Mosaic by night: Mausoleum of Galla Placidia, Basilica of San Vitale, National Museum, Domus of the Stone Carpets

The Mosaic by Night festival will end on Friday 1 September with a special last evening that will open the doors to two monuments of our UNESCO heritage: the Basilica of San Vitale and the Mausoleum of Galla Placidia!

This summer, four special evenings with the night opening of the monuments will bring you to the discovery of Classe, now a fraction of Ravenna, but formerly a Roman port city and military outpost of the fleet of Constantinople on the Mediterranean. Discover the Basilica of Sant’Apollinare in Classe, defined as one of the greatest examples of an early Christian basilica and recognized by Unesco as a World Heritage Site. Despite the spoliation suffered over the centuries, the church still preserves the beauty of the original structure and it is admired for the splendid polychrome mosaics of its apsidal basin and the ancient marble sarcophagi of the archbishops located along the side aisles. Furthermore, our itineraries will lead you to discover the Museum Classis Ravenna, the last born among the city's monuments and which has become the cultural point of reference for anyone who wants to fully understand the history of Ravenna. A compelling story that features one of the most important cities in the Mediterranean, three times capital. The story develops inside the museum using multimedia, plastic and multi-projection equipment used as a support to the visit and to illustrate the various themes.  

From 493 A.D. Ravenna saw one of the most important and significant chapters of its history. Following the conquest by the Goths, an eastern Germanic population of Arian faith, led by Theodoric the Great, the city was enriched with new institutional and religious buildings without subverting those already present, in the desire to make its faith coexist with the Orthodox rite.   This tour wishes to highlight a latent past intrinsic to the urban and cultural fabric of Ravenna, which successive dominations have tried to conceal.   The route includes entrance to four monuments, two of which are UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Starting with the most famous and legendary one, the unique Mausoleum of Theodoric, we will then head towards the historical centre, first admiring the 'Palace of Theodoric', located next to the Palatine Basilica of St Martin in Tours (today Sant'Apollinare Nuovo) and then the Arian Baptistery.   At this point, at the Mercato Coperto (Covered Market), you can enjoy a well-deserved break with a leisurely breakfast/meal, savouring the delights of traditional Romagna gastronomy, before continuing on to the last stop on our trek, the Museo Nazionale di Ravenna (National Museum of Ravenna), where important artefacts of Ravenna's past are preserved.   The Theodoric Urban Trekking was born from the desire to make tourism outside the classic canons of guided tours.   Come with us on this new experience that combines sport, art, taste and the desire to discover the city's most hidden and curious places associated with the good habit of walking.

Guided tour to discover the monuments that make Classe an essential destination. Discover the Basilica of Sant’Apollinare in Classe, defined as one of the greatest examples of an early Christian basilica and recognized by Unesco as a World Heritage Site. Despite the spoliation suffered over the centuries, the church still preserves the beauty of the original structure and it is admired for the splendid polychrome mosaics of its apsidal basin and the ancient marble sarcophagi of the archbishops located along the side aisles. Furthermore, our itineraries will lead you to discover the Museum Classis Ravenna, the last born among the city's monuments and which has become the cultural point of reference for anyone who wants to fully understand the history of Ravenna. A compelling story that features one of the most important cities in the Mediterranean, three times capital. The story develops inside the museum using multimedia, plastic and multi-projection equipment used as a support to the visit and to illustrate the various themes.  

“The site is of outstanding universal value being of remarkable significance by virtue of the supreme artistry of the mosaic art that the monuments contain, and also because of the crucial evidence that they provide of artistic and religious relationships and contacts at an important period of European cultural history.” In this way the UNESCO World Heritage motivated why eight monuments of Ravenna had been added to the World Heritage List.   The eternal beauty of the mosaics guarded inside some of the most famous Ravenna Unesco monuments, in a visit that starts from Piazza San Francesco, into the city centre, and leads you to several UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Like every summer the paths of Mosaic Night 2023 return to open, in the evening, the doors of some of the most beautiful monuments of the city center. Itinerary of the Wednesday: - Neonian Baptistery - Ariani Baptistery - Basilica of Sant'Apollinare Nuovo

An exclusive itinerary, narrated in your own language by an official guide, which will take you to visit the most famous monuments of Ravenna. Ancient origins and a glorious past, a heritage of unique works and mosaics in the world, which enclosed within the city walls, transformed Ravenna in the past centuries and today bear witness to the original splendor. Ravenna and the light of its mosaics, the city of 8 UNESCO monuments, that inspired great artists of all ages: Dante, Byron, Klimt and Montale, just to name a few of them... Ravenna is art, history, crossroads of peoples and culture. Ravenna, a masterpiece to discover with this exclusive tour. Starting from Dante's tomb, the route will take you along the streets of the historic center, to reach the sites that contain the masterpieces of the Ravenna mosaic.