Advice on a trip to venice please...?

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jat

Venice in general is an expensive place. The San Marco sestieri (neighborhood) is the most touristy and most expensive area so you may wish to look for a place to stay in one of the 5 other neighborhoods or on the mainland (Mestre). Guide books can be purchased at your local bookstore with hotel recommendations, and checking online is even better. I always like to read other travellers' reviews of places they stayed at-people are pretty honest about their feelings of where they've stayed and it has been helpful in making decisions. Try looking at multiple websites for hotel ideas AND travellers' reviews(yahoo travel, hotels.com for instance)
I found that the loveliest places to eat were those right on the Grand Canal, but they can be costly so maybe do one special meal there. If you get away from touristy San Marco, you can find many nice, less expensive pizzerias and restaurants to eat at. You asked what restaurants to avoid, but quite honestly, I did not have any bad experiences anyplace that we ate in Venice. One very enjoyable lunch we had was at a place called Roberto's which is not far from Piazza San Marco. We had requested a table that was right by a canal and a little bridge, and watched the gondolas going past as we ate.We also really enjoyed a place called Alla Fontanella which is in the San Croce neighborhood-less touristy there and excellent food! (you can probably get directions to either place from your hotel).
As far as getting around, you have two choices: on foot or by water. There are no cars in Venice!! Private water taxis are the most expensive so you may want to opt for a vaperetto which is a water bus that makes a number of stops throughout Venice. If you want to cross the Grand Canal on foot there are three bridges that span it with the most famous being the Rialto You will probably want to see this very beautiful and unique bridge anyway! Keep in mind when negotiating the alleyways of Venice that it is easy to lose your way. But I did not find that to be stressful. Ask the locals how to get back to Piazza San Marco, for example, and they are very nice about helping you..especially if you learn a couple of Italian phrases, they will really warm up to you...buon giorno (good day) and thank you (grazie) are musts!! Ciao and happy first anniversary!!

marcos

There is always FODOR's books on travel and Lonely Planet books. If you stay in Venice itself you will not need any transportation. Normally renting a car in Italy is very expensive because of the insurance. I would avoid it at all costs. If you are going to other countries like Germany then you might want to start there and rent a car in Germany then drive to all your European destinations. Car rental costs in Germany are similar to the US, but then you will be spending most of your anniversary driving from one country to another.

s t

there is a book on Venice..called the second Venice..by askin ozcan...a must reading before you go to Venice. you can easily find it on amazon com or e-bay or your book store. try it.

assassin

try Hotel Kette a three minute walk from St Marks square, walking is the easiest way to sightsee with a trip on the water bus for fun

bisc0tti7

I highly recommend checking out Frommers guide books or their website (frommers.com). They have great recommendations on dining, accommodations, attractions, etc and good maps. I use them every time I travel. Also, for hotels, check out venere.com. A friend and I went to Venice last Sept and used them for the hotel. I can't remember the name of it right now but surprisingly, it was fairly cheap and very close to St. Mark's Square.

Probably cheaper to eat in the not so touristy places, away from St Mark's Square, but I didn't really think any of it was all that expensive.

Go to St Mark's Square in the evening when the orchestras are playing. Have a glass of wine and then dance with your sweetie....Happy Anniversary!!!

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