Mestre hotel to airport in Venice?
 

We are booked in the Bologna hotel opposite the Mestre train station for a four night stay in Venice, and then after a week in the countryside, we will be returning to leave Venice airport at Oh-dark-thirty on Sunday morning. Should we return to the Bologna Hotel, or should we stay Saturday night in a hotel near the airport. If the latter--reccomendations?

Vera

Vera, are you aware that the Bologna Hotel opposite the Mestre Train station is NOT in Venice? Mestre is outside of Venice in a suburb/industrial area. I have read other posts of your..regarding hotels in Rome. Maybe you are aware that Mestre is not in Venice but in that your post here describes it as IN Venice I just wanted to call this to your attention for what it is worth.

The Hotel Bologna is perfect to stay at the night before you leave-just have the front desk prebook the taxi the night before. We left very early out of the Venice airport and it took less than 15 minutes to the airport by taxi from the Hotel Bologna. This gave us a chance to take the 8 minute train across the water to downtown Venice for one more night.

Vera - Here are some hotels close to the airport:

http://www.titianinn.com/dovesiamo-eng.htm

http://www.venice-hotel.anniaparkhotel.it/index.htm

http://www.casadelmiele.com/ing/servizi.html

http://www.hotelholidayvenice.com/en/

http://www.hotelgamma.com/english/home.htm


Otherwise, if you choose to stay at the Bologna, you could go by Airport Shuttle bus (- which leaves from outside the station) - or by taxi.

Hope this helps ...

Steve

P.S. As LoveItaly says, the Bologna is not 'in' Venice proper. Mestre is a 5-10 mins train ride from Venice itself ...

LOL, after reading all the pros and cons of staying IN Venice, vs. Mestre, I VERY carefully worded my post so as not to say that I was staying IN Venice. The title line is the only place that says in Venice--and I don't know how to quickly refer to the airport which of course is also not IN Venice.
Anyhow, back to the point. Sounds like the transportation is pretty quick to the airport from Hotel Bologna. Does the airport bus run very early in the morning--or is there a website where I can check? And would two bus fares be considerably cheapter than a taxi?

Mille Grazie,
Vera

Whoops, I just noticed that my original note did say "a four night stay in Venice". So I'll amend that to say, "a four night stay NEAR Venice" if it makes people happier. In my defense, I won't be spending my days in Mestre, after all--I'll be spending them IN Venice. ;)

Hey Vera - We don't mind where you stay ;)

You can find the Airport Shuttle timetable from Mestre on:

www.atvo.it

The earliest is currently 05.20. This may change in high season.

Fare: € 2.50
Journey time: 20 mins

A taxi will cost you about € 25-30

Hope this helps ...

Steve

mille grazie, Steve.
Exactly what I needed--esp. the "we don't care where you stay" part.

Vera

It's very easy to get a taxi to the airport from Mestre. I stayed in a hotel near Mestre station last June and found it very convenient. I also liked staying in Mestre itself and taking the bus into Venice which only took a few minutes from outside our hotel.
Carolena

Thanks everybody. I'm feeling quite comfortable with spending our nights at the Bologna Hotel in Mestre. If I had a bigger budget, I'd opt for a villa on a canal, but most of the time I'm in the hotel my eyes will be shut, anyhow.

Hi Vera, I hope I didn't upset you. Yes, since you said you would be staying at the Bologna Hotel for four nights I just wanted to mention what I did for you as in the pass some people have not known that Mestre is not in Venice proper. Just like some have not realized that the train station in Mestre is not the train station in Venice. So just trying to be helpful.
And yes, Venice is expensive. And oh, those early morning flights out of the Venice airport..I hate it, LOL. I end up not sleeping the night before so by the time I change planes in Amsterdam I sort of pass out on the plane the rest of the way home. Have a wonderful time in Italy.

Also, will the countryside be in the region of Veneto? That is one of my favorite places.

Vera, I think it is interesting that you are staying in nearby Mestre. There are some very good restaurants in Mestre and I would think they are less expensive than those in tourist-laden Venice. You might want to think about taking dinner near the hotel after sightseeing in Venice.

