Where to sleep in Venice

Venice has a wide range of accommodation on offer: you can choose one of all categories depending on your needs, from the one star to the luxurious five star hotels, bed and breakfast establishments or residences both in Venezia and Venezia Mestre, room rentals and period houses. If you go on holiday from spring to fall, you could also experience a stay in one of the wonderful Liberty Villas that have been turned into hotels on the Lido di Venezia.
Another extremely charming area to stay is Riviera del Brenta: hotels and bed and breakfasts in the area are the ideal base for visiting all the architectural wonders of the Riviera. Venice hotels rates are higher than in Rome or in Milan but if you have just a tigh budget you can also optfor one of the several hotels in Mestre: just 10 minutes away from the old city center but considerably cheaper than the hotels in Venice. It is still possible to pay less and save during off-season (from November to March, excluding Christmas and Carnevale, and also August). Before booking ask for the hotel location to have information on how to get there. The most famous means of transport are the vaporetto (water buses) and the water taxi.

When to visit Venice

Venice is a city that can be enjoyed at all times of the year. The months from Easter to October are the main tourist season and hotels rooms can be really difficult to come by at short notice: high demand for accommodations at these times mean that rates are much more expensive. The other two really popular spells are during the Carnival in February (the 10 days up to Shrove Tuesday) and Christmas.

Summer is reported to be the worst time to visit Venice:it brings crowds and queues in the city, the canals stink and there could be infestations of flies. Moreover, months of high summer from June to August can get very hot (more than 30 degrees) making it quite frustrating to go around.

Springtime and Autumn usually offer the best weather. Be aware that November is the time of the year in which the city regularly floods, and you could find yourself ankle deep in questionable looking water. It's up to you to decide if it is a drama or an exciting experience. The "Acqua Alta" has become a fact of life in Venice during this period. The water level occasionally rises above the level of squares and streets, flooding them. This will happen several times during the year and usually lasts half a day. You'll see raised walkways in side alleys ready to be pulled out when acqua alta hits.

"Acqua alta" in Venice

Since ages floods (or acqua alta) have been effecting Venice during the winter period but only since the middle of the twentieth century its frequence has increased. In 2000, for exemple, the acqua alta frightened the city for thirty consecutive days.
The floodings usually begin with water seeping up through the pavement of Piazza San Marco and many other low-lying areas surrounding. The water forms puddles that quickly merge into a shallow little lake. Sometimes it doesn't progress much further than Palazzo Ducale. Sirens wailing over the city inform the inhabitants that in about four hours there will be the peak of a serious “acqua alta”, rising in excess of 90cm above the lagoon level.
The city is well prepared in dealing with it. Shopkeepers in the most badly effected areas insert steel shutters into their doorways to hold the water, while workers lay boards along the major thoroughfares.

What to see in Venice

Considered one of the most beautiful cities in the world, the romantic and impalpable Venice seems to belong to a dream: it knows how to bewitch you, just like a masked lady that let herself be run after through the city's narrow streets (the so-called calli) and disappears at every corner. Its amphibian nature, half-plunging in and half-rising out of the water make it a surreal city.
"Founded on water, enclosed by water, defended by water instead of walls", reads an edict dating back to 1500, when the Serenissima, free, independent and clad in treasures, was the most powerful Queen of the Sea.
Built on a Lagoon, run through by Canal Grande, brimming with domes and shining with mosaics, it is a treasure-trove of artistic masterpieces connected by numberless bridges. To admire its beauty, scattered everywhere and appreciable all the year round, you can choose between walking or being carried by gondolas and vaporetti, the water buses that run through the canals to the surrounding islands and to the magical Giudecca.
A love nestle par excellence, it is also an incredible setting for parties and events. For a drink before dinner, don't forget to stop in some Bacaro, the typical Venetian inn.
Remember that the first time you get to meet it, the next times you get to know it.

• Museums/Galleries
• Grand Canal & St. Mark's Square
• Venice Islands
• Venice Sightseeings
• Venice Surroundings

Venice Hotel Booking

Arrival

Departure

Venice Accommodation

• Venice Hotels
• Mestre Hotels
• Nearby Accommodation

Venice City Life

• Events in Venice
• Venice Restaurants
• Shopping in Venice

Venice Tourism

• Museums & Galleries
• Grand Canal & St. Mark's Square
• Venice Islands
• Venice Sightseeings
• Venice Surroundings

Venice Transportation

• Travel to Venice

Italy Travel Guides

• Florence travel guide
• Milan travel guide
• Naples travel guide
• Rome travel guide
• Venice travel guide