Services

This convent is operated by the Suore di Salesie.

A well presented building of several floors around a peaceful internal courtyard surrounded by marble cloisters. Beautifully maintained guest rooms and sitting areas are comfortable with good facilities.

Mass is held every day at 7:00am.

Breakfast is included in the price. There are many dining options within walking distance of the venue.

Features

With a rich history, this lodging is listed as a "sacred site" of Venice. The architecture, from the cloistered courtyard to the terazzo feature floors provides a flavour of that rich history.

Getting Around

On main island of Venice, Dorsoduro. A 'Rio terra' just off the canal with easy access. Vaporetto stops for local and surrounding locations.  

History

Built in the 1400's and becoming the center of the Dorsoduro catecumeni in 1571 following the Battle of Lepanto. The building which has special significance in Venice's history was enlarged in the 1800's by Giorgio Massari, who extended the building into two wings joined by central the San Giovanni Battista Oratory.  

Customer Reviews

	I was very happy with my stay and would highly recommend this property to friends.
Kara - NY, United States (October 2012)

	Pleasant building, great location, room with all the features we needed.
Laurel - Newfoundland, Canada (September 2012)

	One cannot expect a better location than this convent – located in a quiet residential neighborhood, 5-minute walk to 2 vaporetto stops (Salute and Zattere). The convent is beautiful, quaint, clean, full of light, and well-maintained. The sisters are friendly and kind. My single room on the third floor was good-sized, super clean, well-furnished, and well-lid. Bed was comfortable. There was a sink in the room and the impeccably clean, modern, and spacious bathroom was right next door for my own use. Both the convent and the neighborhood are very quiet, although it is only one vaporetto stop from San Marco. I came back between 9pm to 10pm every night and felt completely safe. It was an excellent stay.
Olivia - CA, United States (September 2012)

	We loved it here! The location is out of the really touristy sections of Venice...which was WONDERFUL! It was nice to walk there after such a hustle of a day and be rewarded with some quiet! The sisters were so sweet and it was amazing how well they were able to communicate with us even though we did not speak each other's language at ALL!
Sara - TN, United States (June 2012)

	Lovely spot to stay. Very friendly and courteous nuns, despite little English for them and Italian for me, we were able to communicate the essentials. Even the strike by the water buses was conveyed to me on my departure day allowing enough time to walk back to the station. My only mild complaint was that the 'private bathroom' was not ensuite but in the adjacent room.
Christopher - Wellington, New Zealand (June 2012)

	Great location. Nuns were very friendly and helpful. Excellent directions with regards to vaporetto stop and walking instructions, just a little difficult to locate actual building as no visible name.
Karen - Queensland, Australia (June 2012)

	Lovely oasis of tranquillity in the heart of Venice. The nuns were very friendly and welcoming. No English spoken, so could be tricky for those with no italian. Lovely cloister garden and roof terrace.
Tessa - Northumberland, United Kingdom (June 2012)

	We greatly enjoyed our stay. It's a lovely place and the sisters are such a joy. Please remember they speak NO ENGLISH. The breakfast was not much. There is no A/C so if it is hot you will get eaten by mosquitos from leaving the windows open. It would be nice if they offered you a small fan for you room. Overall, we were very pleased and would visit again.
Kimberley - OK, United States (June 2012)

	Fantastic location, beautiful convent and the nuns are so friendly and helpfull.
Sergio - Victoria, Australia (May 2012)

	The sisters were excellent. Always friendly.
Thomas - New South Wales, Australia (April 2012)

	This proved an excellent choice. Perfect location, nice accomodations, great hospitality.
Ann - OR, United States (February 2012)

	The sisters were great even though they did not speak English or Spanish...they were very hospitable and the location was close to water taxis and connecting bridges throughout Venice...
Miguel - FL, United States (December 2011)

