Venice in A Day: St Mark's Basilica, Doge's Palace & Gondola Ride
Overview
Available languages
6 hours
Mobile ticket
If you want to make sure you cover the highlights of Venice, this full day tour is your best choice. If you’re only spending a few days in Venice, covering the best attractions in a single day is a smart idea. That way, you can spend the remainder of your time in Venice sipping Prosecco by the canals. This tour includes stops at St Mark’s Basilica and Square, the Rialto Bridge, Doge’s Palace (including Casanova’s prison cell), a half hour gondola ride and plenty of hidden gems along the way. A lunch break is scheduled into the tour - we would never let you go hungry in Italy!
Additional Info
Public transportation options are available nearby
Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
Since we will be entering a church, please make sure that your shoulders and knees are covered. Also, please refrain from bringing big back packs or bags, because they are not always allowed inside.
All guests must supply their full name and date of birth that matches a valid ID at the time of the booking. Please note that a photo ID is required to visit the St. Mark's Basilica. Name changes are not permitted.
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.
We regret that we are unable to accommodate guests with wheelchairs or any walking impairments that require special assistance on our group tours. We are also unable to accommodate strollers or baby carriages.
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
What‘s Included
30-Minute Venetian Gondola Ride
Visit the Famous Rialto Bridge & Market
Skip the Line Entry & Guided Tour of the Doge's Palace
Professional Art Historian Guide
Small Group Size of Maximum 19
Access to St. Mark's Basilica (valued at €12 per person)
Skip the Line Entry & Guided Tour of St. Mark's Basilica
Hotel Pick Up / Drop Off
Food & Beverages
Gratuities
What To Expect
Piazza San Marco
Meet our Guide Your Venice in a Day Tour begins in St. Mark’s Square, Venice’s central public plaza. Your guide will teach you the history of this iconic piazza, home to St. Mark’s Basilica.
Basilica di San Marco
Known as “The Church of Gold”, St. Mark’s Basilica’s elaborate design features gold mosaics and marble slabs. Skip the line and learn about the basilica’s storied history during a guided tour of the stunning Basilica.
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Venice in A Day: St Mark's Basilica, Doge's Palace & Gondola Ride
Reviews
496 reviews
Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor
The highlight was the gondola ride
Traci S,
Sep 12, 2025
- Viator
5.00Great tour of Piazza St Marco, the basilica, the Doge Palace with walking tour of the general area. The highlight was a gondola ride. The leader was excellent with good overall knowledge of the city.
Fun day in Venice
LINDA A,
Sep 10, 2025
- Viator
4.00Gud did an excellent job of conveying history and knowledge in a fun way. It was a great way to spend the day.
Beware of Angry Gondola Drivers
lclaffey,
Sep 9, 2025
- Viator
2.00The first part of the tour of Doge's Palace was good, and the Basilica was good as well. The part that was terrible was the gondola ride! We must have had the nastiest, meanest, most disgusting driver ever! He immediately started yelling at us to stop moving, and continued to yell at us multiple times throughout the 30 minute gondola ride from hell. During one of the turns my husband's seat cushion started sliding off the chair causing him to nearly fall. The driver screamed at him stating "I told you to hold still!" and "why can't you do as you are told", and then said what I am sure was some not so nice things in Italian. He spent the entire time on his phone, and every 2 minutes he would cough and then spit into the water. All 5 of us on this gondola were angry 1 minute into the ride and it really was the ride from hell! Towards the end of the tour someone in our tour group needed to use the restroom. When the person needed longer than expected, our tour guide became upset because he still had the tour listening device with him. The last 30 minutes or so of the tour she was focused on finding a way to get it back instead of the tour we paid for. After walking through the Basilica, the tour was basically finished for our tour guide and us.
Walking tour of Venice
Hisayo O,
Sep 9, 2025
- Viator
5.00Martina was excellent just a walking encyclopedia of information. It’s a wonderful tour, but you do need to be able to walk and do stairs. The gondola ride was fun to experience living in Venice.
I was most looking...
Lisa H,
Sep 8, 2025
- Viator
1.00I was most looking forward to the gondola ride which was shared with strangers and I didn't get to sit next to my partner. The audio during the tour for the palace kept breaking up throughout the tour. There was also a bunch of waiting. Not worth the money.
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