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Last updated: 09 November, 2022
Expert travel writer: Nicky Swallow

With its rose pink-and-white brickwork shimmering on the edge of the lagoon, the Doge’s Palace seems more mirage than monument. While other states fortified their power with forbidding castles, the Venetians showed off their security with this airy, ethereal palace.

The hub of the far-reaching political power of La Serenissima since the 9th century, today it is a testament to the best of Byzantine, Gothic and Renaissance architecture and painting.

Highlights include the arcaded courtyard, the frescoes by Veronese, Tiepolo and Tintoretto in the grand chambers and the collection of armour and weapons in the old Armoury. Tintoretto’s Paradiso is the largest oil painting in the world.

While you’re there

The famous ‘Bridge of Sighs’ joins the interrogation rooms in the Doge’s Palace to a prison. Convicts will supposedly sigh at their final view of Venice before imprisonment. Legend also has it that lovers who kiss under the Bridge of Sighs on a Gondola will be granted eternal love.

Also check out the 15th-century statue of a worse-for-wear Noah propped up by a vine. It can be found on the corner of the outer facade of the palace, before the Bridge of Sighs.

Recommended itineraries by our writers that include this experience

Price from: £25
Minimum age: Any
Age suitable: 18+
When: All year around

Our selection of the best Viator tours of this attraction or activity

Doge's Palace: live guided tour with skip the line tickets - small group

Doge's Palace: live guided tour with skip the line tickets - small group

Venice

Amazing guided tour inside the Venice Doge’s Palace (Palazzo Ducale): the old residence of the Doge. The guide will escort you along the hal...

€64 | Rating 4.20 / 5 [34 ratings]

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Doge's Palace & Prisons Tour

Doge's Palace & Prisons Tour

Venice

Skip the lines at the iconic Doge’s Palace in Venice and uncover its highlights and secrets on a 2-hour tour. Walk right past the main entra...

€69 | Rating 4.45 / 5 [351 ratings]

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Skip-the-Line: Doge's Palace & St. Mark's Basilica Fully Guided Tour

Skip-the-Line: Doge's Palace & St. Mark's Basilica Fully Guided Tour

Venice

Our Doge’s Palace and St. Mark’s Basilica tour is perfect for visitors with only a limited time in Venice, who want to get a true taste of t...

€85 | Rating 4.31 / 5 [323 ratings]

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Venice: Doge's Palace and Piazza San Marco - Live Guided Tour

Venice: Doge's Palace and Piazza San Marco - Live Guided Tour

Venice

Visit the magnificent Doge’s Palace in Venice, enjoy the skip-the-line entrance and enter inside the Palace accompanied by a qualified guide...

€89 | Rating 4.42 / 5 [19 ratings]

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Our writer’s picks of the best places to stay near this experience, closest first

Londra Palace Venezia

Venice, Veneto, Italy[0.3 miles]

A prime waterfront location minutes from Piazza San Marco, magnificent views over the water to San Giorgio Maggiore and lovely service make this a popular choice for stays in central Venice.

Official star rating:

St. Regis Venice

Venice, Veneto, Italy[0.4 miles]

The newly-revamped St. Regis offers a magnificent Grand Canal location, some 180 airy, fresh rooms, butler service and a young, fresh, retro-glam vibe. Cocktails and meals (including breakfast) on the dreamy canalside terrace are a treat.

Official star rating:

Hotel Flora

Venice, Veneto, Italy[0.5 miles]

This family-friendly (and family-run), old-fashioned charmer occupies a tall, 17th-century palazzo just a stroll from St. Mark’s Square and the vaporetto stop.

Official star rating:

Gritti Palace

Venice, Veneto, Italy[0.6 miles]

The grandest Dame of Venice’s classic hotels and wonderfully opulent, the Gritti lords it over the Grand Canal from a superb spot across from the Salute church and just 10 minutes’ walk from Piazza San Marco.

Official star rating:

Destination guides including or relevant to this experience

Venice

Veneto, Italy

Crammed with picturesque canals, Renaissance palazzos and artistic masterpieces, this unique and alluring city is heaven-on-earth for art lovers and romantics.

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Our writer’s recommendations of other bucket list experiences our writer says you must do in this destination, closest first

St. Mark’s Basilica

Venice, Veneto, Italy[0.1 miles]

Surely the most exquisite, beguiling and opulent place of worship in Italy, St Mark’s cathedral was built to satisfy the wildest dreams of the Doges and is rich in glittering Byzantine mosaics, Gothic carvings and sumptuous treasures.

Best for ages: 18+ | Free

Saint Mark’s Square
Experience

Saint Mark’s Square

Venice, Veneto, Italy[0.1 miles]

It’s huge, and often crowded, but St. Mark’s square is one of the most emblematic spots in the city and is lined with over-priced cafés that offer live music. But out of season, on a foggy winter’s evening or at dawn, it’s undeniably atmospheric.

Best for ages: 13+ | Free

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Accademia Gallery (Venice)

Venice, Veneto, Italy[1 miles]

From Titian to Tiepolo, the Accademia’s world-class collection represents the Golden Age of Venetian painting. A dazzling collection of masterpieces but also a voyage through the history of Venice itself.

Best for ages: 18+ | £15

Other worthwhile experiences near this experience if you have time or interest..

Bridge of Sighs
Experience

Bridge of Sighs

Venice, Veneto, Italy[0.1 miles]

Although you can’t actually walk over it, the Bridge of Sighs (visible from the Ponte di Paglia) is one of Venice’s most famous sights and links the Doge’s Palace to the adjacent prisons and torture chamber. The sighs were emitted by prisoners en route knowing what awaited them.

Best for ages: 18+ | Free

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Coffee at Café Florian
Experience

Coffee at Café Florian

Venice, Veneto, Italy[0.1 miles]

Dating from 1720, world-famous Florian’s is a jewel-box of a café, all mirrors, stuccoes and frescoes. Join the locals perched at the bar rather than pay way over the odds for a table seat where a simple espresso is likely to set you back €10.

Best for ages: 13+ | Free

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Correr Museum
Experience

Correr Museum

Venice, Veneto, Italy[0.2 miles]

Dedicated to the history of the Venetian Republic, the Correr museum houses an eclectic collection of documents, maps, coins, ivories, weapons and so on. Artworks include paintings by Veneziano, Tintoretto, Antonello da Messina and Carpaccio whose Two Venetian Noblewomen appears on many a postcard.

Best for ages: 13+ | £17

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Palazzo Grimani
Experience

Palazzo Grimani

Venice, Veneto, Italy[0.4 miles]

The little-visited Palazzo Grimani is one of the city’s great Renaissance palazzos, now a museum housing an extraordinary collection of classical sculptures, stuccoes, elaborate frescoes and paintings by Hieronymus Bosch.

Best for ages: 18+ | £5

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Round-ups that include this experience

101 World’s greatest historic buildings

Multiple countries

The great civilisations of the past have left a legacy of constructions that still stand out and inspire. Built without the wonders of 20th-century technology, many are also monumental feats of engineering; others offer such grace and beauty, that they’ll literally take your breath away.

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