Ravenna Private Mosaic Monuments Tour

We will visit together the majestic monuments of Ravenna, admiring the glittering mosaic tiles, of incomparable beauty. Art, history and culture, during an exclusive private tour.
We will start the tour in front of the Basilica of Sant’Apollinare Nuovo, where we will look for some “surprises” in the splendid wall mosaics, in a blaze of glittering golden tiles. After a stop in the Dante area, we will visit the Mausoleum of Galla Placidia, a small jewel of the fifth century, then the Basilica of San Vitale, built in the sixth century, where we can compare the artistic evolution that has taken place over the course of a century. It will then be a pleasant walk through the streets of the city center, during which we will peek at the windows of the mosaic workshops that still make their works according to the ancient technique.
My name is Serena Zecchini, Ravenna Tour Guide since 2013, graduated with honors from the Alma Mater Studiorum – University of Bologna.

Meeting Point

Basilica di Sant'Apollinare Nuovo

Via di Roma, 53, 48121 Ravenna RA, Italy

We will meet in the churchyard, opposite the road cross

What's included:

• Guided tour service

Not included:

• Entrance tickets to monuments

What to expect:

Duration: 2 hours, 30 minutes

Basilica di Sant'Apollinare Nuovo

Via di Roma 53, , Ravenna, 48020

We will start our tour in front of the Basilica of Sant’Apollinare Nuovo, the palatine church of King Theoderic, built at the beginning of the sixth century for Aryan worship. Here we will look for some “surprises” hidden in the splendid wall mosaics along the aisles, in a blaze of glittering golden tiles.

40 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Dante's tomb and Quadrarco of Braccioforte

Via Dante Alighieri 9, , Ravenna, 48121

On the way we will stop in front of the tomb of the Supreme Poet to pay a fitting tribute to him.

30 minutes

Piazza del Popolo

Piazza del Popolo, Ravenna, 48121

We will then move to the nearby Piazza del Popolo, the heart of the city, with the palaces of the governments that have followed over the centuries. We will stop in Piazza Andrea Costa to tell the story of the ancient Fish Point of Sale that took place here, thanks to a guild considered, DA many scholars, the oldest in Europe.

20 minutes

Mausoleo di Galla Placidia

Via San Vitale, Ravenna, 48121

We will visit the splendid Mausoleum of Galla Placidia, a small jewel of the fifth century, with a simple exterior but with a mosaic interior decoration, really sumptuous.

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Basilica di San Vitale

Via San Vitale 17, , Ravenna, 48121

We will then go to the adjacent Basilica of San Vitale, built during the sixth century, where we can compare the artistic evolution that has taken place over the course of a century. We will admire the presbytery area completely covered with mosaic surface, pausing on the two famous panels depicting the Eastern Emperor Justinian the Great and his wife, Empress Theodora. It will then be a pleasant walk through the streets of the city center, during which we will peek at the windows of the mosaic workshops that still make their works according to the ancient technique.

40 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included