Basilica di San Marco (St. Mark's Basilica), Venice (must see)

When it comes to star attractions in Venice, Saint Mark’s Basilica leads the pack. This is the city’s most famous landmark, whose story started in the year 832, when the building was created to house the remains of Saint Mark, Venice’s holy patron. According to legend, Venetian merchants smuggled the saint's body out of Alexandria, Egypt, hidden in barrels of pork—an inspired move, given that Muslim guards were unlikely to check. When the relics reached the lagoon, an angel was said to have appeared, declaring that Saint Mark would rest here. That tale alone fueled centuries of imagery, symbolism, and quiet civic pride...

Some 200 years later, Venice decided that the saint deserved something grander. His earlier church was replaced by a new basilica, modeled on the Church of the Apostles in Constantinople. This was no modest upgrade. Marble arrived from across the Mediterranean, and walls and domes were covered in glowing mosaics illustrating scenes from the Old and New Testaments, along with episodes from the lives of Christ, Virgin Mary, and Saint Mark himself. The result was a building that felt more like a vision than a structure...

Time, fashion, and wear inevitably left their mark. Damaged mosaics were repaired, styles changed, and new designs replaced older ones. What you see today is not from a single period but an extraordinary visual archive spanning roughly eight centuries. Some mosaics follow strict Byzantine traditions, while others were designed using drawings by leading Renaissance artists, such as Veronese, Tintoretto, Titian, Paolo Uccello, and Andrea del Castagno.

The latter, who worked here in the mid-15th century, brought along a strong sense of perspective, especially in the Mascoli Chapel’s “Dormition of the Virgin.” Tintoretto later designed the dramatic “Presentation of Jesus at the Temple” in the central nave, while Titian created the Old Testament prophets that decorate the Sacristy vault in the early 1500s. It is less a single artistic statement than a long conversation across time...

Beyond the main space, the basilica hides several optional areas: the Golden Altar, the Treasury, the Museum, and the Crypt. Access to the upper level is especially worthwhile, offering views over the interior mosaics and out across St. Mark’s Square. Entry to the basilica itself is free, though reserving a time slot lets you skip the line.

Come around midday, when the lights briefly switch on and the mosaics glow at full strength. Here, for one short hour, Venice quite literally shines...