End of Tour and Onwards to Venice
Day 11 (cont) - May 29
We were dropped off at the Mestre Train Station by the taxi driver mid-afternoon on Monday. We made final good-byes as each group headed to their separate accomodations. I picked up another taxicab to take me to my hotel up near Marco Polo Airport. Stayed at a Courtyard by Marriott that had just opened about a month earlier. Still working the bugs out a little bit when I was there, but this should be a good hotel. Nothing fancy, but as most of my business travel is with Marriott hotels, it was a little comforting to be back into a somewhat familiar environment. By the time I settled in at the hotel it had started raining again and I was tired, so I went down to the fitness room and got a quick workout in, came back grabbed dinner and called it an early evening. Hoped that the rain would pass through and that I could visit Venice proper in some nicer weather tomorrow.
Tues - May 30
Unforutnately that was not to be. Tuesday morning dawned to more overcast skies and rain. Grabbed some breakfast, bought a bus fare at the hotel and went out to wait for the bus into Venice. Nothing really planned once I got there, figured that I would wander around take in the sites and play the weather by ear.
This is not a flashy hotel, or one that will conjure the romantic notions of Venice. But it is a nice hotel with comfortable rooms, a good restaurant on the property, and other decent amenities.
One quibble: the hotel had been open for only a few weeks when I stayed in May 2006 and they were still having some issues with the key cards for the rooms. I had to have my card re-keyed several times to get into my room during my brief stay. Hopefully this has been remedied in the last 18 months.
Bus service into Venice stops directly across the street and was €1, at the time of my stay, for a roundtrip fare to the central bus station.
If staying in Venice for an extended period of time, I might recommend staying somewhere in the area of Venice proper, but this hotel suited my needs, allowing me time to see the city while also providing easy access for my departure from Europe.
