Arriving 21:10, Treviso, getting Ryanair bus to Mestre - P.Roma. Need to fetch keys from hotel near S. Lucia station, for B&B which is inDorsoduro. Bearing in mind that one of us has serious back issues, and it will be quite late at night, which option should we choose:

1) Get off at P.Roma, one of us goes to fetch the keys, while the other two wait at the bus station, then we lug suitcases over Tre Ponti to the b&b. Departing Venice from S. Lucia, so would need to get our luggage over the Grand Canal

2) Get off at Mestre, get a train to S.Lucia (but may encounter stairs under train tracks), & leave bulk of luggage at the storage there (cost about 25 euro). Collect keys, walk over G Canal with hand luggage to the b&b, and when we leave Venice, our big suitcases will be on the right side of the Grand Canal

First recommendation is to not take big suitcases. 21" roller bags should be enough and depending on how far you have to walk, should not be difficult to transport.

Does only one person have back issues? Then the person with the problem will have to wait alone while the other 2 haul luggage.

1. Either don't take the huge suitcases as above.

2. Ask someone at the hotel to help and pay accordingly.

Piazzale Roma is NOT a bus station.

It looks like a giant parking lot with bus lanes.

There is no roof, there are no walls.

If it is raining you will get wet.


Thin

No stairs to negotiate as I recall at Santa Lucia and do not count on left luggage to be open unless you have checked - no lockers - but this is more closer I think than Pizza Square at bus stop - you can get a water taxi right to your hotel from in front of either train station or bus terminal.

Thanks for the advice.

Is there nowhere to wait undercover at Piazzale Roma, if it does rain?

Bring an umbrella to wait under.

If you look at street view on Google maps, it looks like there might be cover under the overhangs at the ACTV station on one end of Piazzale Roma (near the canal). Also on one side of the Piazzale Roma there is a building with a permanent overhang (the one that says People Mover and has a bar under part of it). Maybe would work in a pinch.

Also looks like there may be those plastic booths meant to protect people in rain towards the middle of the piazza among the buses, but I can't be sure about that.

Was there in May, but on a sunny day, so I really can't recall.

There is a bar next door to the entrance to the people mover. If it is open, that is a good spot to have a drink and wait. Just down from there (towards the causeway to the mainland) is another, more expensive bar/cafe but if they are closed there is an arcade you can hang out under.

Going back to Santa Lucia you can always take the vaporetto across. It is pricey but better than ruining one's back.

Do you know the name of the bar, so I could find out what time it closes? Also, do you know if it serves any food?

Sorry - don't know the name of the bar. Even if you had the name, I doubt you'd be able to find out when it closes... They do have food but I wouldn't go there to eat anything besides the potato chips served with my drink, or a morning pastry.

No matter how you arrange the logistics, you're going to be very sorry about having "the big suitcases" in Venice.