Venice in a Day: Accademia Galleries and Doge's Palace Combo Ticket

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Accademia Galleries:
from Monday to Sunday: 8:15 am - 5:45 pm

Doge's Palace:
November 1 to March 31: 8:30 am to 5:30 pm
April 1 to October 31: 8:30 am to 7:00 pm

Address: Campo della Carità, next to Accademia Bridge, Dorsoduro n. 1050 - Venice

Opening Hours

Monday from 8:15 am until 2:00 pm (last admission at 1:15 pm)
From Tuesday to Sunday from 8:15 am until 7:15 pm (last admission at 6:30 pm)
Closed on: January 1, May 1, December 25

How to reach the Accademia Galleries:

By Boat ACTV Line 1 or Line 2: stop Accademia

On foot: it takes 30 - 40 minutes from Piazzale Roma (Parking) or from Santa Lucia train station.

Address: San Marco 1, 30124 Venice. Entrance for the public: Porta del Frumento, Piazzetta San Marco

Opening Hours

• November 1 to March 31: 8:30 am to 5:30 pm
• April 1 to October 31: 8:30 am to 7:00 pm

Last access allowed 1 hour before closure.
Closed on December 25 and January 1.

How to reach the Doge’s Palace:

By train

Directly outside the Venice train station are the landing-stages for the following vaporetti (bus boats): Number 51, Number 41, stop: San Zaccaria; Number 2, Number 1, stop: Vallaresso or San Zaccaria

By Car

From Piazzale Roma parking: vaporetti (boat bus): Number 51, Number 41, stop: San Zaccaria; Number 2, Number 1, stop: Vallaresso or San Zaccaria

From Tronchetto Car Parking: vaporetti (boat bus): Number 2, stop: San Zaccaria; Number 2, stop: Vallaresso

From Punta Sabbioni Parking: for Venice, take Number 1214, stop: San Zaccaria

From Lido: from the S.M.Elisabetta landing-stage take one of the following vaporetti (boat bus): Number 1214, Number 51, Number 52, stop: San Zaccaria; Number 1, stop: Vallaresso or San Zaccaria

By Plane

Arriving by bus to Piazzale Roma Number 5 ACTV, or the ATVO Air Terminal shuttle. From Piazzale Roma, vaporetti (boat bus): Number 51, Number 41, stop: San Zaccaria; Number 2, Number 1, stop: Vallaresso or San Zaccaria

Arriving by Alilaguna water bus to Venice: You reach Venice with the (Blue Line) AEROPORTO-S.Marco, stop: San Zaccaria

The Accademia Galleries

The Accademia Galleries hold an important collection of Venetian painting from the 14th to the 18th centuries, including masterpieces by the most famous masters – such as Bellini, Giorgione, Carpaccio, Titian, Tintoretto, Veronese, and Tiepolo.


Founded in 1750 by the Venetian Senate as Venice’s school of painting, sculpture, and architecture, the school was one of the first to study and develop art restoration. The Accademia was renamed the Accademia Reale di Belle Arti and moved to its present premises in 1807 by order of the Napoleonic occupying forces. After the suppression of religious congregations and public Venetian magistratures, a large quantity of art works was confiscated. A selection of masterpieces was sent to Paris, to be shown in the Louvre Museum.



In Venice, many paintings of the local school from the 14th to the 18th centuries were rescued from dispersion and sale by the Accademia gallery, which functioned as didactic collection for young artists. In order to include a systematic overview of Italian art, the Accademia strove to purchase works from most important Italian schools, but it was decided later to give preference to regional works.



The Venetian Academy of Painters and Sculptors, created in 1750, had its seat at the Fonteghetto della Farina in San Marco. In 1807, Napoleon's government chose as its new seat the building complex of the Carità, formed by the ancient church of Santa Maria della Carità, the Convent of the Canonici Lateranensi (built by Andrea Palladio) and the Scuola Grande della Carità.


On November 5, 1807, the new school opened, and in August 10, 1817, the Accademia gallery of paintings was opened to the public. The first nucleus of the collections were formed by works from the old Academy, selected paintings of the Scuola della Carità, and the Farsetti plasters collection. Additional paintings were recovered from France, while others were taken from Venetian churches such as San Giobbe's. The museum continuously increased its collection with private donations and new acquisitions of significant works.


A renovation project began in 1819 and was completed in 1856: two large halls were constructed to the left of the convent, divided by four marble columns. The convent was enlarged and in 1830 the Carità emblems of the facade were substituted by Accademia symbols. The great hall of the ground floor was divided to create a separate entrance for the gallery, independent from the school.



A radical reorganization of the galleries was undertaken in 1895. The 19th century artists were removed, and the works were organized chronologically. The 15th century paintings were grouped together, and polygonal exhibition spaces were created for some painting cycles to allow the experience of pictorial continuity. The Galleries became independent from the School and the Academy in 1906.



Between 1945 and 1948, paintings were selected and frames that were not original removed. The reorganization project continued until the end of the 1950's.



The connection between the Accademia Galleries and Venice is deep, as many important works from churches, schools, and public magistratures are preserved here. In some cases, the shown works are the only testimony remaining from churches destroyed during the Napoleonic period. Some of the most famous paintings form part of the collections thanks to the generosity of private collectors.

The Palazzo Ducale (Doge's Palace) is a masterpiece of gothic art. And yet, a wide variety of architectural and ornamental elements contribute to its splendor, from ancient foundations built in the 1300s to the Renaissance additions including splendid manneristic details.

