La Corte dei Cuoridoro

Venice’s Piazza San Marco is a wonder, of course, but the crowds of central Venice are enough to make anyone wish for someplace truly private to stay. Incredibly, just three minutes’ walk from the square awaits the 15th-century residence of the Doge Francesco Molin, whose palatial digs have been converted into a pair of luxurious apartments, now known as La Corte dei Cuoridoro.

Here the Italian predilection for combining well-preserved period architecture with modern and contemporary interior design is very much in evidence — alongside features the Doge himself might recognize are modernist classics like a Saarinen table or a set of Panton chairs, as well as efficient modern kitchens and bathrooms. Self-catering is the rule, naturally — two apartments can’t quite support a proper hotel restaurant or bar, but this is a town that is amply supplied with both, to say the least.

The immediate setting, at the corner of two canals, is a delight, and feels quieter than it perhaps might, given its proximity to what’s arguably the Venetian answer to Times Square — you just might find the waves of day-trippers easier to take knowing you’re never more than a few minutes’ walk from home.