Venice Grand Tour: Explore Doge's Palace & St. Mark's Basilica with Expert Guide

Discover Venice’s secrets with an expert guide. Explore St. Mark’s Basilica and Doge’s Palace in an exclusive small group tour.

Duration: 3 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Basilica di San Marco - This tour takes you inside the center of the religious power of Venice, the beautiful Basilica of St Marks with our skip-the-line access, where our expert history guide will give you a comprehensive and informative tour of this astonishing landmark-church that boasts a profusion of polychrome domes, walls clad in marbles…
What's Included
  • Skip the line entrance to San Mark’s Basilica
  • Access to the Prisons of the Doge’s Palace
  • Licensed English speaking guide
  • Palazzo Ducale visit
  • St. Mark’s Basilica visit with exclusive access to terraces
What's Not Included
  • Gratuities
  • Hotel pickup and drop-off
Additional Information

Discover the wonders of Venice in just 3 memorable hours. Dive into the essence of this floating city and explore its fascinating history through two of its most renowned landmarks: the Doge’s Palace and the magnificent St Mark’s Basilica.
Join an expert guide in St Mark’s Square and delve into the centuries of political and religious influence. Bypass…

Location
St. Mark's Square
Piazza San Marco
Standard tour: Meet at 1:45 PM in St. Mark’s Sq., under the lion column, in front of Doge’s Palace. Look for the white “Towns of Italy” sign. Full Day Upgrade: • 9:15 AM – Walking Tour & Gondola Ride • 1:45 PM – Doge’s Palace & Basilica Tour Same meeting point. Move independently. Be 15 min early!
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.5
(42 Ratings)
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Angelajc1554ck
Nov 18, 2025
First time in Venice - Tour guide, Lorenzo Guglielmi, was amazing! He was so knowledgeable and animated. So thrilled to be in this tour with him!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Michael
Oct 26, 2025
A great intro to the city of Venice based on its history. - Lorenzo gave us a thorough grounding in 15th, 16th & 17th Venetian history and explained the history of the cathedral, as well as the Venetian court.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
O1938pbjennyd
Oct 7, 2025
Exceeded expectations!!! - We loved all aspects of the tour! It was so nice to have such a small group. The tour guide was also great ! We all agreed the interesting background information made the experience better than expected!!!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Dianne_t
Oct 7, 2025
Best tour guide ever! - Excellent knowledge of the entire tour. Very enjoyable and great sense of humor throughout the tour. Would recommend this tour guide above all others
Review provided by Viator
Q996zwryanm
Sep 27, 2025
Lots of information related to is and caring guide - Very informative and caring tour guide. This was the only guide in our trip that asked where everyone was from and adapted some of the information to relate to comparisons we would know. She was very caring adapting the tour for my wife to what she would be able to handle after she hurt her foot on the cobblestones when we were in Rome.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Daleh578
Sep 23, 2025
Chalked full on information - Our tour guide was a lovely local resident exceptionally versed in Venetian history. Took his time with us to explain the history and the culture. His english was very clear and easy to follow.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Lorraine_b
Sep 14, 2025
Fabulous tour! - This tour is wonderful whether you're spending one day or a few days in Venice. You'll see all the major historical sites of importance in this tour. At St. Mark's Basilica, the mosaic tiles that cover the floors, the walls, the domes, etc, are incredible. The trip to the terrace to see the original 4 St Mark's Horses was good and the outside terrace with the views of the.piazza are unique. The artwork on the walls and ceilings ofnthe Doge's Palace are spectacular. Our guide, Lorenzo, was fabulous. He was very knowledgeable, interesting and accommodating. He was easy to hear and understand with the headsets, which are given out prior to the tour. The meeting place was very easy to find. I would most definitely recommend this tour to anyone wanting to see the major sites of Venice. For reference, we spent 1 day/night in Venice and got to see everything we wanted on this tour and still had time to explore the alleyways of Venice, stop at the Rialto Bridge for photos and have dinner on the Grand Canal. Perfect tour for our stay!
Review provided by Viator
Susan_h
Sep 8, 2025
Exceptional Tour Guide - Our tour guide, Lorenzo Guglielmi, was extremely well prepared and deeply knowable of the historical background and architecture of the Doge's Palace and the Basilica. He was very passionate about Venice's story and the events that created the beauty and grandeur of those magnificent buildings. He was also very pleasant and humorous. We enjoyed our 3 hour tour very much!
Review provided by Viator
Pattyinva
Sep 22, 2025
Loved the guided tour with "skip the lines" access - It was a bit challenging to find the guide at the meeting point, there were LOTS of tours meeting at the same place. But once we found the guide, we were off with a quick "skip the lines" access. The guide was very informative, giving lots of history as we went along. Be aware, there are lots of steps to get to the upper levels. It was a bit long, 3 hours of standing and walking. We did take a short break in the middle for water and bathroom visit, which was very welcome. Great way to see the Basilica and Doge's Palace for the first time!
Review provided by Viator
Andyprice
Sep 15, 2025
Palace and church tour - Don't arrive early. Just 15 min. before. Meet under column with lion at top. We arrived early and wandered in the square for an hour looking for guide. Meeting point in email just said square. It's a big square. It was a 3 hour tour. Lots of walking. Our guide was extremely knowledgeable and friendly. A very good tour, somewhat tiring.
Review provided by Viator