Venice Hotel Guide. Preferred Hotels in Venice, Italy

We stayed for 5 days. I had concerns about being so close to big people magnets, namely the vaporetto stop (zaccaria) and St Marks square. My fears were swept away as The Hotel Metropole was an island of tranquility and calm. Occasional toots from the boats on the canal was about all we heard. No room in Venice will be massive but we were very comfortable and found the hotel to be amongst the best we have experienced. The multilingual staff were obviously very happy working there and it showed in their humour and attention to us and our needs. E.g. When asked to recommend a restaurant elsewhere in Venice- other than their own, they did so unhesitatingly and it was good value. It's modest size and old world charm suited us right down to the ground...err, canal. I would not say this was a family hotel though but I do not think overcrowded Venice is suitable for young children anyway, unless they are particularly precocious culture vultures...