Thanks to the many helpful reviews on tripadvisor, we stayed at the Hotel Bucintoro during our trip to Italy in January and were very pleased with our choice. Since this was our first trip to Venice, I decided to upgrade to a Jr. Suite (Room 101) that overlooked the Campanile at Piazza San Marco (about a 10 minute walk over half a dozen bridges) and the Lagoon. Wow! What a view! While the view of this major tourist attraction is great, the hotel is located just far enough away to be away from the crowd. As others have noted, the room was very well appointed with a nautical theme. I did not see any standard rooms for comparison, but, the size of this Jr. Suite was about the size of a typical single King room in the U.S. The breakfasts were typically European and quite tasty. We found the staff to be very friendly and accommodating. Also on the plus side was the fact that this hotel is just a short walk over one bridge (with an unsightly but handy temporary ramp) from the Arsenale water bus stop. We debated between taking a water taxi or the Alilaguna water bus from the airport. Since we were nearing the end of our 10 day trip Italy we opted to save some Euro's and take the Alilaguna service (EU$15 one-way or EU$25 round trip per person - tickets available inside the airport near baggage claim). While the water taxi would have been nicer and a bit quicker (20 min vs about an hour), we rather enjoyed the boat ride and actually started and ended at virtually the same place as the water taxi. On the slightly negative side, the hotel is very small. The friendly front desk clerk is literally located about 1 meter from the front door. We didn't spend much time at the hotel, so, this wasn't a big deal to us. Also, there is no restaurant at this hotel. We were hungry when we arrived at about 3:30 p.m. (not a great time to find an open restaurant in Italy) and room service would have been great! Lastly, we had a slight issue with the heating system on the first night. This was corrected the next day. Overall, the quality of the accommodations and the view make the Hotel Bucintoro a very good choice in Venice, especially if you want to be close to the action, but, away from the crowd. Enjoy!

I was in Venice for last year's Carnevale and Bucintoro proved to be perfect for the occasion. It's virtually in front of the Arsenale stop so very easy to find. San Marco is only minutes away yet it is in the Castello district where I appreciated the quiet to recharge away from the madness of the more touristy areas. My suite was basically a large room for Venice. The porthole shaped window looked out to the grand canal, which is a distinctive feature on the exterior of the hotel. Service was excellent and as was the typical Italian continental breakfast.

We stayed at Hotel Bucintoro for a long weekend in January. Overall, I would recommend as it is in a great location (really close to the ferry drop off) and has lovely views. With a few improvements, I would give it a higher mark.
The rooms were clean and tidy but extremely small. We have stayed in a lot of hotels all over Italy but these were definitely the smallest. The decor was nice- decorated like the inside of cabins. It would have been nice to have the housekeeping staff turn down the beds at night whilst we were out (this only happened during the day).
The bathroom could do with a few improvements. The shower was not powerful at all and there was no bath which would have been a nice addition. Bathrobes would also have been nice.
The staff were really friendly and helpful.
I really enjoyed the breakfast which was continental (selection of lovely croissants, cakes, boiled eggs, meats, breads etc) but my husband would have preferred a selection of hot items too. You could pay extra, i think 6 euros for scrambled eggs, but this would have been nice to have been included.
Overall, we enjoyed Venice- would recommend a visit to the Dogges Palace and Peggy Guigenheim gallery- and definitely a gondola ride (although pricey, we paid 80 euros). We enjoyed some nice meals, lovely seafood, but again very expensive. We loved the coffee bars and the great selection of chocolate and cakes they offered and try the spritz drink that Venecians drink, I loved it!

An exquisite, small hotel with wonderful views of San Marco and the Grand Canal. I loved the high-style, ship-like decor: compact rooms with shiny wood panelling and clever built-ins. The breakfast room was lovely. Tiny lounge off the equally tiny lobby, though in summer you'd want to have your drink outside. It's reassuring to know that no matter how lost you get searching for this scuola or that trattoria, you can easily find your way back to Bucintoro. Just follow the quai down from San Marco just past Aresenale. Go just beyond the hotel and you come to the wonderfully residential Castello district. Although internet is free, one is required to get a new and very long password every day, a separate one for each device.