LoveItaly--No, you did not upset me. How could I be upset when you are such a font of knowledge and I gobble up all the information you post? :)>- I was really laughing because some people do get SO adament about staying in Venice.
The countryside for me means Le Marche. I wanted to go where no man--well, not a lot of them--have gone before. Didn't want to follow the tour buses.
We'll also be driving up to Aviano to visit my grandson at the AF Base, so we'll see a little of the countryside that you love, I guess.
DH and I schedule 45 minutes 3 times a week to work on an Italian self-teaching CD. I'm beginning to actually understand a little bit!
Vera

Hi, Vera,

It might amuse you to know that legally Mestre is indeed in Venice. The Comune di Venezia encompasses several municipalities (including Mestre, the main islands of Venice, and others). They all have the same mayor, city council, and communal services, although there are also some powers vested in the municipalities. Kind of like the boroughs in New York City (except that there's no borough named "New York" whereas there is a municipality named "Venezia"). So there you go!

Anyway, I've been to Venice several times and on one visit stayed in Mestre with a friend and her family (who were originally from "Venice proper"). The horror! :-)

Got it! So I'm staying in Brooklyn.

Vera

Hi Vera, you will not only be going through part of the region I love so much you will be going right by the City of Congliano, my home away from home! Imagine you will be in a hurry to get to Aviano AFB to see your grandson (I adore all of my grandsons) but if you want to take a little break do pull off and go into Congliano (it will be on the left (west side) of the road and go through the city commercial district and take the road (a real quick drive) to the Castle of Congliano. They have a cafe there and there is the most beautiful view of the countryside, the foothills and the Dolomites.

Now about LeMarche, I have never been there so please, after you get back home and settled in I sure hope you will write a trip report..imagine you will have a lot to talk about as your trip sounds wonderful. And enjoy seeing your grandson, how wonderful for all of you. And give him a thank you for all he is doing. BTW, I live just a couple of miles north of Travis AFB in CA..am sure he is familar with Travis. Enjoy every moment of your trip Vera!

LoveItaly, I would appreciate if you could make some recommendations regarding a 2 week Italy trip itinerary with my wife and 2 teenagers. We are thinking of Rome, Venice and Florence and having not been there before, any input on these or other locations which we shouldn't miss would be great. How much time in each area and any accomodation ideas? Really appreciate it. I live in Danville, Ca. Thankyou Jim

I like Brooklyn (parts anyway).

More like staying in Newark.

Just joking.

Really, I have nothing against Newark, but do you know why residents of New York City are so depressed?

....................

...................

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Because the light at the end of the tunnel is New Jersey!

A hotel just a few meters from Marco Polo was supposed to open last month,
check into www.veniceairport.it for further
information, if you can not find any information therein, contact the web sites webmaster!!! Richard of LaGrange Park, Il..

Hi Sabbin, you might want to start a new thread regarding your trip so you catch of the eye of other Fodorites. maybe title it "Suggestions for 2 Weeks in Italy with teens".

Jim, I think being in Italy with teens is so much fun. They are old enough that you don't have to keep an eye on them every second like you do with little ones, and seeing Italy through their eyes is so special.

When my daughter was a teen Rome and Venice were her two favorite cities (they still are). She liked Florence but not like she loved Rome and Venice. That has been true of the other teens in my family that have been taken to Italy.

I don't know which period of time you are going and there are different schools of thought regarding where to start the trip and where to end the trip.

Personally I think arriving at the Marco Polo Airport at Venice and staying in Venice first is good. Calmer than Rome (except for the Pizza San Marco area)..no auto traffic to worry about etc. A very magical city. And you get feel safe letting your teens wander around on their own which they usually love.

You could than take the train to Florence (that takes about 3 hours) from the Santa Lucia train station in Venice. I am sure you will enjoy Florence and it is a very easy city to walk around in as it is flat and the historical center is not that large.

Than you could take the train to Rome (less than a couple of hours) and enjoy Rome and fly home from Rome.

IMO flying into Venice and home from Rome is the easiest versus flying into Rome and home from Venice as most flights leave Venice really really early in the morning. Getting to the Rome airport is so much easier than getting to the Venice airport, even if your flight from Rome leaves early in the morning too.

