Venice

Why not stay in Venice? You won't need much cash, CC are accepted almost everywhere, but it's always wise to have Euros for smaller purchases and tipping. Gondola not worth it to us, but many love it. Don't miss the Jewish Ghetto area, St. Marks Basilica. I'd hire a private guide, you learn and see so much more.

Carnivale!!! How exciting!!!
I have been reading and watching videos about this as well. I think with luggage we will take a shared water taxi.
If it's not horrible, vaporetto. But during Carnivale, eveyrthing will be packed.
I saw the kiosks are at the train station.
You can buy vaporetto tickets for several days or one 24 hour period
I dont know about shared taxis or booking those in advance.
I am still learning.
Anxious to see the responses

hey hey pvosh
as ChinaLake67 posts "why not stay in venice?" i would rather see you stay in venice, so many areas & hotels to pick from.
are you flying into VCE, what are your dates, budget in euros, how many people, where are you flying from?
another topic that gets yes or no answers is "getting euros". i always get about 100E (low denominations) here in states before going. seen ugliness at airport arrivals (long lines with how many planes land at same time, one ATM "out of order" other ATM is crazy, when does it run out of money, nowdays many are travel exchange cost you big fees) use debit card not credit card to withdraw
after you arrive any ATM you can withdraw (again ask for odd # 85 or 90 for small bills not a 100E note) look at ATM at local bank in case your card get's "eaten"
does the hilton charge for their shuttle? staying in venice you can do lots of walking getting lost or catch a vaporetto with different day passes europeforvisitors.com under venice
we walked back canals for restaurants, some small mom & pops, stay away from waiters out front holding menus, busy tourist attractions during days for daytrippers. we liked ristorante diana in canareggio sitting outside along canal, rio-novo-ristorante in santa croce area. other things to do:
schezzini.it alessandro, a local, does a "bar/cichetti crawl leaning history, wines and small appetizer bites in locals bars. send him an email in contacts space for more info
streaty.com food tour
gpsmycity.com/ venice download app, self guided walking tour, pick the areas they offer
isoladiburano.it
an island away from venice on vaporetto, one of my favorite day trips to roam thru the shops, restaurants, have lunch. notice times/days restaurants are open, some close early afternoons.
we made a pit stop at harry's bar for well known bellini, $25-30 pricey but it was fun and worth it.
gondola yes, we're tourists. we reserved with [email protected] email him for more info and to reserve. great gondolier and he sang opera while cruising, went down back canals, cross over busy grand canal. met near jewish ghetto
your time is short in venice with lots to see and do. ask more questions, forum here to help, give different opinions you may or may not like. research will pay off in the end. you will have a great time, venice is busy all year, go with the flow. are you taking train to croatia for tour?
aloha

"need to take a shuttle boat to/from the city" - enjoy your time in Giudecca, its only a few minutes from main tourist sites via the vaporetti. Walk toward the Palanca vaporetto stop, you can find eateries and bakeries nearby. We like La Salumeria dalla Maria for small bites, wine, and sandwiches. Use your credit card most of the time everywhere; get 100 euros for small purchases at any bank ATM (small fee). Gondola -- no.

One piece of advice - get a paper map of Venice. Phone maps of Venice can be pretty ordinary.

Hope this helps! Venice still is my favorite Italian city.
1. Hilton Hotel on Guidecca Island (pros & cons) esp re: hotel shuttle boat to/from Venice. I always stay in a hotel very close to San Marco piazza or in the adjacent neighborhood during my stays in Venice. I can’t comment on your location, but these would be some cons I might consider.. 1. Every minute waiting for a vaporetto & then riding over to the main island grouping could have been out enjoying why you came to Venice. 2. If you might skip an evening “because it’s easier to just stay on Guidecca”, I would switch locations.

2. Recommendations for local breakfast. lunch, & dinner in Venice (looking for real Italian eateries). I’ll let others reply for this question. I tend to plan my great meals in other cities than Venice.
3. Recommendations re: ATM withdrawal cash vs credit card. Load your credit card on your phone’s ApplePay. It’s the common transaction for almost everything & very secure and handy. Security: It must recognize my face to use it.
4. Gondola ride? Absolutely! You’re in Venice for the first time. Embrace the experience. Do yourself a favor and put away the phone after a couple of photos while on the boat. I see people looking at their phone vs. enjoying what’s around them. : ). No need to reserve one ahead of time. Just walk up to one you see that you would like.

A note about a previous reply - Carnivale in Venice is in February.

Places to eat.
Nico’s Geletaria on the Zattere. A good variety of pasta and pizza, not fancy. Evening views over the Giudecca Canal are pleasant.
La Bitta, Calle Lunga San Barnaba, Dorsoduro is good; we have dined there half a dozen times. Menu changes daily, they do not serve fish.
Ai Mercanti in San Marco. Top class, and a most creative menu. Again, we have dined there half a dozen times, always excellent.

