In this guide
💡 The Short Version: The closest hotels in this guide to St Mark’s Square are Splendid Venice (about 210 m), Hotel Monaco & Grand Canal (230 m) and Danieli, which reopened on 26 August 2026 as a Four Seasons hotel (270 m). The Gritti Palace and Nolinski Venezia each hold two Michelin Keys. The Square is the first ground to flood, from about +80 cm, and the New Year’s Eve fireworks were not visible from it in the Comune’s 2025 to 2026 notice. The Basilica ticket is €10 online only. Prices change with the dates, so check yours on Hotels.com. Or book a ticket: the Doge’s Palace Reserved Entry Ticketad is from €35.
What the Square is like to sleep near
The Riva degli Schiavoni at the Riva Ca’ di Dio, east of St Mark’s Square. Photo: AnatolyPm, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
The Square, the Basilica, the Doge’s Palace and the Campanile are within a few streets of every hotel here. Distances are straight lines from the hotels to the Square, so a walk is longer: Venice’s canals have fewer bridges than the map suggests, and the hotels in Dorsoduro are across the Grand Canal. The Square is the lowest ground in the city, where acqua alta starts at about +80 cm: see acqua alta in Venice.
Eating or sitting on bridges, church steps, wells and quaysides is banned, especially round the Square, with fines of €25 to €500 under the Comune’s Enjoy Respect rules. Caffè Florian runs paid concerts at its tables in the Square, and the cover charge (coperto) is printed on every menu, so ask about it before you sit.
The Basilica refuses rucksacks and bags over 40 x 30 x 20 cm and all wheeled cases, so leave luggage at the hotel on the day: see St Mark’s Basilica tickets. The tickets for the Doge’s Palace and the Campanile are in Doge’s Palace tickets and St Mark’s Campanile tickets, and the free hours are in free things to do in Venice.
The hotels
The links go to the hotel on Hotels.com, except the Danieli, which links to the Four Seasons site. Michelin’s Keys are the guide’s own ratings for hotels, and “Selected” means a hotel is in the guide without a Key. Where to stay in Venice compares the other areas.
Up to 250 m
Splendid Venice
About 210 m · 760 Mercerie · 165 rooms · Michelin Selected · Hotels.comad
On the Mercerie, the shopping street between the Square and the Rialto. The lobby opens onto a glass-roofed courtyard, there is a private dock for water taxis and gondolas, and the rooftop terrace has a view of the Campanile.
Hotel Monaco & Grand Canal
About 230 m · San Marco 1332 · four stars · Hotels.comad
Palazzo Dandolo, where the Ridotto gambling rooms opened for Carnival, with an entrance from the water. The Ristorante Grand Canal has a terrace on the canal, and some suites have terraces with a canal view.
250 to 400 m
Danieli, Venezia, A Four Seasons Hotel
About 270 m · Riva degli Schiavoni · 120 rooms and suites in 2026, 176 in 2027 · fourseasons.com
Three palaces on the lagoon front: the 15th-century Palazzo Dandolo, the Casa Nuova and the 1950 Danieli Excelsior. It reopened on 26 August 2026, no longer in Marriott’s Luxury Collection. Many rooms face the lagoon, Terrazza Danieli is the rooftop restaurant and bar, and the spa is due to open in late 2026.
The Danieli on the Riva degli Schiavoni. Photo: Armin Kleiner, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Violino d’Oro
About 300 m · Calle Larga XXII Marzo 2091 · 32 rooms · one Michelin Key · Hotels.comad
A family-owned boutique hotel with everything made in Italy, from the Murano glass to the art. Il Piccolo is its restaurant and bar, with a modern Venetian menu and an emphasis on vegetarian cooking.
The St. Regis Venice
About 330 m · San Marco 2159 · 163 rooms · Michelin Selected · Hotels.comad
Four buildings on the Grand Canal that have been a hotel since 1895. Gio’s has a terrace over the canal, and there is an Art Bar and a chandelier by Ai Weiwei in the Grand Salon.
Nolinski Venezia
About 340 m · Calle Larga XXII Marzo 2032 · 43 rooms · two Michelin Keys · Hotels.comad
In what the hotel calls the former Venetian Stock Exchange, now with Art Nouveau and Stile Liberty interiors. The Library Bar and the spa are on site, and the hotel’s neighbours on the street are Ferragamo and Armani.
400 to 600 m
H10 Palazzo Canova
About 490 m · Riva del Vin 744 · 61 rooms · Michelin Selected · Hotels.comad
A restored 19th-century palazzo on the Grand Canal a few doors from the Rialto Bridge. There is no spa. The rooftop bar, La Terrazza, looks up and down the canal.
Hotel Bisanzio
About 510 m · Calle della Pietà 3651 · four stars · Hotels.comad
A 16th-century palazzo that was the home and workshop of the sculptor Alessandro Vittoria, on a calle off the Riva degli Schiavoni. The suites round the Ca’ Bollani court are in a newer wing.
