Venice's Icons: Basilica, Doge Palace, Rialto & Optional Gondola
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Venice, Italy
- 5 to 6 hours (approx.)
- Offered in: English
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Overview
See the best of Venice during one comprehensive tour—perfect for travelers with limited time in the city. Bypass the crowds with skip-the-line entry to St. Mark’s Basilica and Doge’s Palace, stroll across the Rialto Bridge, and continue your experience at the History Gallery with a VR adventure that brings history to life. Complete your day with an optional gondola ride along the Grand Canal for the ultimate Venetian experience.
- Save hours waiting in line with skip-the-line admission tickets
- Check off multiple highlights in just one day thanks to a comprehensive itinerary
- A VR experience makes the history of Venice more engaging
- See the Floating City through the eyes of a local
What's Included
- St. Mark's Basilica skip-the-line entry ticket
- Doge's Palace skip-the-line entry ticket and Doge's Palace Prisons access
- Professional guide
- St. Mark's Basilica and Doge's Palace guided tour
- Bridge of Sighs access
- Correr Museum, Archeological Museum, and Marciana Library access
- Audio receivers for groups of 10 or more
- Shared gondola ride and Gondola tradition introduction
- Venice Gallery: a unique Vr experience of venice in the past
- Rialto Bridge Walking Tour
- St. Mark's Basilica Terrace (if option is selected)
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
- Guided tour of Correr Museum, Archeological Museum, and Marciana Library
- Entry fees not specified in the inclusions
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting points
Select a meeting point
End point
- St. Mark's SquarePiazza San Marco, 30124 Venezia VE, Italy
Itinerary
Ponte di Rialto (Pass By)
Piazza San Marco (Pass By)
1
Basilica di San Marco
45 minutes • Admission Ticket Included
2
Palazzo Ducale
1 hour 30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
Ponte dei Sospiri (Pass By)
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Near public transportation
- Most travelers can participate
- A valid ID document is mandatory for security checks at the entrance to the Basilica.
- On certain dates, most travelers staying outside of Venice who are planning to visit for the day will be required to pay a €5 access fee. For further details (including exemptions) and to learn what days this fee is applicable, please visit our website.
- For the visit of the Basilica proper clothing is required (no shorts or tank tops)
- The official St. Mark's Basilica ticket price is €12.00 per person (standard) or €24.00 with terrace access; the remaining part of the price covers assistance at the meeting point, accompanied entry with a certified guide or host, access to the Venice Gallery with a dedicated VR experience, the use of an audio guide or radio system with earphones and sales costs.
- Please provide the full names of all travelers when booking. Failure to present a voucher with all travelers’ full names at the ticket office prior to entry may result in denied entry to the attraction.
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 25 travelers
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Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Reviews
4.4
based on 413 reviews
Maria_W, Oct 2025
This was a really good value day trip that took us walking around Venice, plus a trip upon a gondola, and a trip to murano and burano. Would recommend.
Carol_H, Oct 2025
excellent and knowledgeable tour guide - felt like we saw all the highlights - would highly recommend
jessica_j, Jun 2025
Great tour! The guide was enthusiastic and incredibly knowledgeable, which made the experience both fun and informative. We got to see so many amazing places, and the gondola ride was definitely the highlight!
My only suggestion would be to improve the transition between the different parts of the tour. Since we were joining three separate tours, there were moments when we had to rush to the next meeting point, which felt a bit stressful and not well coordinated. A smoother handoff between tours would make the day more enjoyable and less hectic for participants.
Debbie_D, Oct 2024
Didn’t take the tour missed out because was unable to locate the City Flag to join the tour wasn’t able to get our money back either!
