Here’s what I learned after staying in 12 Venice hotels

After staying in 12 Venice hotels over 16 nights, I learned a lot about what travelers should know about choosing a hotel in Venice.

Venice is a very unique place, and each of its sestieri (districts) offers something different. Honestly, different kinds of travelers probably have different expectations about what they need in an area and a hotel, and Venice is not one size fits all.

I have a whole guide to where to stay in Venice if it’s your first time there, which covers the specifics of each area, which you should totally read. But, in this article, I share the overarching themes of what I learned after staying in every area of Venice.

Here are the 7 things I think you should know about staying in Venice.

7 Things I Learned After Staying in 12 Venice Hotels

You have to pay a separate city tax on top of your hotel price

Before I went to Venice, I honestly had no clue that the city charges a tax for each night you stay in the 6 old districts.

I simply booked my hotels in advance on Booking.com, paid the total, and thought I could be on my merry way. But not so fast. Upon check out, I was approached with a “city tax” on top of the amount I had already paid.

The city tax is mandatory for all overnight hotel stays in Venice and is charged only upon checkout. And to be honest, I can’t really give you a set price for how much this is going to cost. The cost is calculated by myriad factors, including which sestiere you stay in, how many people are registered in the room, the time of year, and other things.

What I can tell you is that, when my mom and I stayed at Carnival Palace for one night in March, I paid a 9-euro city tax. That’s just my personal experience, and shouldn’t be taken as fact going forward.

Just expect a city tax bill on your way out the door.

Where you stay in Venice matters a lot

Venice is a pretty small place, and you can walk from one end to the other in about an hour. So, it’s pretty much all the same vibe, right?

Wrong.

Yes, every sestiere has canals and bridges and gelato shops and boats, but what to expect in each area varies widely. Staying in a part of Venice that doesn’t meet your expectations can lead to disappointment, and I’ve seen it happen.

Here are my cliff notes about what to expect in each area:

• San Polo – the best area for most first-timers in Venice. Close to the main sites but far enough away from the crowds to still be enjoyable.
• San Marco – the best area for proximity to the main attractions. Prioritize seeing the sites before everyone else? Stay in San Marco.
• Cannaregio – the best area to experience local life in Venice. It has the highest density of locals in the city. 
• Dorsoduro – the best area for arts. Has a ton of museums to peruse (Peggy Guggenheim Museum, Gallerie dell’Accademia, etc).
• Castello – similar to San Polo, this is a good area to be close to the main sites but far enough away from the crowds to still enjoy your trip. Plus, the shopping is really good in Castello.
• Santa Croce – I recommend staying here if you drive into Venice, as it has a few parking lots. You’ll find a lot of commuters here, but some hotels are slightly cheaper than the more central ones.

👉 Pssst – I have video reviews of each Venice hotel I stayed at in my Venice playlist on YouTube. These include full room walkthroughs, highlights, and whether I think each hotel is a good value for the money.

San Marco isn’t necessarily the best place to stay for most travelers

When you see postcards of Venice, chances are the photos are of San Marco. San Marco is where you’ll find Piazza San Marco, Saint Mark’s Basilica, Doge’s Palace, the Bridge of Sighs, Saint Mark’s Campanile, among others. Basically, it has all the main attractions.

However, because it’s the main place visitors flock to, it’s easily the most crowded and expensive district. It’s the place where you’re most likely to end up in a human traffic jam, wait in line, and pay an exorbitant amount for an Aperol Spritz.

San Marco is beautiful and worth visiting, but I don’t think it’s the best area to stay in Venice (gasp! The controversy!)

So, where do I think most travelers should stay? San Polo. San Polo is across the Rialto Bridge from San Marco, and to be honest still sees its fair share of visitors. However, walk just a little into San Polo away from the Grand Canal and the crowds completely thin out. I stayed at the H10 Palazzo Canova and would absolutely book this hotel again.

However, my personal favorite sestiere is Cannaregio. This district is a little out of the way from San Marco and has a much higher local-to-tourist ratio. Think mom and pop shops, grocery stores, and more local prices. 

