Hotel recommendations for cruise ending in Venice

[nikitty]

Does anyone have any recommendations for good hotels in Venice? I'd like something not too pricey, centrally located, but most importantly - I've been reading some scary stories about having to drag suitcases and I'd really like to find a great hotel that won't have me trying to drag all of my luggage along with my mother's. (She has limited mobility so I'm worried that I'm not going to be able to manage with so many bags!)

 

Is there a nice hotel that is centrally located which won't be a problem getting to? As well, we will need to get to the airport the next day, so I again would need to find a hotel that has good access to transportation in order to avoid any luggage ordeals en route to the airport. ;)

[whp]

Does anyone have any recommendations for good hotels in Venice? I'd like something not too pricey, centrally located, but most importantly - I've been reading some scary stories about having to drag suitcases and I'd really like to find a great hotel that won't have me trying to drag all of my luggage along with my mother's. (She has limited mobility so I'm worried that I'm not going to be able to manage with so many bags!)

 

Is there a nice hotel that is centrally located which won't be a problem getting to? As well, we will need to get to the airport the next day, so I again would need to find a hotel that has good access to transportation in order to avoid any luggage ordeals en route to the airport. ;)

most people have two location choices. If you stay near P. Roma (train and bus station) then it is easy to get to the airport (FCO) by bus but you have to take vaparetto to St. Marks and other locations where the "action" is and most tourist sites. If you stay near St. Marks then depending on the time of your flight you must either take a water taxi or Alilaguna to the airport by water or take the vaparetto to P. Roma and take bus. I have a 2 PM flight so am staying near St. Marks at Best Western Hotel Ala. Near P. Roma there is a Best Western Olympia. I started my "search" by going to tripadvisor and just seeing the ranking. Ask your travel agent to make some recommendations based on your budget and be prepared to pay 150 US and up. When are you sailing and what is the time of your flight? Also what nights do you need hotel as you did not say.

 

Share your email address and I can communicate directly to you.

[nikitty]

We are on the Celebrity Summit sailing Aug. 14th to the 26th.

We leave Venice for the airport the next day in the morning.

 

My email is lara_mai1@hotmail.com (there is an underscore after lara which you can't see with the underline)

[eandj]

If you look back a few posts, there is one re finding a hotel on a canal so there is little luggage "dragging". Check that one out for more ideas.

 

You don not have to stay on the grand canal (expensive). There will be others on side canals. If you stay near the transportation area (P.R) you won't really be near the action as you desire.

 

Your budget and the time you are traveling will determine the location of the hotel too.

[agabbymama]

We chose Ca' Doge at Piazzale Roma, for the convenience. The bus to the airport is there, land taxis if you choose, the vaporetto stop, the visitors center, etc. are all located at Piazzale Roma.

 

While it isn't San Marco Piazza, it is easy to get to by vaporetto.

 

Santa Chiara Hotel is another one at Piazzale Roma and it sits right on the Grand Canal. The Arlecchino and Olympia are also close by, but would require going over at least one bridge. No bridges for Ca' Doge or Santa Chiara.

 

Hotels in Venice are all pricey. I started out looking on Lido then realized the logistics of getting there with luggage wasn't doable for two older ladies with mobility issues. I switched to Mestre. Hotel Bologna and Golden Tulip Tritone both were running about $140 per night. After talking it over with my friend, we decided to splurge to be right in Piazzale Roma.

The Ca' Doge was absolutely wonderful, but it cost us $230 per night. But it was really convenient to find our way around Venice, and still know exactly how to get back to our hotel without getting lost.

 

I like venere.com as they have a nice map & shows the exat location of the hotel, then I go to tripadvisor.com for reviews. Have fun searching, then taking your trip.

[nikitty]

I've actually been doing a ton of research. However, hotel descriptions don't provide whether they are easily accessible by cruise ports or the airport. This is why I posted this message.

 

I did read the other post about luggage dragging, but I was confused. It seemed to me the hotel the person stayed at DID have a lot of luggage dragging, not the opposite.

 

After searching for so long, you just get overwhelmed. That's why I was hoping for some informed advice as to places that people have enjoyed in the past.

 

We are starting in Barcelona and I found a great thread for hotels:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1009044

 

I was hoping that I could find the same type of thread for Venice hotels, but there wasn't one, hence this post.

 

agabbymama - thank you for the post. i will check those places out! if anyone has any other suggestions, I'd love to hear more options.

[primo1]

2 years ago we stayed at the Ca Angeli. Right on the Grand Canal.

Rialto Bridge is a very short walk. And they have their own dock.

Very easy taking a water taxi from the ship directly to Ca Angeli.

Perfect spot. We had the top floor room with a HUGE private Terrace.

Was only like 165 euro. They also have some rooms in the 130 euro range.

You will Love it.

