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Attraction · Venice, Italy
Palazzo Ducale
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Written by RuinMyTrip Editorial from published research and official sources, not from a personal trip. It is not a traveler review and is never counted in the community rating. How we research.
What it is
The seat of the Doge and the government of the Venetian Republic for a thousand years, on Piazza San Marco, now a museum covering the state rooms, the armoury, the Bridge of Sighs and the prisons.
Why travelers go
It is the building the republic ran from, and it survives more or less intact. Tintoretto's Paradise and the Sala del Maggior Consiglio explain Venetian power more directly than any book about it.
What is genuinely good
Genuinely magnificent state rooms, the largest old master painting in the world, the prisons and the Bridge of Sighs, and a ticket that also covers the Correr and the archaeological museum.
Downsides and tourist traps
Very expensive at the door. Extremely crowded in summer. A fixed one-way route with no backtracking. The Bridge of Sighs is a brief shuffle rather than a moment.
Best for
Every first-time visitor to Venice, and anyone interested in how a maritime republic actually governed itself.
Consider skipping if
You are in Venice for a day and would rather spend it in the quieter sestieri. In that case the Accademia is a calmer use of the money.
Practical advice
Book online and save five euros, then arrive at opening. Use the Correr on the same ticket rather than letting it go to waste. Last admission is an hour before closing, which is not enough time to do the route properly.
Tickets and reservations
Standard 35.00 euros, reduced 15.00 euros, and 30.00 euros standard when purchased online in advance. The ticket includes the Musei di Piazza San Marco. Venetian residents and various categories enter free.
Getting there
Vaporetto line 1 or 2 to San Marco or San Zaccaria, then a two-minute walk. From the railway station it is a forty-minute walk or a twenty-five-minute vaporetto ride.
Where it sits
The eastern corner of Piazza San Marco, beside the basilica and facing the lagoon, which is the single most concentrated tourist site in Italy.
How long to allow
Two to three hours for the full route including the prisons.
Accessibility
Lifts serve most of the state rooms, but the prisons and Bridge of Sighs involve stairs and narrow passages that are not step-free.
The RuinMyTrip verdict
Book online, save the five euros, arrive at nine, and use the Correr on the same ticket. Expensive, unavoidable, and worth it.
Sources
Every figure above was checked against these before publication. If one has since changed, tell us and we will correct it.
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The standard ticket is 35.00 euros and the reduced ticket is 15.00 euros. source
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Summer opening, from 1 April to 31 October, is 09:00 to 19:00 with last admission at 18:00. source
From the RuinMyTrip team
Written by RuinMyTrip Editorial from published research and official sources, not from a personal trip. It is not a traveler review and is never counted in the community rating. How we research.
Palazzo Ducale charges 35.00 euros for a standard ticket and 15.00 euros reduced, dropping to 30.00 euros standard if bought online in advance. It opens 09:00 to 19:00 from 1 April to 31 October, with last admission at 18:00, and 09:00 to 18:00 in winter. The ticket is not only for the palace. It covers the Musei di Piazza San Marco, so the Correr Museum and the archaeological museum come with it, which changes the…
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