suze

Hmmm.. for 2 nights with 3 people, I personally would not want to have to change rooms. I ran out of personal suggestions after just one (La Calcina) but your price range is fairly generous, so I'd keep looking.

ssachida

Have you looked into apartments? If that is an option for you, then remember that an apartment for 3 nights (even if you don't use 1 night), may cost the same or less than a hotel. Of course, while an apartment will be more spacious and have a kitchen etc, you may not have the service that comes with a hotel. The only reason I bring in the '3 nights' is because thats often the minimum stay requirement for apartment rentals. One web-site you could use for apartment rentals is:
http://www.rentinvenice.com/

Dick

We stayed at the Locanda Sant' Agostin last year.

We were quite pleased. The small hotel is run by two brothers and had been completely reovated within the last few years.

Our room was VERY large with very high ceilings. IT was tastefully decorated with modern upscale furnishings. The modern, marble, bathroom had a shower. The room was air-conditioned....but the lights and a/c would only work when you inserted a "key" that was attached to your room key... so the a/c was off when you left the hotel and turned in the room key.

We were pleasantly surprised with the overall quality of the the hotel. We considered it a "find"

IT is in a good location...although it isn't easy to find.

Our room was not considerd a canal view..although if I stuck my head outside the window....I could see the side canal.

The hotel arranged a water taxi for our return to the airpot...that picked us up right a the hotel.

I would defintely stay their again.

mclaurie

Now knowing there are 3 adults and you need 3 decent beds, I think you should make a decision based on the largest room/best bed arrangement. I always eliminate the Al Piave after one of the posters here had an unpleasant time with the manager. I would lean toward the Do Pozzi or the Ala knowing their locations are both near San Marco and convenient and well regarded. I would just make sure you're getting 3 decent beds. Sometimes the 3rd bed is really a cot for a child.

BTW, I found some photos of the Palace Bonvecchiati on veniceby.com and it looks fabulous if you can get the rates I saw on precisionreservations.com

Ralstonlan

We stayed at the Ala April of 2003, in a triple. The hotel is in a great location, but our roon was one of the smallest I've ever seen, even by European standards. Nice staff.

tree804

Wow! you guys are great. Thanks everyone for all your help. I just went over all your suggestions one more time, and here's a recap:

2 of you went to locanda sant agostin and really loved it - that's the same impression i get, and the rate is quite reasonable at 180 euros. this is a strong contender. however, it can be hard to find.

2 of you have used do pozzi and really liked it - it's in a good location. however, someone on tripadvisor mentioned it could be noisy. Is this bad advice?

3 of you used and liked the hotel ala, and it's near a vaporetto stop, which is convenient. it has a full breakfast and is large and comfortable. but, they never answered my inquiry. i guess i could try again.

1 of you used and liked al gambero. they never answered my e-mail either.

5 of you recommend pension accademia - it's charming, in a good location, has canal views - my only dilemma here is the necessity to move to another room on the second night. however, i bargained with them and got them to reduce the rate from 260 to 230, so i'm strongly considering it.

one of you recommended foscari palace, but it's too expensive.

2 of you would never change rooms

1 of you would eliminate al piave

1 of you suggested palace bonvecchiati but it's too expensive and i can't seem to get a response from the discount site

1 of you says the flora is delightful -it sounds great, but i've also heard that the bathrooms have no enclosed showers, so the floors can get slippery, and it's difficult to find.

1 of you suggested i look into apartments, but i don't want to stay 3 nights and i like the idea of a helpful hotel staff.

I can't thank you all enough. i am going into this with a much greater knowledge base than i began. i'm making my decision tonight.

will let you know how it turned out!

Theresa

tree804

I did it! i picked the pensione accademia! i am not that adverse to moving the 2nd night, and it just seems so hard to get this hotel at all that i thought i'd take advantage of the offer for a reduced rate from 260 to 230 euros. and so many people on the board seemed to really like it and the area that it's in.

so, thank you all! i'm going to bed!

tomorrow i'll start thinking about florence!

theresa

carolv

I am also interested in staying at the Pensione Accademia in Feb., but I couldn't find a website to contact the hotel directly. Does anyone have a website or e-mail address? We're looking for something for 4 of us (2 adults, 2 kids, age 12). Hopefully it won't be too busy in Feb.... Thanks!

Surlok

http://www.pensioneaccademia.it/index-e.html

carolv

Thanks Surlok!