St Mark's Campanile

St Mark's Campanile is the bell tower of the Basilica, on St Mark's Square, and you go up it by lift. The official ticket costs €15 for an adult, from the Procuratoria di San Marco's shop, for a set day and time slot. It opens at 9.30am and closes at 7.15pm in the winter period or 9.15pm in the summer period. The tower is 98.6 metres high, and was rebuilt after collapsing in 1902.

How much are Campanile tickets?

• Official ticket: €15, or €7.50 for ages 11 to 18, students up to 26 and over-65s. Children under 11 go free. School groups pay €7.50.
• Residents: the free entry the Procuratoria gives residents of Venice and nearby municipalities for the Basilica doesn't apply to the Campanile.
• Adding it on the day: if you hold a Basilica-only ticket, you can buy the Campanile on the spot.
• Not in the full ticket: the €30 Basilica full ticket covers the Pala d'Oro and the Museum, not the bell tower.

Like all official tickets, the Campanile ticket is named, valid only for the booked day and slot, and can't be changed.

Partner tickets for the Campanile

The options on Tiqets cost more than the official ticket and add something:

• Campanile entry with an audio guide, in English, French, German, Italian or Spanish.
• Basilica and bell tower in one booking, with timed entry to both. One version can be cancelled free up to 72 hours before the slot.
• Basilica, Campanile and Doge's Palace with a guide: the three main sights of the square in one guided visit, which can be cancelled free up to 24 hours before the day.

These are entries combined with a service, run by a tour operator. Check the operator and what's included on the partner page before you pay.

How do you get to the top?

By lift, both up and down. A lift was installed inside the shaft in 1932, and since then it has reached the belfry in about 30 seconds. The Procuratoria suggests allowing around 30 to 40 minutes for the visit.

Arrive at your slot time. The Campanile ticket states a tolerance of 5 minutes before or after the booked time, tighter than the 15 minutes in the general terms. The same bag rules apply as at the Basilica: no rucksacks larger than 40 × 30 × 20 cm and no wheeled cases.

When is the Campanile open?

It opens every day at 9.30am. In the summer period it closes at 9.15pm, and in the winter period at 7.15pm. The official pages give different dates for when the periods change, and different last-entry times, so check the Procuratoria's shop calendar for your date. The late summer closing means you can go up in the evening.

The tower that fell

The Campanile collapsed on 14 July 1902 and, according to the Basilica, no one was killed. Venice decided to rebuild it com'era e dov'era, as it was and where it was. The new tower was inaugurated on 25 April 1912, the feast of St Mark, amid singing and celebrations.

Some figures from the Basilica's own description:

• Height: 98.6 metres in total.
• Shaft: square brick, 12 metres a side and 53.75 metres high.
• Top: a statue of the Archangel Gabriel.

From 21 to 24 August 1609 the Campanile hosted Galileo Galilei, who was presenting his telescope to the Doge.

The Loggetta at the foot of the tower

At the base of the Campanile stands the Loggetta, designed by Jacopo Sansovino and built between 1537 and 1549. About twenty years later it became a guard post for the Arsenal workers. It was destroyed when the tower fell in 1902 and rebuilt by 1912.

Planning the visit

• Basilica first or tower first? Both have timed slots. If you book them separately, leave enough time between the two slots.
• Sundays: the Basilica opens to visitors only at 2pm, but the Campanile opens at 9.30am, so a Sunday morning on the tower works well.
• Nearby: the Clock Tower and the Doge's Palace are on the same square. The St Mark's Square guide covers what's around you.