As you probably have figured out from some of my writings, I like to do a bit of research prior to my trip for excursions, key sites to visit, where to stay and restaurants.
Well, Venice wasn’t like that at all. The majority of our research was to find which hotel we wanted to stay at which you will find a bit later in this blog (need to keep some surprises:)
There is an old expression of getting lost in Venice – by not doing any “prep” work, this is what we decided to do. And I am so glad that was our decision as it was an amazing trip discovering the city, great restaurants, fabulous photos, etc. So sometimes, not leaning on TripAdvisor, Pinterest and blogs does work – though I shouldn’t really say that since this is a travel tip blog.
In the even years, every July, we make this our European vacation as Doug is in London for business. I come in a few days into his trip and then we take 4-5 days afterwards to visit another city. The best part is that Venice was a new destination for both of us so we got to explore it together.
Without further ado, on to some of the tips and experiences we had from Venice.

Water Taxi: I strongly suggest that you splurge with doing a private water taxi from the airport to your hotel as opposed to the public shuttle boat or other forms of transportation (depending where you are staying). The scenery from the airport to the hotel was mind-blowing and you only build on your anticipation of getting to your destination.

Hotel: As I alluded to previously, we spent so much prep time in trying to find a hotel. We looked at all the hotel websites searching for ones that would have great views (being on the Grand Canal with 50,000 other people), easy to explore the city, cost, and of course how the hotel & rooms looked.
After going back and forth on this for a bit of time, we decided to stay at the Hilton Molino Stucky Property which is actually not in the heart of Venice. It is located on the Giudecca Island which is just across the canal from the main bit of Venice. It is a very quiet island away from the hustle and bustle of the main island, but super convenient. Not to mention the views that you get.
The hotel was once a flourishing flour mill and has been beautifully restored and offers a different view of the magical city. It offered all the modern conveniences you would expect sprinkled with old world charm.
Thankfully we got upgraded to a two room suite facing the canal – it was amazing (suggestion – make sure you book a room facing the canal). Each morning I felt the need to open the windows and greet the wonderful people of Venice – oh, and I did! The bathroom was ginormous especially for a European hotel.
This is exactly why I like to stay in an American base hotel when traveling in Europe (and for Doug to get his Hilton points). You get a taste of Europe with American amenities. In addition, the staff are more likely to speak English if you don’t know the local language, or a minimal amount of it.
Oh and don’t worry about accessing the main island – the hotel has its own water taxi to bring you back and forth. I think you get charged a couple of Euros a day but that is nothing considering your location and the other conveniences. It runs daily every hour which allows you to spend as much time in the city as you want – there is no rush to make it back at a certain time or face having to hire a metered water taxi.
There are so many amenities within the hotel that you will be as pampered as you want to be –
” Rooftop pool with panoramic view of Venice open mid-May to September (amazing panoramic views and are only accessible to hotel guests)
” 7 restaurants and bars, including a panoramic rooftop bar
” Spa of 600 sq. m. and fitness center
” Executive Lounge
” Concierge Desk
” Close to Venice attractions via shuttle boat
” Industrial and historical building on a peaceful oasis in Venice

Get lost: This is what I suggest to everyone – go explore the city of Venice by walking through it. Walk down the small little alleys and “streets’. Stop for pictures, admire the beauty, give plenty of hugs and kisses to the one you’re with.
We were just overwhelmed with the city by wandering, for hours at a time. With no direction on what you should do this was some of our most enjoyable times. And then it was opening up a map or GPS on your phone to figure out how to get back to your water taxi – in what could be a very stressful adventure in other cities, it was peaceful and fun to do.

Tours: Well, we did manage to take one organized tour that we booked through the concierge desk (if you prefer, you can also book them at the dock area as there are plenty of kiosks selling tickets).
Torcello, Murano and Burano – three islands in the Venetian Lagoon – on this tour from Venice by motorboat (you have to go to the main dock and report to their ticket kiosk). With a guide, you’ll watch glass being blown at a Murano glass factory, see historical cathedrals on Torcello and admire exquisite handmade lace on Burano. This is a great way to see more than just the central sights of Venice and enjoy a cruise on the water.

Gondola Ride: This is a must do. I highly suggest you do not get the ride from the dock area at the main canal. We got ours while walking through the city at one of their stops.
Another tip is you want to find out where they will take you on your tour – make sure that you will go by the Rialto Bridge. You have the option of 30 minute or one hour tours. We chose the 30 minute one but our Gondolier offered to extend our trip to see more of the city and to give him what we thought was right.
It is hard to describe how wonderful the ride through the canals were – you are blown away by the sheer beauty of the city, the old buildings, and all the sites.

