Virgin, the risen Christ and the saints.

Casket Room

The Venetian aristocracy originated from the ‘ Serrata ‘ of the Grand Council in 1297, but only later, at the beginning of the 16th century, was a set of rules decided upon to protect the nobility.

Marriages between nobles and people of different social classes were banned and checks to confirm the title of nobility were strengthened.

Thus, if someone did not formally notify themselves, they risked being excluded from the nobility and, consequently, from participation in the Grand Council and political activity.

Thereafter, all nobles, regardless of the social status of their wives, were obliged to present the marriage certificate to the avogaria .

In other words, in addition to the requirements of ‘civility’ and ‘honor’, these were people who could boast ancient Venetian origins , i.e. those who provided the state with a host of officials, including the ducal secretariat.

The gold book and the silver book were kept in the casket in this room. The one seen today, which occupies three sides of the niche, dates back to the 18th century and is lacquered white and decorated with gold .

Militia da Mar Hall

Established in the mid-16th century, this body consisted of about twenty members of the Senate and the Great Council and was responsible for recruiting crews for the war galleys.

This was not an easy task, given the numbers needed for the vast Venetian fleet.

This office was associated with a magistrate called proveditori all’armar, who was mainly in charge of the fitting out and dismantling of ships, i.e. the hull and provisions on board.

The furniture in the dossal hall dates back to the 16th century, while the torches on the walls date back to the 18th century.

The next room was the office of the Lower Chancellery . From here one could exit into the loggia, overlooking the Scala dei Giganti.

Special tours of the Doge’s Palace

Secret itineraries.

The ‘ Secret Itineraries ‘ guided tour includes, in addition to the canonical tour of the palace, described in the previous paragraphs, the guided tour inside the rooms used for the administration of justice in criminal cases . The name ‘secret’ alludes to the fact that these rooms are hidden in the palace , behind closed doors.

The tour starts from the prisons on the ground floor, then the visitor will be led through the ‘secret’ rooms of the Doge’s Palace where officials of the bureaucracy had their offices and where the supreme judicial body of the Council of Ten met, and finally the secret archive , where the most important state documents were kept.

The tour will take the visitor up to the attic where the upper cells, called Piombi , are located, in which political prisoners, sometimes foreigners, were locked up, including the famous Giacomo Casanova , who also managed to escape in 1757.

The tour will end in the square atrium hall , from where you can continue your tour of the palace on your own.

You can find out more about this visit by visiting the article on the Secret Itineraries of the Doge’s Palace Venice.

The Doge’s Hidden Treasures

This guided tour allows you to visit the private routes, secret rooms and passages reserved for the Doge , including the privilege of admiring St. Mark’s Square from the loggia from which the Doge contemplated between two red columns.

The tour starts at the Loggia Foscara, and from here a trained guide will take you to the Foscari arch terrace, the secret archive , the treasure room , and the doge’s private chapel .

The tour ends in the antichiesetta room, and from here you can resume the visit of the palace on your own.

Read on to discover the visit route in detail .

You can find out more about this visit by clicking on the button below.

Doge’s Palace tour Venice: FAQ

The average visit lasts two hours. However, it depends on how much you want to explore the different rooms and works, who you are travelling with, and how much time you have available. If you would like to know more, read the article on how long a visit to the Doge’s Palace Venice lasts .

If you would like to visit the Doge’s Palace on your own, you can purchase a ticket for the Doge’s Palace . If, on the other hand, you would like to visit the building together with a professional tour guide, you can purchase a ticket for a guided tour of the Doge’s Palace .

The full price ticket to the Doge’s Palace costs €30, the reduced one €16. For more information, read the article on the cost of tickets for the Doge’s Palace in Venice .

The standard ticket for the Doge’s Palace Venice includes a visit to the Doge’s Palace, the Correr Museum, the National Archaeological Museum and the Basilica Marciana.

Of course! You can follow the self-guided walking tour found in this article and visit the Doge’s Palace in Venice on your own.

Doge’s Palace self guided tour: conclusions

Here we are at the end of this long post on visiting the Doge’s Palace in Venice, in which I have listed in succession all the rooms you will be able to visit and the secret itineraries provided by the museum.

If you have any doubts or other questions, leave a comment below , I will be happy to answer you!

