Venice Skip the line St Mark's Basilica tour

Venice, Italy

Likely to Sell Out

From $42.67

Select Date and Travelers

up to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)

1 hour
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

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Overview

Save yourself from the stress of standing in a long line to visit St. Mark's Basilica by choosing this tour with skip-the-line admission included. After meeting your guide at St. Mark’s Square, you can learn some background information and then discover the interior of St. Mark’s Basilica together. Highlights include the first-floor museum, the terrace, and the magnificent mosaics.

Check off St. Mark’s Square and St. Mark’s Basilica
Beat the long waiting time with skip-the-line admission
Clear commentary: Benefit from having a headset provided
Tour give access to a terrace with outstanding views

What's Included

Local guide in English, Frenche, German, Italian and Spanish
Skip the line and entrance fee
Guided walking tour of Saint Mark's Square and its Basilica
Personal audio system and headset for tour commentary
Saint Mark's Basilica first floor museum and the terrace

Food and drinks
Hotel pick up and drop off
Pala d'oro (€ 5,00)

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting point

Calle larga de l'Ascension, 1258, 30124 Venezia VE, Italy
15 min before in Calle larga de l’Ascension 1258 - 30124 next to the post office San Marco (opposite side of the Saint Marks Basilica). Look for the yellow sign "Meeting point" on the wooden kiosk and the Turive assistant.

End point

Piazzetta dei Leoncini, 30124 Venezia VE, Italy

What To Expect

Piazza San Marco

20 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Basilica di San Marco

40 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Not wheelchair accessible
Near public transportation
Most travelers can participate
Check-in is 15 minutes before the tour start time

Backpacks and large bags are not allowed inside the church
A dress code is required to enter places of worship and selected museums. No shorts or sleeveless tops allowed. Knees and shoulders MUST be covered for both men and women. You may risk refused entry if you fail to comply with these dress requirements
On very few occasions the Basilica may be closed due to high water, the tour will not be cancelled but the explanation of the Basilica will take place from the outside
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. For further details (including exemptions) and to learn what days this fee is applicable, please visit: https://cda.ve.it
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 20 travelers

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.

Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.
Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.

Traveler Photos

Reviews

4.0

233 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travelers.

We perform checks on reviews

Showing 1-10 of 233 reviews

Somewhat disappointing, just OK

Grace_M, May 2024

Not a great experience. The guide was an older gentleman, never got his name. Not very friendly and had a heavy accent. He counted everyone, handed out radios and headsets and started the tour immediately. We couldn’t understand much, but was able to make out a few things he said by straining hard to listen, but finally gave up trying to understand. A younger couple in the group left early and we exchanged shrugs and smiles, as though they couldn’t understand either. I think the tour guide was doing his best, but this was our experience. We did get that the enormous church paintings were made from tiny mosaics (each about the size of my fingernail), and that was incredibly impressive! We did our best to enjoy the tour, but not being able to really understand much…. Of the four events we did, this one was the least enjoyable.

Poor experience

Tina_R, May 2024

We had a poor experience. The directions I was given on the confirmed reservations did not match where the group actually met. Also, there was no prior information given about the potential for flooding in the square doing high tide--which made trying to find the group that much harder. We gave ourselves 1 1/2 hour to locate the spot and were still late due to this flooding. This was not taken into account by the guide at all. She started to walk away with the group while I was still trying to have my family members catch up. She said there was nothing she could do. Later, however, she did allow other group members to join the group within the basilica, even though she had been rude to myself and my family members. The tour guide did end up adding on tickets to the museum in the Basilica, as a compensation for the overall poor experience (e.g, wait due to flooding, extensive areas of the Basilica closed when not expected). However, it was truly her attitude throughout the tour that was the most disconcerting. She didn't apologize or try to make the group feel comfortable--she just kept saying, "There's nothing I can do." Viator is usually a good option, but in this case, this tour guide contractor was not up to their standards.

Disappointing

Rosa_L, Apr 2024

Audio quality is bad. That combined with the heavy accent of the guide made my teenage son to give up on listening to the guide altogether. So basically we just paid for the skip the line part.

Church was nice but not the prettiest we have seen here.