[jenhem]

I did an alternative to the hotels in Venice that you may want to consider, it worked well for us. We chose to stay at the Courtyard Marriott Airport Hotel as we had an early flight out the next AM. We took the cruise ship transfer to the airport on disembarcation, and once at the airport, the free shuttle to the hotel. You don't even have to go in the airport, where the cruise transport drops you off the hotel shuttle picks you up. It comes every half hour, you don't even need to call them. We didn't really have to handle luggage, they took it off the bus, and the shuttle driver loads it on. We went to the hotel (which was suprisingly nice), freshened up, then took the bus into Venice, about a 15-20 minute ride. The bus stop is directly in front of the hotel, and the front desk sells round trip passes. The bus goes to the Piazzale Roma. We had a great time in Venice, and an easy bus ride back to the hotel. I didn't mind not staying on a canal in Venice, as we basically used the room to sleep. Our flight was the next morning at 6am, we took the free hotel shuttle back to the airport in the AM. I can't stress enough the need to be at this airport EARLY. We were on the first shuttle to the airport(5am) and got to the airport when it opened. We were about #75 in the check-in line that moved veeery slooowly, and then still had to go through security. It was the closest I have come in a long time to missing a flight, and was the most stressful part of the whole trip. I would not hesitate to stay here again if we were in the same position of an early flight, we didn't have to deal with lugging suitcases around, and saw more of Venice neighborhoods than if we stayed in a canal-side hotel. Plus, we were as close to the airport as you could be for an early morning flight.

Whatever you decide, I don't think you can have a bad time in Venice. Enjoy!

Jenny

[nikitty]

Wow. That's a really great idea. It's definitely something to consider. We opted out of a cruise transfer so I'm not sure how much that will cost, but I will look into it. Since it's done by the cruise it obviously won't be cheap, but it's hassle free.

 

I'm going to have to find another hotel because my mom had a very bad experience last year at a Marriott in Chicago. They were hosing down the sidewalk outside the entrance (on a cold night) and my mom fell down on her face - broke her glasses, and got several bad cuts around her eye. She had to be rushed to the hospital. The hotel said it wasn't their fault - even though they were the ones who had hosed down the area, and not put any signs up. The entrance was sloped polished concrete, so it was slippery indeed! Anyway, she refuses to stay at a Marriott now, which I totally understand.

 

I'm going to try to check other hotels - see others that might offer shuttles. Again, thanks for your great suggestion!

 

 

 

I did an alternative to the hotels in Venice that you may want to consider, it worked well for us. We chose to stay at the Courtyard Marriott Airport Hotel as we had an early flight out the next AM. We took the cruise ship transfer to the airport on disembarcation, and once at the airport, the free shuttle to the hotel. You don't even have to go in the airport, where the cruise transport drops you off the hotel shuttle picks you up. It comes every half hour, you don't even need to call them. We didn't really have to handle luggage, they took it off the bus, and the shuttle driver loads it on. We went to the hotel (which was suprisingly nice), freshened up, then took the bus into Venice, about a 15-20 minute ride. The bus stop is directly in front of the hotel, and the front desk sells round trip passes. The bus goes to the Piazzale Roma. We had a great time in Venice, and an easy bus ride back to the hotel. I didn't mind not staying on a canal in Venice, as we basically used the room to sleep. Our flight was the next morning at 6am, we took the free hotel shuttle back to the airport in the AM. I can't stress enough the need to be at this airport EARLY. We were on the first shuttle to the airport(5am) and got to the airport when it opened. We were about #75 in the check-in line that moved veeery slooowly, and then still had to go through security. It was the closest I have come in a long time to missing a flight, and was the most stressful part of the whole trip. I would not hesitate to stay here again if we were in the same position of an early flight, we didn't have to deal with lugging suitcases around, and saw more of Venice neighborhoods than if we stayed in a canal-side hotel. Plus, we were as close to the airport as you could be for an early morning flight.

Whatever you decide, I don't think you can have a bad time in Venice. Enjoy!

Jenny

[takeavacation]

I just came back from the Summit (6/3 sailing) and we ended in Venice as well. After a great deal of research - we decided to stay in Mestre at Hotel Bologna. To avoid any luggage dragging - we scheduled a service to pick us up and take us to the hotel (40 euro). Our room was a triple and was 150 euro for 1 night. We dropped our luggage, crossed the street to the train station and took the train back into Venice (1 euro). It's a very quick ride. When we arrived, we got on a vaparatto to all the sites that we wanted to see. After exploring and going over to Murano - we took the train back to the hotel (1 euro) and crashed. The next morning, we took a taxi to the airport (40 euro).

 

Was this the "cheapest" method?? No -- but, my one word of advice.....at the end of this 12 night cruise -- you are EXHAUSTED!! We had originally planned to take the airport bus to the airport for just a couple of euro, but we were way to tired to even consider carrying our luggage anywhere further than the hotel lobby. 9 days of intense sight seeing kicked our rears --- we had a fabulous trip, but very tiring.