Arriving in one city and flying home from another city is called an open jaw flight or multicity flight, as you probably know.

I always take KLM out of SFO. I change planes at the Amsterdam airport (I love that airport..so much to do there and so efficient). I than take the KLM City Hopper to Venice. From Rome via KLM again you change planes at Amsterdam and than take the nonstop flight to SFO. If you want to fly KLM you make the reservations via Northwest Airlines, you are not able to reserve directly with KLM. I always make sure the flights are on KLM planes.

Regarding the number of days for each location I would suggest that you not plan on doing a whole lot the day you arrive in Venice. The time you get to your hotel etc. you will feel some jetlag (long flight from our westcoast to Italy). After settling in it is nice to walk around, get some fresh air etc., a nice dinner and a good nights sleep. Oh, a glass of Prosecco wine is good too..light, crisp and refreshing and from the region of Veneto.

If you want to see a lovely city you could stop at Bologna on your way from Venice to Florence. You could leave the luggage at the left luggage department at the Bologna (they did have one and sure they still do, you could double check at the Venice train station regarding this) and perhaps look around and have lunch there. Bologna is known for its food. It is home to one of the oldest universities in Europe and to this day has so many university students studying there. Think your teens would enjoy Bologna. Beautiful arcades with fantastic shops..your wife would enjoy them! Again, if your teens wanted to wander around on their own for a bit that should be fine (as long as they pay attention to the time so you can catch the train on time).

If while in Venice, you wanted to take a day trip you could all train to Verona for the day. Another beautiful small city.

And Rome, well Rome as everyone says is beautiful, historical, vibrant, chaotic and enchanting. Again, I personally have never known a teen that did not love Rome. And you certainly will not have a lack of sites and sights to enjoy. Most people like to stay in the historical center.

Personally I would probably plan on 2 nights for Florence (one full day without arriving or departing).

If while in Rome you could take in Pompeii, most teens enjoy going there. We did a long but happy day daytrip to visit Pompeii. If everyone in your family is healthy and has a good energy level IMO it is not to much to do in one day. If you don't want to take the time for Pompeii you could visit Ostia Antica which you can also reach by train..it is not far from the Rome airport.

Most teens (not sure if you have boys, girls or a combination) really like to visit the Villa d'Este which has beautiful gardens and fountains. It is in Tivoli, which you can reach by bus. About 4 miles outside of Tivoli is Hadrian's Villa which would be interesting to visit if you do go to Villa d'Este.

If, when in Rome, you want to get away for a day Orvietto (about an hour by train from Rome) is another beautiful small city to visit. The duomo is so beautiful..you could have lunch there also.

Do keep in mind while planning your itinerary that on Monday's most of the museums are closed in Florence.

Hope this helps a little..and of course if you wish you could do this trip in reverse, Rome first and Venice last.

Have fun planning your trip. I assume this is your first time to Italy? I always think the first visit to Italy is the most magical of all. And you all will have a liftime of beautiful family memories. Best wishes.

LoveItaly, I really appreciate your input and will take your advice. Could you recommend a specific amount of time in each location? Thanks Jim

Hi Jim, we have sort of "highjacked" Vera's thread. Why don't you start a new thread and title it "Italy with 2 teens" or something like that..we can "talk" on your new thread. I will keep an eye out for your new thread. Best wishes.

LoveItaly--The visit with the grandson just got even better. He's getting married to a girl he met on his base in Aviano, and they are gong to wait until we get there to have the little civil ceremony. Since they are going to Rome with us, they may be the only kids who ever went on a honeymoon with their grandparents!
Vera

Oh Vera, how precious!!! I love it, and obviously your grandson loves and adores both of you. Thank you so much for posting the uptodate info..I feel as though I am part of your special trip in Italy. A trip memories are made of.

Please, do post a trip report after you get back home and over jetlag and settled in. And again, my personal thanks to your grandson, and also his bride to be for the sacrifices they are making for their country. And please send my best wishes and blessing to them for many decades of marital happiness. Have a beautiful, safe and special time in Italy.