There are places you go to explore, and there are places you go to feel. Venice is the latter. A city that stirs something deep, where the sound of water replaces the hum of cars and the air smells faintly of stone, salt, and history.
We came for just a touch, at the start and end of a Dolomites journey with three dear girlfriends for a week of alpine hikes and bonding over long dinners – framed by the magic of Venice on either side.
Venice, as always, made herself unforgettable. There is no place quite like it in the world, and those privileged enough to visit during each of its glorious seasons still have to pinch themselves to believe the timeless awe and unparalleled beauty of “The Floating City“.
Here’s where we stayed, and what each one gave us:
Venice Venice
Mood: Intentionally offbeat. A bit wild. Impossible not to feel something.
This is not the Venice of postcards. It’s Venice as an art installation. Housed in the bones of a 13th-century building once home to Venetian nobility, Venice Venice is anything but shy. The design plays with tension, Baroque and Brutalist, Renaissance and radical, with raw concrete brushing up against gold-leaf ceilings and glass chandeliers sparking beside neon sculptures. It feels both sacred and subversive.
The crowd is creative and global. In the lounge, artists sip espresso while flipping through design journals. At the in-house M’Art boutique, you’ll find collectible pieces from emerging designers and iconic names alike.
We stayed in two very different suites. One with a private terrace for sunrise cappuccinos, the other with its own plunge pool overlooking the Grand Canal. Both were moody and magnetic, with layered textures and lighting that makes you feel like you’re part of a Caravaggio.
What I loved: The sweeping views of the Rialto Bridge and Grand Canal from the hotel restaurant. The way the interiors challenge and delight at once. That sense of total immersion in a space that feels curated for the curious.
Violino d’Oro
Mood: Soft-spoken. Considered. Whispered elegance.
Recently reimagined, Violino d’Oro is for those who prefer subtlety over spectacle. The spaces are textured and tactile – brushed plaster, Murano glass, handcrafted textiles – yet nothing feels overdone. There’s a lived-in warmth to it all, like a private Venetian residence belonging to someone with impeccable taste and a generous heart. One who pours you a glass of Franciacorta the moment you walk in and insists you stay for another night.
The rooms are deeply comforting. Nothing flashy, nothing forced. A gentle palette of ivory, clay, and wood. Beautiful books on Venetian craft and culture.
Service is intuitive, the breakfast sublime with flaky pastries, heirloom ceramics, a slow start with views of a quiet canal just beyond the window.
What I loved: The truly personalized and kind service from every team member. A glass of bubbles handed off right at check-in. Supremely comforting room design and furnishings. Location next to Venice’s top shopping street.
Aman Venice
Mood: Cinematic stillness. Palatial calm. Fit for a Countess.
Aman Venice was an essential stop on our Venetian journey. The hotel occupies a 16th-century palazzo on the Grand Canal, but once inside, the hush is immediate. The light filters through centuries-old silk drapes. Murano chandeliers hover above frescoed ceilings. Every surface feels storied. Every detail is intentional.
We arrived for a private site visit and dinner, and found ourselves utterly transported. The public rooms, library, drawing room, salons, feel like scenes from a film, and yet they are never cold. There’s a softness to the grandeur here.
Dinner in the garden was a slow and exquisite procession. Each course arrived with the kind of elegant restraint that Aman does so well. Delicate, seasonal, and deeply satisfying.
Though Aman is a splurge, even a drink at the bar or tea under the wisteria-draped pergola is worth the experience. The pace here is slow. The beauty is overwhelming. The service, discreet and flawless.
What I loved: A massive mansion for just 24 suites. The various living areas, from the garden to the library to the bars – each one more posh than the next – make it hard to leave the hotel at all. And perhaps the most memorable detail of all, water guns delivered alongside our Negronis to keep the pigeons at bay. A perfectly Venetian touch.
Make it a Journey: Three Ways to Pair Venice
Some trips are destinations in themselves. Others are doorways to the kind of experiences you remember forever. Venice is both.
If you’re already dreaming in canals and cobblestones, here are three extraordinary pairings that stretch your itinerary, and change the story:
🚂 Venice + The Orient Express
Travel doesn’t get more romantic than this. Begin in Venice, then board the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express for an iconic rail journey through the Alps to London. Crystal glass, polished wood, and midnight-blue carriages set the stage for an unforgettable passage through time.
→ Experience the route
⛷ Venice + The Dolomites
Trade gondolas for gondolas of a different kind, this time on snow. After your days in Venice, head north to the Italian Alps for spring skiing, cozy Alpine design, and some of the best mountain cuisine in Europe. The Dolomites are spectacular in every season, but there’s a particular magic in the late winter bloom.
→ Ski into spring
🍴 Venice + Osteria Francescana
Pair your Venetian escape with one of the most extraordinary culinary pilgrimages in the world: a table at Osteria Francescana in Modena. Chef Massimo Bottura’s three-Michelin-starred artistry is as much a cultural experience as a meal, and the contrast between lagoon and land, simplicity and spectacle, is pure Italian poetry.
→ Savor the story
Final Thoughts
Venice is always worth returning to, but where you stay shapes how the city reveals herself to you. From the theatricality of Venice Venice, to the quiet embrace of Violino d’Oro, to the regal calm of Aman, each stay gave us a different lens through which to feel the city.
It’s the difference between watching Venice and being part of her. And that, always, is the goal.
