12 Best Museums in Venice

Among the things to see and do in Venice, a gondola ride to visit the jewels of this unique city is a must. But afterwards, it's worth taking some time to appreciate its renowned museums, such as the Doge's Palace, the Ca' D'Oro Palace, the Peggy Guggenheim Museum and the Palazzo Grassi.

In this post, you'll find an updated ranking of the best museums in Venice, according to the opinions of frequent travellers and experts from Traveler, National Geographic and TimeOut.

Without a doubt, buying a ticket to the Doge's Palace is a must for anyone visiting Venice. It was the seat of government and residence of the Doge between the 14th and 18th centuries, when Venice was one of the most powerful and richest cities in Europe.

After hundreds of years of restoration, the palace has now become a complex of buildings including the institutional chamber, the courtyard and loggias, and the Armoury. There is no shortage of things to see inside the Doge's Palace, whose opulence is a testament to the glamour and style of each era, while portraying the political and social history of Venice.

You can combine your visit to the Doge's Palace with admission to St. Mark's Basilica and the Bridge of Sighs, as well as a visit to St. Mark's Square, as they are all located in the same area.

Details of interest

Address: Piazza San Marco, 1, 30124.

• Address: Piazza San Marco, 1, 30124.
• Opening hours: Monday to Sunday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• Price: from £30 with skip-the-line access, as well as access to other rooms.

This museum is a must-see when visiting Venice with children. Located 2 minutes from the Basilica of Santa Maria dei Frari, it houses perhaps the most complete collection of works by the renowned Renaissance genius.

When you buy your tickets to the Leonardo da Vinci Museum, you will have access to the 500 m2 museum, divided into six rooms that showcase Da Vinci's impact in all its facets. The Leonardo Museum aims to spark curiosity by allowing visitors to interact with the machines.

This could be the best Da Vinci museum to date, as in addition to digital replicas of the master's great paintings, it also houses his plans, sketches and a collection of 60 machines of his invention, built to scale and in perfect working order.

Interesting details

Address:

• Address: Campo S. Rocco, 3052.
• Opening hours: Monday to Sunday from 10:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
• Price: from £10 with skip-the-line access.

Another impressive building that can be seen when taking a cruise along the Grand Canal is the Palazzo Venier dei Leoni, home to the museum dedicated to the successful art dealer Peggy Guggenheim.

Buy tickets for the Peggy Guggenheim Collection and enjoy an important collection of modern and contemporary art. Visitors can enjoy works by artists such as Jackson Pollock, Vasili Kandinski, Max Ernst, Constantin Brâncuși and Alberto Giacometti.

The museum retains the feel of a private home while revealing the secrets of the family and their impact on the emergence of some of the greatest artists of the 20th century. As the Guggenheim heiress herself stated in her autobiography, she was an "art addict".

Interesting details

• Address: Dorsoduro, 701-704.
• Opening hours: Monday to Sunday from 10:00 to 18:00, except Tuesdays when it is closed.
• Price: from £22.

The Ca' d'Oro Palace is one of the most beautiful buildings in Venice. It is located just after the Rialto Bridge, on the Cannaregio side of the Grand Canal, which means that if you decide to go by gondola, vaporetto, water taxi or any other boat, this will be one of your fixed views.

The façade is painted in vibrant shades of yellow and green in a Venetian Gothic style and looks like something out of a fairy tale.

The interior has undergone several renovations since its construction in 1428 to restore it to its original splendour. It now houses the Giorgio Franchetti Art Gallery, where exquisite works by artists such as Titian, Jan Van Eyck, Mantegna and Van Dyck cover its walls.

Details of interest

• Address: Cannaregio 3932.
• Opening hours: Monday from 8:15 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Tuesday to Saturday from 8:15 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Sundays and public holidays from 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
• Price: from £6.

This is a brotherhood transformed into a gallery to display 24 years of works by Jacopo Comin, known to all as Tintoretto, an innovative painter between two eras who had to take refuge in art between 1564 and 1588, until the plague ended his life.

The San Rocco School is one of the city's most emblematic buildings, where "Tintorettos" such as Saint Roch Healing the Plague-Stricken (1549) and the famous works depicting the lives of Jesus and the Virgin Mary, as well as the decoration of the Sala dell'Albergo, denote the drama of one of Venice's best-decorated museums.

On the two floors of this building, three rooms are open to the public, and what is found there is so valuable that it is considered the Sistine Chapel of Venetian painting.

Details of interest

• Address: San Polo, 3054, a, 30125.
• Opening hours: Monday to Sunday from 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
• Price: admission is free.

Before visiting St. Mark's Basilica in the heart of Venice, it is worth stopping by the Palazzo Pesaro Orfei, better known today as the Fortuny Museum or Fortuny Palace.

During your visit to this former residence of the eclectic Spanish designer and artist Mariano Fortuny, you will find many styles of art represented: ornamental, naturalism, symbolism and, of course, Venetian Gothic art. The collection includes works by Picasso, Matisse, Marc Chagall and Modigliani, all friends of the family.

