Ravenna, Italy cruise port guide

About Ravenna, Italy

Ravenna is a city in the Emilia-Romagna region of northeastern Italy, world-famous for its exceptional late Roman and Byzantine mosaics that earned eight of its monuments UNESCO World Heritage status. The city served as the capital of the Western Roman Empire, the Ostrogothic Kingdom, and the Byzantine Exarchate of Ravenna. Its cruise port at Porto Corsini on the Adriatic coast, 12 km from the city center, has grown as an alternative homeport and port of call since Royal Caribbean International relocated operations from Venice in 2020.

Ravenna's UNESCO legacy includes eight monuments inscribed in 1996 for their extraordinary mosaics spanning the 5th to 7th centuries. The Basilica di San Vitale and its adjacent Mausoleum of Galla Placidia are the centerpieces, with the latter's deep cobalt vault mosaics among the most photographed in Italy. Sant'Apollinare in Classe, 5 km south of the city in the ancient harbor district, preserves a spectacular 6th-century apse mosaic. Dante Alighieri completed the Divine Comedy in Ravenna, where he lived in exile until his death in 1321; Florence has repeatedly requested the return of his remains, which Ravenna has always refused. The Pineta di Classe pine forest—immortalized by Boccaccio, Byron, and Dryden—stretches south of the port.