Arsenale di Venezia

Historical place · Castello

Arsenale di Venezia

Historical place · Castello

30122 Venice, Metropolitan City of Venice, Italy

Highlights

Byzantine shipyard founded in 1104, today used for cultural events, exhibitions & trade fairs.

30122 Venice, Metropolitan City of Venice, Italy Get directions

arsenale.comune.venezia.it

@cntraveler

"Arsenale di Venezia, a massive Byzantine armory and shipyard, was originally built in the 12th century, and it served as the Venetian military HQ for centuries afterwards. Now, its cavernous halls and landscaped gardens are used as one of the main venues for the Biennale, as well as the city's Naval Museum. During the Biennale, the Arsenale is filled with curators, collectors, tourists, and artists checking out the exhibition or relaxing on one of the lawns overlooking the harbor." - Andrea Whittle

15 Best Things to Do in Venice

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@cntraveler

"The Arsenale is enormous, and contains some of the show’s more out-there work, like an interactive virtual reality experience by Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster (worth the wait, seriously) and a delightfully unhinged video installation by Alex Da Corte."

How to Visit the 2019 Venice Biennale Without Being Overwhelmed | Condé Nast Traveler

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Trotting Horse

Google

Came here for Venice Biennale 2024. Love how vast and high the ceilings are, which makes it an ideal space for art exhibition.

Murillo Pontual

Google

Beautiful historical place that tells a little bit about the naval history of the fleet of Venice.

Ellie Handberg

Google

A cool place just to wander around and explore. Still an active military base so access is a bit restricted. If you’re wanting to get away from the hustle and bustle of crowded laneways, this is a nice way to do it and also get some of the breeze. There’s a free boat that takes you across the water which makes things easier, and lots of cats in the surrounding area.

Kevin Cleynhens

Google

Definitely worth making a walk to this history location, nice buildings and art works near the water.

Greg Powers

Google

Both the beauty and scale of the Venetian Arsenal is amazing. The bridge between the two towers with the canal below is iconic Venice. Wonderful place to visit in the early morning before many people are out. I visited just before sunrise.

Gin Woo Peixun

Google

We didn’t visit the exhibition, but it was worth wandering around this historical shipyard that used to be the heart of maritime warfare. It used to build one ship a day during the peak era of Venice’s naval powers!

Tata Gryff

Google

very beautiful place, calm, quiet, along the canal you can meet artists who paint the surrounding area. two nice cafes right on the corner of the bridge. as always, a historical and incredibly memorable place.

Ben Pavesi (ZioSGTV)

Google

Fortunately there were no exhibitions on at the time as it was 3 weeks prior to one being setup. We walked straight through, they ask for nothing but you can leave a small donation if you wish. Had to walk around the yard and see the well known sites. Due to it not being open at the time we could not look inside some of the warehouses nor walk around the whole yard but was still worth the trip!

Sean P.

Yelp

At its peak, the Arsenal in Venice was 110 acres, about 16 percent of the island, employed 16,000 people and produced about a ship a day. The Arsenal towers are modeled after the Arch of Sergii in Pula, Croatia. It's still a state owned facility so only government and military personnel are allowed. Worth a look but not much to do.

David S.

Yelp

I'll give this place a decent rating, even if there is pretty much nothing left of it, and nothing to actually tell you what went on here. Then again, the contents of the Arsenale were a pretty big secret and maybe much of it actually died with the empire. Still, it is nice to wander around, and there are even a couple of coffee shops as well (though they are more a part of the modern art museum). It is a shame though that they had done little to capture the history of the place.

Sam N.

Yelp

When we reached Venice, the Arsenale was the first place we wanted to see. It is way towards the end of the main street walkway. Just keep on walking and you will find it. We loved it because there wasn't a crowd anywhere in sight. It was nice, quiet and peaceful. The little water canal was beautiful as well as the sculptures and buildings in this area. There is a mini park like area on the side of the restaurant. There were benches under shaded trees to relax. The view from the bridge is beautiful and there are several spots that make for excellent photo taking. TIP: Cross over the bridge towards the restaurant. Head left towards the park and benches. There, in the corner, you will find a drinking fountain.