Private Walking Tour: Discover Ravenna's Stunning Mosaics
Description
Ravenna is known worldwide as the Capital of Mosaics. During this half-day tour you will discover why this medium-sized town has earned its nickname and popularity visiting some of its beautifully-preserved World Heritage sites. You will get a general idea of the most important historical periods that marked the history and architecture of the town, making Ravenna three times capital and, most importantly, you will discover the beauty of the unique mosaics, becoming familiar with the main iconography features of early Christian mosaics.
Tour Options
Itinerary
UNESCO monument, bearing witness to the barbarian domination
We will have a walk in the so-called Zona Dantesca(Dante's zone), an area dedicated to the great poet where silence is kept by the citizens of Ravenna to respect his memory. There we will the church of San Francesco where his funeral was held in 1321, discovering its fascinating crypt.
Ravenna is also the town where the Florentine poet Dante found shelter during his exile and where he wrote the last part of his Divine Comedy. We will discover why Dante came to Ravenna and how much the poet was loved by its inhabitants.
You will discover hidden traces of the Venetian domination of Ravenna.
UNESCO monument, built to house the Roman empress' remains. You will be stunned by the beauty of its mosaic decorations.
UNESCO monument, the most relevant Byzantine church of the West.
UNESCO monument, probably the most ancient monument in town, dating back to the late IV / early V century. You will discover beautiful ancient Christian symbols.
We will visit the Chapel of Saint Andrew, UNESCO monument, showing beautiful mosaics dating back to the late V century.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Wheelchair accessible
- Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Transportation options are wheelchair accessible
- All areas and surfaces are wheelchair accessible
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- May be operated by a multi-lingual guide
Reviews(23)
Francesca was great, very knowledgeable - shared a lot of information. The mosaics were amazing especially San Vitale!
My wife is a fan of mosaics, so we made a special effort to go to Ravenna, which does have the most impressive mosaics I've seen, both in quantity and quality. We deiced to check on Elisa's availability since she offered a 6 hour tour that hit all the main sites, including a suburban one. Elisa was quick in responding to my emails and she was available on the day that we were. In terms of payment, I wired some money to her account, I believe via PayPal, which I had never done before, but was easy. This was to pay for tickets that could be bought in advance. (There was a bite at her end by the Italian tax authoriites, so adding 10% should handle this so she isn't shorted.) I paid her for her services after the tour and she issued me a numbered receipt with the correct amount on it, so I was glad that the law was being obeyed. We were very happy with the tour. Her English was very understandable and, as could be expected, there was a lot of new information, but I never felt that things were getting too technical, though if someone wanted that sort of thing, I think that would be accomodated. She showed up on time, both at the beginning of the tour and after we broke for lunch. What was probably my second favorite site was a bus ride away in a suburb. I've ridden a lot of buses in my time, but realistically, without Elisa I wouldn't have ventured out due to figuring out how to pay, where to catch it, the schedule, etc. The tour involved walking, but this was one of the low step days, per my wife's FitBit. We're in our late 60s and one of us broke a hip this year, but we found the walking part very easy, especially since we never got lost as was the case when we were on our own at other times. Although not related to mosaics, we had a short stop at Dante's tomb, which I was glad was included. I admit that my wife is a mark for mosaics, but they really are worth seeing for everyone, especially if you are in the area for a cruise and going to site or two would be very worthwhile, especially since they are relatively close to each other.
Elisa, our tour guide, was equally pleasant, knowledgeable, charming and enthusiastic about the history of Ravenna. She took her time and helped us thoroughly explore each of the sites visited. Through her explanations, we were able to form an understanding of how each building was constructed and updated throughout the ages. The architecture, mosaics and beauty of Ravenna was brought to life. If visiting Ravenna, we'd strongly recommend this tour. And we hope you'd be fortunate enough to have Elisa as your guide.
Elisa was an excellent guide. She was very friendly and knowledgeable about the history of the area. We learned so much about the mosaics from her. Would highly recommend the tour.
Thank you for your nice review! I am happy to know that you enjoyed the tour.
Elisa was a great guide through Ravenna’s mosaics and history. She paced things perfectly and was a ocean of information about the city and its art, people, culture.
Thank you Robert! I'm so happy that you enjoyed the tour.
Elisa was wonderful. Very knowledgeable and helpful. Great experience, especiallyat the price. I highly recommend this.
Thank you very much for your nice review!
I had wanted to see these mosaics since I studied them at school 48 years ago, and I was not disappointed. Elisa Cornacchia, my guide, spoke excellent English, knew her subject well and communicated it in an interesting manner. Highly recommended.
Thank you so much Peter for your nice review. It was really good to meet you!
My wife and I enjoyed a wonderful and informative tour of the Byzantine and Gothic mosaics of Ravenna with Elisa. She was well prepared and very informative. She also made the tour very enjoyable. We focused primarily on the Byzantine churches and baptistries but also learned about the sites associated with Dante. It is impossible to convey how spectacular these mosaics are. I had seen the photos and read the history but the reality is overwhelming. I highly recommend making time to visit Ravenna if you are in the area. And, if you do, please take the tour with Elisa, I will be returning in December with my daughter who is a doctoral candidate in art history.
Elisa provided excellent explanations and insightful interpretations of Ravenna's mosaic treasures. Our group of three agreed that it was much, much better to have had her guidance than to have viewed the mosaics on our own.
Thanks to Elisa, we had a very informative tour of the beautiful mosaics in Ravenna. Not only knowledgeable of the mosaics, but helped us with places to eat and visit. Very much appreciated the extra effort.
