Hotel Santa Chiara Hotel

The only bright spot for us was the kind breakfast attendant. A family staying at the hotel tried to take one of our bags. The young couple checked out in front of me, then the rest of the family joined them in the lobby. When I said the bag was mine, they just kept talking as if nothing had happened. Outside noise at night made it impossible to rest. The night staff were quite rude when we asked for an extra pillow, and they were also rude to friends traveling with us who asked for a new sheet. Room cleaning didn't include emptying the bins in either the room or bathroom, and my son's bathtub had a leaky lid. This was easily the worst hotel experience of our 17-day trip to Italy.

From arrival, the staff came across as professional and friendly. We had everything we needed to relax, and the room was spacious, extremely clean, and decorated with good taste. It was an absolutely superb stay.

We weren't guests at Hotel Santa Chiara, but earlier this morning at Piazzale Roma we couldn't find a taxi to catch our flight and were getting increasingly anxious. I politely asked reception if they could call one for us. The receptionist simply said “No,” without explaining or trying to help. I left straight away. We only needed someone to make a phone call while we were in a stressful spot. That response felt lacking in basic hospitality and left us with a very disappointing impression of Italy and Venice. At the time, it felt like a simple matter of human kindness.

The hotel is ideally placed for seeing places in Venicia, with a wonderful view, and you get what you pay for. I strongly recommend it for couples or solo travelers. During autumn, this was one of the best four-star hotels I've experienced in Europe. The receptionists and other staff were very nice.