I've been there twice. By far the most expensive place in italy. If you want to waste a lot of money you can try one of restaurants near the main square... you could wisely walk and find some cheaper solutions.
As for the hotel we spent a couple of days in a nice and not too expensive one, but it didn't have a view at all. In any case I'll search for it and let you know.
First time you'll be out of the station an see what there's in front of you, your life won't be the same again ;)
I just sent a PM to you with more details.
As to eating, stay by the canal, preferably by the fish market or at any of the small canals, order a spritz with Aperol or Campari and get a few of their tiny sandwiches ....
I'll look for the name of one of our favorite restaurants.
Buon viaggio!
Thanks Alexkc - yes please do search for the details of the hotel and restaurant. I will be travelling with 2 young kids on a budget so will not be living it up too much in restaurants but may stretch to one or 2 meals in a restaurant depending on how painful the accommodation is to the wallet.
I just sent a PM to you with more details.
As to eating, stay by the canal, preferably by the fish market or at any of the small canals, order a spritz with Aperol or Campari and get a few of their tiny sandwiches .... Delicious tramezzini and cichetti, for 1 or 2 euro each are amazing.
I'll look for the name of one of our favorite restaurants.
Buon viaggio!
I just sent a PM to you with more details.
As to eating, stay by the canal, preferably by the fish market or at any of the small canals, order a spritz with Aperol or Campari and get a few of their tiny sandwiches .... Delicious tramezzini and cichetti, for 1 or 2 euro each are amazing.
I'll look for the name of one of our favorite restaurants.
Buon viaggio!
A really good and inexpensive option is to stay in Padua. It's about 30 minutes away by train. You can spend your days in Venice.
The problem is paying train a 'vaporetto' for each day of stay - it could be more expensive than a hotel in the centre, especially considering that April is right after Carnevale di Venezia, so the price shouldn't be too high. In any case Padova is a wonderful town! Also Verona is not too far from Venezia.
A really good and inexpensive option is to stay in Padua. It's about 30 minutes away by train. You can spend your days in Venice.
The problem is paying train and a 'vaporetto' for each day of stay - it could be more expensive than a hotel in the centre, especially considering that April is right after Carnevale di Venezia, so the price shouldn't be too high. In any case Padova is a wonderful town! Also Verona is not too far from Venezia.
4 nights in Venice costs less than train and vaporetto from any nearby places. You have to experience dawn and dusk in Venice.
With kids you might find Campo Santa Margherita excellent for food and plenty of space for them to play safely. Also campo San Polo and all piazzas campos in Venice
While walking you will spot plenty of places to eat not too expensive.
San Marco is a zoo but a must see from the exterior. You will not have time to visit but you can get a glimpse through one of the side doors. If you can, go early in the morning to the Plaza (7 tp 9 AM before the hoards day tourists arrive) to experience the place.
If you want to visit one museum for Italian Art, it's Accademia. To experience a palace, perhaps Ca D'Oro or Palazzo Fortuny, I don't know how old are your kids but the Museum of Natural History (Museo de Storia Nturale) is fantastic.
To sum up, forget about all these and for 4 days just walk around and get lost (a map is good also so that you won't retrace your steps all the time) and go back soon
The challenge is not "can I take a good picture there", but rather, "can you NOT"!!! I echo Mariuca's advice to just wander around. But DO get a good, detailed map because "retracing" your steps, unless you have a photographic memory, is close to impossible. Your kids will love the maze-like "streets"; you can even make a game out of trying to find the narrowest one. I think we came across it - the walls were so close together that my sweetie had to squeeze his shoulders together to stand in it.
One of the things we DID seek out was the Palazzo Contarini del Bovolo, famous for it's marble spiral staircase. It was SO worth the treasure hunt. And your kids will love running up to the top, from where you can see a good chunk of Venice.
And what Alessandro said is also true: your first view from the train station will change your life.
last time we were there we stayed at the Hotel Abbazia -- in an old convent right next to the train station (and the thick walls muffle all the noise). Very well priced and reasonably convenient to most of the sites. In addition to the photography, the food there is also amazing. Have a great trip!
Ah Johanna, you're right, how can not one want to see il Palazzo Contarini del Bovolo?! This year it can be seen only from the outside only, still worth a trip, since they renovate it. I took the obvious photo last year also.
How about a place for $45 a night on the Lido? If all goes well, you should not be spending much time in your room, and I prefer to save my money for eating and tickets over getting an opulent room and having to save elsewhere. As Mariuca said you need to see the morning and evening light, so stay close. One of the prettiest things I have ever seen, was the morning mist burning off as San Giorgio Maggiore shifted into view in changing colors; of course part of that may be that I feel about Palladio the way some 13 year old girls feel about Justin Beeber.
When looking for hotels being near Vaporetto stop is as important as staying near a Tube stop in London. Six or ten blocks my not seem like much of a walk, but when you are taking the walk the 5th time in one day because somebody forgot the sunscreen, being a block away seems really important.
True enough what Brennan said but keep in consideration that a vaporetto trip is 7 euro one way and for a familty of 4 it amounts to 56 euro/day only back and forth. There is no other alternative to get to Venice from Lido. And a vaporetto travel card is not worth it unless you stay at least a week and plan to take the boat twice a day. If you stay in Venice and have good walking shoes and a map, you take the vaporetto only when you want.
106 euros for 2 adult and 2 youth (14-29) for the 3 day card, seems like a deal to me for unlimited trips. Even when I stayed in Venice proper, I bought the multi day pass because cruising around on the boats was such a cool way to get around the city, so much of Venice's architecture is designed to be seen from the canals, and taking the Gondolas and water taxis always seemed..I don't know, too touristy and artificial, even for this tourist in the Bermuda shorts and the baseball cap. There is something about using unique public transit, not available at home, that really appeals to me. It can be crowded and dirty, but it makes you feel like you are in the warp and weft of a city.
Sorry for delay in replying but I experienced technical melt down.
Anyway thank you very much to everyone for the wonderful advice and recommendations. I will be travelling with my partner and a 2 year old and a 5 year old. We will have a pram and a buggy board and my partner and I love walking so walking will not be a problem. It does seem like I can get much better accommodation on the Lido and also on Giudecca Island however the plan is to go self-catering now to keep the meal costs down. Also with such young kids the days exploring tends to end around 5.30pm sticking to their usual dinner and bedtime routine. Hence why it would be nice to get accommodation with a nice canal view so I can have a glass of Prosecco or three and watch the world go by in the evening. I may even manage to sneak out on my own to take some photos but that may be rather anti-social.
I have had some success finding a few places that are less than 500 euro for 4 nights and include a canal view so things are looking very promising.
I can't wait to go now!!
Oops sorry Wendy I did not send you a ticket as I didn't think there were any squirrels in Venice. I guess there will be no sheep either - dammit!!
Thanks Anita for the link. I have now secured accommodation 7 minutes walk from Rialto bridge in an area called Cannaregio with splendid views of the canal and a great price too. Thanks for all the advice. Hopefully I will take some amazing photos and win a ribbon on my return haha:)
