One night in Venice..

Venice is one of those cities in the world you must visit and experience at least once for yourself.

After an early start we arrived in Venice just after 10am. A short road transfer from the airport took us to meet our private water-taxi to the hotel. This is an excellent way to travel around the city and to arrive at your hotel. The station is just across from the airport so taking the train and then a water-bus is very straight-forward but it is always best to check with the individual hotel as some can be quite a walk from the nearest stop.

We stayed at the SINA Centurion Palace, a 5 star hotel located on the Grand Canal close to the Accademia Bridge. Winner of Conde Nast’s Best Waterside Hotel 2018 award, it was originally known as Palazzo Genovese and was renovated by the SINA group in 2009. The rooms are individually decorated in a beautiful contemporary style; they either face the Grand Canal or the hotel’s private courtyard. We ate lunch and dinner in Antinoo’s lounge and restaurant. It was very difficult not to be distracted by the beautiful view but the food was delicious.

The hotel is located next to the Basilica Santa Maria della Salute which was built by the Venetians in the 17th century as a thank you to Our Lady of Health for sparing them from the plague. Every year in November a temporary bridge is built across the Grand Canal to allow Venetians to go across to the Salute and leave offerings of thanks. It is very close to the hotel and meant a much shorter walk to St Mark’s Square for us!

On the other side of the hotel is the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, a museum of 20th century modern art housed in the palazzo where Peggy lived for thirty years. A very popular attraction, we were given a fascinating tour of the collection which includes works by Picasso, Robert Motherwell and Jackson Pollock as well as work by her daughter Pegeen Vail.

The Centurion Palace is very modern and contemporary which I really liked. However, this might not be to everyone’s taste or what people expect of a Venetian Hotel so you may prefer it’s sister property, Palazzo Sant’Angelo. A boutique property decorated in more of a classic Italian style, it is located on the Grand Canal close to the Rialto Bridge and has its own landing stage. The rooms look out over the Grand Canal, the small garden or a side street. It is a 4 star property as it does not have a restaurant but there is a cozy bar overlooking the Grand Canal where we enjoyed a Venetian Spritz whilst watching the world go by.

My tips for visiting Venice – Firstly you must go if you can as it is a magical place and the photos do not do it justice. Visit the main sites early in the morning before they get crowded. We visited St Mark’s Square at 7.30am and we shared it with just a few hundred pigeons!
Invest in a good map as the Sat Nav or GPS on your phone will not work and walking is the only way to explore properly. Getting lost will allow you to discover some beautiful places as well as quieter bars and restaurants away from the expensive tourist areas.
DO NOT visit in the summer, it is too hot and full of tourists. Low season is the best time to go when although it’s cold, the sky is a stunning blue and you will see Venice at its best.