I can't thank Carlo and Monica enough for allowing us to stay in their wonderful home in Venice. Their hospitality went far beyond what I would've expected, and the result was that we had an exceptional experience in Venice.
The home itself is in the heart of Venice, between Rialto and San Marco. It is accessed by quiet alley and off an even quieter courtyard, on the second floor of a beautiful old classic Venetian building. As the apartment sits on the corner of two canals, there are many windows with unbeatable views of the canals, boats and gondolas. You don't just have a view of the canals, you're actually part of the canal system! It's the best experience you can have in Venice. We'd wake up to the gondolas working their way through the canals, literally right outside of our open windows. Sometimes a gondola with a violin player or opera singer would come by. I can't overstate just how wonderful is the location of this home.
The home is well-appointed, with two large and clean full bathrooms, a kitchen (not a kitchenette) and a classy living room. It's all classically styled, nothing modern or sleek. It works wonderfully for the setting in the heart of Venice. In addition, there is a built-in A/C unit which cools the master bedroom and adjacent bedroom (same hall), and portable A/C which does a decent job of keeping the third bedroom cool even when the outside temps were 90+ deg F with high humidity (as we had during our August visit). Carlo was very committed to making sure that our visit was comfortable, so I have no doubt that he'll always be a few steps ahead of the season or weather in making sure that the place is properly set up.
A few other little fun facts. 1) There's a little "pool" in the tiled first floor entrance room which opens to the canal and is filled at high tide and empty at low tide. The kids loved this simple feature. 2) The best Gelato in Venice (Venchi) is literally steps off the alleyway. 3) Monica is an official tour-guide for Venice and gave us the most informative, educational and interesting historical tour of the palace, cathedral and the plaza. (Don't pass it up!)
Overall, this was one of the best and most unique experiences we've had with any form of accommodation while traveling - hotel, Airbnb, or VRBO. We recommend it without hesitation.