Hotel Principe ★★★★

Forget a Rolls-Royce and red carpet. Cancel the helicopter and secret-service entourage; there can be no more stylish way to make an arrival than by gondola to the private water entrance of a 15th-century Palazzo. The Hotel Principe ***** is located in one of the oldest buildings in the city, the Palazzo Calbo-Crotta, which looks onto the Grand Canal. It dates from the 15th century, and is full of Gothic charm. It’s convenient as well, being just two hundred metres from the Santa Lucia railway station, close to the vaporetto -or water-bus – stop, and 2 kilometres from St Mark’s Square. It also sits on Lista di Spagna, a lively and colourful street.

Sumptuous fabrics in warm colours, marble floors, heavy curtains and delicate chandeliers characterise the typically Venetian interior. The hotel has 139 rooms of various types; we have a Superior room with a canal view. The style of the rooms ranges from relatively simple to wonderfully ornate. Ours is elegant in shades of cream and white, with antique furniture and marble detailing in the bathroom. There is a shower and a bathtub, a definite luxury. Best of all is the breathtaking view of the Grand Canal, which I return to again and again. The room also has a mini-bar, safe and an LCD TV with satellite and pay-per-view channels which we decide never to switch on, for fear of breaking the spell cast by the romance of the surroundings.

St Mark’s Square is just 2 kilometres away and can be easily reached by vaporetto. The waterbus stop is right next to the hotel, and a few stops in one direction or the other takes you directly to the major attractions of the city. Visit St Mark’s Basilica, marvel at the Doge’s Palace and then admire the Rialto Bridge. Stop for lunch in a trattoria, before taking a boat tour through the city’s winding waterways; pass squares filled with Gothic palaces and churches - like Campo Santa Maria – before exploring the secret charms of quieter minor canals. You can’t spend a day in an Italian city without a stop for ice-cream, and Alaska Gelateria offers divine artisanal gelato; try the rose or the fresh Sicilian lemon...

On our first night we decide to stay in and enjoy all that the Hotel Principe has to offer, starting with a glass of chilled champagne in the hotel’s gourmet restaurant, Sivoli. The elegant cream and white dining room complete with chandeliers and touches of gilt, opens onto a terrace where white linen-covered tables sit under a canopy. Greenery from planters gives you privacy while you sit and watch Venetian life unfold on the Grand Canal. The seasonal menu offers Venetian specialties as well as international dishes, accompanied by a range of Italian and international wines. I’m tempted by the slices of beef with rosemary and grilled vegetables, followed by the amaretto ice-cream cake. All that’s left then is to finish off the champagne and head in to the hotel’s very own casino... and I’m feeling lucky.