VENICE PRIVATE DAILY SIGHTSEEING EXCURSIONS

* HISTORICAL CENTER ON FOOT - (2 hours PRIVATE excursion AVAILABLE every day) All participants during the afternoon could admire the historical centre of Venice, an half day tour with a professional English speaking guide. Piazza San Marco was place of processions, political activities and Carnival festivities with its elegant cafes, open air orchestras and the Byzantine Basilica with its magnificent gold mosaics and the Doge's Palace, an extraordinary beautiful building, and one which owes its uniqueness to the effect created by its decoration and overall architecture design. The palace was the ancient residence of the Doges of Venice, and thus it was the centre of the city's life and the seat of power of the Serenissima Republic. Cost of the excursion €185 (up tp 4 participants) Entrance Doge's Palace fee €16 p.p. (not included in the excursion price) PICK UP AT HOTEL (Only St. Mark's area hotels) Booking code OX1/P

* PEGGY GUGGENHEIM COLLECTION (2 hrs with a professional English speaking guide) Palazzo Venier dei Leoni houses the Peggy Guggenheim Art collection: this is one of the most important collections of contemporary art in the world, and certainly the richest and most valuable in Italy. The collection takes its name from its founder and patron Peggy Guggenheim, who owed the Palazzo. The most important artists in the areas of cubism, futurism, dadaism, surrealism and abstractism are well represented here. Cost of the excursion €185 Museum entrance fee not included Open weekdays, weekends and holidays from 10am to 6pm Saturday from 10am to 10pm Close on Tuesday and 25 December. Booking code OX3/P

* ACCADEMIA GALLERIES (2 hrs with a professional English speaking guide) The link that exists between the Galleries of the Accademia and the city of Venice is strong. The Galleries in fact contain many works of art which came from churches and schools and from public offices of authority. A visit to the city is therefore a necessary extension to that of the art collections, or vice versa, for only in this way can the visitor fully understand how and why the painters adopted certain solutions based on the destination of a painting and its meaning. In some cases the works exhibited in the Galleries are the only evidence which remains from churches demolished during Napoleon's dominion, and some of the most famous paintings from illustrious private Venetian collections arrived at the museum thanks to bequests and donations. Examples of these are Piero della Francesca's Saint Jerome, many Virgin and Child paintings by Giovanni Bellini and the Venetian sketches by Pietro Longhi. Cost of the excursion €190 (up to 4 people) Galleries entrance fee €10 p.p. (not included in the package) Open Tuesday-Sunday 08.15am-07.15pm Monday 8.15am-2.00pm Booking code OX4/P

* THE SECRET TRAILS OF THE DOGES PALACE (An exclusive tour of the best kept secrets in Venice) Watch the movie The Merchant of Venice to get the idea of Venice past "GRANDEUR" you can discover. The itinerary begins from the rooms of the Notaio Ducale, who worked as secretary for several magistratures of the Republic, and those of the Segretario alla Segreta del Consiglio dei Dieci who took care of private archives.Rooms are communicating and can be reached from the Atrio Quadrato. From here the Office of the Cancellier Grande is reached. From here you can reach the Office of the Cancellier Grande. From this room, a stair leads to the beautiful room of the Cancelleria Segreta, whose walls were entirely covered by cupborads that kept public deeds and secret contracts of most of the Venice magistratures.Through the room of the Reggente alla Cancelleria you reach the Torture Room directly linked to the prisons. From here, you enter the Piombi zone: the name comes from the lead coverage of the roof. The six or seven cells were set up dividing the space by wooden partitions, nailed down and stregthened by big Iron sheets.The Piombi, as described by Giacomo Casanova, one of the most famous prisoners of the palace, offered much better conditions that the Pozzi, the terrible cells located in the ground floor. The two cells that once hosted Casanova have been reconstructed and now are part of the visit trail. Fron the "sottotetto" you reach the Sala degli Inquisitori (the ceiling of the room is decorated by works of Tintoretto): this scaring magistrature could use any method for their investigations even torture. From here you reach the Sala dei Tre Capi, magistrates elected each month among the ten members of the Consiglio dei Dieci for the preparation of the trials.Decoration of the ceiling was made by Giambattista Zelotti and the latest compartments were created by Veronese and Ponchini. From this room, through a secret wooden passage you reach the Sala dei 3 Inquisitori.After the Secret Trails, the tour will continue outside, at San Zaccaria with its beautiful Church, through the popular Ruga Giuffa _ a lively area, local shops, osterie, Venetian bars _ crossing Campo Santa Maria Formosa. The airy ÅgcampoÅh was one of the busiest places in the life of the town and one of the oldest religious and civil centres of the Serenissima. It was formerly the site of many theatrical performances, feasts and even bull fights. Then you return to San Zaccaria, Casanova Tour/Oltrex ending point. Alternatively, the outside excursion can go on with the visit of the Chiostro di Sant'Apollonia, one of the architectural gems of Venice, the only Roman building still existing in Venice. The visit of the interior "Museo Diocesano d'Arte Sacra" is free and facultative. Cost of the excursion €185 (up to 4 people) Entrance fees €16 p.p.not included in the price Booking code OX5/P

