Veneto is the Italian region where the country's most famous canal city shares a map with a 2,000-year-old Roman arena, Palladian villas, and rows of prosecco vines. Venice's gondolas and St Mark's Square get most of the postcards, but head inland and you'll find Verona still hosting opera under the stars, Vicenza's grand old buildings, and the Prosecco Hills rolling north of Treviso.

Whatever kind of trip you're after, a canal-front honeymoon, a slower lakeside break, or a week tasting wine between vineyards, there's a stay to match somewhere in Veneto.

Where to stay in Veneto

• Venice, canals, gondolas, and St Mark's Square, the classic first-timer's base and still the region's biggest drawcard. See Venice hotels.
• Verona, a compact old town built around a Roman arena that still hosts open-air opera every summer, plus the balcony everyone associates with Romeo and Juliet. See Verona hotels.
• Vicenza, Italy's jewellery-making capital, with a historic centre full of Palladian buildings and noticeably fewer crowds than Venice. See Vicenza hotels.
• Padua, a university city with covered medieval porticoes and a fast, cheap train link into Venice, good if you want lower prices without losing convenience. See Padua hotels.
• Lake Garda's eastern shore, lakeside towns on the Veneto side of Italy's largest lake, good for a slower few days of swimming and lake views between the bigger cities.
• The Prosecco Hills, vineyard country around Conegliano and Valdobbiadene, north of Treviso, best if you want a countryside base for wine tasting.

How much is Veneto accommodation?

Expect to pay around AU$150 a night on average across the region, with Venice running noticeably higher than the mainland towns.

• Hostels and backpackers, from AU$35 per night. Shared dorms near Venice's train station or Verona's old town, both an easy walk from the main sights.
• Budget hotels and guesthouses, from AU$75 per night. Simple, family-run rooms, usually a short vaporetto or bus ride from the centre.
• Mid-range hotels and apartments, from AU$150 per night. Good value for longer stays, especially self-catering apartments in Verona or Padua.
• Boutique hotels, from AU$230 per night. Restored palazzos and townhouses with real character, concentrated around Venice's Grand Canal.
• Luxury hotels and resorts, from AU$450 per night. Grand Canal views, full-service spas, and the kind of service that comes with a five-star rating.

Top-rated hotels in Veneto

• The Gritti Palace, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Venice, a 15th-century palazzo right on the Grand Canal, once a regular stop for Ernest Hemingway.
• Hilton Molino Stucky Venice, a converted 19th-century flour mill on Giudecca Island, with a rooftop pool bar looking straight across the lagoon.
• Baglioni Hotel Luna, Venice's oldest hotel, tucked a few steps from St Mark's Square, with a frescoed ballroom worth a look even if you're not staying.
• Due Torri Hotel, a grand address in the middle of Verona's historic centre, close enough to the Arena to hear the opera crowd on a summer night.
• NH Collection Palazzo Verona, a restored Veronese palace turned modern hotel, a short walk from Juliet's House and Piazza delle Erbe.

Tips for finding the perfect accommodation in Veneto

• Book Venice well ahead for Carnival or the Biennale. Rooms fill fast and prices climb hard during both.
• Staying in Padua or on Venice's mainland side and day-tripping in by train can cut your accommodation cost a lot without losing much travel time.
• Chasing the Arena's summer opera season in Verona? Book a hotel within walking distance so you're not relying on transport after a late show.
• Filter for "canal view" carefully in Venice. Not every water-facing room looks at the Grand Canal, and the cheaper ones can face a narrow side canal instead.
• Touring the Prosecco Hills by car is easier from a Treviso or Conegliano base than driving out from Venice for the day.

Veneto rewards a bit of wandering beyond the hotel room. Murano and Burano, two small islands a short boat ride from Venice, are worth the trip for the glassblowing furnaces on one and the brightly painted fishing houses on the other. St Mark's Basilica is worth seeing for its Byzantine domes and gold mosaics alone, and Vicenza's Palladian villas are some of the best-preserved Renaissance architecture in Italy. Pair any of it with a proper Aperol Spritz or a slice of tiramisu, both regional inventions the locals are genuinely proud of, and a glass of Prosecco from the hills it's named after.

The information above is accurate at the time of writing and may change. Please check current prices, availability and details directly on Traveloka before booking.