	Need to be aware that the Sisters do not speak English, however, their warm hospitality overcomes any challenges that may be encountered. Please ensure that if leaving before 6am that you make arrangements to get out of the building as I nearly got locked in. The location is fantastic, near Salute Boat stop and very peaceful and quiet, whilst still in the central part of Venice.
Danuta - Victoria, Australia (December 2011)

	Excellent breakfast.Very pleasant stay.
Kat - GA, United States (November 2011)

	The Instituto Catecumeni Venezia was a charming place, we felt welcomed and it was a great value.
C Danette - NY, United States (October 2011)

	The Sisters have no English (or French or German) and I only had the absolute minimum Italian - but we managed to communicate- more Italian for the quests may be better. We weren't quite sure how to gain access to the place as you had to ring a bell and use a speaker- I wasn't sure what to say- that was a bit tricky.
Yvonne - Tasmania, Australia (September 2011)

	The bed was very basic, very hard and the pillow was so hard as to be unpleasant. There was also no private bathroom as stated in the description and as paid for. The bathroom was beside the bedroom and although I was given a key, if it was not locked it was used by other people in the building and in the morning was always left unlocked by the cleaners.
Mary - , Greece (September 2011)

	The sisters were extremely helpful, hospitable and we felt very welcomed. The location was central and convenient we were able to visit all of our planned destinations by walking or using the public transit system. We will definitely come back again and highly recommend this facility for seniors and single women travellers.
Thomas - British Columbia, Canada (September 2011)

	The bathroom was not in the room, but was for our private use. I did notnotice that it was mentionned in the description.
Michel - Quebec, Canada (September 2011)

	The problem was the lack of any kind of cooling and hence the need to leave the windows open admitting both mosquitoes as well as music and lights from a hotel opposite. However the Institute was in an excellent position which made it excellent value for money (if only I could have slept a little better!). The other drawback was that it was always very difficult to find one of the Sisters, there did not seem to be any English speakers among them and my Italian is very basic. In one instance we were lucky to find one of the students who spoke English and able to interprete what I wanted to say after a fashion, but otherwise communication was a bit of a hit and miss affair. In the end it was very good value for an excellent location.
Mary - New South Wales, Australia (September 2011)

	Staying at this convent was a highlight of our trip. The nuns, not speaking a word of English, we most helpful and kind. Highly recommended!
David - New South Wales, Australia (June 2011)

	The nuns were great, the food and rooms were more than adequate.
ronald - OH, United States (June 2011)

	You can't expect anything better!
Giorgio - Trieste, Italy (June 2011)

	I thoroughly enjoyed my stay at the Istituto in Venice. It was in a great part of Venice, walking distance to San Marco piazza and the Academia and I could see Santa Maria della Salute from my window, but the area was a little less crowded than nearer San Marco. The guesthouse itself was charming and the rooms, while basic, had everything I needed for my stay. It was also just a little different than staying in your usual hotel or hostel. I highly recommend it.
Serene - Victoria, Australia (June 2011)

	I really enjoyed my stay here: the room was clean & comfortable, the location very convenient & quiet the nuns very kind but unobtrusive, my private bathroom across the hall almost as big as my bedroom! Breakfast is served in a dining room just for the guests, each table with a place card. In summer it could be tough here: No air conditioning, & the window shutters only open 2". (I was barely OK with the electric fan they supplied.) Also, they speak no English at all, only Italian
Carol - CA, United States (June 2011)

	Very nice
Penelope - Surrey, United Kingdom (May 2011)

	Very comfortable in a quiet section of Venice. It was a relief to escape the crowds staying there. Beautiful courtyard was under restoration so we could not use it but otherwise everything was excellent. Sisters were accomodating and helpful.
Mary - NY, United States (April 2011)

	Facilities were larger and more modern than expected. Continental breakfast was more extensive than small hotels. The location, the quiet and the cleanliness.
Jim - CA, United States (September 2010)

	Very well positioned, 2 waterbus stops from St. Marks, and still very quiet. Even though the nuns could speak no English, they did make every (patient) effort to communicate with us. Even though we enjoyed our stay here, this kind of accommodation would not suit every type of traveler.
Nicole - Victoria, Australia (September 2010)

