hotel in Venice

Looking for a place to stay one-at-a-time (using a guidebook for example) is time consuming. Plus it is high season in Venice and late for making reservations for July. Try Booking.com where you can enter in your dates and see what is actually available. $160 per night is not a lot for Venice. You will not need to share a bathroom with anyone, so do not discount the B&B experience! Most places now have private baths. Don't worry about age as most places are quite up-to-date including plumbing and WIFi. For $160 you probably will not be on the water, but the canals can be noisy anyway so for you are to be avoided, it would seem.

Venice is VERY small so do not worry too much about which sestiere you are in. Our first trip there (we've been 5 times) I fretted about being ner San Marco. Now I prefer being a little bit off the path, so to speak.

Trying to book a hotel in Venice at this late date is probably going to be "challenging", and you may have to take what you can find at whatever price. July is peak season, so there won't be any price breaks. Have you checked the Italy guidebook for listings?

Good luck!

Go to www.venere.com.
Using the budget range on the left pane (one is $100 to $200) do a search using the map tab.
It's too late to be choosy if you are going this July. San Marco is also the busiest and most expensive sestiere (district) therefore you won't find too many great properties there at your price range. $160 is only €110. Most hotels in that area will be over €150 or even over €200 a night. Look for other sestieri, such as San Polo, Cannaregio, Dorsoduro or Castello. As mentioned above Venice is small. You can walk across town from the station to Piazza San Marco in half hour. Don't get too hung up on the hotel. You will probably go there just to sleep, the fun in a Venice is in the outdoors walking the calli (alleys), the campi (squares), the canals' bridges and riding the vaporetti.

If you are just looking for a clean room and bathroom with breakfast - try hotel Tivoli in San Toma area. I really liked this area near Frari Church. You can always walk or take a vaporetto to St. Mark's square. San Toma is not so congested and has a lot of character. Hotel Tivoli has no elevators. So, you have to walk up and down a staircase.

I did not book very far ahead, like you, and scored a great apartment in a quiet Venice neighborhood, yet not far from the main action, supermarket, smaller markets, gelato, a vaparetto stop, a main 'street.' I even talked the owner into giving us a lower price. I looked at AirBnB. Wonderful service, smooth experience! The owner met us at the vaparetto from the airport and walked us to their family house and showed us around the apartment. It even had a balcony overlooking the quiet small canal on one side; on the other side there was the block of houses with the square. I had not used Air before, so took a few minutes to navigate and see that I wanted to look at the 'map' view and then zoom in on a neighborhood, in our case, the Cannareggio, to see more options. You did not say how many you are-- two, three? Please don't hesitate to message me if I can be of any use. You will find something good!
I have done a search for end of July dates, not knowing your exact dates and number of people and yielded these results. Just click on the pink heart on the map to see the price and number of people, and then you can go from there if you want to look at pictures of the place:
https://www.airbnb.com/s/Venice--Italy?checkin=07%2F26%2F2014&checkout=07%2F29%2F2014&guests=2&sw_lat=45.44289842407588&sw_lng=12.326079227523337&ne_lat=45.445417196900436&ne_lng=12.328525402144919&zoom=18&search_by_map=true
Laurel

Any of those web sites can help you find availability. If the hotel or B&B offers booking on its own web site, they'll probably love for you to switch over and book directly, so they don't have to pay a fee to the finder site.

Does your husband realize that B&Bs that don't provide en suite bathrooms are pretty rare? Is that his only objection? Many of them do feel like a small hotel. We really like Casa Rezzonico, but it's probably out of your price range which is pretty low for Venice.

We are just 2 people, staying Thursday to Sat. and then onto a cruise ship. Then we are staying 1 night after the cruise returns to Venice. I have decided to stay in two different places within Venice. In San Marco prior, and closer to the airport after the cruise. Thanks for the help. This is my first time using this forum and just wanted to get some names of places that peolple really went to. I know how to look on internet sites but there is so many places it blows your mind. When you read the reviews some hate and some love. Who do you believe? Anyone ever stay at the Albergo Cavalletto & Doge Orseolo? It is reasonable.

I'm also searching for places in Venice (in late Sept). I don't see a way to filter Air B&B for "private bath". Do you just have to read each description?

Two days ago, I booked the Hotel Antica Locanda Sturion, a small, charming hotel overlooking the Rialto bridge. Great location. My room is immaculate and has a full bath in the room.

Second the recommendation someone made earlier about the Tivoli Hotel. Not in San Marco, but the neighborhood is nice and quiet and strolling in Venice is delightful. Easy walk from the train station. Close to Campo San Margherita with lots of dining choices. Great local bakery (Tonolo) just down the street.