Transportation from Venice train station
 

So, I've been reading comments from recent guests that my hotel in Venice [Duodo Palace] is a little tricky to find. It's on one of the smaller canals relatively close to La Fenice.
I'm trying to figure out my options to get there from the train station. I wouldn't mind spending some extra money on a water taxi, if I don't have to pay them for the time to come to the station after I call them. Do they "hang out" at the train station, or are there better options?
Can anyone help me out here?

Hi--we arrived Venice mid-afternoon and stepped right into a water taxi. If I am recalling correctly, they are out there just the way taxis are outside of any train station...

Yes there should be taxis waiting outside the station.

I recently noted this hotel gets nice reviews on tripadvisor but rarely gets mentioned here. Would love to hear a report when you return.

To a novice, the Duodo Palace is very, very difficult to find on foot. They make the Rialto stop appear as though it is nearby (it sort of is) but, unless you know the small calle in and around this area well, finding this hotel will seem impossible.

I suggest you spare yourself the aggravation and splurge on a water taxi. There is a water taxi stand at the foot of Ferrovia's steps. You will not have to call one. The taxi will take you to Rio Verona, just off Rio San Luca, to the entrance dock of the hotel. Nothing will be anywhere near as convenient as this.

If you go by vaporetto, you'll have to deal with bridges and a complicated labyrinth of small streets near La Fenice. The area is complicated because of the perpendicular water canals which cut off certain calle from being walk-through. Good luck.

Hi rex,

If you'ld like to save 80E and don't mind a hal-hour's stroll through Venice, get the "Streetwise Venice".

Your hotel is marked as 6 on Calle Minnelli. There are two small bridges to cross from the Rialto Bridge. You can also get there from the S. Maria del Giglio stop. Slightly shorter walk, 2 bridges.

Has the price really risen that much, over 100% w/the weak dollar?? In 2000 we paid the equivalent of $45 for a shorter trip--to the Hotel Marconi--but that seems a huge increase!!

Yes, Duodo Palace seems to be at the end of calle Minelli. However, calle Minelli is a Venetian cul de sac (a whole new meaning) and is only accessible via Campo San Fantin (by foot) or Rio de la Verona (by boat).

Any fool-hearty man can say to his wife and kids, &quot;I can find it!&quot; but the <i>real</i> man will not subject his family to getting lost with luggage while trying to figure out this very busy, very complicated area of Venice, even with a Streetwise map.

A water taxi from Ferrovia to this hotel will not cost 80 Euro. You can figure 10 Euro per person. If you're really cheap, you can take the #82 vaporetto to express stop Rialto and then take a water taxi from Rialto to the hotel. There's a water taxi stop at Rialto but expect the Venetian drivers to question your sanity.

Look at it this way:

You can save your money on the return trip to the train station via vaporetto, as you'll already know where you are and where you're going.

Thanks for all the helpful advice. I'm really glad I inquired, as it is one less thing I need to worry about.
I'll definitely take the water taxi. As one of the people commenting on tripadvisor said, &quot;the trip to the hotel was a great way to see the city, and the entrance to the hotel from the canal is much more scenic&quot;. So, I can chalk it up to a sightseeing expense. I'll definitely report back on the hotel. I chose it based upon the comments on tripadvisor.

socialworker, I think the 80e Ira mentioned is more like the price from the airport. From the train station I'd imagine it would be more around 50e.

Sorry, I didn't realize NYCFS had answered the price question and is far more knowledgeable about it. :-]

To save money and bother, why not leave your luggage at the station, then go to find the hotel? Get a 24-hour ticket for the vaporetti, or walk, to the hotel. When you get to the hotel, you can work out the easiest route from the station. The best time to retrieve your luggage is in the early evening before dinner when it's cooler and the paths and vaporetti are quieter.

Geoff,

We did that -- and then some. In our case, we arrived at the train station around five PM without a room. So we definitely needed freedom of movement.

It worked out OK. We passed on a couple places and ended up skimping on a divey closet. Oh, well -- Venice is for walking, not for sleeping. Spent the difference on food and trinkets.

I seem to have erred re the price of the water taxi. 80E is from the airport.

Thanks for the corrections.

Although GeoffHamer offers one (questionable) alternative, his idea seems to be geared toward some irrelevant (ie: loser) marketplace. Who among us wants to go back to the train station and retrieve our luggage once we've found and checked into our luxury hotel? Who thinks this isn't a major &quot;bother?&quot;

It seems to me that any family of three (hypothetical) willing to pay over $300 per night to sleep in a &quot;standard&quot; double at the Duodo Palace will not be interested in wasting three or more hours just to prove to themselves that they could find their hotel on foot, save 30 Euro in the process, and deny themselves that lovely, grand, hair-blowing-in-the-wind feeling that no other boat entry can provide, not to mention the drop-off directly on hotel property. But, then again, there are those idiots who order Diet Coke with their Banana Split.

