hotels in rome, venice, amalfi
 

Going to rome, venice & amalfi end of June 2001. any recommendations for romantic hotels? <BR>Also, are the beaches swimmable in Positano that time of year? Will we beat the summer crowds at that time of year? <BR>Thanks!!

I am not sure what budget you are on for your trip, but if you can, stay at the St. Regis in Rome. The hotel was recently renovated, which they did a marvelous job. The room was beautiful, the lobby was beautiful and the service was impeccable! We loved Rome, and the St. Regis was definitely one of the major reasons why. Regarding Venice, we didn't enjoy the city as much. We stayed at the Danielli, which was beautiful. We also went at the end of june, beginning of July, and the crowds in Venice are overwhelming (as a NYC resident, that's pretty big)! If I had to do it again, I would choose the Cipriani which is more relaxing, and not in the hussle and bussle of St. Marks

Try www.venere.it <BR>I stayed at the Casa Howard through there website and really enjoyed it. Plus it was in a great location near the Spanish Steps. You can also find hotels in other cities through this site. <BR> <BR>

Thanks Harrison ...for the heads up about Venice. I'm from the NY area also, so if you found Venice overwhelming that time of year, maybe we should skip it. Is it true what they say about the smells in Venice during the hot weather? How warm did it get that time of year?

I think I'm the only one of Fodors.com that had a bad experience with Venice. I'm not necessarily saying to skip it, but we were not as impressed as most people are. Since it was my first time to Italy, I'm glad we went to Venice. It is an unusual city, but I don't forsee going back (unless you have children, I think they'd get a kick out of the canals). Cipriani is supposed to be magnificant, which may be a good alternative since you can see Venice, but not be overwhelmed by crowds. To be honest, we didn't notice any smells, but it was hot. After Rome and Florence, Venice was a let down. When in Rome absolutely make reservations for tickets to the Borgehese Museum. It was our favorite museum!

Hi Harrison! <BR>Is Cipriani a section of Venice? <BR>Borgehese Museum - art?? - how do you go about getting tickets in advance? Can I do that when I arrive or reserve from U.S.? <BR>What was the approximate room rate at the Danielli? <BR>Thanks!!

Hi Ev, <BR> <BR>I can answer the question you have about the Borghese Museum in Rome. We were there this past June and it is by far one of the best place you will see in your life! <BR>The hotel that we stayed in, called to book tickets for us, maybe a day before we wanted to go. Then when you get to the musseum, go to where the ticket counter is, and they will have the tickets waiting for you.

Regarding Venice - we too were overwhelmed by Venice. After wandering around Florence, Bologna (don't go!), Verona (great find!), Venice was a shock. We got off the main boat/(bus) at St Marks, with our luggage, and could hardly make it through the square due to the crowds, and the pidgeons. Then, we could not find our hotel! When we found it, it was incredibly noisy (just off the square) and we could not sleep. This all soured our experience. It was also twice as expensive as any other hotel on our trip! <BR> <BR>HOWEVER - I too think that one can have a wonderful experience there - plan ahead, pick a hotel way off the square, make sure it's quiet, and get directions to the hotel from the hotel in advance! <BR> <BR>In Venice, the palace museum (name escapes me) is phenomenal - to see how they ran their empire, how their sophisticated government worked hundreds of years ago - quite amazing, and a pleasant change from all the churches!

Chris, <BR> <BR>Which hotel was it that you stayed in when you were in Venice? You mentioned it was right off the square, and since I'm going there in May, I may want to make sure not to stay at the one you mentioned! <BR>Thanks.

Venice is a state of mind... some people look at it and see alot of crumbling buildings and others look at it as see the beauty in the details and in the patina of colours that surround you. As you can see, I adore Venice. <BR> <BR>As to smell, I haven't noticed any smell from the canals, although I heard they did clean them up quite a few years ago. Probably an old tale.

Ev, forgot to mention you're time in Italy will be quite busy with tourists. May is cusp month, June and July are the busy months. Other than the middle of winter and perhaps August, I don't think there is a slow time in Italy! I went at the end of October and there were still plenty of tourists. Have a great trip!

