Museums in Venice

The Doge's Palace (Palazzo Ducale) was the seat of Venetian power for nearly a millennium — residence of the doge, meeting place of the Great Council, and home to courts and prisons. Its pink-and-white marble façade is a masterpiece of Venetian Gothic.

The Gallerie dell'Accademia houses the world's most comprehensive collection of Venetian painting, spanning the 14th to 18th centuries. Located in a former monastery and scuola, it is Venice's answer to the Uffizi.

Ca' d'Oro (House of Gold) is the finest example of Venetian Gothic architecture on the Grand Canal. Named for the gilding that once covered its ornate façade, it now houses the Galleria Giorgio Franchetti art collection.

Ca' Rezzonico is a monumental baroque palazzo on the Grand Canal housing the Museum of 18th-Century Venice. It recreates the lavish lifestyle of the Venetian aristocracy during Venice's final golden age.

The Peggy Guggenheim Collection is one of Europe's premier modern art museums, housed in the Palazzo Venier dei Leoni on the Grand Canal — Guggenheim's home until her death in 1979.

The Museo Correr occupies the Napoleonic Wing and Procuratie Nuove on St. Mark's Square, telling the story of Venice from its founding through paintings, maps, coins, and ducal regalia.

Ca' Pesaro is a monumental baroque palazzo on the Grand Canal, housing two museums: the International Gallery of Modern Art and the Museum of Oriental Art. Its dramatic façade of diamond-point rusticated stone is among the most imposing on the canal.

The Scuola Grande di San Rocco is home to Tintoretto's most ambitious work: a cycle of over 60 monumental paintings covering the walls and ceilings of two floors, created over 23 years. It has been called 'the Sistine Chapel of Venice.'

The Museo della Musica is a free museum in the Church of San Maurizio displaying rare baroque instruments from the era of Vivaldi, who composed and performed in Venice for most of his life.

The Fondazione Querini Stampalia combines a historic Venetian house museum with cutting-edge architecture by Carlo Scarpa. The ground floor and garden, redesigned by Scarpa in the 1960s, are considered masterpieces of modern architecture.

The Museo Storico Navale documents Venice's glorious maritime history through ship models, weapons, maps, and nautical instruments spread across four floors near the Arsenale.

The Museo di Palazzo Mocenigo explores the history of Venetian fashion, textiles, and perfumery in a 17th-century Grand Canal palazzo. The museum recreates the sartorial world of the Venetian aristocracy.

The Museo del Vetro (Glass Museum) on Murano chronicles the extraordinary history of Venetian glassmaking from the Roman era to contemporary art glass. Housed in the grand Palazzo Giustinian, it contains pieces spanning over 2,000 years.