What is with some men and their foolish, childish obstinance?

On a recent trip, I was photographing on a tripod around 10 PM near San Marco when I noticed this Hawaiian family of four schlepping feet and dragging their luggage while passing by me several times. Their energy was exasperated and I could tell by their murmurs that something was off. At one point I heard the wife say angrily to her husband, &quot;Would you just ask her already?&quot;

I stepped back from my tripod, looked their way and asked, &quot;Can I help you?&quot; They stepped meekly towards me, the husband's tired arm leading the charge with withered map in hand. He told me they'd been walking in circles for hours, asked numerous bystanders for help, and they still can't find their hotel. He handed me his map and within seconds I looked up, looked into the wife's depleted eyes, looked at the kids worn-out faces, and then said to the husband, &quot;The first thing you need when you come to Venice is a great map.&quot; I handed his map back and pulled my custom-made one out of my camera bag. But, unfortunately, I did not know his hotel and he did not have a <i>calle</i> name or a phone number. All he had was an arrow pointing to heaven and the words &quot;San Marco.&quot; The family looked heartbroken.

In the distance I noticed a policeman and quietly called out to him, waving him over. In Italian, I asked the Venetian if he knew the hotel and its precise location and he explained to me where it was. He said it's one of the most difficult to find in Venice. I packed up my gear and walked the family to their hotel. The look on everyone's faces as we approached the front door made the <i>mitzvah</i> worthwhile.

Most Venetians don't know how to look at a map of their own town, regardless of quality. It often feels like you've handed them a map of Tehran. Within seconds, shopkeepers will slide your map towards you in frustration and start saying, <i>&quot;Sempre diritto, a destra, a sinistra, e attraversi il ponte!</i> And all the while you'll nod pretending to understand. Then you get back out onto the street and find yourself lost as ever.

I say find your hotel first, in the easiest, most stress-free manner possible (regardless of cost) and then explore.

Sure, I could take public transportation to JFK from Manhattan. It's a royal pain in the ass to do but it would save me a ton of money. Instead, I reserve a Town Car and for $80 I get picked up at the door, help with my luggage, tinted windows, classical music, and a driver who says nothing. Doesn't everyone deserve to be treated as well? After all, what is a vacation?

NYCFS
Thaks for your replies....you and I are definitely on the same wave length regarding what constitutes a vacation....but then, I'm &quot;mature&quot;, and my desire for comfort greatly outweighs my need to skimp.

I fully understand there's a market out there that needs to cut costs at every turn. One man's water-taxi ride is another's weekly budget for food. Back-packers have Lonely Planet, their appropriately named site, for this concept of fun.

The men that drive me crazy are the ones who will pay for luxury accommodations but then insist on cutting ancillary perks to save money, often at ridiculous inconvenience to everyone.

The truth is the Duodo is new and they're trying to build a following to their luxury hotel, therefore their rates are under control. Believe me, once they find their following and their following finds them, up the prices will go.

I think water-taxi's in Venice are priced too high but considering the cost of fuel in Italy, these guys aren't making a killing. Plus, is there a grander way to travel in Venice? I wish more people could afford to treat themselves better. What can one say about those who can afford it but refuse to anyway?

NYCFoodSnob you made me smile... it is true, I too take the town car to JFK to avoid craziness associated with public transportation - because it is vacation, and yet I have been comtiplating about a car from the Naples train station to Postiano!

NYCFoodSnob,

I resemble those remarks. Good thing I'm not thenthitive.

I sure didn't feel like a loser exploring Venice sans luggage. Maybe in NYC it's a shlep from the train station to the hotel. In Venice, it's a delight.

Only somebody from NYC would mention New York's &quot;public transportation&quot; in the same breath as vaporetti.

I suggest a water taxi. We enjoyed walking around Venice, but not while we were trying to find our hotel and unload.

I badly wanted to see La Fenice, even though it was still under reconstruction when we were there, so I made reservations at a nearby restaurant, and we set off very early. I have never been so thoroughly lost as I was trying to find that place using my Streetwise Venice; we always had a sense of where we wanted to head, but all paths seemed to be blocked. We finally found our way, but I remain convinced that neighbourhood is the most unwalkable part of Venice.