Thomas_T, Apr 2024

The tour was nice. Beautiful church but does not come close to the one in Pisa. The guide was ok but arrived a little late for tour.

Stunning church

Sharon_J, Apr 2024

Stunning mosaics. It was great to hear the stories behind them and the meanings of various iconography.

Engaging, Enriching and Eloquent

David_S, Apr 2024

History-rich exploration in the history and development of Venice. Guide was gifted and passionate about the history…engaging and personable.

Good way to skip the lines if tickets sell out

Timothy_K, Apr 2024

We were unable to obtain skip the line tickets to the Basilica before they sold out, so this was the best way for to save a significant amount of time, especially given the massive crowds we encountered on Easter weekend. Our guide, Savanah, was pleasant and informative but we probably would have enjoyed the visit just as much without a guide, as well, since we don't typically use guided tours of churches. Unfortunately, due to the Easter events, we were not able to see the beautiful gold mosaics lit up like you normally can.

The St Mark's Basillica is stunning from floor to ceiling - a cant miss experience.

Russ_H, Apr 2024

Everything about this building is impressive There is no downside. If you have never seen a room done in Mosaic them this is the place to see it at its best.

A must do in Venice

Catherine_M, Apr 2024

Brilliant tour, highly recommend it. Our guide was fabulous, both in her knowledge and the care that she took of her guests. The Basilica is an absolute must, and this was a great way to avoid the queues.

Very good experience...

Lisa_T, Mar 2024

Very good experience especially as we had young children (age 5 and 8). Audio much better than a previous tour with a different operator. Tour guide very informative - very knowledgeable - answered lots of questions. Very patient with the group. Kids stayed interested for the duration as the tour guide v good (they used ear pieces also). Worth paying for skip the line tickets

Venice in a Snapshot

Geetha_K, Mar 2024

It was a great tour but we couldn’t enter St. Mark’s because it was flooded. :( Our tour guide was excellent!

Be aware of the meeting location

Mari_K, Mar 2024

The biggest problem with our tour was finding the meeting location. It was due to others reviewers that helped us to find it. It is at a little wooden stand that has a small sign that says “meeting point” which was under an awning right next to the post office. (The sign had actually been removed when the time for our tour came as it was a rainy day,). That made it hard to find. But the tour itself of St Marks was wonderful. The guide was very passionate and knowledgeable about St Marks. We could have spent much longer than an hour inside but had limited time ourselves.

This is not an actual...

april_d, Mar 2024

This is not an actual ticket. Stood in line with my what I thought were my tickets. Only to find my barcode that said ticket actually had to be taken to another location and turned into a ticket. Never found the actual place. Missed the tour. Should have bought from somewhere else.

A nice time in Venice

Julian_G, Feb 2024

A nice time in Venice and a nice tour of the church and its history and all of its glory The tour guide was Good and invited us to ask questions

Great Tour!

Lina_S, Feb 2024

Great experience! The tour guide was very knowledgeable and passionate about the history of St Marks Basilica and made the tour fun. Going in and out of the basilica was very easy and quick as well. Was considerate of the elderly members of the tour and provided them with elevator rides instead of stairs. Enjoyed the experience! Thank you!

Historical & timely!

Jen_H, Feb 2024

Easy to find meeting point and great tour - really enjoyed it and it was awesome to skip the line as well. Helped us keep on schedule for the other tours we had that day!

Perfect tour of St Mark’s basilica.

Byron_N, Jan 2024

The guide was very friendly and knowledgeable about St Mark’s basilica. She answered all questions. The was well paced. It was a great experience. I highly recommend this tour to all.

Stunning mosaics. Great tour guide

Michelle_B, Jan 2024

Tour guide did an amazing job explaining everything about each mosaic and was Very detailed about each one. Meeting point was very easy to find!!!

Great!

Ximena_M, Dec 2023

Great visit, great guide and wonderful hosts. Very flexible to adjust plans when needed. Very beautiful architecture and interesting history of Venice

Learned a lot and loved all art

Graciela_C, Dec 2023

Our guide was a lady very knowledgeable and willing to share her knowledge and experience. Our tour was very intimate and she gave her full energy, appreciate it!

Response from Host, Dec 2023

Thank you for your good review, we really appreciated.

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