Related posts

Doge’s Palace Secret Itineraries Tour: Useful Info, Review, Tickets

Doge’s Palace Hidden Treasures Tour: Useful Info, Review, Tickets

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St Petersburg and Moscow 6-Day Grand Tour

• 2 days of professional guide service in each city (English, Spanish, French languages are available)
• 1 day of a/c vehicle with driver in Moscow ( 8 hrs)
• 1,5 days of a/c vehicle with driver in St.Petersburg (12 hrs)
• Arrival & departure transfers in both cities
• Visa Support (if required)
• Rail ticket Moscow - St Petersburg (economy+ class)
• Entry/Admission - Saint Basil's Cathedral
• Entry/Admission - Armoury Chamber
• Entry/Admission - Moscow Metro
• Entry/Admission - The State Hermitage Museum
• Entry/Admission - Peter and Paul Fortress
• Entry/Admission - Catherine Palace and Park
• Entry/Admission - Peterhof State Museum Preserve
• Food and drinks
• Accommodation (can be arranged individually upon request)
• Your driver will meet you holding a sign with your name on it and/or the logo of ULKO Tours, so you will be able to easily recognize it.
• Sheremetyevo - A.S. Pushkin international airport, Khimki, Moscow Oblast, Russia, 141400
• Moscow Domodedovo Mikhail Lomonosov Airport, Gorod Domodedovo, Moscow Oblast, Russia
• Vnukovo International Airport, Vnukovo, Moscow Oblast, Russia
• Not wheelchair accessible
• Children must be accompanied by an adult
• For children 2-6 there is a flat fee of 75 USD per child. Children under 2 are FREE if they do not occupy a seat on the train. Please inform your tour provider if you have any children in your party.
• A current valid passport is required on the day of travel
• Passport name, number, expiry and country is required at time of booking for all participants
• A minimum of 2 people per booking is required
• No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
• Travelers should have a strong physical fitness level
• This is a private tour/activity. Only your group will participate
• If you cancel at least 7 days in advance of the scheduled departure, there is no cancellation fee.
• If you cancel between 3 and 6 day(s) in advance of the scheduled departure, there is a 50 percent cancellation fee.
• If you cancel within 2 days of the scheduled departure, there is a 100 percent cancellation fee.