Stephanie_G, Sep 2024
Despite a very knowledgeable guide at the basilica and an adorable gondola guide, the trip was awful. It was extremely unorganized. In the morning I sent an email asking what time the tour ended. I was told 4:00 pm and made 6:00 pm dinner reservations, accordingly. We had a good tour of the basilica and went to a meeting place where we were to meet a guide who was to give us tickets to Doges palace. We waited 10 minutes and then the guide was missing a ticket for one member in the group so we waited another 10 minutes for that ticket. Then after the Doges palace, the guide pointed to a direction where we were to meet the next guide to take us to the gondola ride. We never would have found the meeting place on our own. It was a 15 minute walk with a bunch of turns. One of the other tour members somehow got us to the right spot. Then we had a great gondola tour guide who had to repeat everything he said in English and Italian. We only had his attention 50% of the tine. Then we had 2 hours free before meeting for the Murano and Birano part of thee trip. It was at this time, that we found out the tour ended at 6:30, two and a hal hours after I was told that morning. So we went to Murano and had to take a public boat back to San Marco to make our dinner plans. I must say that in the two week vacation we had about 12 tours and this was the only one we did not enjoy. In fact the Viator tour in Rome was wonderful.
This company needs to overhaul this tour. It should be split so one guide is assigned to a group for the entire tour. Not 3 separate guides. It does not work .
Renee_M, Sep 2024
We only did a 30 minute gondola ride at 6.30pm and it was beautiful! The staff were all lovely. There seemed to be a bit of a booking mix up and the staff were quick to accomodate us without any fuss even though they weren’t expecting us. Very nice people. A must do for Venice.
Robert_A, Sep 2024
A tad on the expensive side. Each guide was very knowledgeable. Meetup was convenient except for boat trip.
Sophie_V, Sep 2024
Unforgettable journey in Venice! The commentary of the tour guide about the Doge's Palace and the St. Mark's Basilica was so interesting and the gondola ride is a must-to-do when you are in Venice. Highly recommended.
Trista_A, Sep 2024
There was a Ragata event the day that we were scheduled and the local tour service canceled our tour. When we arrived at our meeting spot they told us they have no idea why we would have scheduled the tour.
Ellen_E, Aug 2024
Loved all day tour. We saw so much of Venice! Wish they would explain more that after the morning tour, location of paid lunch on our own, then we go back to Venice Tours office and check back in for afternoon boat rides. Loved it all! Tour guides were awesome. Tip, bring your own headphones to use on tours, with the point (circle) end. I could not hear out of the headphones they supplied, at all!
Georgia_K, Jun 2024
We knew we wouldn't get paid entry for this cheap a price but it worded it as if we would at least get a tour and we'd pay entry on the door. It was not clear that all you got with this payment was an app, that would've been free to download anyway
Kathryn_M, May 2024
Probably was not tour company fault but gondola ride was only 20minutes, did not finish at st marks square were it was supposed to and because we had booked as a romantic gondola ride the gondolier was constantly shouting at his other gondolier friends. We actually told the tour operator how unhappy we were, they did offer us a guided group tour but as it was our last day could not take them up on it
Brandon_M, May 2024
Venice was very beautiful and so romantic. The Golden Basilica of St. Mark's with its byzantine masterpieces was so majestic and I have experienced an unforgettable gondola ride.
Jack_K, May 2024
Great tour to discover Venice in all its corners, we have discovered and learned a lot about Venice historical buildings and the muran glass was amazing. Recommended.
Masako_H, May 2024
A fantastic experience in Venice! I loved the Doge's Palace the most! The gondolier was very amusing, and the staff were incredibly welcoming! Highly recommended!
Ludwig_V, May 2024
An unforgettable experience. I explored the Venetian islands with my girlfriend, and the audioguide shared fascinating facts and curiosities about Murano, the vibrant Burano, and Torcello.
Juan_C, May 2024
An experience that I will never forget. I visited with my friends the islands of Venice and the audioguide revealed us interesting facts and curiosities about Murano, the colorful Burano and Torcello.
Stephan_M, May 2024
Wonderful experience in Venice! The high detailed audioguide let me discover the typical places know only to Venetians, the island of Murano was wonderful!
Bill_L, May 2024
Great tour guide personalities . Very informative and pleasant. Great experience all around . Would recommend it to others.
