WE stayed 2 nights at Hotel Spagna in Venice, Italy. Clean, comfortable room in a 3 star hotel which is 2 minutes from the train station and 5 minutes from the bus station. Very centrally located for shopping, and sightseeing. Friendly staff. Breakfast included.

With Italian hotels, you get what you pay for. If you buy a three star room and expect five star amenities, you will be disappointed. Also, there is inconsistency across Italy about what constitutes a three star hotel; I would classify the level of quality here as two stars. This hotel is far inferior to many I stayed at in Milan. However, there appears to be star inflation throughout Venice.

Booking:

Two nights (Friday and Saturday) in a double room (which were two single beds pushed together). I was placed on the first floor where the lobby is.

Rate:

120 Euros Per Night with a Venice tax of 3 Euros Per Night

Positives:

1) The price is reasonable.

2) I arrived late (after 11pm) on the train so the closeness to the train station and price were key.

3) Free breakfast. It was served from 8am to 10am. I did not try it so I can not speak to its quality.

4) Close to a main water bus stop.

Negatives:

1) Internet did not work at all in the hotel. I spoke to the staff and they said they did not have any control over it. This was a big inconvenience for business travellers going to Milan on the weekend.

2) Rooms were very dated. It was a forest green color through with upholstered walls. I was alone, but would have been very unromantic if I brought my spouse.

3) Venice becomes quiet after 10:30 pm or 11 pm with most places closed. I wanted to watch TV since no internet but the only English channel I could find was BBC News. More than 200 Italian channels though. This is not a big problem as I did not come to Venice to watch TV.

4) Some of the staff at night did not speak English well although the staff in the morning were better.

5) Showers were tiny. I am over six feet tall and had trouble moving around in there.

6) Other than the train station, not next to most of the main tourist sites.

7) Lobby and the room had a musty smell. (It was pretty strong on the steps to the lobby). I hear this is common to hotels in Venice but I can not confirm.

Conclusion:

I would book this for no more than one night due to the proximity train station. I would then check out and move to a better place. It would be more expensive but this hotel is economy.

Street facing triple room on third floor.

Good sized clean room. Desk. 2 desk type chairs. Small LCD TV with load of chanels - just BBC World News and CNN in English though. Shower cubicle small / No bath. Stayed 4 nights - hot water all days bar one morning. Air Con worked well. Double glazed windows which closed noise out well. Room safe. Fully carpeted with avocado green padded fabric covered walls......

Decent location - only one bridge to cross from Piazalle Roma buses / none to cross from the train station - so good for early morning departures. Near to Water Bus stop / ticket office. Very busy street aimed at tourists but quiet on third floor with windows closed. Good restaurants and lots of shops close by. Prices for basics vary greatly in nearby shops so shop around. 10 minute walk to supermarket with sensible prices (turn right out of door and follow the main drag).

Breakfast: Well done croissants (not burned) with fruit (apple?) filling. Pre-packed french toast and crackers. Jams, honey, preserves and a bin for your wrappers. Cereals in 2 individual packs - some sort of mueseli and corn flake type. Needed to ask for a bowl and milk for cereal and tea. breakfast room is very small - some had to wait, we were lucky. May have to wait for tables to be cleared.

Room Mini Bar / Fridge: There isn't one. Thomas Cook and Expedia say all rooms have one. Reception told me they've stopped as too many guests argued about what they had used from it. The desk where it would have been was screwed closed.

Staff were polite and helpful. Had to pay the new Venice bed tax which would apply in all hotels. We already knew about it as Thomas Cook/Expedia/WWTE had emailed us, but reception didn't mention it when we checked iin. (One Euro per star per person per night - Spagna is 3Star).

Stayed in Venice for three days in Late June 2011 with my wife and our two teenaged sons. Hotek Sagna offered the only "quad" room I could find. Hotel is a short walking distance from the rail station and the light rail system that brings you to the public parking island. The room did sleep four: Queen sized bed and two cots. Room was tight, but comfortable, for the four of us, but all it was used for was for sleeping and showering. Shower stall is INCREDIBLY small in the quad room. 24 inches across (see picture of my sneakers in shower). European breakfast was complimentary and very satisfying. Didn't notice any noise from street below and we were on 2nd floor. Hotel Spagna remined me of some of the older botique hotels that still exist in NYC near Grammercy Park, but with fewer finishing touches. Wireless internet was an abomination and hotel wasn't much help with it because they farm it out to a third party. Rooms are clean, but a bit dated. Cable TV had two English speaking channels and thousands of channels overall. Check in and check out were a breeze. This hotel was perfect for what we needed and was reasonably priced, but if you are looking for creature comforts, look elsewhere. Given the price differential associated with booking a second room for the boys, I'd stay here again in a heartbeat. If I was just staying with my wife, I'd look elsewhere.