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Doge’s Palace, Venice

Landmark

Doge’s Palace

Venice · Veneto

QUICK INFORMATION

CATEGORY
Landmark
COUNTRY
Italy
REGION
Venice · Veneto
DURATION
2 days

ABOUT THIS ATTRACTION

The Doge’s Palace is the political heart of the Venetian republic, the building from which the Doge, the Senate, the Great Council and the feared Council of Ten governed a maritime empire that lasted a thousand years. The present Gothic façade, with its pink-and-white marble and the delicate arcades that make the upper floors look weightless, was built largely in the 14th and 15th centuries on a site that had held the Doge’s residence since the origins of the city. Inside, the great halls are decorated with paintings by Tintoretto, Veronese and Titian, and the palace connects through the Bridge of Sighs to the prisons across the canal.

HISTORY & BACKGROUND

The story behind it

A fortified Doge’s residence stood on the site from the 9th century, but the present building took shape after a series of fires. The wing facing the waterfront was rebuilt in the 1340s, the wing toward St Mark’s in the 1420s and 1430s, and the courtyard façade after a 1574 fire. The palace housed not only the Doge’s apartments but the meeting rooms of every organ of the state — the Great Council of all patricians, the Senate, the Council of Ten and its secret inquisitors — as well as the courts, the armoury and the prisons. After the republic fell to Napoleon in 1797 the palace became government offices and then, in 1923, a public museum.

WHAT TO SEE

What to see here

01

The Great Council Hall — the largest room in the palace, holding the Great Council of all Venetian patricians, with Tintoretto’s vast Paradise behind the dais.

02

The Sala del Senato and the Sala dei Dieci — the Senate chamber and the room of the Council of Ten, the secretive body that ran state security.

03

The Bridge of Sighs — the enclosed stone bridge through which prisoners crossed from the courts to the prisons, named by Byron for their laments.

04

The prisons — the pozzi, the damp wells beneath the palace, and the newer piombi cells under the lead roof.

05

The courtyard and the Giants’ Staircase — where the Doges were crowned, with Mars and Neptune statues at the top.

WHY IT MATTERS

Why it matters

The Doge’s Palace is the record of one of the longest-lived and most stable governments in European history. The Venetian republic lasted from the 8th century to 1797, and its institutions — the elected Doge checked by councils, the Senate, the Ten — were so finely balanced that no single man ever seized power. Walking through the rooms where that system operated is to see how a republic of merchants ran an empire for a thousand years, and the contrast between the airy Gothic façade and the dark prisons behind it is the architecture of that system made visible.

PRACTICAL INFORMATION

Before you go

Tickets
Book online for a timed slot; the Secret Itineraries tour, which visits the Council of Ten rooms and the prisons, is worth booking ahead for a deeper view.
Access
The entrance is on the waterfront side, off the Piazzetta. The route is one-way through the upper halls and down to the prisons.
Best Time
First slot of the morning is quietest; the palace is busy throughout the day.
Context
The palace sits beside St Mark’s Basilica, opening onto the Piazzetta and the waterfront; the Bridge of Sighs is visible from the canal behind.

MAP & LOCATION

Doge’s Palace

Doge’s Palace, Venice, Veneto, Italy

45.4341, 12.3393

Open in OpenStreetMap

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THINGS TO DO

Things to do nearby

01

Ride the Grand Canal at dusk by vaporetto

02

Get lost in the back canals of Cannaregio and Dorsoduro

03

Visit the lagoon islands of Murano, Burano and Torcello

FOOD & DRINK

Where to eat nearby

01

Osteria alle Testiere — a tiny seafood osteria near St Mark’s, one of Venice’s best, book well ahead

02

Cantina Do Mori — the oldest bacaro in Venice, near the Rialto, for cicchetti and a glass of ombra

03

Osteria Anice Stellato — a canal-side trattoria in Cannaregio, honest Venetian cooking off the tourist track

04

All’Arco — a Rialto bacaro serving cicchetti to market workers and visitors from early morning

05

Vini da Gigio — a Cannaregio institution for Venetian classics and a serious wine list

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HOTELS & STAYS

Where to stay nearby

01

Ca’ Sagredo Hotel — a 15th-century palazzo on the Grand Canal, a Relais & Châteaux property

02

Hotel Danieli, Luxury Collection — a historic palace near St Mark’s, with lagoon views

03

Novecento Boutique Hotel — a small, quiet hotel near the Accademia in Dorsoduro

04

B&B Rota — a family-run guesthouse in Cannaregio, good value for a quiet base

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NEARBY DESTINATIONS

Continue the journey

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