A grand choice

A couple of negative reviews (although in the minority) caused us some concern about the hotel, but the majority was correct. Everything was fine and the staff pleasant and helpful. Our room was spacious by European standards and we were able to get a canal view with a balcony which was very nice. The only drawback is the location which is away from most of the "tourist sites", dining and shopping so we ended up eating at the hotel dining room twice - but it was excellent.

The Best

The staff was what you would call perfect! They were so friendly and helpful in every possible way. The room we had was right on the canal and was oh sooo beautiful. The place was clean and the food was exceptional. When I return to Venice for two weeks next year this will be the place I'll call home.

Excellent Hotel

This hotel was by far the best hotel my girlfriend and I stayed in

between Venice, Paris and London. It was mid June of '03 and we were on

the 2nd floor overlooking the Grand Canal. It was an excellent deal as

well on expedia. It also allowed us to get a feel for a different part

of the city besides San Marco and Rialto. The room was a decent size

and all the amenities were nice. On the beautiful summer evening that

we stayed there we left the windows open and fell asleep to the

soothing sound of the canal below, which was extremely relaxing.

Breakfast was good and plentiful, and the hotel staff all spoke fluent

English, making it easy to get what we needed.

The water taxi made for easy access around town, but make sure you pay for the day because even though it looks easy to get around for free you can be fined, as I was (30 euro after bargaining with the city official from 60 euro).

If we went back we would stay in the Rialto section of town as it was

our favorite, and also less pricy than San Marco for food, drink and

souvenirs, etc. But overall the hotel worked perfect for us.

Very Disappointing

My wife and I took a chance on this hotel based on the glowing reviews (and ignored the one negative review). We found a rate between Euro 250-300 on hotels.com and cross-referenced back to this site for information about the hotel. In hindsight, we wished we paid heed to the negative review because it was right on the money.

Upon arrival just before noon, the room was not ready and our bags were checked and we were told we would be in a certain room number. Later when we returned, we were given another room number -- no big deal, right? Well, we decided to catch a short nap when suddenly the door was opened and their stood the bellman and other guests staring in at us.

The bellman quickly apologized and closed the door. Immediately the front desk called and apologized again and then asked my my name and when we checked in!!!!! Very incompetent!!

The room was the tiniest of any I had seen in Italy and I quite literally had to squeeze into the shower. (I scalded myself several times as I turned in the shower and hit the controls.) The walls were truly paper-thin as I learned at 5 a.m. when the shower in the next room was turned on. The room's decor and fixtures were quite dated and it had a tiny 13" television.

Over and over again, the hotel tried to push a "free" trip to Murano to see the glass-making factories. Having been forwarned by every guidebook to avoid these "free" trips, I declined the trip, but the hotel was intent on pushing it anyway.

Breakfast was adequate, although the setting looking out over the canal was nice.

When we checked out very early in the morning to catch a flight, we saw that the front doors were locked and a locked steel gate was drawn in front of the doors. The desk receptionist had to fumble about to find the key to open the steel gate to let us out.

Venice is an expensive place, and the price of this hotel was probably in line with the prices there, however, it most certainly was not a four-star hotel by any stretch of the imagination. This hotel is for bargain hunters who want to stay on the island and not for the traveller who enjoys a few ammenities.

Good location, nice room

Exit the train station, turn left and the hotel is a short walk. Rooms were comfortable and well decorated. The front desk arranged for our gondola ride that picked up and dropped off at the hotel dock.

Vaporetto service is across from the train station for quick trips to St. Marks and Murano.

Best Hotel of our Italian Tour!

Our party had two rooms and we all loved this hotel. We got an unbelievable expedia rate that made this the cheapest hotel across Italy. We went in early June during an unseasonable heatwave (mid 90s) and the excellent working air condtion was a treat. The main lobby was beautiful. The rooms were very spacious for Venice standards. We had been previuosly to a 5-star hotel near San Marco, and these rooms had more room and atmosphere. Our room faced the street and the double paned windows blocked all street noise. We opened and closed them in amazement. Although a 40 minute walk to San Marco (Venice is made for meandering) the public vaperettos and water taxis are 2 minutes away, and the hotel has its own private water taxi dock. We used the trains and appreciated the 4 minutes walk from the station.

Exceeded Expectations

A lovely hotel, ideally situated, with friendly and courteous staff. The rooms were clean, tidy and well decorated showing none of the usual signs of wear and tear. The room service was attentive but not obtrusive and linen was changed at least twice a day if used. the only draw back was the inability to make tea/coffee in the room. The breakfast quality and quantity were excellent as was the restaurant terrace and it's views (providing you don't mind sharing your crumbs with the local bird life) !! Make sure you pay the extra for a canal side view with balcony, it's well worth it. Try room 318 if you can.

Poor value for money

If you do stay at this hotel, bring your earplugs: the walls are paper thin! Service was mixed: at times pleasant and professional, but at times positively surly. I'm sure the room was the height of fashion in the 1970's, but by now it seems run down and badly in need of renovation. It could have been cleaner too. On the positive side, the room was quite spacious and breakfast was decent (except for the coffee, which is actually Nescafe), served in a beautiful room overlooking the canal. At luxury prices, this place was a ripoff.

Amazing Hotel Principe

We stayed at the Grand Hotel Principe, last february, it was great value for money on all counts. The rooms are delightful and we had a wonderful view of the grand canal from our bedroom. The breakfast is unlimited hot and cold food of all descriptions. Dinner in the evening is excellent, and not too expensive by comparission with other similar hotels in the city. The staff are all helpful and curteous, even the chambermaid understood enough english to understand a request for extra pillows etc.The concierge arranges excursions to the islands leaving from the hotel's own grand canal landing stage. The dining room manager treated us like regular extravagant patrons, even moving tables so we could have one with a canal view.We liked it so much we are going back with our children next week.