Regarding which hotel I stayed at ... it's embarrassing to say, actually! It was, of all places, a Best Western - so any seasoned traveller will laugh at me and say, 'you got what you deserve' - which I wholeheartedly agree with! <BR> <BR>The circumstances were - we had a reservation in Venice (a Fodor's book recommendation, of course!) (so we thought!) but when I called the day before (from Bologna) they denied all knowledge, so I had to scramble to get something in Venice on 1 day's notice - in September. So the BW was all we could find - at over $200 per night! It was actually Albergo San Marco. It wasn't bad, but had no double-glazing, and we were on the 1st floor, and so could hear every footstep and word through the night! <BR> <BR>The interesting 'moral' of this story may be - verify your reservations in Venice, as the hotels may be more willing there to 'bump' you than in other places, due to the extreme demand. Maybe not, but that's what I think happened! <BR> <BR>But every story has a silver lining. We could not get anything in Venice for the first night, so we went to Verona instead. We absolutely loved Verona, and I would highly recommend it to anyone. <BR> <BR>I want to re-iterate, though - Venice could be a wonderful experience; just requires a bit more planning than the average place.

First, I want to thank everyone for not calling me crazy for not being in love with Venice. It's nice to know we weren't the only ones not enamoured (sp?) with the city. EV - as far as the Danielli is concerned, we are Starwood Preferred Guest members, and was able to recieve 50% off our hotel nights. I highly recommend Starwood. We also received 50% off at the St. Regis in Rome, as well as the Grand in Florence. After all was said and done, I want to say the hotels ran between $200-$250 (but don't forget, that's with our discount). If you have more questions regarding Starwood, let me know...I'm a walking brochure for them! I believe the Cipriani is on Lido, and it is also apart of Starwood. <BR> <BR>As far as the Borghese Gallery, our conceirge arranged the tickets for us. It was magnificent...not to be missed.

I, too, was underwhelemd by Venice. Didn't notice any smells, but it was very hot there in mid June, 2000-hotter than Rome. I don't know why I was not excited about Venice. We went there first, and were quite tired. It was fun to see, and quite unique. The canals were smaller than I thought. <BR>We went to Positano about a week later. The weather was quite nice, and it was not too crowded. But we stayed with friends in Pomepei, so I don't have any hotel rec. The beach was quite rocky with small little rocks that got in your shoes. But, plenty of people were quite comfortable on the beach. The weather was just fine. My kids didn't like the salty consistency of the Mediteranean Sea, but still had a great time. I thought Positano must be one of the prettiest places on earth.

I just got back from Venice and Florence. We liked Venice more than Florence but I agree with the person that said the square is crowded. The cafe's there are expensive, we would find a little place and get a sandwich and a can of beer and sit down and enjoy the views without paying the prices. <BR>We stayed at Hotel Locanda Fiorita <BR>at 200.000 Lira (88.00)US it was near St/Stefano Sq / a quiet and good location but we werent that crazy about the hotel itself. The rooms wasnt that great and the staff was less than friendly, they were supposed to offer brkfast but didnt and gave us a 5% discount but it was more than $10.00US for 4 coffees and 2 croissants and the cafe near the hotel. We paid and checked out the night before becuz we were leaving early and they never told us the gate would be locked and we didnt have a key, we planned on getting early boat to airport and we were locked in.Finally the night man heard us and came and opened the gate. The Danielli is super expensive.

Hi_ <BR>just returned from a trip to italy. We stayed at the Locando Leon Bianco. The Ferruci family were wonderful, and we had a lovely, large room in the Carmameggio(?)(Ca D'oro stop on the vaporetto) section. Our room directly overlooked the grand canal. It was lovely opening the shutters in the morning and watching the canal traffic. If you are a light sleeper, this may disturb you, but we were not bothered and in any event would have thought it a small price to pay for such a lovely view. The Rialto Bridge could be seen from our window. Breakfast was served in our room and we had friends in an adjoining room which was almost as large as ours. I think we paid about $125 - well worth it in venice. The approach to the hotel, however, was difficult to find, and the courtyard a little disconcerting. Once past the outside aesthetics, and a rather imposing staircase (no elevator) it was a wonderful stay with warm friendly proprietors. Would definintely recommend it!

