---
node: spot_venice_doge_s_palace
type: spot
slug: doge_s_palace
destination: dest_venice
title: "Doge's Palace"
lead: "The Doge's Palace was the seat of the Venetian republic for five hundred years: the doge's residence, the council chambers, the courts and the prisons in one building. Its Great Council hall holds what is said to be the largest oil painting on canvas in the world."
published: 2026-08-12
updated: 2026-08-12
image_file: spot_venice_doge_s_palace.jpg
image_source: "https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Doge%27s_Palace_(Venice)_at_night_2023-msu-2023-0I9A6405-.jpg"
image_author: "Matthias Süßen"
image_license: "CC BY-SA 4.0"
---

## Overview

The Gothic facade puts the heavy wall on top of the open arcades, which is the reverse of how a building is expected to work and is exactly what makes it look weightless from the water. Inside, Tintoretto's Paradise fills the end of the Great Council chamber, and the frieze of doges' portraits has one black panel where Marin Falier, executed for conspiracy in 1355, was painted out. The Bridge of Sighs leads from the interrogation rooms to the new prisons across the canal.

## Highlights

The Secret Itineraries tour, booked separately, takes you into the chancellery, the torture chamber and the cell Casanova escaped from — it is the better half of the palace. Cross the Bridge of Sighs from the inside, which is the only way to see what the grating actually shows. A combined ticket includes the Correr Museum on the far side of the piazza.