	Wonderful location in Venice. Very, very pleasant. It was light and airy, very clean and delightful.
Mike - KS, United States (September 2010)

	Very good location, clean tidy and nice people I'd expected a hairdryer and tv - but these were not obviously available. Though it did not spoil anything
Helen - Surrey, United Kingdom (September 2010)

	We have stayed in Convents/Monasteries before. A great way to travel! It has a chapel, the sisters were great, and the locations was very good. No air conditioning, but not that I didn't already expect that. It was just that Venice was very hot then.
Mary Ann - Alberta, Canada (July 2010)

	Great location, very convenient. Clean rooms and bathroom. None of the nuns spoke a word of English so hard to ask questions. No hair dyer. Stiff mattress and scratchy sheets.
laurence - UT, United States (June 2010)

	We didn't have any idea what it would be like, so to be welcomed and accommodated so well created a wonderful and lasting impressions. The location was terrific. Close to everything, yet being across the Grand Canal to San Marco's meant that the hordes didn't invade. It was quiet at night and pleasant during the day. The sisters were extremely welcoming in a quiet dignified way and though we didn't speak much Italian and they less English, we all got on famously. The building was intriguing and beautiful. We also liked that it was a school and a boarding house for uni students. The place felt very alive. The single beds were just a little too narrow for absolute comfort. We were also a little anxious to find a place to eat, accomplish dinner and then get back in time for the 11pm curfew. If we'd been at home, 11pm would be certainly late enough, but as the evening meal in Italy is always so much later with the summer light, it was always on our mind. We never found ourselves in danger of being locked out, but there were some anxious moments. This was such an different travelling experience. I had been to Venice before and the Monastery stay added a new dimension to our return visit.
Janet - Western Australia, Australia (May 2010)

	The sisters were very friendly and welcoming. It was very close to everything. The vaporetto stop was just outside the monastery.
Maria Teresa - Victoria, Australia (May 2010)

	friendliness of the sisters sisters did not speak any english but we managed.
Patricia - New South Wales, Australia (April 2010)

	The venue is in a perfect location, next to the beautiful Basilica of Santa Maria della Salute, close to the vaporetti, on a quiet street. Although my room was small and simple, it was comfortable, with a spacious and well-equipped bathroom. The interior of the monastery is very grand and beautifully decorated, the nuns were very kind and gracious, and the breakfast was adequate, with excellent coffee. There was no cable or wireless computer connection available, which made it necessary to walk a long way to an internet cafe. I think the nuns could make some sort of arrangement with the hotel across the street to share their wireless connection, or they might consider installing one themselves. Also, one small criticism would be that the towels were very stiff and scratchy.
Shirley - CA, United States (October 2009)

	I was expecting a nice experience having stayed in a monastery before but this was even better, the position in venice was ideal- close to reach the sights but quiet at night and the welcome from the nuns was marvelous!
jacqueline - Victoria, Australia (September 2009)

	The nuns were absolutely charming. Charming nuns; good wholesome breakfast; fantastic location.
Matthew - , United Kingdom (March 2009)

	Very lovely accomodations. The nuns of the convent were very gracious, delightful and helpful. The accomodations were very lovely and the location was good. Yes, it was a very peaceful, pleasant and adequate place to stay in Venice, an expensive city.
Paula - FL, United States (July 2008)

	The facilities were lovely and the sisters kind and very welcoming. The rooms were great! Clean, en suite bathrooms and welcoming common areas for us to plan our days and for the kids (8-16 years old) to play cards. The sisters were wonderful! They were kind, made us feel welcome and loved our kids!! The location was quiet yet very easy to get around as there was a vaparetto stop very near and you could get to most all the sites on foot. Having the breakfast included was nice-breads, cereal, yogurt and cheese. The coffee was fabulous!! It was terrific Absolutely. We were 2 families traveling together and it worked beautifully!
susan - CO, United States (June 2008)

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