The foundations of this palace date back to the 15th century. However, the Fortuny Museum opened its doors to the public in 1975, twenty years after the widow of the great Catalan painter donated it to the capital of Veneto. Visitors can admire Fortuny's designs as well as his personal art collection.

Details of interest

• Address: San Marco, 3958, 30124.
• Opening hours: Monday to Sunday from 10:00 to 18:00, except Tuesdays when it is closed.
• Price: from £10.

The Correr Museum is not just a museum, it is a place of inspiration and learning that tells the story of the city that conquered the Mediterranean. It houses large art collections that portray its history from the 13th to the 19th centuries and has different rooms:

• The Napoleonic Wing: this served as the residence and office of some Austrian sovereigns, as well as the Procurators of St. Mark, the highest office during the Republic of Venice.
• The Neoclassical Rooms: these display works by the famous sculptor Antonio Canova.
• The Imperial Apartments of the Royal Palace: where the lifestyle of the Venetian empresses is revealed.
• Finally, the architect Vincenzo Scamozzi portrayed the life of the Venetian nobility in the "Procuratie Nuove".

Visitors will be amazed by this remarkable building, located in St. Mark's Square in Venice, which houses a vast collection of art, coins and historical objects.

Details of interest

Directions

• Address: Piazza San Marco, 52.
• Opening hours: Monday to Sunday from 10:00 to 17:00.
• Price: from £25.

We continue with the ideal stops to share with your family in Venice, now with a museum dedicated to the pioneer of the Venetian comedy revolution in the Middle Ages: Carlo Goldoni.

The Casa Goldoni museum offers a fascinating insight into the life and work of the famous playwright, as well as the opportunity to explore the theatres and social life of 18th-century Venice.

Meet Brighella, Balanzone, Colombina and Pantaleón, the puppets from Arlecchino Servitore di Due Padroni. And for those who wish to personalise their experience and take home a souvenir, there is the opportunity to make your own puppet or Venetian mask in the museum's workshop.

Details of interest

• Address: Rio Terà dei Nomboli, 2794.
• Opening hours: Monday to Sunday from 10:00 to 16:00, except Wednesdays when it is closed.
• Price: from £5.

The 18th century was the richest period in the history of Venice, as well as a time of great extravagance. A prime example of this is the Ca' Rezzonico.

The palace took over 100 years to build and was finally completed in 1735. It is now home to the Museo del Settecento Veneziano, which houses some of the city's most exquisite works of art.

The museum's collection includes works by Giambattista Tiepolo and Pietro Longhi, whose frescoes form part of the building itself. In the middle, the spacious ballroom was created by Iginio Massari, and the chandelier comes directly from the Murano and Burano glass workshop of Giuseppe Briati.

Details of interest

• Address: Sestiere Dorsoduro, 3136.
• Opening hours: Monday to Sunday from 10:00 to 18:00, except Tuesdays when it is closed.
• Price: from £10.

The Accademia Gallery is a must-see for art lovers on the Grand Canal. Its collection of paintings spans the 13th to 17th centuries , with works from the Byzantine period , landscape painting and the Gothic style.

Its collection consists mainly of works by Venetian masters such as Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, Paolo Veronese, Hieronymus Bosch, Titian, Giovanni Bellini and Canaletto.

The oil paintings focusing on religious expressions stand out in this gallery, which has been restoring and exhibiting them since 1784. One of its main attractions is the contrast between chaos, religion and the social vision of royalty and their offspring during the prosperous Venetian period.

Details of interest

• Address: Calle della Carità, 1050.
• Opening hours: Monday from 8:15 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Tuesday to Sunday from 8:15 a.m. to 7:15 p.m.
• Price: from £12.

On your way to the Basilica of Santa Maria della Salute, you will be amazed by the enormous sculptures in front of the majestic Grassi Palace.

Built in 1772 for the Bolognese nobles of the Grassi family, this neoclassical palace houses a provocative art collection belonging to business magnate François Pinault, husband of Salma Hayek. This palace-museum connects to one of Venice's finest bridges and Punta Della Dogana, the former customs house at the tip of Dorsoduro.

Rotating temporary exhibitions are one of its hallmarks and often feature a selection of contemporary and modern art by internationally renowned artists, making it one of Venice's must-see museums according to Traveler.

Details of interest

• Address: Campo San Samuele, 3231.
• Opening hours: Wednesday to Sunday from 10:00 to 19:00. Closed on Tuesdays.
• Price: from £18.

The Ca' Pesaro International Gallery of Modern Art is an imposing 17th-century Baroque building facing the Grand Canal, where it still has its original frescoes, making its architecture alone worth a visit.

The Pesaro family shared the same passion as Peggy Guggenheim: they were great art collectors and commissioned works from Titian, Gustav Klimt, Auguste Rodin, Tintoretto, Medardo Rosso and many other prominent Italian artists.

The central hall displays works by Giorgio de Chirico, Joan Mirò and Kandinsky, pieces that the city has acquired at every Venice Biennale since 1950. More than 100 years of modern art are spread over three floors with large windows so that the works can be appreciated in natural light.

Details of interest

• Address: Santa Croce, 2076.
• Opening hours: Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 to 17:00. Closed on Mondays.
• Price: from £14.