Rakesh

Message: We are planning to visit Italy from August 31st to Sep 1-. We plan to stay 3 nights each in Rome,Florence and Venice and 1 night in Milan. I am not sure which hotel we should stay. We would like to stay at the place which is central to sighseeing but at the same time we want to stay at the place where we won't hear traffic noises when we sleep. We can go between 125-225$ a night.<BR><BR>Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.<BR><BR>Thanks,<BR><BR>Rakesh

Paula

In Venice I'd recommend the Hotel Flora. Ask for a large room. Have a great time.

Betsy

Rakesh, regarding traffic noise in hotels, I always take my (foam) earplugs when I travel. There's always the chance of unexpected noise in unfamiliar locales. The earplugs have been invaluable, enabling me to sleep through church bells ringing every quarter hour as well as people socializing beneath the window, etc.

lo

Just back from ur trip and would reccomend the Pensione Accademia in Venice and the Monna Lisa in Florence. Both were well located and the staff was very helpful. Our room at the Monna Lisa was huge- slept our family of 4 with room to spare. The rooms at the Accademia are small. Nice courtyard area for breakfast<BR>Also we spent about $100 on a tour guide in Rome- money well spent. His name is Massimilliano and is with Romeculta. He was unbelievably knowledgeable and very energetic depite high temps and humidity. I will put that all in the trip notes when I get back on schedule.<BR>Have fun!

Jean

Regarding Paula's recommendation, please research the Flora Hotel in Venice before you decide. Reviews on this site have been mixed, and we personally had an unfavorable experience there.

Rex

You have more answsers to the "other" posting you made with this exact same question:<BR><BR>http://www.fodors.com/forums/pgMessages.jsp?fid=2&tid=1387357<BR><BR>Best wishes,<BR><BR>Rex<BR>

Denise

Try the hotel La Calcina (Ruskin House). It received many favorable recommendations and is comfortably tucked away in the Dorsoduro area, a 15 minute walk to St. Marks. Check our Fodors hotel rant and raves for email info. Rates are about 150.00- 160.00 Eu.<BR>We are staying there is 2 weeks and my brother stayed there in November and said it was his best hotel experience.<BR><BR>Denise

Adrienne

I have stayed at the Flora. I really do not recommend it. It is quaint but that's all it has going for it. The rooms aren't great and the management leaves something to be desired. It's a lot of money for the rooms.

Bean

Try:<BR><BR>www.venere.com<BR><BR>Great hotel web site...

natasha

Rakesh,<BR><BR>I stayed at Cristina House in Florence and Ai Bareteri in Venice. <BR>Cristina house was 108 Euros/night for 3 people. We had a huge four person room. Someone spent a lot of time and money picking out the furnishings and decorations. It is also in a great location, only a few blocks from the Duomo, Uffizi and the Bargello. There were two flights of stairs to climb, which wasn't a big deal. The phone & fax number is 39 055 21 4484.<BR><BR>Ai Bareteri is a bed and breakfast. It has a nice little breakfast room. Our room was also large. The b&b was in great condition and all the furnishings were new. The location is great. It is not on a canal, but it is very close to the Rialto bridge (on the S. Marco side). The owners helped us carry our bags up the stairs and were very friendly. The b&b is several floors, so you could ask for a room on a lower floor if you don't want to do stairs. For 3 people it was 155 Euros/night.<BR><BR>Have a great time,<BR><BR>Natasha

Karen

Rakesh, I just got back from my first trip to Italy. In Rome we stayed at the Residenza San Pantaleo. It is only a 2 star place , but room 5 was very clean, large and very centrally located. E- mail me if you want more details. In Florence I took the advice of a woman who told me I would not be sorry if I stayed at the Hotel Bellittini.There have been some negative posts about the hotel itself, but this is their annex, one block away and room 52 which you can ask for (Gina is your contact), is very large, high ceilings, even a real frescoe on the ceiling, a small balcony which you can see the Duomo from. The bathroom is large and very modern. They have a desk, and a large armoire. They have a coffee pot and tea all the time on the desk.For breakfast, you walk a half a block to the hotel and they have a very nice breakfast room with a great breakfast according to Italian standards. Price was 150E but if you bring a copy of Hello Italy from Margo Classe they will give you 5%off. Just mention it when you reserve. This was high summer rates too. In Venice as Denise said the Pensionne La Calcina cannot be beat. It is on the quiet side of Venice, across from St. Marks, which I think scares some people. You will be so happy to go back to this quiet place at night. It has a large floating terrace out front where you can have breakfast or just sit and watch the canal. It is not the Grande Canal, but one the ships come in on. You can also have the terrace on top of the building for an hour at a time in private. Ask for room 32 or one of the four rooms that have a full frontal and side view of the canal. Hope this helps. Karen

ken

We stayed at the Hotel Pensione Italia. It's a nice hotel in a great location and it's very reasonably priced. We used it as a home base for our family - wife, and two boys (10 & 12). It was a nice walk to the Spanish Steps, Coliseum, and Forum, St. Peter in Chains (Moses). They arranged for a driver to pick us up from the airport (approx 50 euro). It was nice to have someone there after getting off a 9 hour plane trip.<BR><BR>HOTEL Pensione ITALIA<BR>Via Venezia 18-00184 Roma<BR>064828355 Fax.064745550<BR>www.hotelitaliaroma.com<BR><BR>

MM

Just back from a 12 day trip to Rome, Florence and Venice. We liked each of our hotels (especially in ROme and Venice). If you are interested, most hotels in Italy offer a lower rate if you pay in cash. Do a search for these hotels to see what others say. That's how I ended up chosing these hotels. We would recommend:<BR><BR>Hotel Pincio in Rome: family run, simple room, average size room, very clean, friendly staff. Air conditioned. Near Spanish steps. They have a website. Cost about 130 Euros if you pay in cash.<BR><BR>Hotel Casci in Florence: family run, bigger size room, newly renovated bathroom, clean, air conditioned. Staff very helpful, but could be very busy at times. Located close to Duomo. They have a website. Approximately 120 Euro if you pay in cash.<BR><BR>Violino d'Oro in Venice: Big rooms (with regard to average Italy hotel room size), clean, helpful staff, great location near San Marco. Approximately 160 Euro if you pay in cash.

JN

Traveled to these three cities last Spring. Great trip. Hotels I would recommend. Rome: Hotel Quirinale Florence: Grand Hotel Baglioni Venice: Hotel Bauer Not cheap, but all in good locations with all the amenities. They all have web sites, check them out.

Sue

Florence: annex of Hotel Bellettini. Run a search here to find more info about it.

CiCi

In Venice stay at the Hotel Monaco and Grand Canal. It is right on the Grand Canal and the center of the city is only a few seconds away. It is a great hotel and the rooms are very quiet. Here is the information:<BR>S. Marco, 1325<BR>Tel. 041-52 00 211<BR>Fax: 041-52 00 501<BR>If you decide on this hotel book now because it is always crowded and the Italians take forever to respond. You are going to have a great time in Italy. Have a great trip!<BR>CiCi

luca

you can stay to rome 58viacavour B&B inns<BR>it is lovely!!

consuelo

www.58viacavour.it to rome