The square is enlivened by the façade of the Scuola Grande di San Marco (today the vestibule of the city hospital), a fine example of trompe l’oeil, a decorative contrivance drawing the viewer’s attention to the ornamental richness of the building wi..

Begun by Palladio in 1566, this church enjoys a beautiful luminosity that outlines the vault of the nave and the transept with a dome and apses. Jacopo Bassano, Tintoretto and his son Domenico, Gerolamo and Giuseppe Campagna all contributed to its ..

This church is notable for its artworks by Palma the Younger, Paris Bordone and Cima de Conegliano.

A noble facade delicately decorated with openwork, windows with five bays each, intertwined arches and quatrefoils. Cavalli-Franchetti Palace, on the left bank of the Grand Canal, was built during the second half of the 15th C., and transformed at th..

Built in the 18C by Giorgi Massari, this is the last of the great Venetian palaces to be built before the fall of the Venetian Republic. It was purchased in 2005 by French tycoon François Pinault, who commissioned Japanese architect Tadao Ando to rem..

His name comes from the vines that were here in the 13th C. at the time when the Franciscans built the first church here. The church here now, whose facade evokes a Classical temple, was built by Sansovino and has a bell tower that should remind you ..

Rebuilt in the 12C, this church has a remarkable wooden coffered ceiling reminiscent of the keel of a boat, and a number of excellent works of art, including: The Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes by Palma the Younger (1548-1628). The same artist pa..

Begun by Baldassare Longhena and finished by Antonio Gaspari, this elegant palace with its ground-floor level ornamented with bossages and its large windows in the form of an arch, separated by a series of columns that lead out to a balcony, houses..

Venice’s first arsenal was already in existence by 1104 when the Crusades meant huge demand for shipbuilding. Surrrounded by towered walls and canals, the Arsenale has two main entrances, both oriented towards the rio (canal) of the same name. In thi..

The current seat of the university is a Gothic building (with a few Renaissance details that was the new tendency at the time) built in the middle of the 15C for doge Francesco Foscari at the mouth of the rio with the same name. From the vaporetto yo..

If you are passionate about navigation or simply curious about Venetian history, you will love this museum: decorative sculptures of galleys, navigation instruments, portolanos, ship models, ex-voto, scale model of the Bucentaur (a ceremonial barge u..

This church stands far away from everything, on a peaceful and quiet Campo. Its Baroque white marble facade decorated with many statues will attract your attention. You will probably be surprised by its original and rich decor, a true tapestry of gre..

It involves a vow pronounced in 1576 by the doge Alvise Mocenigo , to erect a church dedicated to the Redeemer if the city was freed from the plague. What was said was done, and Palladio (1508-80) built this church with a Classical facade, leading..

Richard Wagner lived and died in this Renaissance palace, built on the Grand Canal by architect Mauro Codussi , who created a beautiful example of a reinterpretation of Byzantine and Gothic architecture. Given to the city in 1946, it is today home t..

The two façades of the “scuola”, one facing Campo Santa Margherita, the other the Campo dei Carmini, were designed by Longhera (1598-1682). Inside is a series of paintings by Tiepolo executed between 1739 and 1744. The hall of the hospice , once u..

Using rafts( zattere ), floating timber was unloaded onto these quays. This is where the promenade along Giudecca canal gets its name. From here you will get a great view of the buildings on the island with the same name (beyond the canal) such as th..

Built of Istrian stone, the palace was built in the late 17C for a rich family of Spanish merchants who gave it its name. The interior is worth seeing for the Tiepolo frescoes in the Salone delle Feste. Other rooms laid out around the main receptio..

An intimate "campo", a harmonious facade made of bricks and decorated with statues: this church has a miraculous statue of the Virgin found in a garden, and is known as the church of Tintoretto : the painter lived nearby and is buried here..

On the unassuming little island of San Pietro at the far end of the city, this is one of Venice’s oldest places of worship. Rebuilt in the 17C to designs by Andrea Palladio (1508-1580), its façade resembles that of Il Redentore. The well-proportion..

Visitors should enter this church devoted to Saint Louis of Anjou (Alvise is the Venetian version of Louis) on account of its fine 15C tempera paintings attributed to Lazzaro Bastiani (active between 1449 and 1512). The right wall of the axial chapel..