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• Harry M 0 contributions 5.0 of 5 bubbles Hermitage 4 hour tour. Ekaterina my tour guide for my Hermitage Museum trip was brilliant! The taxi I called didn't arrive and I was half an hour late but I managed to phone Ekaterina and she waited patiently in the cold for me to arrive. She is mind of information and very knowledgeable about the history of St Petersburg and spoke perfect English. I would have been lost without her assistance and she even arranged for a taxi to pick me up and take me back to the hotel. I would recommend this tour 100% ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐👍 Read more Written September 29, 2021
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• abhiami 0 contributions 5.0 of 5 bubbles Good insight into St Petersburg We booked a 6 hr guide for a private tour of St Petersburg. Our guide Julia was informative, attentive and also looked after our 7 year old . We had a great tour learning the Russian history related to Petersburg. Would highly recommend it. Read more Written January 1, 2020
• EmilyRoseLa 0 contributions 3.0 of 5 bubbles 5 stars for the guide! Our guide was wonderful, knowledgeable, and very sweet. She knew so much about the imperialists and could answer our questions as well as give us a summary of what we were seeing, how it fit into history and the timeline of the royals, and lots of interesting, funny anecdotes! This company however is unorganized. They gave us a meeting point and then gave our guide another meeting point, so we were both waiting on opposite sides of the river at the appointed time and we lost about a half hour of the tour while getting things sorted. I tried calling the number (we had a Russian SIM card and everything) but there was no answer. We ended up finding another tour guide from ULKO Tours who was with a different group and asking him to call a contact person. In the end it sounds like there was some internal misunderstandings due to a change in employees, but that didn't give us our half hour back. Again, the tour guide herself was wonderful and if this company has sorted its issues, I would highly recommend it! Read more Written December 10, 2019
• boogiecat 0 contributions 3.0 of 5 bubbles Very touristy - appalling behavior from large tour group The performers are undeniably talented but this is definitely an experience geared toward foreign tourists. There was a very large tour group from another country at the show and some of those individuals were openly arguing during the performance in their native language which ruined some of it. There was also some dreadful behavior during the break for snacks with people leaving used glasses and half-eaten food on the tables where the food was being served from which was terribly unsanitary. I don't blame the folk show for the bad behavior but Americans or Western Europeans beware. Other reviews had hinted at the problems with the large tour groups and I didn't realize how bad it would be. The Russian performers deserve 5 stars -- excellent, so talented. The foreign tourists visiting Russia - 0 stars for appalling behavior. Read more Written November 14, 2019
• kwanleon 0 contributions 5.0 of 5 bubbles Private guided tour in St. Petersburg We spent two day with this tour company, both days they show up on time, very profesional, nice and friendly, never rush for time. I highly recommend this tour is you going to St. Petersburg. Read more Written November 13, 2019
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• tustinfarm 0 contributions 5.0 of 5 bubbles St. Petersburg Day Tour Natalya (tour guide) met my wife and I on board our ship at 9:30 am and directed us to a comfortable, four-door sedan driven by Sergei. We visited the St. Peter and Paul Cathedral and the Church of Our Savior on Spilled Blood in the morning and then had a delightful lunch with Natalya and Sergei at the Vodka Room No. 1 restaurant. In the afternoon, we visited the Russian Ethnographic Museum and the Faberge Museum. Natalya personally guided us to and through the churches and museums and was very informative. We the enjoyed the friendliness of both Natalya and Sergei and their willingness to answer all of our questions about daily life in Russia. We returned safely to our ship by 5:30 pm. Our day tour of St. Petersburg was one we will fondly remember! Read more Written October 22, 2019
• Juan J 0 contributions 3.0 of 5 bubbles just fine language problems ti find good fluent speakers in other tongue than English. This made the tour somewhat heavy for us. Even thought Riga is a brilliant beautiful city to tour around Read more Written October 18, 2019
• barb m 0 contributions 5.0 of 5 bubbles AMAZING Our guide Elena, was amazing. We couldn't have asked for a more informative, pleasant, helpful guide. We would most certainly recommend ULKO Tours to anyone thinking of visiting St. Petersburg on a cruise. We saw so much and enjoyed the Russian meals that were added to our tour and all at a much better price than through the cruise line. Thank you for sharing your city with us. Read more Written October 17, 2019
• BKE9 0 contributions 5.0 of 5 bubbles Choose your own adventure! With your ideas and this company’s expertise, this will be the best tour you’ve ever taken!!(Especially if you have Julia as your guide and Artem as your driver) This company impressed us long before the tour. Anton in the office answered my countless questions via email beforehand. They also make sure they have all the paperwork in place for you. We had an overview of the city our first day in St. Petersburg(different company) and wanted to focus on every day living for our choice day. Our list included the subway, a grocery store, schools and getting outside of the city. What made Julia different from other guides we’ve had is that she tried to get to know us so she could accommodate our wishes. We had a few gaps and she was able to fill them perfectly. Better yet, she also let us get to know her. Julia is a wealth of information but we didn’t feel like we’ve been to a college lecture. She allowed for questions and conversation along the way. The other thing we appreciated was that our guide and driver were in sync. We had been with tours where the guide and driver didn’t agree on the route to be taken and it was very uncomfortable. Artem was an excellent driver. Rush hour traffic, bathroom stop...? No problem! When it was all over, my sister said to me “I like Julia so much I’d love to have her come visit and stay with me in the US.” I felt the same way. We left feeling we had a friend in St. Petersburg. Read more Written October 16, 2019
• osm8601 0 contributions 5.0 of 5 bubbles Lovely night It was such a pleasure to find this musical performance in St. Petersburg. We were able to enjoy various forms of music during the tour. Highly recommended if you like to listen to classical music. Read more Written October 15, 2019
• Departure65727247107 0 contributions 5.0 of 5 bubbles Excelleur with ULKO and Lisa Our experience with ULKO tours in Russia was our second tour with ULKO. We booked through Viator in Berlin and it was an ULKO tour as well. We were extremely pleased with both tours. Small groups and excellent tour guides. Our 2-day St Petersburg Russia tour with guide Lisa was so very educational and her knowledge very advanced. The sites were well timed and the 2 Russian lunches were authentic and very good. Our experience left us with a very good overview of St Petersburg and Russia's history. We were on NCL Getaway and we watched large NCL excursions loading buses while 14 of us took our ULKO tour. Processing through Customs was smooth with our ULKO trip vouchers. We highly recommend using ULKO for your Baltic excursions. Berlin/Sachsenhausen was also of very high quality. There isn't much time to stop for any local souvenir shopping so plan on your tour being mostly busy and site filled. Read more Written October 14, 2019

