Sleeping in Venice night before and after cruise...

I will be sleepless in Venice if I don't find a place. I would love some suggestions. I have contacted probably 35 hotels and individual apartments looking for a place the night before and night after our cruise. They are either already booked or they require a 3 night minimum. What in the world do I do? Any help would be greatly appreciated. The dates I'm needing are 4/27/2012 and 5/5/2012.

We stayed at the Hotel Canal and Walter last March on the night before our cruise. We loved it, both for the location and the charm of the place. It is right on the Grand Canal and just around the corner from the bus station for the shuttle buses to the cruise port.

In the same square as the bus station you can also find the people mover that takes you to the cruise port for a euro or two but I don't recommend this as we had to walk nearly 20 minutes to the ship dragging our bags once we got to the port!

I don't know how you are getting into Venice from the airport, but if you are taking the airport bus as we did, the walk to the hotel takes about 5 minutes, is incredibly easy to find (some Venice hotels are a nightmare to locate as they are hidden down tiny lanes and over many little bridges) and there were only two easy bridges to navigate over.

I checked availability for your dates and rooms are available and have no minimum stay. Here is the link:

http://www.booking.com/hotel/it/canal.html

It isn't a posh hotel but it's comfortable, with a sort of quiet, old world Venetian elegance. They will let you leave your bags while you sight-see before or after check-in. The people were very nice! The breakfast was a typical cold cuts, cheese, rolls and cereal affair, but there are bakeries and cafes all around. We had the hotel breakfast and then supplemented it with a last walk around the nearby streets that included a stop at a canal-side cafe for some fresh baked treats and espresso.

We lucked out with a corner room that overlooked the Grand Canal and a little side canal that bordered a monastery. It was great getting up early and watching the delivery boats unloading supplies for the hotel right under one window! And the people and canal watching from the Grand Canal view was excellent! If you can, ask for this room! It has a lovely Murano glass light fixture and two massive shuttered windows that are just grand for a nice cross breeze. It was on the first floor (which is the second floor if you are American) and while there is no lift, we had no trouble getting our bags up.

I definitely recommend this hotel and would have no hesitation about staying here again. It's not the Ritz but we found it charming, convenient, and very Venetian.

Thank you very much for your help. I had no idea that it would be this difficult to find a place to stay over 6 months from now. It wouldn't be so bad if it were just me and my husband, but we have another couple traveling with us and it's harder to find availability for 4.

Glad to be of help! This hotel had a few rooms available when I had a look for you, so hopefully it will suit. I was really pleased to have found it myself as it was in a fantastic location and we just loved our room! And unlike my previous visit to Venice it was extraordinarily easy to find!

If you are getting into Venice early the day before your cruise, or want something fun to do after disembarking, we also found a really excellent activity - a lesson in gondola rowing! Worth it just for the ride itself, let alone the fun of the rowing. Let me know if you'd like more info.

In Aug 2010, we did a cruise out of Venice. We did use the People Mover for 1€, each way. I don't know where your ship will dock, but the Nieuw Amsterdam was at the most a 10 minute walk, pulling our luggage. The path was bumpy, but it was no problem.

Barbara