Best Western Hotel Bisanzio

Mixed Feelings

by A TripAdvisor Member

I Decided to take my lovely lady away to Venice for her 21st birthday, and was convinced Venice was a good destination to choose.

The Best Western Hotel Bisanzio was a good choice, both for its write up, reviews and location. It's literally only five minutes from St Mark's Square (or San Marco as its known to Italians) and the decor inside is very appealing.

Upon arriving we were greeted by the reception clerk who checked us in very quickly and gave us our room key. Upon entering we were slightly disapointed as the rooms weren't that big at all, and the view out of our window (room 407) wasn't particularly inviting. It looked out onto a small square where a drainage thing was being built, but as we arrived at after midnight there were no workers there. To our shock they arrived shockingly early and started banging and crashing away, waking us up. We spoke to the hotel clerk about this, voicing our concerns of a quiet break being ruined, and they were MORE than happy to move us to another room...and what a room it was!! They moved us to their apartment block about five minutes away, it was a massive room with separate kitchen area, bathroom, and living area. It was absolutely lovely. It was airy and cool and provided a nice little view down a slightly busy road (no cars in Venice though!) so it really surprised us that they were willing to accomodate our needs this way.

The breakfasts weren't amazing, some croissants and cereal for the masses, but it provided a nice little "fill-me-up" in the morning.

One thing I will mention about Venice however, is that its bloody expensive! The prices are just as heavy as London and being charged 6 Euros for a Cola was a shock! The gondolas are also expensive, ranging from 80-120 Euros per trip, so think again if you're planning to use it as a mode of transport! Its entertainment value ONLY!

Overall it was a lovely break, Italians are generally nice people but there were a few who appeared standoffish and arrogant...but you get that everywhere I guess!

Also, if you use the trains at Ferrovia, or the waterbuses, remember to stamp your ticket BEFORE you get on...You can do this at one of the little yellow boxes that are situated all over the relevant stops/platforms etc. If you don't stamp your ticket you'll be fined 25 Euros (something we narrowly missed ourselves, thank God!).

Great place

by TripAdvisor Member bklynbound05

My wife and I spent two nights at the Bisanzio after reading the reviews. We were very happy with the hotel. One of the staff was very courteous and gave us helpful info. The room was quiet and spacious with a nice view. Would highly recommend this hotel.

Gondola days

by A TripAdvisor Member

We spent a couple of days at Bisanzio. We had nice time. Good location very clean & nice staff. We did the "tourists" and we loved it. Gondola ride, The tower, the islands and Accademia.
We'll go back there so much to see!!

Great big room for our family!

by TripAdvisor Member oyyveyy

We stayed at the Bisanzio for three nights in August 2004. Having been to Venice before, I expected a room like a shoebox. I was amazed when shown to our two-level unit with two bathrooms, two bedrooms, and a family room - perfect for a family with 3 small kids! This place was bigger than an apartment, and extemely clean. The staff was very friendly and knowledgeable, especially Marco. If you have the money, I would go for the water taxi instead of the public vaporetto from the train station, as although the distance is short, you have to carry your luggage up and over two bridges from the vaporetto stop. Not easy with 2 kids, a baby, and luggage. The hotel has a great location, with easy walking to all major sights. I would stay there again!

Wonderful..an intimate little hotel!

by A TripAdvisor Member

My husband and I celebrated our wedding anniversary in Venice, 23rd to 25th June 2004, and we chose the Bisanzio entirely by it's description as being a "traditional Venetian, intimate little hotel." We were not disappointed! Although we didn't get the room with its own terrace, shown in all the photos, we loved our little room. It was spotlessly clean, and the air conditioning was heaven. Although the bathroom is small, it's very modern with quite a powerful shower. The breakfast was European-style, continental, but you can order eggs if you pay a supplement. We didn't feel any need to. I really liked the "Sanguinello" (Blood Orange Juice). The hotel is in a perfect location; tucked down a very quiet alley, but right behind Vivaldi's church (Pieta), a major land mark, so we knew immediately where to go, the minute we stepped off the Alilaguna from the airport. The hotel staff were extremely helpfull, and managed to get us tickets, our first night, to "I Musici Veneziani" where we listened to Vivaldi's Four Seasons, performed by seven women in 18th c. costumes. That really set the scene for the rest of our mini-break. We would definitely stay here again!

A little gem

by A TripAdvisor Member

What a little gem. We booked an independent short break to Venice in April 04 with two friends and picked this hotel by chance off the internet. What we found was a small Hotel tucked away up a narrow walkway only a few steps from the Grand Canal and within a 10 minute walk of St Marks square. Absolutely nothing to look at from outside this hotel proved a real find. Our room on one of the upper floors was spacious and had a lovely terrace overlooking the pantiled rooftops towards the Bell tower. Our friends room on a lower floor was of a similar standard, althougth somewhat smaller and with windows overlooking a narrow walkway. Continental breakfast was included, which was fine. The staff were excellent, always pleasant and helpful. We paid around GBP 110-120 per night for our rooms which at the outset seemed perhaps a little steep. However we found Venice on the whole fairly expensive all round, so in the overall scheme of things thought that considering the very central location of the Hotel and the high standard of the staff, it was worth every penny.

Northern Italy

by strazzexplorer5

"Northern Italy"

Flew into Milan - train to Genoa to transfer to a train to the Cinque Terre. Stay in Monterosso for most hotels/restaurant choices. Small train to Riomaggiore (the southern most town) and walk the path to Corniglia and take the train back home or walk all the way back to Monterosso (but that's a long day and the section from Vernazza to Monterosso is the most difficult). Train from Monterosso to Florence. Stayed in Florence for 10 days to use as a base for exploring surrounding areas. Day trips to Pisa, San Gimignano, Siena, Chianti region. Get tickets to the Uffizi days before you want to go and you can skip the long line.
Train from Florence to Venice. 3-4 days in Venice is enough to explore the small museums and experience the music in the Piazza San Marco and have some overly priced wine and olives in the piazza to complete the experience. Hotel Bisanzio was excellent and arranged a day trip to Murano. Must see! Don't feel like you have to buy anything, just enjoy the show. They usher you into the showroom a little too quickly, but just enjoy the experience.