Paul Hunt | Feb 16, 2018

The centre of Venice and very popular. St Marks church is free to enter and is most definitely worth seeing, unfortunately no photography is allowed inside. The architecture and painting is mesmerising. It’s worth €3 to go up to the horses balcony, although they are not the originals brought from Constantinople in the fourth crusade the view itself is amazing.

Senor Anonimo | Feb 12, 2018

I may not be wrong when I say that this is the heart of Venice. Be aware that long lines to enter the Basilica are frequent so you'll have to wait patiently before going inside the temple. However, what you see inside is simply astonishing: all bathed in gold. And those horses brought from Constantinople! Can't miss this place

Stephanie Chua | Jan 6, 2018

Beautiful basilica both in the day and in the night. During the day, we could go in to visit. We just had to leave our bags at a separate location - a stones throw away from the church. Someone outside the church will tell you where to go. It's free and seems secure but take your valuables with you! Entry to the church is free, but inside you can pay extra to go to the museum of climb up to the balcony to see the view of the square. We were happy enough just walking around the church

Sharmaine Griffith | Jan 9, 2018

My family and I visited 5 cities in December 2017 and the most horrible and appalling experience was in Venice at the St Mark's Basilica. First of all, it is so dimly lit, you need a flashlight to see its' beauty. Secondly, even though you are not supposed to take pictures, everyone was doing so. A guard spotted me and told me "NO PICTURES" and proceeded to escort me outside. Once outside he told me to "Go Back to Africa". Needless to say I was very upset and angry at the gall of this racist, arrogant, vile and rude individual and we had a heated argument My husband spoke to his superior, but felt there was no recourse. Italy is a very wonderful country and many of the places we visited, we were treated with dignity and respect (the way everyone should be treated). However, it takes only one person to cast negative aspersions to spoil what would have been a great vacation. There is no doubt that the Mark's Basilica employees need a great deal of sensitivity and hospitality training.

Robert Scott | Jan 22, 2018

This Baroque masterpiece needs to be seen to be believed. Its location in the heart of St Mark's Square nestled amidst picturesque canals only adds to its charm. This was definitely the highlight of our visit to Venice!

Thom James | Mar 13, 2018

St Mark’s Basilica is obviously an amazing place to be. It’s a sombre, and reflective experience at one of the most holy places in Venice. Everyone ignores signs for no photos. I don’t want to mark this down from 5/5 but there was a bit of discrepancy in regards to getting in and charges, which don’t detract from it as an attraction but are worth noting. We used the Tiqets app to successfully cut the queue at the next door Doge’s Palace and we were offered the same thing here. For €48, we could get access and cut the line. There was seemingly no place to do this and the queues were enormous so we left it until later in the day, around 3pm. No queues and surprisingly, no expensive access. It was €3 each to see the treasury and €5 each to gain access to the upper deck area and onto the balcony. Worth the admission alone but if you can wait maybe you won’t get caught out with high ticket fees (or maybe we were just lucky?)

Victoria N. | Mar 29, 2018

Absolutely beautiful. Acoustics are wonderful in the cathedral, and so much of the history, art, and respect towards this place has been kept. I have heard some complaints about the no pictures rule- in many churches, cathedrals, mosques, shrines, temples, etc. , you will find there is this rule in order to respect the religious value of the building. Please be mindful of this, and try to respect and understand why they do not want pictures in the building. After all, you are still visiting an extremely beautiful historical monument!

Alexandra Maria | Mar 25, 2018

Do the Walks of Italy tour on Tuesday nights to get exclusive access to the Cathedral without any of the long lines. We went inside and it was completely dark and then they slowly turned on the lights one by one and it was surreal. Know that technically, no photos are allowed - there are signs - but people do it anyways.

Mauro Cicognini | Apr 16, 2018

High up on the list of places you can't miss. The only problem is how to take in so much history, beauty, and spirituality, all at once. Just visiting the cathedral properly should take at least one hour, another one for the museum, add at least 15 minutes on the incredible terrace with the Byzantine horses, but much longer if it's a sunny day to bask in the sunlight looking at San Marco square and the Giudecca Canal from high up.

