Lodging in Venice on the Grand Canal

Pensione Guerrato while not right on the Grand Canal is only steps away. Its right by the Rialto Market and is a two minute walk from the vaporetto stop. It is about 90 euro a night for a double with a shared bath, 130 for a private bath. We loved it. They book up fast though.

The Grand Canal is NOT really that enticing...in my opinion. Sometimes it's like staying in a hotel overlooking Interstate 40 in my hometown. Seriously you're out and about all day long and usually out at night for dinner so having a room overlooking the GC only gives you a view for the small amount of time you're actually in the room AND not asleep. And EVERYTHING uses the GC including the vaporettos (public buses), police boats, fire boats, construction boats, school boats, trash boats and even a few gondolas here and there. Side canals are just as interesting if you really need a canal.

It all depends what time of year you are going. I paid 190 per night for a place steps away from the rialto bridge but only because it was the off season.

Thanks so much for your words of wisdom. Getting advice from those who have been there is the best. I like the idea of a quiet side canal. Any more ideas here?

Ellen , I strongly second Tim's remarks . We recently returned from Venice and stayed five nights at Casa Rezzonico . This is a Rick recomendation , and my brother stayed there several years ago . Charming and quiet place on the fondamente Gherardini only a ten minute walk from the Ca Rezzonico stop on the grand canal . Matteo ,the owner is a very kind and accomodating man and very hospitable . The area is St. Barnaba in the Dorsoduro , very quiet an pleasant residential neighborhood . Ask for a garden facing room to quiet the church bells on the canal .

I agree with Tim. While a canal view would be very nice, a Grand Canal view comes with traffic and noise, and would not be my choice (at any price). If I had the money, I'd look for a hotel with a view of a side canal, preferable one where motorized boats don't go, so it was quiet.

A few years ago we stayed at the Hotel Galleria next to the Accadamia Bridge. Watching the action on the GC was fun - for a while - but as others have said, it's far too busy and noisy to be 'romantic'. The vaporetti make
a heck of a noise as they come up to the landing.

Hotel American Dinesan is on a side canal in Dorsoduro, very well located near the Accademia bridge. We walked past last time we were in Venice and it looked charming. Mprices are moderate ( for Venice) and reviews are very good. Or is you want to look at a lot of water and cruise ships going by now and then, la Calcina is right on Giudecca canal. we loved our room there. They have a rooftop terrace you can reserve. Go at sunset with a bottle of wine from the Billa store down the way on Zattere.

vaporetti make a heck of a noise as they come up to the landing. Yes, but it is the sound of Venice and I wouldn't trade it for anything. I pretty much disagree about avoiding the Grand Canal. I've been to Venice many times and go as often as I can, nearly annually. One time we had a room directly overlooking the Canal, about 4 flights up. That was for our 30th Anniversary and we had most of a week at Ca'Angeli. All the action on the water was like music to us, the movements of the boats like a well choreographed ballet. We absolutely adored it. The green garbage boats are just as important to that ballet as the fruit and veg boats, the laundry boats, the taxis, the (thankfully) occasional ambulance boats, and all the public transport. We have stayed on side canals too, and very near the Guiadecca. They are wonderful too, but IMHO there is nothing like the ballet and music of the grand Canal. That said, I wouldn't want to overlook the very southern part, between say the Accademia and the Customs House, or after the merge around S Marco. This year we discovered Pansion Guarrato as mentioned in a previous post. One room we had we could just crane around and see the corner of the Market and glimpse the Canal. The second room we had had two large windows with a very decent view over the Market to the Canal. It was close enough for us to really enjoy and we loved where we stayed and will return in 2013. For us, we love those things about Venice which are uniquely Venetian, and our hotel room provides all that while being private and away from the throngs - we we can get out and enjoy unique Venetian food and strolling ... Thanks for bringing back the memories...

Nigel, we might have stayed in the same room at Pensione Guerrato. It was a corner room over looking the market with a view of the canal past the buildings. Up one flight from the reception area.

