Doge's Palace (Palazzo Ducale)

The Doge's Palace stands on Piazza San Marco in Venice, beside St Mark's Basilica and facing the lagoon. For centuries it was the residence of the Doge, the elected ruler of the Republic of Venice, and the seat of its councils, courts and offices, with prisons inside.

A first palace stood here from about 810. After a fire in the 10th century it was rebuilt under Doge Sebastiano Ziani in the 1170s, and the present Gothic palace took shape from around 1340. Fires in 1483, 1574 and 1577 led to major repairs, and the Venetians kept the Gothic design and turned down the neoclassical plans proposed by Andrea Palladio. After the fall of the Republic, the palace became a museum in 1923.

The pink and white facades rest on open arcades of pointed arches, giving the building a light appearance above the waterfront. The Porta della Carta was the ceremonial entrance, and inside the courtyard the Giants' Staircase is guarded by Sansovino's statues of Mars and Neptune. The Chamber of the Great Council is one of the largest rooms in Europe, with Tintoretto's huge painting Paradise on the end wall. Other rooms hold works by Veronese, Titian and Tintoretto. The Bridge of Sighs, built shortly after 1600, crosses a canal to the New Prisons, and Giacomo Casanova famously escaped from the cells under the roof, called the Piombi.

The palace is run by the Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia.

Tickets are sold online and at the entrance, often combined with the Correr Museum and other museums on the square. The Secret Itineraries guided tour visits hidden offices and the Piombi cells and should be booked ahead. Allow two to three hours and arrive at opening time in summer.

How much is a Doge's Palace ticket? Since 1 January 2026 the full ticket costs EUR 35, up from EUR 30, and the reduced ticket EUR 15. Tickets bought online at least one month ahead cost EUR 30. The ticket also covers the Correr Museum and the Monumental Rooms of the Marciana Library on Piazza San Marco, and the palace cannot be visited on a separate ticket.

The Museum Pass, which gives one entry to every civic museum in Venice over six months, rose to EUR 50 full and EUR 25 reduced in 2026. It suits visitors who also plan to see Ca' Rezzonico, Ca' Pesaro or the glass museum on Murano.

Timing the visit. Queues on the waterfront build from mid-morning in summer, so book a timed slot or arrive at opening. The armoury on the upper floor holds weapons of the Republic, and the route ends with the walk across the Bridge of Sighs into the prisons. Day-trippers to Venice on certain dates in spring and summer must also pay the city's separate access fee, which is not part of the museum ticket.