Venice - stay in San Marco area or San Polo

Both locations are very close to vaporetto stops, so you'd have easy access to the train station (Ferrovia stop) that way. Venice is actually fairly small, so it wouldn't take long to walk wherever you want to go.

You could stay almost anywhere on the island and be close to walking to ANY areas of Venice ! So don't fret about a better area - any will probably be fine. It is a very easy walkable city.

Put both locations into google maps to see where they are located exactly. Look at the areas-is the airbnb overlooking a piazza ? It may be noisy if there are restaurants right below. Pensione Guerrato is in a great location. We marked our lodging on a map and then marked the walks we wanted to take from the Rick Steves Venice book. So you can see exactly where your base is to the areas you wish to visit.

One consideration is a B&B versus an apartment. Some people like a B&B because of breakfast and a 24 hour person onsite ! Others like to cook their own meals or prepare coffee and have access to washing clothes halfway through a trip.

I just noticed the mention of a day trip to Florence - you would be on the train for over four hours in order to do that - might want to re-think.

If you’re traveling in the spring or summer make sure you have Air Condition.

Pensione G. has lots and lots of stairs and no elevator, just FYI.

Doesn’t matter where you stay when it comes to dinner places. You can still choose San Polo area for dinner even if you’re staying in San Marco.

hey maestro
what are the dates? i've stayed in the san polo area which was nice and away from the crowds. what area of san marco and rialto bridge, that area gets to be a very busy area with crowds.
are you trying to find a hotel room for one night or cancel cannaregio altogether and rent the airbnb and is there a cancellation fee? how many people? budget in euros, what time flight arrives, do you have early checkin or luggage storage, don't want to be pulling luggage all over, transportation to venice from airport, have you booked your day trip to florence by train yet? look at times, how long is ride, how many stops, italian names (venezia st lucia to firenze s m novella), cheaper if booked early.
venice is a small island that you can walk everywhere, getting lost is an adventure, there are many bridges, stairs/steps to climb even in hotels and apartments. what is criteria for hotel or apt?
what budget concerns do you have in venice? yes it's expensive like a lot of other places in europe, but research will help you out. europeforvisitors.com has lots of info. lots of questions but it's to help you out.
aloha

what are the dates? May 19 - 24

iwhat area of san marco and rialto bridge - Calle Dose da Ponte . . . was listed as quiet

are you trying to find a hotel room for one night or cancel cannaregio altogether and rent the airbnb and is there a cancellation fee? how many people - 3 people; canceled Cannaregio / no fee

? budget in euros - US dollars

what time flight arrives - 14:00

checkin - collect the keys n Piazzale Roma

transportation to venice from airport - haven't determined

have you booked your day trip to florence by train yet? - Not booked yet; 2 hours each wayl

what is criteria for hotel or apt? separate sleeping areas for my wife and myself, and a different area for my daugher - Air BnB has

what budget concerns do you have in venice? change of accommodation caused 75% increase; want to eat in moderate to cheaper places, but actual restaurants most of the time

I'm seeing there is a city pass and transportation passes that can be purchased . . . want to check those out and try to save there. We have about 2 weeks left on this trip - Slovenia and Croatia . . . need to have money left for those places.

europeforvisitors.com - I'll check this out!
aloha

hey maestro
i know some of the frustrations with booking. takes time, effort and stress involved.haha it took me a while to book an apartment in venice for 4 of us last year. don't want you to feel i'm donna downer, just making easier for you and we are the budget travelers. check booking.com put in filters on left and go from there. here's a few i was checking last year: albergo marin-annex (2be/1ba), nina sweet home venice (2be/1ba) cannaregio-venice style apts (2be/2ba) ca dei mori (2be/1ba) I frari apts-faville (2be/1ba), cross-pollinate.com just a few to get you started. you can type name of place in search area on left side. they are all near grand canal, train station, easy walking to everything. look at the cancellation policies, fine print.
you're okay with arrival time, after checking in we find a little store to buy some essentials for apt. everyone has there own opinions of how to travel, where to go, what to see.
do you know all you want to see in venice and are you winging it? when you've bookied your place and satisfied come back and people can give you more info of the fun part of vacation and enjoyment. you will have a fabulous time and enjoy venice, go out early morning and late afternoons when the daytrippers have left and see the difference of crowds and not so crowded.
aloha

That looks like a nice location in San Marco (per Google Earth), and seems like it would be a better choice given the cost, your wife's preference, and the likelihood of more room for the three of you. I've stayed at Pensione Guerrato and liked it, but it's close enough to Rialto Bridge that you'll have crowded streets around you. PG is very handy to the Mercato Rialto vaporetto stop, while Calle Dose da Ponte is farther from the Giglio stop -- not enough to matter much though. I'm sure there will be good eating options in either area.

Get a multi-day vaporetto pass for each of you, it will pay for itself pretty quickly and help you feel free to use the vaporetto when you're tired after walking a lot.

I fell in love, unexpectedly, with Venice when I visited last fall. I think I'd have liked it even better staying where your Airbnb is.

Thank you all . . . I appreciate all the help! I've decided on the AirBnb, and plan to get the vaporetto tickets.