The Doge’s Palace consists of three main parts. One is the south facing wing, which is the oldest and contains the Sala del Maggior Consiglio (Hall of the Great Council). The second wing faces the Piazzetta San Marco. As the Palazzo di Giustizia it hosted the courts, and contains the Sala dello Scrutinio (Voting Hall). The Renaissance wing hosts the Doge's residence and many government offices.

Your visit to the Doge's Palace begins by entering the palace complex through the Porta del Frumento into the courtyard surrounded by the four wings. The small marble facade with the clock dates back to 1615. Two bronze wells from the middle of the 16th century are located in the center of the courtyard. The two oldest wings of the Doge's Palace present simple facades. The Renaissance wing shows rich decorations, including the Giant's Stairway, with the impressive statues of Mars and Neptune (sculpted by Sansovino in 1565), symbolizing the power of Venice on land and sea.

The staircase, conceived by Antonio Rizzo, is next to the arch built in the period of Doge Francesco Foscari. It is faced with Istria stone and red marble from Verona. The staircase leads to the Porta della Carta through the Foscari entrance hall, which is nowadays the visitors’ exit from the Doge's Palace. To the right of the stairway is the Cortile dei Senatori (16th century), where the senators would wait before government meetings. On the other side of this same wing the majestic Scala dei Censori (Censor's Staircase) leads to the upper floors of the Doge's Palace.

The former kitchen area of the Doge's Palace on the ground floor hosts the Museo dell'Opera and temporary exhibitions. The Opera Museum, called Fabbriceria or Procuratoria, was the head office for maintenance and management of restorations of the Doge's Palace.

The Museo dell'Opera hosts ancient architectural pieces of the Doge's Palace, including the capitals that were replaced by copies in an important restoration effort in 1875. These precious sculptures decorated the medieval facades of the Doge's Palace with allegoric, religious, moral, and political statements.

The first floor, called Piano delle Logge, includes entrances to the east, south, and west wings. From here, you can enjoy splendid views of the courtyard and the Piazzetta San Marco. This floor hosts the offices of the Soprintendenza per i Beni Ambientali e Architettonici di Venezia and some offices of the Musei Civici Veneziani.

From here, your Doge's Palace visit proceeds to the Scala d'Oro (Golden Staircase) through the Renaissance wing. This wing hosted the offices of many magistrates. You will see lions' mouths on the wall: citizens could place crime or embezzlement accusations into these. The messages would fall into a wooden box opened by the office to which they were addressed.

On this same wall you will also see two plaques. The first dates from the papacy of Urban V during the 1300s: It promises indulgences to whoever showed charity to prisoners. The other was created by Alessandro Vittoria to celebrate the 1674 visit of Henry III of France to Venice. Marble sculptures by Tiziano Aspetti decorate the access to the Scala d'Oro: one represents Atlas holding the heavens, the other Hercules killing the many-headed Hydra.

The apartments of the Doge are located in the palace area between the Rio della Canonica (the aquatic entrance to the Doge’s Palace), the Scala d'Oro and the apse of the Basilica di San Marco. A small but prestigious residence formed the basic nucleus of the apartments, while the rooms closest to the Scala d'Oro had the function of bridging the private life of the doge with his public duties. The doge retired to the private residence for dinner and to pass time with the members of his family at the end of the day.

Between the Piano delle Logge and the second floor lies the Atro Quadrato (Square Atrium). This atrium leads to the Stanze Istituzionali (Institutional Rooms), where the political and administrative life of the Republic was conducted. The main branches of government worked here: the Maggior Consiglio (Great Council), the Senato (Senate), the Collegio (Cabinet), and the most important justice magistrates, from the Consiglio dei Dieci (Council of the Ten) to the Quarantie (Appeal Court). In all the rooms, the decorations celebrate the virtue of the State and its functions.

The Doge's Palace, seat of all government institutions of the Republic, included the justice department and the prisons. During the second half of the 1500s a new building was constructed on the other side of the river entirely dedicated to prison functions. The construction of these “New Prisons” had the purpose of improving the living conditions of the prisoners.

Following tradition, the walls, roof, and ceiling of each cell were coated with crossed larch wood layers. These New Prisons are one of the first examples of construction solely dedicated for use as a state prison.

Your itinerary then takes you to the two lower floors and the prison courtyard, where you will also see the ceramic collection found during the archaeological excavations in the area. Your visit then continues to the Ponte dei Sospiri and the Sala dei Censori.

The Ponte dei Sospiri (Bridge of Sighs) was created in 1614 to connect the Doge's Palace to the New Prisons building. Two corridors separated by a wall form this famous closed and covered bridge. One corridor links the prisons to the Sale del Magistrato alle Leggi, the Sala della Quarantia Criminal, and to the noble floor of the palace. The other corridor joins the prisons to the Sale dell'Avogaria and the Parlatorio. Both corridors are connected to the stairs that lead from the Pozzi (the prisons below water level) to the Piombi (the prisons under the roof). The famous name of the Ponte dei Sospiri comes from the romantic era: leaving the tribunal of the Doge's Palace, the prisoners crossed the bridge to serve their sentence, sighing heavily as they caught a glimpse of freedom through the small windows.

The rooms of the Armeria host the museum of arms and ammunitions. Its nucleus dates back to the 16th century. During the Venetian Republic, the Armeria was under the protection of the Consiglio dei Dieci. It contained war instruments ready for use by the squires of the Doge's Palace, and the highly qualified and organized arsenalotti guards. Partially lost after the end of the Republic, the arms collection has today more than two thousand pieces.