Stayed at Bauer Palladio on a very sunny weekend at the end of March and had a brilliant experience. Let me first just say that the hotel was wonderful, I would recommend it to anyone visiting Venice. However it is definitely not 5*standard, more a good solid 4*, which is still very (very) good, but there is no point hiding this. Reasons why this is not 5* the furniture in the room (just a standard ensuite) was a bit thin on the grand, and looked a bit ropey. Plus no conditioner with the toiletries! I’m sorry but with current restrictions on how much liquid you can take on a flight I expect conditioner at even the most basic hotel. Also the cleaners were in and out in 4 minutes, and basically just folded the towels and made the bed. The hotel looks impressive, though you can tell it used to be a conference centre – massive rooms just filled with chairs, and the lifts were steel cages with material covering the walls.
Other than the cleaning the quality of service at the Palladio was exceptional – one very nice doorman (though a couple of gruff ones) and the dreadlocked shuttle boat driver was a really great guy. Check in and out was easy and fast. Had really good lounge areas (with big fire) and the garden was pretty. The breakfast is very good – a big choice, and it really sets you up for a days walking.
Do not use the mini bar or the restaurant, ridiculously overpriced (even for Venetian standards) –there are plenty of shops on the island, and you can buy bottles of prosseco for EUR 5, rather than spending 10 euros on a glass in the bar. The restaurants food sounded nice but was seriously expensive, and completely dead. We had one drink there and there was one other couple eating in silence. If you want a meal go to a restaurant about 5 mins away called “Residentia” or something similar, which is very authentic and served the best steak I’ve ever had, and I spend ridiculous amounts of money on food in London.
This sounds a bit moany, but I couldn’t have enjoyed the hotel more. Being away from the hubbub of San Marco was essential for us, and the little shuttle boat (5 mins top) was one of the best experiences of the whole trip.
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.