Secret tour, Doge Palace- worth it?
 

Greetings- we only have 2 days in Venice, have been there before but it's been 10 years and haven't done the Secret tour- can someone please give me some of the flavor, etc.. We want to go to the Accademia, take the Grand Canal at sunset, wander the streets, see some churches.. Thanks so much.

When we took the tour it was very interesting. It was neat to see the rooms of the government elite and judges from so long ago. It was amazing to imagine yourself stepping back in time in those very places. We also saw the torture chamber, and prison cells, as well as stood in the cell that Casanova first attempted his escape, and saw the one he was later sucessful in escaping from. That whole story is really interesting, but I'll let you take the tour yourself to get the inside scoop.

We also went into the palace attic and saw how the suspended ceiling is made. I will also make a note here that there were a few people on our tour who felt a bit claustrophobic due to the smaller spaces that we went into at times. However, if you aren't comfortable, you can just wait outside the door, so it's no reason to pass up the tour, by any means.

The tour isn't a MUST DO item, IMO. However, it is very interesting if you have the time.

Hi yog,

As noted, it is an interesting visit to the back stairs of the Palace.

You also get to see the rest of the Palace, on your own, for the same price.

((I))

If you have been to Venice before, and done the obvious things, then I would recommend the tour. I very much enjoyed it, and tying in the story of Casanova helps give some focus to several diverse elements.

I did the Doge's Palace on my own in 2002, I did the Secret Itineraries Tour in 2004. Guess which visit I enjoyed more??
The tour really makes the palace a worthwhile stop because so many details that the normal tourist wouldn't notice are pointed out (with historical context).

Ditto to TexasAggie's comment. We did our own in 2003 and the Secret tour 2 weeks ago - it was very good.
And after the tour you still get to look around at the sections you didn't see on the Secret Tour.
Enjoy Venice... it is so remarkable!

Hi
Have you seen the rest of the Doge's Palace on your previous trip? It's a magnificent building. If you've been there before and are not dying to go back, then I can't say the Secret Itinerary is a must see if you only have two days. The Accademia will take 2-3 hours, the vaporetto Grand Canal ride will take more than an hour, there are so many magnificent churches, and then there's the mandatory drink on the Piazza and the wandering you want to do. With only 2 days, I'd skip it.

here's a similar thread

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34632511