renkirsh

We will be staying in Venice for 5 days in August with our children ages 13, 11 and 8. (After that we will be heading to Florence.) We are considering staying at the Gritti or Europa & Regina but thought perhaps staying at a hotel with a pool would be a nice break from sightseeing for the kids. I am considering the San Clemente or the Excelsior. I am not sure which way to go. Any opinions or suggestions?!!

tarquin

With three children in Venice in August, a pool would be a lifesaver. The Molino Stucky Hilton on Giudecca has one, I believe, and you might get a good family deal in August. Giudecca is a non-touristy haven when Venice is crowded and hot.

TDudette

Agree about staying with a pool. Lovely at the end of the day.

zeppole

Foot traffic around San Marco can be so thick at times, there is barely room in the narrow alleyways for two lanes of pedestrians to inch along -- and your 8 year old might get especially unpleasantly squished as the five of you shuffle in and out of the San Marci area with the sweaty mobs.

Even if it turns out you can't find a suitable hotel with a pool, consider staying outside the San Marco district in some place with more elbow room and a campo (piazza) to call your own.

zeppole

Sorry for my typo -- San Marco area

renkirsh

Thank you! I think you are right about the pool though I hate to be "out of the flow." So my next question then would be San Clemente, Molino Stucky or Excelsior? They all have pools but are on different islands. San Clemente is on San Clemente island, Molino Stucky is on Guidecca and The Excelsior is on Lido. Would any of these be better or more convenient?

franco

Staying on the Lido is a big no-no IMO - the Lido is not only ugly, it also has car traffic, which would deprive you of one of the most important elements of the Venice experience: not to see a single car for the whole time you're there. S. Clemente is certainly the most quiet and out-of-the-way location, since you can only reach the island by the hotel's private boat, so there is nobody but hotel guests and staff. The Molino Stucky is the only one of the three that is in Venice, even though in one of Venice's remotest corners. You have neighbours there who are true Venetians.

StCirq

I wouldn't stay anywhere near San Marco. I wouldn't stay on the Lido, either. I WOULD opt for a pool with kids. I don't know the Molino Stucky, but it sounds like the clear winner.

tarquin

The Molino Stucky on Giudecca is also closer to Venice than the other two places, and is served by vaporettos as well as the hotel boat. Giudecca has a life of its own, if small, and a couple of good places to eat. Ala Palanca by the Palanca vaporetto stop is fun, cheap and you can sit by the water's edge with a fabulous view of Venice.

renkirsh

Thank you, we will not be going to the Lido! Are the rooms nice at the Molino Stucky? I thought someone had commented that they thought there were not a lot of windows or that the layout was strange.

nytraveler

Staying at a hotel with pool is a good idea with kids - but double check where it is. The Excelsior is on the Lido - but does (or used to) have special laucnches back and forth to San Marco just for guests. You need to check the schedule and allow time for the trip back and forth. If you take the public boat - vaporetto - back and forth the lines can be VERY long if there is a convention at the Convention center (we had people complain of waiting almost an hour to get on one) as well as the transit time.

I wouldn;t do the Excelsior unless you need to be on the Lido for a specific reason. (It's a gorgeous hotel - and we had a large group so they gave us our own private launch - but it's a PIA for sightseeing).

tarquin

Sorry, renkursh, I don't know about the rooms, I've only seen the reception area which looked fine. But it is an old converted flour mill so might not be standard hotel formation inside. We go to Venice without children and don't want a pool; we'll be staying in an apartment in San Polo later this month.

franco

As far as I understand it, inside the hotel, there's nothing left of the flour mill - just the exterior walls.

Peter_S_Aus

The Molino Stucky hotel is part of the Hilton chain, and boasts Venice’s only roof-top pool. I would expect that it has the same level of facilities as most Hilton hotels, and I think it opened as a hotel about three years ago, after being converted from a flour mill, or actually a pasta mill. I’ve not been inside, but the layout would reflect the industrial heritage of the mill.

It’s not your average factory – more of a Gothic inspired brick pile.

One thing in its favour – the private boat from the Molino Stucky to “downtown” is pretty active – I have seen it on the lagoon a lot of times, even in mid-winter, so the slightly isolated location would not be a problem. The boat is most elegant, and you’ll feel like a film star when you alight. Guidecca is way better than the Lido, about ten minutes on the private boat to San Marco.

Zepp’s comments about the crowds around San Marco are accurate – even in mid winter, your 8 year old would be seeing more legs and trousers than sights. It can be awfully crowded, especially during the day when the day tourists arrive.

renkirsh

What about the rest of their facilities? The San Clemente said it had pitch and putt golf. I don't know what else the Hilton had besides the pool. Do you think that the Hilton would be more lively than the San Clemente or that I would prefer to have more amenities?

tarquin

I give up.

franco

renkirsh, I know everybody has their own travel style, and there's probably no point in writing what I'm going to write now; but if you really think that a basic golf course is an "amenity", then why go all the way to Venice? Why not stay at home? Unless you're living in Afghanistan or the Central African Republic, there will be a golf course available somewhere near your home, too. You are traveling to one of this planet's most remarkable cities as far as art, architecture, and townscape. I understand (though I'd never thought of that for my own trips) that a hotel pool could be pleasant to cool down after a long day of sightseeing. But wasting precious time that you could use for real activities - on GOLF? Just to make another hour go by? I don't even understand why a hotel, in a place like Venice, would offer such an "amenity". Come on, this is not Gelsenkirchen, Sleepy Hollow or Dubai where a hotel has to provide diversion to their guests so to keep them entertained for at least one day.

ekscrunchy

Touche, Franco! (sorry for the lack of the accent mark!)

poutine

I stayed at the Hilton Molino Stuckey last summer with my kids. At the end of each day they went up to the pool with my husband and was a huge, huge hit with everyone. The cruise boats pass by on their way in and out, and are so large that all the people standing on their balconies for sailaway are at eye level with you. It is an impressive sight! You also have a beautiful view of Venice itself.

The private Hilton boat was also a bit hit, and was not inconvenient at all. We were not staying on the San Marco side after 11 pm though, so if you are very late night person you may need another form of transport. It is not on a 24 hour schedule.

Inside it is a standard higher end Hilton, and very spacious. You will need two rooms. I stayed on points, but I understand that it does (used to) come up fairly often on Priceline. Definitely recommend it for families.

renkirsh

Thank you. The Hilton sounds great, and no one here seems to have anything to say about the San Clemente - though it has had some good reviews on TA. Looks like we are set.