5 guides

TOUR GUIDES

Ravenna city guide

Pick a place in Ravenna. Open the full story or choose a shorter read.

Ravenna city guide

Start here ↗

Brick octagonal exterior and stepped roofs of the Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna

Basilica of San Vitale

Text guide

Small cross-shaped brick Mausoleum of Galla Placidia with its raised square central roof

Mausoleum of Galla Placidia

Text guide

Brick facade, pale portico and cylindrical bell tower of Sant'Apollinare Nuovo in Ravenna

Basilica of Sant'Apollinare Nuovo

Text guide

Octagonal brick exterior of the Neonian Baptistery in Ravenna

Neonian Baptistery

Text guide

Two pale stone levels of the Mausoleum of Theodoric beneath its single-stone roof

Mausoleum of Theodoric

Text guide

Ravenna, Italy ✳

Churches & mosaics

Basilica of San Vitale

01 / 5

Follow the octagonal space to see how imperial authority entered a Christian sanctuary.♫

Language

Choose reading depth

Full story · About 2 min read✳

Ravenna tour guides

Explore Ravenna with five free written guides to its early Christian monuments. Photos, map pins, Quick takes and Full stories.

Basilica of San Vitale guide · Follow the octagonal space to see how imperial authority entered a Christian sanctuary.

Mausoleum of Galla Placidia guide · Separate a famous burial name from the small chapel and its vision of life beyond death.

Basilica of Sant'Apollinare Nuovo guide · Read a long mosaic nave as evidence of a palace church changing religious and political hands.

Neonian Baptistery guide · Connect the baptism shown overhead with the basin and ritual below.

Mausoleum of Theodoric guide · Understand the extraordinary single-stone roof without turning engineering uncertainty into a legend.

More places nearby

↗

Mausoleum of Galla PlacidiaRavenna

Basilica of Sant'Apollinare NuovoRavenna

Sources and photo credits

Photo: Basilica of San Vitale.jpg by Commonists · CC BY-SA 4.0. Resized and compressed; cropped for display.

Ravenna city guide

Explore Ravenna

Ravenna's plain brick churches can hide rooms full of colour. These five guides explain how mosaics, baptism and royal burial worked in a city that passed through Roman, Ostrogothic and Byzantine rule. Begin with the detail that interests you: a star-covered ceiling, an imperial portrait or an enormous stone roof.

San Vitale and Galla Placidia stand close together west of the centre. The Neonian Baptistery is beside the cathedral, while Sant'Apollinare Nuovo lies farther east on Via di Roma. Theodoric's mausoleum is outside this central cluster, beyond the railway. The map marks monuments rather than a tested walking route.

Choose a short story or read more detail with 5 free guides to the city’s landmarks and neighbourhoods.

Read rooms through their decoration

Compare the central space at San Vitale with the long nave of Sant'Apollinare Nuovo. Then turn to the small Neonian Baptistery, where the subject overhead matches the ritual that happened below.

Brick octagonal exterior and stepped roofs of the Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna

Basilica of San Vitale

Follow the octagonal space to see how imperial authority entered a Christian sanctuary.

Written guide · Full story · About 2 min read · Quick take

Brick facade, pale portico and cylindrical bell tower of Sant'Apollinare Nuovo in Ravenna

Basilica of Sant'Apollinare Nuovo

Read a long mosaic nave as evidence of a palace church changing religious and political hands.

Written guide · Full story · About 2 min read · Quick take

Octagonal brick exterior of the Neonian Baptistery in Ravenna

Neonian Baptistery

Connect the baptism shown overhead with the basin and ritual below.

Written guide · Full story · About 2 min read · Quick take

Two very different burial monuments

Galla Placidia explains the difference between a famous name and a documented burial. Theodoric's mausoleum changes the materials completely: its stone construction and single-piece roof make a striking comparison with Ravenna's brick buildings.

Small cross-shaped brick Mausoleum of Galla Placidia with its raised square central roof

Mausoleum of Galla Placidia

Separate a famous burial name from the small chapel and its vision of life beyond death.

Written guide · Full story · About 2 min read · Quick take

Two pale stone levels of the Mausoleum of Theodoric beneath its single-stone roof

Mausoleum of Theodoric

Understand the extraordinary single-stone roof without turning engineering uncertainty into a legend.

Written guide · Full story · About 2 min read · Quick take

Seeing the mosaics

Most of the mosaics discussed here are inside controlled monument spaces. Tourttle provides the written guide, not admission. Check the official monument pages for current booking arrangements before planning a visit that depends on an interior. Give services and other visitors room.

These five places belong to the eight-part Early Christian Monuments of Ravenna World Heritage property. This collection is a starting selection, not all eight monuments. Sant'Apollinare Nuovo is in central Ravenna; Sant'Apollinare in Classe is a different church outside the city and is not included in this collection.

Questions about exploring Ravenna

Are the Ravenna guides free?

Yes. These five written guides are free to read in English. Admission, transport and booked tours are separate.

Do these guides include audio?

This collection offers written Quick takes and Full stories. Audio is not available.

Can I save a guide for offline reading?

Yes. While online, use the guide's three-dot menu to save it, then open it from Downloads on this device. Map tiles are not included.

More city guides

Sources and visitor information

Photo credits

Photo: Basilica of San Vitale.jpg by Commonists · CC BY-SA 4.0. Resized and compressed; cropped for display.

Photo: Mausoleum of Galla Placidia in Ravenna.JPG by Petar Milošević · CC BY-SA 4.0. Resized and compressed; cropped for display.

Photo: Basilica of Sant' Apollinare Nuovo. Ravenna, Italy.jpg by Ввласенко · CC BY-SA 3.0. Resized and compressed; cropped for display.

Photo: Ravenna Baptistry of Neon.jpg by Madaki · CC BY-SA 3.0. Resized and compressed; cropped for display.

Photo: Mausoleum of Theodoric (Ravenna) - Exterior.jpg by ThePhotografer · CC BY-SA 4.0. Resized and compressed; cropped for display.

body.app-shell{overflow:auto!important}.app{height:auto;min-height:0;display:block;overflow:visible}.map-area{height:400px}.guide-panel{display:block!important;position:relative;width:100%;height:auto;border-radius:0}.guide-scroll{display:block;height:auto;overflow:visible;max-width:760px;margin:auto}.mobile-handle,.mobile-preview,.mode-tabs,.duration-row,#close-guide,.map-utility,.search-box,.city-switcher{display:none}.guide-content>section{padding:0 24px}.place-rail-wrap{bottom:20px}.guide-panel .place-photo{height:260px}.city-editorial{display:block!important;width:100%;overflow:visible}.city-guide-scroll{overflow:visible;height:auto}.city-guide-header button{display:none}body[data-page-type="city"] .guide-panel{display:none}.map-caption{top:95px}You can read the guide here. Turn on JavaScript to use the map and audio controls.