Thanks for the report! That's where we're staying in May. It is our 25th anniversary, and we wanted to celebrate with a Grand Canal view. I think this will fit the bill perfectly.

I think I'm a little nervous now. I'm planning our honeymoon to Italy next July and am concerned about it. My fiance and I have planned to fly to Venice for three nights in mid-July--staying at Locanda Nevaldi. I have always wanted to visit Venice, but since many of you were 'overwhelmed' by it, I think my fiance might feel the same--and I do not want that! Is it the crowds that makes it feel so overwhelming? Are there long waits for restaurants, sight-seeing? <BR> <BR>The next stop on our trip will be at a villa--Villa Arceno, in Tuscany, for four nights...where we can relax. <BR> <BR>Then we'll head to Rome for three nights--have booked the Hotel Mascagni...to see the sights. <BR> <BR>Finally, we'll end up in Positano for four nights (at the Hotel Villa Franca) before heading home. <BR> <BR>Has anyone heard of (or seen) any of these hotels? Does this itinerary seem 'too much' for a honeymoon. We want something romantic and want to do sight-seeing, but the last thing I want is for us to return home tired from all the touring. Any help or advise is appreciated. Thanks. <BR>

Ev: The Cipriani is the most expensive hotel in Venice. It's located in the Giudecca island, a short boat ride to San Marco. It's the only hotel in Venice (except for those in the Lido) that has a swimming pool! Venice is hot from June through August and a/c is a must (at least for me). <BR> <BR>CR: Because of work constraints, most of the times we went to Venice was in July. It's very hot and A/C in your hotel room IS A MUST. <BR> <BR>Most of July (and all of August) are actually shoulder season in Venice. Does that mean that it's less crowded than, say, in May or September? No. Because of school vacations there are many daytrippers, and Venice is way more crowded, but the gross $ total spent in summer months should be less than in April/May and September/October. During those months, say, the average visitor has more "quality = $". This means that cheap hotels/restaurants and all touristic sites are very crowded. On the other hand, one may get discounts in the upper bracket. It's not difficult to make reservations in more expensive restaurants. As a matter of fact, quite a few close down for staff vacations (most in August, though). <BR> <BR>Locanda Nevaldi ??? doesn't ring any bell. Do you know where this is located in Venice? <BR> <BR>IMO your itinerary, in principle, is very reasonable. Four places, 3/4 nights each, is not overdoing at all ... but if one wants to overdue it, it doesn't take much! <BR> <BR>You'll have to "police" yourselves not to overdue in Venice. Instead of rushing to the sites (that will be crowded anyways), just take your time and get lost in Venice's various quarters (sestieri). Tourists will all be clustered around the main sites, specially in San Marco, Rialto, Accademia and the area in between. There are sections in Dorsoduro (towards the San Sebastiano church), Cannaregio (towards Campo dei Mori, Madonna dell'Orto church and the Jewish Gueto), and Castello (Campo Bandiera i Moro, Campo Sta. Maria Formosa towards Arsenale) that will be surprisingly void of crowds. San Marco square is nicer very early in the morning and at night (when void of daytrippers). Of course, the Basilica and Doge's Palace is a must, but you shouldn't spend more than a morning there. If you want to avoid the huge queue and crowds to visit the Basilica, attend an early mass (at 8:30am, side entrance). In the lagoon, give preference to Burano and Torcello over Burano. From 1pm to 3:30pm it'll be too hot to stroll and most churches should be closed. Major sites are open but full of crowds. So take your time. Have a leisurely lunch in a quiet campo or have a siesta in the fresh hotel room to be fit for your afternoon stroll. <BR> <BR>Paulo <BR>

For everybody who was underwhelmed with Venice - consider giving it a second chance in the dead of winter. (seriously!) I love Venice around New Year's - it' not crowded, it doesn't have an odor, and the mist, haze half-light of the short winter days make it very beautiful. Plese give it another chance - I've found it very magical and would hate for you to miss it because of a bad warm-weather experience!