Excellent answers already to the OP's questions.

I'll just add one note to topic #4 (gondola ride): cosider trying also the 'traghetto' = the public gondola service. It can be a great plan B, or teaser before committing to a private gondola ride. It's a different experience, because the gondola is larger, but for just 2 euro per person, it's an easy and affordable way to try it out first. There are a total of 4 reliable routes across the Grand Canal (Google Map).

Also keep in mind that when you rent a private gondola, you're paying for the entire boat, which can accommodate up to 5 passengers. If you want to reduce costs, you can share the ride - either by finding others on the spot or by booking a shared gondola online.

We weren't going to do a gondola ride, because it's so expensive, but we ended up booking a 1/2 day tour that included St. Mark's Cathedral, a few other sights, and a gondola ride. In our case, the tour was free, because we'd had to cancel our 2020 tours, and The Roman Guy offered us a credit with a bonus, if we didn't take a refund. So, we used our bonus for this and one other tour.

Anyway, if you are thinking of taking any tours in Venice, you might be able to find one that includes a gondola ride. Is it worth it? In hindsight, I'm very glad we did it. It's such a uniquely Venetian experience.

Here's the tour we took: https://theromanguy.com/tours/italy/venice/doge-palace-secret-itineraries-tour-skip-the-line?itemlistname=the%20best%20venice%20tours&itemlistid=33&_gl=1*sjer3b*_up*MQ..*_ga*MTIwODAyMDMzMS4xNzcwOTExNjMw*_ga_Y488PQCWM9*czE3NzA5MTE2MzAkbzEkZzAkdDE3NzA5MTE2MzAkajYwJGwwJGgxMDYxMDczNTIy

We did Row Venice a few years back, a company run by women rowers. It's 90 minute rowing lessons on the quiet back canals, about 100 euros total for a small group (1-4 folks). It's harder than it looks, and folks can switch off for rests. We met them in Cannaregio, which is a great neighborhood for lodging.
I also recommend staying in Venice proper. We love the Hotel Ai Mori D'Oriente. Have a wonderful trip!

Thank you for all of these informative responses. Keep them coming as I'm putting together a list of those that we especially like.
Much appreciated!

I believe the Hilton Molino Stucky has its own dedicated shuttle boat to San Marco. No idea if they charge or if it is free for hotel guests. There is no public vaporetto dock there, and it is a bit of a walk to one, either Sacca Fisola, or Giudecca Palanca.

With regard to eating in Venice:

One of our favorite places is in the Rialto Bridge area and is named Trattoria Da Marco Valla Fava. It's located on Calle Stagneri. It is definitely an upscale place that has some of the best sea food ever!! Try to eat inside rather than outside. The place has been around at least 50 years so they must be doing it right, and we've never found it to be overly "touristed".

At the other end of the dining / money scale, also in the Rialto area on the other side of the Grand Canal, when walking to Piazzale Roma, is an out of the way place named Pane Vino e San Daniele located on Calle dei Botteri, San Polo. Definitely a small local place, good food, good house wine, and not expensive at all.

You should be able to check them out on the internet, and Google Maps street view is a great tool to locate these places and "walk" to them ahead of time.

You asked for recommendations for breakfast. Breakfast is not a big deal for Italians, most would think that a coffee and croissant would be enough.
Note that there may be three different prices for breakfast:
Al banco, where the coffee and pastry is eaten at the bar, standing up.
Al tavolo, food served to an indoor table.
Al terraza, food served at an outside table in the campo/calle/wherever.

We have never taken a gondola ride - our first couple of visits were in mid-Winter, and the gondola experience was not so inviting.
However, we have been kayaking twice in Venice, and that was great. There’s nothing like pulling the kayak out of the water at a well known campo and heading off to lunch, or passing down the canal that runs clean under the Church of San Stefano in San Marco.

Venicekayak dot com finds them.

Molino Stucky aka Hilton pro and con.
Pro - maybe you stay there on Hilton points.
Con - many.
The building itself, while looking grand, was constructed as a pasta factory (molino). So the location suited manufacture and accomodation for workers. That means that the area is somewhat devoid of the usual bars and street life.
The building itself, while neo-Gothic, is not really historical, a bare 130 years old, and inside is very Hilton-ish, rooftop pool etc.
To get pretty much anywhere, you either have to take the Hilton shuttle ferry to San Marco, or a vaporetto. This can be inhibiting and time consuming. The app Chebateo? aka Which boat? Is handy for planning vaporetto journeys.
It does not feel really Venetian, although Giudecca is one of the six Sestieri of Venice. (Giudecca is where the Jewish population of Venice lived - Giu = Jew - before they were rounded up and made to live in the Ghetto. Ghetto in Venetian dialect means to throw or cast. There were iron foundaries once in the area, casting iron.

So anyway, maybe give the Molino some thought.