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

St Petersburg and Moscow 6-Day Grand Tour provided by ULKOtours

Moscow Layover Guide (SVO)

What are you looking for in SVO? Tours/To do | Relax/Sleep | Internet/SIM | Transport | Storage | Money

Sheremetyevo Alexander S. Pushkin International Airport (SVO) is one of the 4 major airports serving Moscow, the capital of Russia. The airport is situated in the city of Khimki, Moscow Oblast and it is located 29 km (18 mi) from central Moscow. The airport has had international flights since it opened officially as a civilian airport in 1959. Moscow is the most populous city of Russia, known for its wealth, tourism, history, architecture, UNESCO World Heritage Sites and serves as the cultural, scientific and financial centre.

Can you leave Moscow Airport (SVO) airport during a layover? Do you need a visa? It's possible to leave Moscow airport during a layover. However, you would need a visa depending on your nationality to pass through immigration and customs control. ( more info ).

Tours, Things to do, Sightseeing

Moscow Organized Tours

St. Basil’s Cathedral and Red Square

Probe the glory of the famed St. Basil’s Cathedral in the heart of the city and learn the history of the great Red Square. Your tour begins at the 16th Century St. Basil’s Cathedral with a guide that lectures on the origin of the site and various historical events attached to them. Recorded as one of the oldest church buildings in Russia, the Cathedral was built under the rule of Ivan The Terrible and is shaped in the form of a bonfire flame rising to the sky and remains a symbol of Russian. The building now serves as a Museum Of Religion with a ban on church services. The Red Square is a large stretch of cobblestone square in central Moscow formerly used as parade grounds by the Soviet Union encompassed by the beautiful architectures of the Kremlin, the St. Basil’s Cathedral, the State History Museum and other marvels. The Lobnoye Mesto where several high profile public executions were carried out. » book this tour

The Grand Kremlin Palace

Explore the highly revered presidential palace of Russia. Learn how important the various monuments and landmarks are important to the history of Russia on a private tour of the palace in the city of Moscow. As part of your tour package, a guide takes you through the exquisite halls and towers of The Kremlin which at a time during the 17th – 20th century was residential to the Tsars and the royal family and the famed Ivan The Terrible, all of which’s history and more you’ll learn from your guide as you’re taken through the palace from the Kutafya Tower through to the Palace Of Facets and led to see the never-rung Tsar Bell, the largest in the world and as per the Guinness Book Of Records the largest cannon in the world, Tsar Cannon. » book this tour

Moscow: Metro & The State Tretyakov Art Gallery Tour

Admire the art-adorned famous Moscow Metro Station and explore a vast collection of classical Russian art at the State Tretyakov Art Gallery. The breath-taking marble halls of the Moscow Metro Stations are adorned with beautiful mosaic artworks. Chandeliers and intricate architecture enough to pass for a palace which indeed is known to the locals as the “People’s Palace” when it was opened in 1935. Included in your tour after seeing the beautifully designed Metro Stations is a visit to Tretyakov, one of the largest in the country which houses a vast collection of classical Russian art, sculptures and the famous 15th century icon The Trinity by Andrei Rublev. Founded in 1856 the gallery boasts of a range of 130,000 collections in its exhibit. » book this tour

Moscow Things to do / Sightseeing

With a touch of distinct architectural design, the 127-year-old GUM (abbreviation) known as the State Department Store during the Soviet era facing the Red Square, functions now as a shopping mall that houses about 150 shops where you can find any luxury brand, gourmet food just to name a few. It is the largest department store in Russia and with its ornate interior has become a tourist attraction. Fun Fact: It contains a historical luxury soviet era toilet.

Time required: Full Day.

Airport to here: Trip takes 34 minutes to make via taxi and an 1 hour via public transport.

The Moscow Kremlin

The Kremlin which translates “fortress inside a city” is an ancient fortified complex settled in the center of the city. As one of the largest fortresses in Europe, it has a host of five palaces, four cathedrals and 20 towers. The Grand Kremlin Palace, which is within the complex, was residence to the Tsar’s and houses two of the world’s largest monuments, the never shot Tsar Cannon and the never rung Tsar Bell mainly consisting of copper and also gold. The peak of the towers has ruby stars placed on them, believed to possess powerful energy. The Kremlin currently serves as residence to the President of Russia.

Time required: 2 hours minimum, 4 hours maximum to explore.

