Venice, new hotels and extensions with the return of tourists. And Hilton opens at the Tronchetto
VENICE – THEhorrible year of Venice (indeed the two horrible years, from 12 November 2019, the day of Aqua Granda, to the end of 2021) seems to have ended among the last blows of the pandemic. In a few months it has gone from closed hotels and for sale to Easter weekends from sold out and to the current one of which the staff to be employed in the receptive is sufficient. That something on the other hand changing is not only noticeable from the now daily invasion of tourists like (and sometimes more) in 2019, but also from the point of view of the welcome exchange, made up of changes of ownership, extensions, renovations and even new creations. In short, the engine of tourist investments in Venice has started up again and not even the war at the gates of Europe and the new crisis connected to it is enough to stop it.
HILTON
A clear and strong signal comes from the American group Hilton, which just yesterday announced with a note that in the spring of 2024 (and therefore the day after tomorrow) it will consolidate its arrival in the city with a second hotel after the award Molino Stucky on the Giudecca. This time it will be an easier hotel, but directly accessible by car, as it will be built on the artificial island of Ankle boot, the last act of the urbanization of a place that has been a kind of no-man’s land for decades. The hotel was planned years ago by a public-private program agreement which also includes the new carabinieri barracks. The hotel had stopped waiting for better times, which are evidently now coming.
Hampton by Hilton Venice Tronchetto – says the Hilton note – with its 324, will be one of the largest in the city, with a breakfast area and bar, two conference rooms, a fitness center and a dedicated Work Zone.
THE LUXURY
The prestigious Bauer hotel, which was probably number one in Venice between the 1960s and 1970s, will shortly close for a major refurbishment. The result is a hotel with 70 fewer rooms, but much larger and with many more services. The ground floor will also be renovated and a commercial gallery will be built. Right in the middle of the shopping street and the big names.
Confirmed, after an initial denial, the sale of the management of the Danieli hotel, the oldest in Venice, which from 2024 will pass from the Marriott to the Four Seasons hotels and resorts, which among its important partners has the tycoon Bill Gates. Not far away, the Gabrielli hotel in riva degli Schiavoni will be managed by Starhotels, thanks to an agreement with the property, owned since 1856 by the Perkhofer family, who also managed it. After a 20 million refurbishment, it will reopen in summer 2023 earning one star, going up to five stars.
EXPANSION
The Municipality of Venice is currently facing a delicate game linked to the extensions requested by 13 small and medium-sized hotels that will incorporate adjacent rooms: landlords, shops, warehouses and tourist apartments. There will be 2,000 400 square meters more, but only 36 rooms, with most of the spaces destined to enrich common services and increase quality. It is the first time since 2018, when the hotel resolution was approved and the opposition freezes and prepares to make the barricades to avoid similar initiatives in the future.
MURANO
Finally, Murano deserves a separate discussion, which in recent years has transformed itself from an industrial island into an important tourist hub of the city. This, because of the large glassworks that have been transformed into hotels in a place where there was not even one. In 2023 the Langham group will open its first hotel in Italy right on the island of glass: 140 rooms largely overlooking the lagoon on the site of the Ferro glassworks (10,000 square meters) and the former Casino Mocenigo. Langham joins Nh Hotels and Hyatt properties.