Staying in Mestre can be a lot cheaper

After spending 16 nights in the city, I can attest that Venice is expensive. Sure, I stayed there in March, and prices were a little bit lower than they are in high season (summer), but it still was not a budget destination by any means.

So, if you want to visit Venice but are trying to be budget-conscious, then I’d urge you to consider staying in Mestre.

Mestre has none of the vibe of Venice. Yes, Mestre is in Italy, but that’s pretty much where the similarities start and stop. Mestre has cars and has a more “urban,” normal-city kind of feel. Venice is romantic with gondolas and canals and next-to-zero car traffic. They’re completely different places.

However, where you can compare them is by cost. Mestre is so much cheaper than Venice, and is likely where you should stay if you’re on a real budget in Venice.

Mestre is 10km to the northwest of old Venice and is only maybe 15 minutes away by bus or train. It’s super easy to get into Venice itself, and taking day trips back and forth is definitely doable.

In Mestre, I stayed at the Leonardo Royal Hotel (you can read my hotel review here). It’s just 5 minutes from the train station, which makes it so easy to get into Venice.

Stay on the islands for a more unique experience

Overall, if it’s your first time in Venice, then you should stay in one of the 6 old sestieri (unless you’re on a budget and want to stay in Mestre, of course). However, if you’ve been to Venice before, then I think you should really consider switching it up and staying on an island.

My first recommendation here is Murano. Murano is known for being the glass-making island, and you’ll find many glass workshops here. It’s also the place to go if you want verifiable Murano glass, as much of the glass actually sold in old Venice is fake (as in, not from Murano, but is marketed as such).

In Murano, I stayed at the NH Collection Venezia Murano Villa, and I loved it. It’s a sprawling 4-star hotel with contemporary rooms, bars, restaurants, a gym, a wonderful terrace, and meeting rooms for parties. I really enjoyed my stay there.

My second recommendation is staying in Burano, although I have to warn that there aren’t many hotels here. Burano is known for being a lace-making island, and you’ll find handmade lace for sale in many shops. It’s also known for its colorful buildings; it’s not unlike being inside a rainbow.

While I didn’t stay on Burano myself, I did visit the highly-rated Venissa Wine Resort. Even if you don’t stay here, it’s worth stopping in for a glass of vino.

Both Murano and Burano see a lot of day trippers, and during high season, can get busy during the day. However, they’re still much more relaxed than Venice itself.

Consider more than one hotel if you’re in Venice for a while

To be honest, staying in so many unique Venice hotels has been an overall travel highlight for me. Venice is such a beautiful city, and it has so many incredible hotels that really run the gamut. There are historical palaces, 5-star luxury stays, well-placed hotels that make logistical planning easy, and even carnival-themed hotels perfect for a friend’s trip.

If possible, I think staying at more than one hotel will enrich your trip so much. This allows you to really get to know more than one part of the city and have a better understanding of what it has to offer.

Another reason to stay at more than one hotel in Venice is the price. If you’re on a budget, then being a little strategic goes a long way.

When I was in the process of booking my hotels for my trip, I found that hotel prices varied a lot depending on which day of the week I was looking at. In general, hotels are way pricier in Venice on the weekend than they are during the week.

If this matters to you and you’re staying in Venice for a while, then consider staying in a nicer hotel during the week (when the prices are lower for that place), and staying in a more budget hotel on the weekend. This helps to round out your overall expenses. 

Reading reviews is the most important thing when choosing a hotel

In my experience, reading customer reviews before booking your Venice hotel is worth its weight in gold.

In Venice, I found that two hotels could both be listed as “4 star” but have different standards. I honestly didn’t stay at any “bad” hotels, but there is variance in upkeep, even amongst the same “level” of hotel. 

Some hotels are simply older and haven’t had as many renovations as others, even while they’re providing great service and have extra amenities.

This is almost impossible to really recognize if all you do is look at hotel photos. I recommend really reading customer reviews to discern what to expect at each of your prospects, especially if certain aspects and amenities matter to you more than others.

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Heading to Venice? Make sure to read my 3-day Venice itinerary before you go. I cover all the major sites and hidden gems I think are worth a visit. Have fun in Venezia!