Hidden Venice Walking Tour by Night

Delve beneath the major tourist hotspots of Venice on this 2-hour evening walking tour. With a professional guide, explore tucked-away neighborhoods and haunts, and learn intriguing stories about the nobles and merchants who shaped and scandalized medieval Venice. See gems such as the Church of Santa Maria dei Miracoli and the spiral Bovolo staircase; roam cobbled lanes and tiny squares; and enjoy exploring after sunset, when Venice takes on a truly magical aura. Numbers are limited to 12 people on this small-group tour for a personalized experience.

Meet your guide near St Mark’s Square and set off on your 2-hour walking tour of the city’s lesser-known districts and hidden gems.

Your expert guide will take you beyond the tourist hotspots to discover another, often overlooked Venice: a place of tucked-away corners, palazzos and haunts associated with some of the city’s most intriguing tales, love stories and legends.

As you walk, the sunset, shadows and gathering dusk will bring an extra frisson to the stories and anecdotes you hear, cloaking the city in a magical and mysterious evening mantle.

Start with a stroll along the cobbled streets to the Campo Santa Maria Formosa. Pass the former home of the 16th-century noblewoman, Bianca Cappello, a famous beauty who, at the age of 15, eloped from Venice with her lover, only, as rumour has it, to have him murdered and then to be murdered herself by arsenic poisoning.

Work your way to the Campo San Giovanni e Paolo, a small square packed with architectural treasures. Admire the equestrian statue of Venice’s mercenary captain Bartolomeo Colleoni, designed by Leonardo da Vinci’s master, Andrea del Verrocchio, and see the exquisite Church of Santa Maria dei Miracoli, home to a reputedly miracle-working painting of the Virgin Mary.

Pass the site of Marco Polo’s family home and walk to Rialto Bridge as your guide recounts tales of the long-ago merchants who made it Venice’s commercial hub. Admire the illuminated Grand Canal from here and then take in other sights, including the ill-fated Teatro La Fenice, which famously burnt down in both 1836 and 1996.

Stop for photos at the stunning spiral staircase at the Palazzo Contarini del Bovolo. Marvel at this 15th-century gem and learn how its wealthy owner may have used it to climb to his apartments on horseback.

Your walking tour then comes to an end near St Mark’s Square.

Please note: A minimum of two people per booking is required.