Marta Rybarczyk | Apr 29, 2018

It's a MUST when in Venice, the square is huge and vibrant with and the Basilica is amazing to look at and worth going inside. Flamboyant in its form makes amazing impression. To fully enjoy the square and take beautiful photos go very early in the morning e.g 5am when nobody is there yet and it's nice and cool.

Gordon Byerly | May 5, 2018

Incredibly crowded. You have to pay to enter the various small sections which I find distasteful for a church. Some of the other churches are free to enter and allow donations for those wishing to contribute to restoration efforts. Given the crowds, the walkthrough feels very rushed. Also, there are migrants that the church has hired to walk around saying no photo. Still, the basilica is gorgeous and definitely worth seeing so long as the line isn't too long. If you want to sit and study the artwork and architecture though you're better off using a book or going online

Paddy Noon | Jun 5, 2018

A must see, absolutely beautiful inside and out. Went at a busy time of day (around 11/12) and cued for no more than half an hour. Reasons for it not being 5/5 are the additional charges and cues once inside. Free initial entry seems great, but there is an option to see the Basilica's treasure, €3 with another 10/15 minute wait. On the way out there is an option to go out on the balcony and look out over the Piazza, another €5 with 10 minute wait time. I personally feel that a €5 ish charge for entry and free roam to see everything would make the experience a lot better and money is still received for up keep and renovation. Be prepared to see people not obey the no photo rule which can obviously be annoying, but instead take the time to sit and really enjoy the outstanding architecture and art inside the Basilica. Final thing to be wary of, those with bags have to store it in a near by building (for free), signs showing this aren't until up close to the entry doors, and they only hold your bag for an hour. So some timing logistics to work out before going in, but don't let his spoil the experience.

sean mccafferty | May 28, 2018

Beautiful architecture well worth a visit. When we were there the queue time was only 15 min and we were half way to the canal so it moves quickly. Ladies be sure to cover your shoulders or they insist you to purchase a shawl. It's only €1 but such a waste of materials as after the visit purple were discarding them.

SACHIT VARMA | Jun 2, 2018

The most popular of all spots in Venice. Really pretty from the outside and dominates the public square as well. Very nice and unsual from this inside. Not like the typical catholic cathedrals. I found the entry ticket to be expensive but still worth visiting. The queue usually is very long and you can skip it only if you are with the local tour guides who always are trying to lure you to join them!

Kaushal Shastri | May 13, 2018

Religion, History, Architectural Beauty all put together at this one place. A must visit place in Venice and more enjoyable then the famous gondola rides. But the queues are very long and you have to stand in long queues for each monument separately. Should plan to reach to this place early to avoid crowds.

Martyn Davies | Jun 13, 2018

It costs just three euros to enter the Basilica, but it left me thinking that it wasn’t worth the entrance fee. First things first, buy a skip-the-line ticket online, but go to the official website as other ticket outlets bundle in a tour, which increases the cost exponentially. The basilica is the most popular attraction in Venice by far and the queues very quickly build and wind across the square. Shorts and bare shoulders are not allowed, but they will sell you shawl-like coverings for two euros. Because of the number of people in the Basilica at any given time you will be forced to shuffle along with the herd at a snail-like place. It’s very difficult to enjoy any of the architecture at all. And you’re not allowed to take photos inside so you can’t capture any of the sights for reviewing later. They’ll take another couple of euros off you if you want to see any of the side exhibitions, and more if you want to explore other levels of the basilica. We were so disenchanted with the experience we didn’t bother.

Gerald Holt | Jun 27, 2018

Beautiful history. Admission is free and the line is typically less than 15 minutes. The dress code is respectful of church: no exposed shoulders or knees. Purses are allowed, but backpacks need to be checked. A few special parts of the basilica require a 2 euro admission, but most of the basilica can be viewed at no cost.

Tom Hemmings | Jul 3, 2018

Beautiful building with lots to see. Highly recommend paying €3 on the website to skip the queue. Halved the time to get in and only takes a couple of minutes to get inside. Woman need to make sure they have covered shoulders or they can buy a gown once inside (€2).

Pat Cody | Aug 3, 2018

A marvelous basilica, but the €5 price of admission to the museum upstairs is a bargain. Not only is the view of the main part of the basilica great, but there are models of the basilica as well as as architectural drawings, the original horses that graced the exterior and you get up close and personal with some amazing mosaics. Want to step out and see the copy horses up close? Can do. Enjoy!!