Area and/or Hotel in Venice

How many people and how many nights? Plus what would consider your budget per night to be?

You can look for hotels on www.venere.com

You'll want to get something air conditioned in July.

My husband and I would like to stay for two possibly three nights.

Really, all those areas are great. Venice is such a small city that you can easily walk between these places - for example Rialto to St. Mark's Square is just a twenty minute stroll. There probably is more nightlife around St. Mark's and Rialto, but you will likely be happy in any of those areas.

We love the small but cozy and VERY comfortable Locanda al Leon, just a few blocks from San Marco. Stayed there twice last year, once winter and once summer, and we can't wait to return!

check out vrbo.com/155941. Awesome location, awesome apartment, air conditined and fully remodelled. can't beat it for the price. stayed last June. It's as nice as the photos look. Any ?'s send me a private message.

I've stayed in Dorsoduro near Campo Santa Margherita - a lot of restaurants, cafes in the area, and it felt a bit less touristy than San Marco (though in Venice, tourists are all over). Big student area so it was a fun people watching area. I enjoyed my stay at the Tivoli Hotel, an inexpensive 2-star (70 euros for a single). Booked through venere.com, a useful booking site.

We used the RS book from 2008 for our trip to Italy this past September. We stayed at the Pensione Guerrato near the Rialto Bridge. I do not remember the dollar level, but it was not expensive. In his book, Rick Steves said that his tours book the hotel 50 nights a year, so we knew it would be good. They also give a discount to people who mention the RS books and pay in cash. (We took advantage of this at all the hotels we stayed at in Italy). They served a nice breakfast and had incredibly kind, helpful, and friendly staff. Venice is great for walking, but sometimes it is nice to use the Vaporetto, which stops just a few feet from the front door of the Pensione Guerrato (maybe 100 feet). This made getting there with our luggage really easy. We bought a Vaporetto pass and had lots of fun going from the Rialto to St. Marks, across to the Lido (just for fun), back to the Guggenheim, and up and down the Grand Canal. Have fun!

You can also check out Hotel Al Ponte Mocenigo in Dorsoduro. We like it a lot and would certainly return. Also the Cannaregio area is where we stayed the first 3 trips and liked it, more quiet than San Marco & has everything we needed. I have never been there in July, but I have read quite a few postings here where people have said that you definitely should make sure you have AC in the summer months.
Have a great trip!

My fav thing to do in Venice is ride the vaporettos all over the place-don't miss Murano and the enchanting island of Burano- it is 40 min past Murano and most turists don't make it out there- it is a blast of colorful homes- each distict so the fisherman can see it from out on the lagoon-If you find the restaurant Gatto Nero you might have the seafood dinner of your dreams!
Have fun!

Thank you everyone for all your posts. I just love this helpline.