Airport to here: At least 28 minutes via taxi and an hour by bus.

Central House Of Artists

For most contemporary art lovers, this is one of the most and best places to visit in Moscow. The Central House Of Houses is the largest Russian exhibition complex and features a largely early 20th-century collection of modern Russian art, exquisite Soviet art collection and a sculpture garden with Soviet-era sculptures. CHA hosts 300 annual local and international exhibitions, film festivals and serves as a great spot for socialization for people of all ages.

Time required: Full day.

Airport to here: 40 minutes via taxi and an hour via public transportation.

The UNESCO listed World Heritage Red Square surrounded by exemplary architecture is by far Russia’s most historically significant places to visit. It’s grounds for the colorful famous St. Basil’s Cathedral, the GUM and the brick platform on which executions ordered by Ivan The Terrible were carried out called the Lobnoye Mesto and Lenin’s Mausoleum just to name a few. The body of Soviet Union Dictator, Vladimir Lenin is displayed in a granite tomb at the Red Square, since 1930.

Airport to here: Trip takes 33 minutes by taxi and an hour by public transport.

The Moscow Metro

The city of Moscow proves to be one of alluring grandeur, architectural design and the extravagant Metro Station proves it quite precisely. Covered with ornate walls and earning the title ‘People’s Palace’, has become a tourist attraction on its own and has 232 stations. It generally has a classical aesthetic beauty for stunning photographic experiences and many of them feature bursts of Soviet leaders. The Sportivnaya station houses The Museum Of The Moscow Metro where a collection of interesting models of trains can be found.

Airport to here: This will depend solely on which of the stations is preferred to visit as there is a several of them.

State Historical Museum

The museum, on the Red Square houses a vast collection of Russian history in antiquity (including the 17-19th century) and holds exhibitions to display them. For a better understanding of Russian history a tour of the Museum is requisite.

Airport to here: 35 minutes via taxi and an hour via public transport.

Alexander Garden

How about a stroll through a tranquil garden with beautiful views of the city, landscape designs, ornamented colorful flower beds, Russian fairy tale and water figures and a vast variety of artistic monuments from different eras like the Romanov Obelisk.The Alexander Garden along the Kremlin walls was founded in 1821 to celebrate Russia’s victory over Napoleon forces is the city’s first public park and links the Red Square and The Kremlin.

Time required: A couple relaxing hours will do.

Airport to here: 36 minute drive via taxi and an hour via public transport.

Park Zaryadye

A free to visit green space that features a floating bridge with a view of The Kremlin insight, a food court that highlights Russian cuisine and a simulated flight over Moscow created by way of a collection of footages, an interactive theme park ride that tours the city of Moscow. Another alluring space for a great photographic and leisure experience in the city of Moscow.

Time required: You’ll need at least 2-3 hours to explore.

Airport to here: 37 minutes via taxi and an hour via public transport.

Things to Do in Moscow Airport (SVO)

Relaxing and sleeping.

Airport Lounges and Relaxing There are several lounges in each terminal. » view all lounges or buy a lounge pass or membership online

Hotel and Sleeping There are many options for hotels close to the airport as well as transit hotels in the airport found in the transit areas of Terminal D and E. » view all or book an airport hotel online

Rest Area and Sleeping in Airport There are no designated rest zones within the airport.

WIFI/Internet and SIM Card

WIFI/Internet: Free WiFi is available at Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport, but you must connect to the Wi-Fi network via call or text.

SIM Card: There are several shops within the airport that sell SIM cards. » buy a global sim card for Moscow, Russia that you can use for other countries as well!

Transportation to/from airport

Taxi: Licensed taxis are readily available outside of the 1st floor of the Arrivals hall.

Train: The Union Pearson Express is an express train that runs between the airport and downtown in just 25 minutes. ( more info ).

Bus: There are buses that connect the airport with Moscow’s extensive transport network. ( more info ).

Shuttle: There are hotel and private shuttle services at the airport.

Car rentals: Offices of rental operators are located on the 1st floor of Terminal D » view available cars or rent a car now online

Parking: A safe and secure parking facility is available. You can book your parking slot online.

Luggage Storage & Lockers

24-hour Luggage offices can be found on the landside of every Terminal. » book a luggage storage or locker at Moscow Airport (SVO) online (subject to availability).

Money Exchange and Withdrawal

- Moscow Airport (SVO) ATMs, currency exchanges and banks

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