Best Western Albergo Cavalletto and Doge Orseolo

 A grand exterior houses a disappointingly fairly ordinary option, whose over-modernised interior has sadly obliterated all of its 14th-century past, and where public areas, though spacious, are very unimaginatively styled.

However it enjoys a pleasant setting in a very central position, with many rooms overlooking the attractive adjacent canal basin, and St. Mark's Square is virtually on the doorstep. Some rooms are in an annex across the alley. Marketed by Best Western.

Exterior

A smart, imposing, yellow 5-storey 14th-century building with window boxes to many rooms, curving attractively around a small basin in the canal. A second, plainer, building across the alley is linked by a 2nd-floor covered bridge.

Property type: Hotel

Storeys: 5

Built Year: 1300s

Interior

The plain beige marble lobby has a very dated lounge area to one side, with a few dark-wood tables and chairs and a TV. The large L-shaped bar has bucket seats and mirrored walls and overlooks the canal, while the pleasant curved breakfast room has similar good views of gondolas parked outside.

Rooms: 107

Grounds

There are no grounds.

Location

Area Type: In a picturesque setting 50 yds N of St. Mark's Square, beside a canal basin that is a busy rendezvous point for gondolas; the entrance is on a narrow back alley almost opposite the San Gallo Theatre, and it also has its own landing stage. Shops, bars and restaurants 100 yds, San Marco Vaporetto 200 yds.

Facilities