Hotel Savoia & Jolanda — Hotel in Venice

Overall we had a great stay at this hotel, but would not recommend using the hotel concierge for services such as a private water tax or gondola ride.

Booked a junior suite and coordinated with the reservations department ahead of time for their only room that has an altana (Venetian Balcony). This balcony was amazing with a great view of the Grand Canal. The big thing to know in advance is that this room was built in what would be an attic, so you are under the hotel roof. The room does not have a shower, it only has a bath tub, and that bath tub is tucked under one of the pitches of the roof, so it really isn't possible to use the hand wand in the bathtub to shower. Well worth the lack of shower at this hotel for the balcony.

The concierge will arrange a free trip to/from a Morano Glass company for a tour. The glass in that company has prices which were very inflated, but a very neat thing to see.

The hotel will arrange a water taxi, which the cost starts at 140 euros each way, but you can arrange a private water taxi with a water taxi company for only 70 euros each way to/from the Venice train station.

I would HIGHLY recommend avoiding using the concierge for setting up a gondola ride. The gondola prices are posted everywhere in the city for 80 euros before 1900 and 100 euros after 1900 for a 35 minute ride. We requested a violin player on the gondola and the concierge set it up for us for an 1800 gondola ride. The price he arranged was 100 euros for the gondola and 130 euros for the violin player. I saw the signs posted about an hour prior to the ride and questioned him about the price and said that is the price. When I asked about moving the gondola after 1900, since I was already quoted the after 1900 price, he then got a price of 150 euros just for the gondola and another 150 euros for the violin player and said if I want romance I have to pay for it (I was traveling with several people and this certainly wasn't about romance). The concierge acted like he didn't know anything about gondola pricing (which maybe I would believe if this was his first day on the job) and told me if I didn't like the price he got I can try to renegotiate with the gondola company (located literally in front of the hotel). We didn't want to jeopardize not having the ride at that point so went thinking we were only being overcharged 20 euros. We later learned that we were overcharged 70 euros as the violin player only charges 80 euros for the ride, not the 130 euros we were charged. The violin player's name is Ivan and he was awesome. I would highly recommend booking a gondola ride and having him perform on the gondola for you, but know in advance his rate is only 80 euros for the approx. 35 minute ride, regardless of what time of day/night, not the 130 euro or 150 euro quote the concierge was arranging.

I am an avid traveler and from my experience at hotels all around the world, the hotel and the concierge are usually advocates for their guests and to help the guests avoid getting ripped off. This was not the case with the concierge here at this hotel, which I found extremely disappointing and the only real negative experience of this hotel.

I hope this helps future guests enjoy their stay in Venice and would certainly recommend staying here as the remaining hotel staff...

We booked an upgraded room with a larger space and a nicer bathroom, expecting a more comfortable stay. However, our experience was disappointing from the moment we checked in. When we approached the front desk and mentioned we were checking in, one of the staff members sighed and responded with a dismissive, “Well, I guess so…” We initially hoped this was a simple miscommunication, but things only got worse when we reached our room.

The room we were given was significantly smaller and more outdated than what we had booked. The bathroom was nothing like the modern one shown in the photos. Concerned that there had been a mistake, we returned to the reception to address the issue. Unfortunately, we were met with outright rudeness from the manager on duty.

The manager insisted that the room we received was correct and claimed that the photos on the website were “generic” and not representative of the actual rooms. He further remarked, “I’m not sure how they do it… wherever you’re from, but that’s how we do it in Italy.” I tried to explain that we simply wanted the room we had paid extra for, with the upgraded bathroom, but the manager responded in a passive-aggressive manner, saying, “If you don’t like the room, you could just say that.”

After much back and forth, he finally moved us to the room we had originally booked. While the porter who assisted us was kind and friendly, offering much-needed help, our experience was marred by the rude behavior of the reception staff and manager. To make matters worse, the elevator went out of order during our stay, and we had to carry our luggage down four flights of stairs during check-out. This lack of communication and consideration added to an already frustrating experience.

Overall, while the hotel itself is acceptable, the attitude and behavior of the reception staff and manager made our stay completely unenjoyable. I would not recommend this hotel to others based on...

We stayed here from the 5th-8th of April expecting a romantic get away for the two of us and if I could give anyone some advice about this hotel it would absolutely be DO NOT STAY HERE! The hotel was a state: there were holes in the ceiling, plaster chipped off the wall and damp spots and stain everywhere on the ceilings and floors. The room was TINY - only big enough for a twin bed and shimmy space around, forget taking in a suitcase unless you want to trip over it all the time. The room was so warm - it was an absolute sweat box, it felt claustrophobic because of the heat and the refusal to turn on the air conditioning because it’s bad for the environment but running a heated towel rail 24/7 in 23 degree heat is apparently fine! Our view was terrible, looking into a construction site, and any time we did open the patio door the bugs came flooding in and we were bitten alive! We could hear EVERYTHING - the construction, our neighbours, the cleaning staff bumping the hoover against walls and our room door, anyone moving around anywhere near us could be heard clear as day. The staff weren’t particularly charming either. The majority gave off faulty towers vibes and when we went to the desk to ask questions they either just told us to search it online or gave us vague idiosyncrasies that didn’t help us in the slightest. For a four star hotel where we paid in excess of £350 a night to be there I would have expected WAY more that a sweaty box full of bugs with less than helpful staff, I would get better service staying at a b’n’b back home. If you have any other options please do not stay here, you are essentially paying to be a 2 minute walk from san Marco square but it is...