I completely agree with Nigel that a room on the Grand Canal is nice and romantic, and the "traffic" noise is just part of the Venetian ambiance. But the view I would really like, if we could afford it, is the view over the Bacino.

Andrea, that's the one...

Have stayed at Al Campaniel B&B all 3 times in Venice - just seconds from the San Toma vaporetto stop, but off the canal - no view, but great breakfast (well, if you like cereal and a ion of breads and cheese) - we paid 77euro for a room with seperate but private locked bathroom across the hall. This was in mid-late Sept all 3 times. And a choc shop right across from the door...

Hi Ellen -
I completely agree with Steven, Casa Rezzonico is wonderful! It was walkable from the train station (but, there are stairs - lots of stairs - so be warned if you have a lot of luggage) and only a short walk to the vaporetto (no stairs!). There is a great little coffee/cnack bar just down the walkway and also a vegetable/fruit stand. A short walk to two squares with good restaurants. And, especially important for us, quiet! We were just there two weeks ago, stayed in room number five. It has a wonderful view of the courtyard and the bathroom was the largest we had during our two week stay in Italy. Have fun!

Penny , don't forget the Grom gelateria on campo St. Barnaba !!

Thanks for all your great ideas. After reading your comments and thinking about it I like the idea of staying on a canal for the Venice experience but not on the Grand Canal. We are looking for a small apartment centrally located rather than a Hotel or B & B. Any other thoughts?

Do you have a copy of RS Venice Guide Book - 2013 yet? If so, great. If not I would suggest you get one as soon as possible as we use his Venice guide book extensively when we spent a week in Venice this last September.
I had lots of recommendations for places to stay.

Hi Ellen You should tell us the dates you are going. You can do some research with venere.com, freereservation.com, homeaway.com are a few.
We stayed in a stusio apartment in the San Polo district. On the third floor with an elevator, NICE!! Owners are great. Name of apt Ca Badoer. Depending on what you want, look them up and email owners. We paid about $500 for the week and paid cash euros when we arrived. We bought euros here in states and paid them when we arrived, instead of looking for ATM's. Worked out great. Have fun and if you have a chance stop by The Bacaro Jazz Club near Rialto bridge, across post office. Fun place and lots of bras hanging from ceiling!! And YES i bought a purple bra here and made sure it was hung up. Also took a ride to Mazzorbo Island, Burano Island and onto the Lido. Came back during a beautiful sunset. A nice and relaxing day away from Venice. make sure you walk around the cannareggio area, very interesting. stopped by a shop that makes different wines, bring a container and pick which one you want for a glass that night. Go beyond being a tourist, walk thru the jewish ghetto, we went to the casino, totally different than the states. ENJOY

You all are really ardent travelers. This is great. We are not going to Venice until late May to early June 2014. I am trying to get ideas now so I can plan a budget. I do have RS Venice 2013 and he does list many places. However, I don't find any apartments in the RS book and we would prefer one. Which is why I turned to the Helpline.
Your various comments have helped me locate a number of agencies that rent apartments. Thanks so much. I have been looking into ones from Truly Venice and Italy Perfect. Does anyone have experience with either agency?

Truly Venice has an excellent reputation. They are Swiss-owned and operate with typical Swiss efficiency and reliability. My own experience with them is just correspondence-I inquired about a particular apartment and they were very responsive and complete in the information. We ended up renting from a different agency, but only because we decided we wanted a 2-bedroom apartment instead of a 1-bdr. This is the apartment I was looking at-we really wanted the altana (roof terrace). http://www.trulyveniceapartments.com/jsptruly/apartment.jsp?id=79 If you want something on a canal, just click on "water views" in the list to the right, and their choices will pop up.

I use vrbo.com and homeaway.com to find apartments. Recently some people have been talking about using airbnb.com. I have not personally used that one. You have plenty of time to find something that will be perfect for you.