Danieli

"Our recent short visit in Venice at the Danieli Hotel was absolutely perfect. The property is breathtaking, but the service and the incredible staff is what really set it apart. Our experience was wonderful and every single person was welcoming, warm, professional, and very attentive. We largely thank the outstanding hospitality of Miss Elina Edler, part of the Guest Experience Agents team. From the moment we arrived, Miss Elina ensured our visit was flawless and perfect ! She personally took the time to welcome us , walked along with us through the hotel and she even was patient with us and explained every detail and answered all our questions we had about the recent and beautiful renovations. ( and believe us we had a LOT!) Ms Elina demonstrated the level of care and professionalism which perfectly defines a true five-star experience. She is an absolute gem and a credit to the hotel! Thank you very much!"

"We were visiting Venice and, purely by chance while exploring the city, came across the Four Seasons Venice. As avid and loyal Four Seasons guests for over 20 years, we were excited to find out the property had opened. We decided to step into the lobby hoping for a warm welcome based on the brands core philosophy of the Golden Rule and brand reputation. From the moment we arrived, we were met with a cold, uninterested atmosphere. Several staff members were dressed impeccably in beautiful suits, but there was no eye contact, no greeting, and no acknowledgment of our presence. Instead, one staff member approached us aggressively and confronted us with questions about what we were doing there, in a way that made it feel like we were trespassing rather than simply guests exploring the property. We were approached based on our attire. To be clear, we were not dressed for a formal event at 4pm in the afternoon, so no, we were not wearing a ball gown and tuxedo. We had high end athletic-wear on and in no way were dressed in an inappropriate way to merit such negative attention and suspicion. The interaction was unfriendly and unwelcoming, we were singled out and made to feel we didn’t belong every second we were there. When my husband wanted to take a photo of the lobby, this employee told him he could not, that it was not allowed. We just came from Firenze and Rome, even photos of the David are now allowed at the Academia and of historical art and sculptures. Him telling us to not take photos was a clear indicator he wanted us to leave. This is extremely disappointing and shocking given our extensive profile of stays with Four Seasons worldwide and our loyalty to the brand having stayed at over fifteen other FS properties. We have a Four Seasons profile to prove it. The most unprofessional and far from brand standard Four Seasons employee interaction we have ever interacted with. I expect far more basic hospitality and respect from a Four Seasons property, and this left a a very negative impression. This is unacceptable. Do not judge a book by its cover."

"A longstanding gripe of mine is when hotels have substantial parts closed off for whatever reason (renovation, private events etc) and somehow see fit to go ahead and charge guests the max price anyway, as if the facilities on offer have no correlation whatsoever to the appropriate price for a stay. In other words: exactly what the newly-opened Four Seasons Venice is doing, charging a totally absurd €2,300+ per night while still not even having a functioning spa (they have a "pop-up spa" consisting of a single hotel room dressed as a treatment room). Oh - "but it says so on our website!" - they tell me. Yes, well, believe it or not, I never actually thought to check whether a hotel charging such an insane price has a spa. Should I also be checking whether plumbing and electricity are on offer? The hotel is willing to offer up all sorts of inducements to make up for this: a room upgrade, a free "spa" treatment; everything, except, that is, actually charging a reasonable price until they're fully open. I'd much rather have had a room downgrade with a reasonable price, than the room upgrade I got (to 505, a nice corner suite) for an unreasonable one. Dinner on the terrace was also disappointing. Besides the average food, they see fit to hit you with an egregious €16 cover charge, which is really overkill when they're already charging thousands for a stay. And then, of course, there is the completely outrageous €450 transfer from the train station (something like a 30 minute journey at most). In fact, as I write this review, it's slowly dawning on me that the whole thing is just a complete rinse. There is also a massive part of the first floor that is totally shut off for renovation; again, not reflected in the price of the stay. I've been a perplexingly loyal Four Seasons customer for many years, but I'm starting to wonder whether I'm not just subjecting myself to voluntary robbery at this point. Yes, the hotels are (usually) pretty good, but there's a price for everything and it's starting to become absurd."