"* OMBRE E CICHETI INTO VENETIAN BACARI" - (DISCOVERING VENETIAN TIPYCAL FOODS) Wine bars are popular in many parts of Italy but Venice has a unique tradition! During this gourmet discovery tour you will wander from place to place stopping to sip wine and eat "cicheti" (Venetian snacks) at the local "Bacari." These winebars, which offer finger food, derive their name from Bacchus, the god of wines. You will stop for an "ombra" (shadow), a small special glass of wine. Someone says it is called an "ombra" because it is a mere shadow of a drink; according to a legend the term "ombra" sees its origin around the turn of the century when a man used to sell drinks from a stall in the shade of San Marco. Either ways, the "bacari" are firmly entrenched in the popular culture. The excursion will make 2 stops for wine tasting and snaks not included in the excursions price and to be paid on location Pick Up at hotel (Only St. Mark's area hotels) Cost of the excursion: €250 Booking code OX6/P

* ISLANDS TOUR (Half-day ) with a professional English Speaking guide & by Taxi water. After passing the island of San Giorgio Maggiore, the public gardens and the Lido, famous for its beaches, we reach the island of Murano known all over the world for its glass manufacturing industry. Here there is a stop of 40 minutes to visit one of the factories. The second stop is on the picturesque island of Burano, famous not only for its lace but also for its fisherme's houses painted in bright colours. The stop is about 35 minutes. Ten minutes after leaving Burano we reach Torcello, the first center of civilization in the story. Only the Cathedral with its magnificent mosaics and the church of Santa Fosca remain as heritage of its former glory. The stop is about 35 minutes. Cost of the excursion: €608 (up to 4 participants) Entrance fees not included Booking code OX7/P

* PRIVATE GONDOLA SERENADE (45 min. with singer + music player, guitar & accordion) Cost of the excursion up to 4 participants: €507 without English speaking guide €676 with English speaking guide Pick up Hotel (Only St. Mark's area hotels) Booking code OX8/P

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Gabriele's Travels to Italy continually strive to improve tour itinerary and features. If improvement can be made, or unforeseen circumstances beyond our control make changes necessary, we reserve the right to vary itinerary excursions and to substitute hotels and restaurants. Final documents and paperwork, sent out about three weeks prior to departure date, will include an updated itinerary. Prices are subject to change according to currency fluctuations, availability and confirmation. We reserve the right to cancel any tour due to lack of participants or for circumstances beyond our control. In this case, a full refund of all payments will be made. Prices listed are based on tariffs and exchange rates at the time of printing and are subject to change without notice. Gabriele's Travels to Italy is not responsible for typing mistake and/or tour description.