Meeting in Venice city center with your private guide in front of Florian café, the most historical coffee-house in the city. Visit the main highlights of this wonderful town, focusing on St. Mark’s Square, The Gran Canal, The Basilica of St. Mark, the Rialto Bridge and many others. The Piazza is dominated at its eastern end by the great Gothic church of St Mark, wonderful example of the Dogi’s power and wealth, and wonderfully decorated both in the external façade and in the interior part. The Piazza is really evocative, made of great arches and marble decoration, Romanesque carvings round the central doorway and, above all, the four horses which preside over the whole piazza and are such potent symbols of the pride and power of Venice that the Genoese in 1379 said that there could be no peace between the two cities until these horses had been bridled. The Clock Tower (Torre dell'Orologio), completed in 1499, above a high archway where the street known as the Merceria (a main thoroughfare of the city) leads through shopping streets to the Rialto, the commercial and financial center. Piazza S.Marco is only a starting point to visit Venice: you will proceed to Rialto Bridge, the most striking bridge in the city with a breathtaking point of observation over the Canal Grande.
End of the tour. For those who want to proceed the visit with a guide, the tour can be extended and several attractions can be added. First of all, a visit to the Dogi Palace is strongly suggested: you will walk down the wonderful salons and halls where the powerful ruling families in Venice took their decisions and organized their well-known Carnival’s balls. Although only few traces remain of the ancient palace, built in the IX° century, some Byzantine-Venetian architecture characteristics can still be seen at the ground floor. Political changes in the mid-13th century led to the need to re-think the palace's structure due to the considerable increase in the number of the Great Council's members. The new Gothic palace's constructions started around 1340, focusing mostly on the side of the building facing the lagoon. Some other ideas for your visit can be that of visiting the Ghetto, one of the most important ghettos of the whole Italy; or simply that of meandering through Venice streets, little squares, hidden corners and craftsmen’s shops. Furthermore, for those who wish a lunch in typical Venetian restaurant can be organized.