St Mark's Basilica Guided Tour with Gondola Ride Venice

St. Mark's Square and the clock tower

You meet your guide under the arcade beneath the clock tower, at number 145 on the north side of St. Mark's Square. The tower, completed at the end of the fifteenth century, shows the hours, the phases of the moon and the signs of the zodiac on its blue and gold dial, and two bronze figures strike the bell on its roof. Opposite stands the tall bell tower, and in front of you rise the domes and golden façade of the basilica.

St. Mark's Square has been the stage of Venetian public life for a thousand years: processions, elections of the doge, markets and festivals all took place here. Your guide gives you a short introduction to the square before you skip the queue that usually stretches along the front of the basilica.

St. Mark's Basilica, the Golden Church of Venice

St. Mark's Basilica was built to keep the relics of St. Mark the Evangelist, brought from Alexandria by two Venetian merchants in 828. The church you see today dates from the eleventh century and was modelled on the great Byzantine churches of Constantinople, with five domes over a Greek-cross plan. Over the centuries, Venetian ships brought columns, marbles and treasures from the East to decorate it.

Its richness earned it the nickname Chiesa d'Oro, the Golden Church, and it is the most visited church in Venice. With priority entrance through a separate door you walk straight in, which is the main reason travellers choose a St. Mark's Basilica skip-the-line tour rather than waiting in the long line in summer.

The mosaics and marble floors inside

Inside, more than 8,000 square metres of mosaics made of tiny tiles of gold and coloured glass cover the domes, vaults and arches. They tell the stories of Genesis, the life of Christ, the apostles and the legend of how the body of St. Mark reached Venice. Medieval artisans set each gold tile at a slight angle so that the walls shimmer as the light changes.

Your guide explains how the mosaics were made, how to read their scenes and what their symbols meant to Venetians. Look down too: the floor is a carpet of inlaid marble with geometric patterns and animal figures, gently rippled by the movement of the ground over the centuries. These are the details that make a guided tour of St. Mark's Basilica so rewarding.

A gondola ride on the canals

After the basilica, your guide accompanies you to the gondola station, where you step aboard for a ride on the canals of Venice. The gondola is the symbol of the city: long, slender and black, built by hand with an asymmetric hull so that a single gondolier standing at the stern can steer it with one oar.

Gliding slowly on the water, you see the city from the angle it was built for: palace façades rising straight from the canals, water gates, small bridges overhead and the reflections of old stone. For many travellers a Venice gondola ride is the moment they will remember most, and combining it with the basilica saves you from organising it separately.

Practical tips for your visit

The basilica has a strict dress code: shoulders, knees and thighs must be covered, so avoid shorts, short dresses and sleeveless tops, and men should remove hats inside. Large bags, backpacks, animals and sharp objects are not allowed, and minors must be accompanied by an adult.

The tour runs rain or shine. Some parts may not be easily accessible for people with reduced mobility, and in autumn and winter high tides can occasionally affect the area around St. Mark's Square. If you want the best time to visit St. Mark's Basilica, an afternoon slot with priority entrance avoids most of the waiting and leaves the evening free for a walk along the canals.