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Back to San Rocco
Dear In Italy,
We loved staying @ San Rocco in Venice this summer. It was a great location and the recommendations from you about restaurants were right on target. The only problem was the floor in the upstairs queen bedroom was so slanted that we slipped halfway off the bed every night.
We plan to return to Italy and will definitely use your company again as well as telling our friends to use your services.
Many thanks,
Leslie C.
Dear In Italy,
We enjoyed our stay at the San Rocco apartment very much. There was a minor problem with the heating. Giulio
told us that if we just move the thermostat above 20 degrees, the heat would come on. After he left,
we tried that, but the heat did not come on. Luckily, the weather was not very cold, and we really didn't
need the heat. (And we could have always called Giulio on his cell phone, but we were just too lazy!) On
Thursday, I was playing around with the thermostat, and I pressed several of the buttons at once, and it re-started
the system and the heat came on.
As I said, this was not a problem for us because the weather was relatively mild. However, for future
winter guests, I suggest that they (and/or Giulio) make certain that the heat is working at the time of check-in. Had
it been 10 degrees cooler that week, the lack of heat would have been a problem.
As for "finds," I would like to submit our favorite local pizza place: It is called Venezia
Bruxelles, and it is located at #81 Salizada S. Pantalon, about a 3-minute walk from the apartment. They
offer a huge selection of Belgian beers as well as excellent pastas at reasonable prices, but their pizzas
area really noteworthy. We especially loved their gorgonzola/prosciutto/mushroom pizza. It comes
on a crispy crust that is as thin as a credit card. We often make this our first and our last meal in
Venice.
Cheers,
Richard P.
Dear In Italy,
We had a fantastic trip. Anyone going to Venice for any length of time, I would highly recommend the VeniceCard (3, 5, 7 days), for its unlimited vaporetto service and use of toilets, never mind the museum entry possibilities. Travel by train is highly recommended; it's very efficient and with the automatic reservation service when you purchase tickets, there's not the madhouse scramble for seats that there used to be on the highly travelled routes (Rome-Florence, Florence-Venice and vice versa).
Sincerely,
Bryan W.
Dear Jessica,
The two weeks we spent in Venice were splendid, in every way. As requested, we called Mr Rocca when we got off the taxi to tell him that we were on our way to the apartment. The map that was given for the location of the apartment is not very clear, therefore, we had to call him back because we could not find the little piazza where the door was but promptly, he was there. The apartment is wonderful, much more than we anticipated. All the windows, kitchen, bathrooms and closets are brand new and very good quality, I might add. All the appliances are new as well. The apartment was very clean, comfortable and we used the A/C the whole two weeks and when we left, we paid M. Rocca only 150$ for the electricity; so, it was not that expensive to use it and very necessary when the temperature is above 90 de.F. Every morning, when we opened the windows on the little piazza, there was the florist who was working on beautiful flower arrangements right beside the fountain; a wonderful sight...we could even enjoy the scent of the flowers... Close to many restaurants and one of the most famous churches, Santa Maria Dei Frari, we were awakened with church bells every morning, which is quite picturesque and different from our city environment. I do recommend anyone to stay there at least a week to truly understand and enjoy the quality of life of the Venetians.
Thank you again for offering such a nice place and be assured that for our next trip to Italy, you will be consulted and recommended to our friends.
Best regards,
Josée R.
P.S. There was even a gelato and pizza place next door...what more could we ask for!
Dear Jessica,
We very much enjoyed the San Rocco apartment May 11-18. It exceeded our expectations in almost every way. The kitchen was fully stocked (much more so than we expected), and the location was ideal. Not too touristy (for Venice) but close to so many sights. We immediately felt like locals.
A couple of suggestions and comments:
Our biggest source of anxiety leading up to the trip was our concern about actually finding the apartment itself, since addresses in Venice are so vague. We had nightmares of wandering aimlessly with the porters for hours looking for the place. It was a good thing we printed out a color photo of the view of the courtyard from the apartment (from your website). When we showed the map to the porter, he had no idea where it was. But when we showed him the photo of the courtyard, he knew exactly where it was. This is something you might want to pass on to future San Rocco renters.
Regarding the apartment, I suggest that you include instructions or translations on how to use the washer and dryer. Aside from being tremendously complicated (I doubt a Space Shuttle astronaut could figure it out), the buttons and dials are all labeled in Italian. (Imagine that!) We had no idea if we were getting hot water, warm or cold or on what cycle. I just threw the clothes and detergent in, pushed a few buttons at random and just hoped for the best. It really was quite confusing.
Regarding discoveries that could be passed on, I suggest that you advise renters about the nearby Campo S. Margherita. None of our tour books even mentioned this large piazza, which is quite close to the San Rocco apartment, but we found it by accident. It's a gem of a place! Full of friendly (non-touristy) cafes where we'd sit and drink prosecco, good restaurants, bars and stores. Plus they had a fruit and vegetable market most days where we'd get fresh produce. We found outselves spending a great deal of time at Campo S. Margherita. It was practical, pretty, local, laid-back and a great place to just sit and people-watch. I can't believe none of the tour books mention it.
Anyway, we had a great time and we loved the San Rocco apartment.
Best Regards,
Richard P.
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