Scott_H, Apr 2024
DO NOT BOOK the "Venice: Romantic Private Gondola Ride on Grand Canal"
It is a complete rip-off and scam. If you want to get a gondola, pay the €90 there, not through this company.You are paying twice as much for an awful experience. Not only did the company change our ticket to a different voucher the day before without any explanation. Once we did have it corrected, the ride itself never took us down the Grand Canal, just the minor waterways around the meeting location.
Eric_E, Apr 2024
Waiting for gondola to show up at the meeting point and never arriving. Company didn't stand behind product when contacted.
Ann_S, Mar 2024
Fantastic experience. They were all so friendly. As we was going round the man was telling us all the points and talking to us about the day to day living around the area. Definitely a must if in Venice
Luiz_O, Dec 2023
It's a mandatory tour.
If you go to Venice and don't take a private gondola ride, you haven't been in Venice.
Luiz & Inara
Response from Host, Feb 2024
Thanks for your kind review
Kelley_L, Nov 2023
Great way to experience Venice. Tour was 35 minutes and went through small canals and part of Grand Canal. Guide was helpful in pointing out special sights. He had a great sense of humor and smile.
Response from Host, Nov 2023
Thanks for your kind review
Shawntae_B, Oct 2023
Terrible experience!! We found out (after we booked) that there is a law that called leaders cannot charge more than €80 for a gondola ride for a group. We had paid 200 after fees! The policy said it was too late to cancel so angrily we went. We had paid for a 40 minute ride with commentary… The ride lasted maybe 17 minutes and the guy never said a single word. I even tried to talk to him and he just ignored me.
Response from Host, Nov 2023
Dear Guest, we are deeply sorry for your personal comment, please consider that the gondolier is not the guide, but he is like a driver who must take care of his oar. At your disposal for further information. Regards.
Harsha_M, Oct 2023
Terrible experience. The tour company insisted that I booked a shared ride when it was a private ride. The ride was to include the grand canal and last for approx 30 - 45 min. We never made it to the grand canal and the ride lasted 10min only
Response from Host, Oct 2023
Dear Guest, we are deeply sorry for your personal comment, please consider that private gondola ride is a unique occasion to discover the romantic and hidden canals of Venice and the façades of typical Venetian buildings on your gondola. At your disposal for further information. Regards.
BasakJulia_K, Oct 2023
I definitely enjoyed our Gondola ride as it was serene and our “Pierre” was professional and tentative!
Response from Host, Oct 2023
Thanks for your kind review
Sarah_L, Oct 2023
The experience is just as promised but no point spending more here when you can just queue up for 10 mins and get it for half the price - it’s about 80euros and we spent more than double.
There’s always a line somewhere so whether it’s peak period (like what we did) or not, there is ALWAYS a boat ready for you within 10 mins max.
We didn’t even get priority, we had to wait for our turn too..:
I’m not going to lie - I’m kindda annoyed.
Response from Host, Oct 2023
Dear Guest, we are deeply sorry for your personal comment, please consider that private gondola ride is a unique occasion to discover the hidden and romantic canals of Venice on your gondola. At your disposal for further information. Regards.
Alessandra_F, Sep 2023
The gondola driver didn’t say a word to us and was on his phone texting the entire time. Would recommend just going to a stand and booking and not pre booking because it’s cheaper as well.
Response from Host, Oct 2023
Dear Guest, we are deeply sorry for your personal comment, please consider that the gondolier is not the guide, but he is like a driver who must take care of his oar. At your disposal for further information. Regards.
Jonah_H, Sep 2023
It was a good experience, but it was expensive for a 20 minute gondola ride. Starting the tour was made difficult by competing instructions from the operator. There are plenty of gondola areas without lines - check them out instead of this tour.
Response from Host, Oct 2023
Dear Guest, we are sorry for your personal comment, please consider that in case of problems to find the meeting point, we are always available to assist customers. At your disposal for further information. Regards.
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From $115.39
per personup to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)
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Venice's Icons: Basilica, Doge Palace, Rialto & Optional Gondola
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