The Santa Chiara is very close to the Piazzale Roma, the large and ugly
square where the older parking garages are located and where buses arrive
and depart. There are two bus services from the Marco Polo Airport to
Piazzale Roma. The public bus is only about two euros a person, but it is
very crowded and uncomfortable. I would avoid it. For only slightly more you
can get the airport shuttle bus; this will let you off right in Piazzale
Roma, and from there you can walk to the Santa Chiara in five minutes. The
bus ride from the airport takes about 20 minutes. Tickets are available from
a booth near the main entrance of the airport.

Alilaguna runs a special vaporetto service from the airport to San Marco and
the Zattere for (I believe) 10 euros per person. This is a pleasant way to
arrive in Venice, but to reach the Santa Chiara you would then have to take
another vaporetto (at a cost of 5 euros plus an additional 3.50 euros for
luggage) to Piazzale Roma, making it both fairly expensive and inconvenient.
The bus is far easier.

There are also water taxis from the airport, but they are extremely
expensive. Do not even consider them unless money is no object for you.

In spite of its inherent ugliness, we find the Piazzale Roma a good place to
stay. Most of the hotels are separated from the Piazzale itself and are
surprisingly quiet and pleasant. And the location is just across the canal
from the train station. This, combined with the bus stops in the Piazzale,
makes it very convenient for day trips to nearby cities as well as
connections for further travel. The No. 1 vaporetto stops at Piazzale Roma
and goes to San Marco and the Lido; this is one of the best sightseeing
experiences in Venice. For times when you want a quicker trip, several other
vaporetto lines also stop there, making it convenient to reach from almost
any part of the city.

We just got back Saturday from the most recent of our numerous trips to
Venice. It was more beautiful than ever. We stayed at the Hotel Olimpia,
located very near Piazzale Roma and the Santa Chiara. We loved it; in fact,
this was our third stay at the Olimpia, and we will no doubt go back there
on our next trip. We have not been in the Santa Chiara, but from outside it
looks quite nice. There is quite a bit of construction in progress on that
part of the Grand Canal, but that should make little difference as far as
the hotel is concerned.

Hope you have as wonderful a time in Venice as we always have!

Linda and Ron



"Jean O'Boyle" wrote in message
om...
What is the most economical way to go from the Venice Airport to Hotel
Santa
Chiara? We'll have two large and two small suitcases with us, so we don't
want to schlep those for any distance.
Thanks for any help you might provide.

--Jean