Food: And we thought the Italian food in NY was good. It was so wonderful eating at different places during our stay – and as you always find in Europe, the food is very fresh. We didn’t have a bad meal and we had fun arguing with each other on what meal or course was the best.
Our first night we ate at the hotel at their outside café on the water – it was a seafood buffet. It was a decent meal, bit pricey, but very convenient for us as we wanted the day to relax before beginning our adventures.
Each day we would have a light breakfast in the lounge at the hotel – got our coffee fix and some energy for all of our upcoming walking. We also said to ourselves that we would have light lunches so we didn’t feel guilty about a big meal at dinner (most times it was a pizza and a salad though we were very tempted for other courses).
al storico da Crea We discovered this amazing gem again on the island in which out hotel was located. We saw a sign for it and then began our journey through narrow alleys into a residential area – no traffic of people walking around so there was a littler nervousness on what was at the end of the street. It was three flights up overlooking a marina and homes. It was basically an apartment turned into a restaurant and the iron balcony is where they seated customers. And I think about 75% of those who were there were local – many knew the staff who sat down with them at times to have a talk.
The food was just absolutely amazing and so fresh. Simple ingredients cooked well with some of the best service you will ever find. I laugh as I write this reading some of the TripAdvisor reviews of poor service – we didn’t find this at all. Our staff helped us with menu questions, pointed out what wine to get, gave us suggestions on meals, and helped translate where needed.
There is no website but here are the contact details: Isola della Giudecca 212 | imbarcadero del Redentore, 30133 Venice, Italy +39 041 296 0373

Harry’s Dolci: We found a great little spot on the island our hotel was on (we found it twice:). It was table and chairs set up right on the canal – you would almost think you were in someone’s backyard, but with a view of Venice. The actually restaurant was beyond basic, simple and raw décor. You would never know that if you don’t have to take a trip to the bathroom.
Mind you after returning from our trip and doing some research for this post I discovered this restaurant is rich with history and the home to the Bellini! It is also owned by the infamous Cipriani restaurant located in New York City!
The décor was chic, white-tiled eatery & bar related to Harry’s Bar, with canal views from its canopied terrace. Since 1929, this has been a popular watering hole and elegant eatery for writers, artists, celebrities and aristocrats. We had so much fun watching people coming to the restaurant on their water taxis or their own boats.
I had no idea of the history or background when dining here. Despite that I happened to order a Bellini. The famous bar is located across the canal in Venice however this restaurant was located on Gudecci Island just a block away from our hotel. This place is a step back in time where the first Bellini (with fresh PEACH) was invented. Harry’s Dolci, restaurant, offers a peaceful view of the Canal with outdoors tables facing the Giudecca Canal. The people at the famed Harry’s Dolci have established their latest enclave far from the maddening crowds of Piazza San Marco on this rarely visited island. From the quayside windows of this chic place, you can watch seagoing vessels, from yachts to lagoon barges. White napery and uniformed waiters grace a modern room, where no one minds if you order only coffee and ice cream or perhaps a selection from the menu.
Website: http://cipriani.com/restaurant/?loc=venice-harrys-dolci&type=info
Trattoria ai Cacciatori: This was another restaurant we found near the hotel – there are several restaurants that line the canal and at the time we were both very hangry to get something. The menu had a wide variety of choices so we sat down for a bite. I would say that there is more of an even split of tourists and locals that were dining here.
A common theme is that the food is amazing and fresh – it was not over done like you would find at other places, just gave you the neighborhood Italian restaurant feel.
Website: http://www.aicacciatori.it/ Fondamenta Ponte Piccolo, 320 | isola della Giudecca, 30133 Venice, Italy +39 041 528 5849

When you have to go, drink Prosecco!: The dock area on the canal for the Hilton water taxi was located across from the Hotel Londra Palace. It is a beautiful looking hotel and the lobby is very upscale.
So why am I adding this into my blog you ask? This was our funny conversation each day we ventured across the canal for our day journey. At the end of the day drinking tons of water, there would always be about a 30 minute wait for the next shuttle boat. As a lot of the restaurants on the dock area were very touristy, I didn’t want to walk in to use the rest room.
So, each day we would go in to the bar and I would have Prosecco, Doug would order a beer, and we would use the toilets. We joke about it all the time because it ended up costing us around Euros 30 to take a pee. But it was air conditioned and quite relaxing – you can’t put a price on comfort at the end of the day.

Pay attention to the bill: it is very important that you look over the bill at each meal. There is a tendency for the restaurants to overcharge you – not all the time, but it does happen. We picked it up once or twice during our stay, but didn’t during one of our meals at Harry’s.
Another tip to keep in mind when planning your vacation to Venice is that it is an expensive city. Yes, there are plenty of restaurants to eat at that are quite good and will be inexpensive but I think you also miss out on some of the wonderful cuisine by not splurging. The typical touristy items (shirts, hats, etc) are in line with other cities though.
We both had an amazing time and agree that we should go back as there are many things we didn’t do such as walking through museums and churches, as well as a few other islands that were on separate tours. You will get a good sense of the trip through our photos but they don’t do the trip justice – if you have never been, make this a must visit. You get such a wonderful sense of being.