St. Mark's Basilica and Doge's Palace

We booked the "secret itinerary" for the Doge's palace and we did skip the queue. Also, we were able to tour the old "secret" administrative rooms and see Cassanova's cell, all things you can't do otherwise in addition to the normal halls, Bridge of Sighs, etc. I certainly recommend it (the tour). It fills up quickly though, or so I hear. We waited in line for St Mark's. The line seems to ebb and flow, probably based on Cruise ships, we went in the afternoon - just after 1:30 or so - and only waited 15 minutes. I would imagine a secured ticket would give you timely access, though I guess I can't be certain.

St Mark's square is just a madhouse in high season during the day as day-trippers from the cruise ships arrive by the throngs...this is NOT the Venice that you want to experience. Don't get stuck in the lines if you can avoid it at all. By all means get tickets and reservations in advance. About 4:00 or 5:00 pm you'll notice a VAST improvement on the island as all of those cruise ship passengers head back to their ships. Now you will see the REAL Venice as it's meant to be experienced. Those who only experience Venice as a single daytrip from the cruise ship terminal don't know what they're missing :-)

Have your hotel reserve the Doges Palace Secret Itinaries tour.It is excellent and skips the line. For St.Marks use Steves check a bag method.It works very well. You check a small day bag at a place near the church and they give you a ticket to skip the line.

Yes! Rick Steve's tip on bag check is fantastic! Last October we had an early Doges Palace Secret Itinerary tour which I booked and paid for online using a credit card. I don't remember seeing any line at the Doges Palace. Afterwards we did the bag check and was given a "pass" that let us go straight to the front of the line! The bag check is free and for one hour! St. Marks is gorgeous!!! Be sure and see the Palo d'Oro (altar) and go upstairs to the balcony (they both cost a little)

Melissa We did book ahead and were glad we did. There are also the walking tours to take that get you in without the lines.
There were long line ups even in November, so book if you can.

How far in advance are ticket sales for secret itineraries tour sold? I noticed now they are only on selling them through March. Are there more time options in summer months?

Thanks everybody for all your responses. It sounds like it will be a good idea to get any tickets I can in advance. Lisa, I also noticed they only sold tickets through March at this time. And only at a few times. I am hoping they will open up other dates pretty soon. Maybe someone else can shed some light on these questions.

You don't need to book in advance! The tip RS has on the bag check is spot on. Just show up, drop off a bag (a backpack is fine), take the "ticket" to the front of the line at the Basilica & the guard lets you right in! Just watch the envy on the faces of the people you just passed in the line. Remember, you cannot bring a large bag into the Basilica, any backpacks will need to be surrendered anyway. Might as well check them first & then go to the front of the line. Doesn't matter what time you get there.

Agree about getting into St. Marks, best way is to check your bag like R.S. says. And the trip to the secret rooms is well worth the effort. We booked for the next day and had no trouble getting in and had no wait in line.

In our experience last October, the 1 hours bag check limit seemed to be a guideline. My husband left his daybag there about 90 minutes. That was plenty to see the Basilica, the Museum upstairs, and spend quite a bit of time out on the terrace overlooking the square.

If you don't want to check a bag, you can reserve a time to enter the Basilica here: http://www.venetoinside.com/en/saint_mark_s_basilica/ It costs 1 euro per person, which was well worth it for me because I don't want to carry a bag around with me the rest of the day. Also, I don't want to worry about keeping an eye on the time to pick up my bag. FYI, the 10 minute window you choose to reserve is the window for you to enter. Its not the time you have to enter and leave the Basilica (which is what I originally thought, hehe).

The one drawback to the bag dropoff trick is that you are limited to one hour inside the basilica. If you get swept up by the beauty of the place, you'll find that hour just flies by. I haven't heard or read how strict they are about that one hour limit.

Also, be sure and be in St. Marks around 11:30 a.m. when they turn on the spotlights illuminating the golden mosaics. Breathtaking!

I booked the Secret Itinerary tour last June online and it worked beautifully. Plus I really loved the tour-especially seeing the attics and the room where Casanova was kept. I also used the bag trick, but I think they are getting suspicious. They asked why I couldn't carry my large tote. It didn't seem heavy enough to them. But, they let me do it anyway.