This visit is one of the most charming guided tours of Torcello in Venice: it opens up the exclusive creaking gates of time, transporting you into the past, to the time when the island was at its moment of maximum splendour. Torcello with a guide -a fascinating tour of the Torcello Church to discover its priceless mosaics, treasures and two areas that have remained inaccessible for centuries: the crypt and the sacristy.

An ideal destination for adventurous itineraries, Torcello island is very popular with visitors due to it being wild and unspoiled which gives an air of seductive mystery and a charming atmosphere of ancient times.

Torcello, Venice has been developed following the transfer of the inhabitants from the thriving city of Altino, devastated by the barbarian invasions that were flooding inland, quickly becoming one of the main centres of the Venetian lagoon. Due to the growing influence of Venice however, soon the inhabitants of Torcello migrated to its powerful neighbour, leaving the island to a slow and inexorable decline.

Today, Torcello island retains the memory of its former glory and a few structures have resisted the erosion of time, like the Church of Santa Fosca, the Devil's Bridge, the Provincial Museum of Torcello and the Torcello Cathedral Last Judgement – the Basilica of Santa Maria Assunta, which is the privileged subject of our tour.

Commissioned in 639 as a new cathedral for the Episcopal seat of Altino, the Basilica of Santa Maria Assunta is a real masterpiece of Venetian-Byzantine art. Our tour inside Torcello Venice Cathedral will reveal the priceless works of art, Torcello church mosaics and the secrets of this ancient structure that has spanned the centuries.

Among the beautiful Torcello Cathedral mosaics, majestic architectural elements and fine details, this fascinating tour will reveal the soul of the Basilica of Torcello making contact with the atmosphere of deep spirituality that emanates this impressive basilica.

Thanks to our guided tours in Torcello you can also visit two places within the Basilica of Torcello that have remained inaccessible to the public for centuries: the crypt and the sacristy.

A very rare element in the Venice area, the crypt under the altar is a passage in which one can see the old brick structure of the medieval basilica. Often being reached by the water, it has been equipped with a wooden bridge to make visits possible at all times.

Once the ancient portico of the Basilica of Torcello, and later closed to create a fourth nave, the sacristy presents stone elements dating from the ninth century and, hidden in a secret passageway, a beautiful and mysterious sarcophagus from Roman times brought to Torcello by the inhabitants of Altino during their escape from the mainland. According to legend, this tomb contained the body of Mark the Evangelist for some time, before the basilica in Venice was completed in his honour.

An ideal place for a brand new tour in Venice, Torcello church will give you an unforgettable experience. With this itinerary in the Basilica of Torcello you can get in touch with the charming atmosphere of the island, and enjoy two mysterious and exclusive places ...