The Gritti Palace
About 520 m · Campo Santa Maria del Giglio 2467 · 82 rooms · two Michelin Keys · Hotels.comad
A 15th-century palazzo on the Grand Canal, the home of Doge Gritti, with antique furnishings and Murano glass in every room. The seasonal Gritti Terrace has tables at the water’s edge, and the Gritti Epicurean School runs classes and tastings.
Corte di Gabriela
About 540 m · Calle degli Avvocati 3836 · 10 rooms · one Michelin Key · Hotels.comad
A refurbished 19th-century building between the Square and the Rialto, with exposed beams, Eames furniture and a courtyard under a wisteria. Breakfast is à la carte.
SINA Centurion Palace
About 570 m · Dorsoduro 173 · 50 rooms · Michelin Selected · Hotels.comad
A former convent at the mouth of the Grand Canal, on the Dorsoduro side. The suites with balconies over the canal have the best views, and the Salute and the Punta della Dogana are close by. The Square is across the water.
600 to 850 m
Ca’ di Dio
About 780 m · Riva Ca’ di Dio 2181 · 66 rooms · one Michelin Key · Hotels.comad
A house in the Arsenale district round three courtyards, looking over the lagoon. The hotel is away from the Square crowds, and VeRo – Venetian Roots, a Michelin Selected restaurant, is on site.
Palazzina Grassi
About 820 m · Ramo Grassi 3247 · 25 rooms · Michelin Selected · Hotels.comad
The hotel says it is the only five-star hotel in Italy designed by Philippe Starck. It is on the Grand Canal in the quiet San Samuele part of San Marco, beside Palazzo Grassi, and has a rooftop terrace.
Arriving by water
The Rio di San Moisè, a side canal in San Marco. Photo: h_laca, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0.
Three of these hotels have a water entrance: Splendid Venice has a private dock, Hotel Monaco & Grand Canal is entered from the canal, and Palazzina Grassi has a private water-taxi dock.
Before you book
- The tourist tax. €4.50 a night in a four-star hotel and €5.00 in a five-star in the historic centre, for the first five nights, with children under 10 free and ages 10 to 16 half: see where to stay in Venice.
- The Basilica. Tickets go on sale 90 days before the visit. On Sundays the Basilica opens at 14:00 and the Museum and the Loggia dei Cavalli are open in the morning.
- Carnival. Piazza San Marco has a programme during Carnival, from 23 January to 9 February 2027: see Venice Carnival 2027.
- New Year’s Eve. The Comune’s notice for 2025 to 2026 put the fireworks in front of the Arsenale and said they were not visible from the Square.
- The way in. Venice airport to the city and Venice public transport cover the boats and buses to the nearest stops.
For what to book before you go, see Venice: what to book. To fit the sights into your days, see Venice in one or two days. Where to eat in Venice names the restaurants, cicchetti and bacari the bars, and the best time to visit Venice gives the weather by month. The Grand Canal hotels are close to the Rialto Bridge and market, the boarding points for a gondola ride and the towers and terraces in the best views in Venice.
Common questions
Which hotel is closest to St Mark's Square?
Of the hotels in this guide, Splendid Venice on the Mercerie, about 210 m from the Square in a straight line, then Hotel Monaco & Grand Canal at 230 m, the Danieli at 270 m, Violino d'Oro at 300 m, The St. Regis Venice at 330 m and Nolinski Venezia at 340 m.
Has the Danieli reopened?
Yes. It reopened on 26 August 2026 as Danieli, Venezia, A Four Seasons Hotel after more than three years closed, with 120 rooms and suites in 2026 and 176 planned for 2027. It stands on the Riva degli Schiavoni, about 270 m from the Square.
Which hotels near St Mark's Square hold Michelin Keys?
Michelin gives Two Keys to the Gritti Palace and Nolinski Venezia, and One Key to Violino d'Oro, Corte di Gabriela and Ca' di Dio. Splendid Venice, The St. Regis Venice, H10 Palazzo Canova, SINA Centurion Palace and Palazzina Grassi are in the guide as Selected hotels with no Key.
Does the Square flood?
It is the lowest ground in Venice, and water starts to cover it at about +80 cm. The Comune says 12% of the city's walking surface is under water at +110 cm and 59% at +140 cm. The Basilica's narthex floods first.
Can I see the New Year's Eve fireworks from St Mark's Square?
No. The Comune's notice for 2025 to 2026 said the midnight fireworks over the Bacino di San Marco were not visible from the Piazza and the Piazzetta, and were best seen from the Arsenale vaporetto stop and along the Riva degli Schiavoni and the other Rive.
How much is a ticket to St Mark's Basilica?
€10 for the Basilica, from the Procuratoria di San Marco's online shop only, for a named, timed slot. Tickets go on sale 90 days ahead. The Basilica and the Pala d'Oro are €20, and the full ticket with the Museum and the Loggia dei Cavalli is €30.
