You’re about to visit Venice for the first time, but how to pick a hotel?

The growth of the social Internet – where communities of participants exchange views and information online – has also seen an increase in the number of website offering travellers the opportunity to rate their experiences. One outcome of this has been an explosion of the number of personal reviews of hotels and other accommodation. I know, because I’ve posted quite a few reviews myself. 

Now, if you look at the ratings of a hotel, you may find fifty, or a hundred and fifty reviews, depending on the popularity and location of the hotel. The reviews will typically range from five star to one star, depending on how good the experience of the reviewer was. The site will then average all the reviews to give an establishment say, three and a half stars, or four, and so on, giving the reader an instant idea of what the standard of the hotel is.

However with so many rated hotels, so many reviews, and a limited time to make a choice, how to you work through these ratings? To complicate things more, a hotel will almost without exception have review ratings that vary from one star to five. How can people stay at the same hotel and have such divergent experiences? I’ve read reviews on the Danieli in Venice, probably THE place to stay, and can’t believe people having nothing good to say about it.

And then, increasingly, there’s the issue of fraudulent reviews. Some hotels are even in a ‘review war’ with their opposition, posting nasty and glowing reviews on respectively their opposition’s and their own hotels. Sneaky, isn’t it? Sometimes it’s simple ignorance. I once told a guest house owner, who was fairly new to the Internet, about a review site, and he promptly Read the rest of this entry

Are you a cat person? Then you’ll love Venice! La Serenissima – the Serene One, as Venice is lovingly called by its huamn inhabitants – is also home to a community of friendly felines. They seem to have taken it upon themselves to perform a kind ‘meet and greet’ service to visitors, particularly those that have a soft spot for the purry kind.

Almost without exception a Venice cat will give up its spot in the sun (at least temporarily) to saunter over to a friendly-looking stranger for a quick rub and chit-chat.Judging by the general demeanor of Venice kitties they’re mostly well-looked after and quite content to be living surrounded by waterways and splashing boats.

'Beware of the cat'

So when you’re passing through Venice, make a point of saying hello to a cat or two. They fancy that!