5. Scala Contarini del Bovolo

Corte dei Risi, S Marco 4299 • Open 10am–6pm daily • Adm • www.scalacontarinidelbovolo.com

Often used as a film set, this fine 15th-century palace with its beautiful external “snail-shell” staircase (bovolo means snail in Venetian) is squeezed into a diminutive square deep in San Marco. Visitors can climb the winding steps of the staircase, a blend of Renaissance, Gothic and Byzantine styles, via five floors of loggias to a dome sheltering a splendid belvedere. From here there are magical panoramic views over the city’s rooftops.

6. Campo San Bartolomeo

The statue of celebrated Venetian playwright Carlo Goldoni scrutinizes the milling crowds on this crossroads square. Strategically placed for a host of inviting bars crammed into the alleys radiating off it, “San Bartolo” serves as the fashionable hang-out for the city’s young and trendy. The northern end is occupied by the main post office, once home to Venice’s German community. They worshipped in the Chiesa di San Bartolomeo (open 10am–noon Tue, Thu & Sat; free admission).

Carlo Goldoni

7. Doge’s Palace

The seat of the Venetian government from the 9th century until the fall of the Republic in 1797, the Doge’s Palace was the official residence of the Venetian ruler, known as the doge. It started life as a fortified castle in the 9th century, but this and several subsequent buildings were destroyed by a series of fires. A Gothic masterpiece, the bulk of the pink marble building appears perched on loggias and arcades of white Istrian stone. Allegorical historical paintings embellish the walls and ceilings of the halls and chambers. These rooms are testament to the glory of the Venetian Republic.

8. Palazzo Grassi

Campo S Samuele, S Marco 3231 • Open 10am–7pm Wed–Mon • Adm (includes Punta della Dogana) • www.palazzograssi.it

Set on the Grand Canal, Palazzo Grassi dates back to 1740, when a wealthy merchant family commissioned Giorgio Massari to design the building. It is now home to the François Pinault collection, housing contemporary masterpieces by Jeff Koons, Damien Hirst and Michelangelo Pistoletto. It stands alongside picturesque Campo San Samuele, which features a graceful Veneto-Byzantine bell tower.

9. Museo Fortuny

Campo S Benedetto, S Marco 3780 • Open 10am–6pm Wed–Mon • Adm • www.visitmuve.it

Flamboyant Spanish artist and theatrical stage designer Mariano Fortuny y Madrazo (1871–1950) adopted Venice as his home and muse, and transformed this 15th-century palace in Gothic-Venetian style into an exotic atelier. The building retains rooms created by Fortuny himself and visitors can admire Fortuny’s gorgeous velvets, his famous pleated silk dresses, some 150 paintings, lamps, a remarkable stage curtain and fascinating 19th- century photographs. The museum also hosts temporary exhibitions.

Museo Fortuny

10. Chiesa di Santa Maria del Giglio

Campo S Maria del Giglio, S Marco 3231 • Open 10:30am–4:30pm Mon–Sat • Adm • www.chorusvenezia.org

Opening on to a lovely square next to the Grand Canal, this church is a further example of Venetian Baroque extravagance. Commissioned by the Barbaro family, its façade exalts their generations of maritime and political triumphs, with crests, galleys and statues. Works of art inside the church include Venice’s only canvas by Rubens, depicting a Madonna and child. Tintoretto’s contributions are the Evangelists on the organ doors.

Ceiling fresco in the Chiesa di Santa Maria del Giglio