expert reviews of cheap hotels in Venice

From the moment you enter, quality reigns. Marble floors shine, Fortuny lamps glow, and a team of family and staff stand smilingly at attention.

The Montin's prime Dorsoduro location, mere minutes from the Galleria Accademia and Guggenheim collections, will win you over in a heartbeat.

Gianrico Scarpa and his family run the place as a hotel-gallery, at least that's how it feels. There's artwork at every corner—that of Signor Scarpa, his artist guests, and his friends.

A modest 13-room, family-run pension, the Albergo Doni resides in an early 19th-century building, with narrow hallways and creaky floors to boot.

Judging from the ordinary and slightly neglected entryway at this convenient Cannaregio hotel, we would never have imagined what awaited us inside. However, the Hotel Arcadia is not a book to be judged by its cover.

Located just off the Campo San Samuele, the Albergo San Samuele provides 10 cheapies, many of which are sunny and have views of the Campo.