I've just been offered a few days in Venice (perhaps the only upside to turning another year older). Since it's my first time I want to find a hotel room with a little terrace from which to soak in the romantic scenery -- that is the picture of Venice I have in mind from watching too many movies. Would this be a waterfront room on the Grand Canal?

Does the Gritti Palace have any standard rooms on the waterfront or just those $4,000 suites? (they have not responded to my e-mail with this question) It sounds like there may be more waterfront rooms at The Bauer Il Palazzo and they seem to have more positive feedback than the Gritti, so I'm leaning toward that. Can anyone suggest a specific room there that fits the bill? I also welcome any other ideas and expect to spend around $800 per night in early April (still considered off-season in most places).

Where is that perfect Venice hotel room of my dreams?

Hi babette,

The Hotel Marconi and the Hotel Rialto are on the Grand Canal right at the Rialto Bridge and fit your budget.

http://www.hotelmarconi.it/

http://www.rialtohotel.com/

Is this really your answer for someone who is looking to spend $800 a night?

I know nothing of such stratospheric places, but would you really nominate those two?

Best wishes,

Rex

I have booked Room 510 at the Londra for late April. This is a junior suite of about 40-45 square meters with a good size terrace. It is a corner room from what I can tell. You can see the terrace on their website, and the views look quite incredible. I think most of the rooms have good views. We are paying about $700, I believe you could get a double for less, but the doubles are about 25 square meters, which is not a huge room for two people.

Two words "The Cipriani", the best place to stay in Venice, refined rooms with light, elegant furnishings. The Gritti Palace is the height of Italian bad taste, and American naff-ness.

Thanks for your suggestions. I am getting a bad vibe about the Gritti Palace, but has anyone had the room of their dreams at the Bauer Il Palazzo?

An argument can be made that all "Ventian style" is the <<height of Italian bad taste>> - - especially if you are a believer in the school of thought that form should follow function... Venice is all about embellishment for embellishment sake. How else can you explain those masks!!??

I can admire it, as they do it as well as any other Baroque-style approach to design and decor, anywhere in the world.

One can also argue that it is impossible to know whether to take serious anything that m_kinkdom says - - even if I do suspect that Cipriani is indeed superb.

But why take my word on "what I think I have heard"? I have never set foot there, nor in many of the other places mentioned on this thread.

We stayed in a wonderful room at the Bauer II Palazzo with a balcony overlooking the Grand Canal. It was very nicely appointed with quite modern furniture, but the view was quintessential Venice.We were there during carnival and watched a parade of lighted gondolas
come down the Grand Canal from our balcony. For me, it doesn't get much better than that! We found the staff at the hotel very nice and helpful and enjoyed it so much, we went back the next year and got the same room.

Venice was all about living large--if you've got it, flaunt it. Wealth, wretched excess, surface impressions, conspicuous consumption, overawe the visiting hayseeds, make your neighbors envious with all the gilt and curlycues, sinful waste, live for today--that's one of the main points of Venice.

We have stayed at both the Bauer and the Europa Regina. I far prefer the latter. We twice stayed in rooms numbered 200--I think 205,6, or 7. They may be junior suites. They were nicely appointed inside (not overdone, like so much Venetian interior design) and had min-stand on balconies directly on the Grand Canal where we could watch the gondolas cue up with one gondolier singing and one playing an accordian. Kitschy to the max but heavenly also. I think those rooms are now in the 800 euro range.