We arrived in Venice on December 23 for 3 nights at the Paganelli with our 2 teenaged granddaughters. We were dropped by our water taxi in front of the hotel. Our rooms were on the 2nd floor with the view of the Grand Canal pictured on the website. The bathrooms were well appointed with modern fixtures; the rooms were roomy for Europe and the beds were very comfortable. We had no noise problems from adjoining rooms nor from the street level. Each morning's breakfast in the annex (very few steps to get there) was plentiful; the staff was attentive and the coffee & cappucino were quickly delivered. The only negative was the carpet in the common areas of the main hotel (did not see the hotel portion of the annex) needed to be replaced or at least thoroughly cleaned.

Stayed for 4 nights in January. Friendly staff, good breakfast. Kept our luggage for us after check out. Would happily stay there again. Wonderful.

If location is your main criterion, you cannot go wrong with this hotel. It really is very close to St Mark's Square, yet it doesn't cost a fortune. Don't expect five star luxury or services, but you will receive a friendly welcome and good service from the front desk.

Our room was on the top floor of the main hotel (the one that opens up onto the Riva degli Schiavoni). It was the smallest of all the rooms on that floor, and its balcony faced onto the hotel courtyard rather than the Riva, but that was all I expected. I had booked the hotel on a tight budget, and received a very good deal for the room. Despite being the smallest room, it was certainly big enough for the two of us.

The bed was comfortable (could have done with another pillow though). The bathroom had no bath - but the shower cubicle was spacious and the water was hot. As usual with Italian hotels, there was a bidet in the bathroom; I've never yet used one, so can't comment on its effectiveness :-)

We had a built-in wardrobe in our room, but no other storage at all. Not to worry, we were able to hang our clothes up to de-crease - and the rest of the clothes we left in our main suitcase, perched on the supplied suitcase stand. Perfetto!

The room came with a safe for our valuables.

The room also had a balcony, which would have been lovely in the summer - for sitting out and sipping some wine, I guess. But this was January, and very cold, so the balcony was pretty pointless.

Breakfast was taken in a different building, just around the corner. It was adequate, and quite tasty. Bread and croissants were always fresh, the cold meats were okay (salami and ham), and there were cereals and cold hard-boiled eggs available too. Coffee or tea was offered on entry - and they didn't skimp on quantity in that respect. If you have ever stayed in a hotel in Germany or Holland, you will recognise the style of the breakfast. Personally, I would have liked some hot food, but as it turned out, it wasn't required.

My only gripe was the presence of what I can only assume was a night-light high up on one of the walls. It was permanently on, giving out a bright green light through the night. I could find no way to turn it off, so I stuck a plaster over it, to reduce the glare. Please be aware, I am unusual in that I need a pitch black room to sleep in - probably because I have always lived in the country where pitch black nights are the norm - and I may be over-sensitive to such night-lights. But my first night in the hotel was very difficult for me until I found the sticking plaster solution.

I would heartily recommend this hotel to anybody, whether on a budget or not. If my finances permit it and I have an opportunity to stay in venice once more, I shall insist on using this hotel once again.

The hotel is right on the main waterway, making it incredibly convenient. It was quiet and the breakfast was very decent. Only 5 minute walk to St. Mark square and only 12-15 minute easy walk through shopping/eating areas to Rialto bridge.

Unfortunately, the hotel didn't meet our expectations. Last year we stayed at Best Western Hotel Ala near Paganelli (on the other side of St. Mark's Square), and we should have done that again. My parents stayed in the room next to us, and had several issues with their room - not being able to get the internet signal, problems with the heater (their room was much colder than ours), a moderate leak in the bathroom sink... of the several issues, the only issue the hotel helped with was the leak in the bathroom which never got fully fixed. For the rest of the issues, the hotel reply was a nice, but not very helpful, apology. Our room, even in January, had a mosquito problem (with windows closed the whole time, so they must be hibernating inside the room somewhere). My parents' room did not have a mosquito problem. I'm not saying you shouldn't stay here, but the location and convenience should be balanced with the negatives as well. I would want to rate it 2.5, but I gave it a 3.