When looking for a place to stay in Venice we found Casa Clara through Airbnb. Because the apartment had positive reviews and had most of the what we were looking for, we chose this fantastic apartment. My party consisted of my wife, our two sons and my mother-in-law. With two bedrooms and plenty of beds this place worked out perfectly to give us space and have a home away from home to return to after a day of walking around to see the sites.

I can't stress enough the convenient location of Casa Clara. Upon our arrival to Venice via speed rail from Florence we had followed instructions on finding the apartment. That meant exiting the train, walking downstairs off the platform to the tunnel that interconnects the train platforms. Underneath the train tracks you then walk down the tunnel away from the train station to the exit at the far end. When we emerged onto the street it was a matter of walking straight ahead a few blocks and then hang a left and there you are. From the train station platform to the apartment was a 10-15 minute walk.

In the immediate vicinity of the apartment is everything that you would need, from stores, markets, pharmacies, etc. Downstairs is a cigarette shop where we'd buy our bus passes and at the end of the block was the bus stop where we'd hop on the number 6 bus to take a 10-15 minute bus ride to the Venice island. From there we were on the canal and being tourists.

The hosts are incredibly gracious and flexible. We were in direct contact with Ivo's daughter Marta, who met us at the apartment and showed us what's there. She was easily accessible at any time that we needed to touch base with her with questions. When we left Ivo had given us a ride to the train station tunnel, saving us from walking there in the worst heat

As much as we appreciated the convenience of the apartment there are something that a potential guest should know. The apartment does not have a washing machine, but there is a laundromat around the corner from the apartment. Also, the amenities lists wi-fi being available and that's not entirely true. What's there is the city provided wifi where the hosts give you their login so that you can have access; but in the apartment that signal doesn't get in. There is an open wifi in the neighborhood with an incredibly weak signal. The best way to get decent connectivity is to sit by the apartment door or step out onto the balcony. Being an open wifi hotspot is very dangerous as you wouldn't know who is getting onto the same wireless network as you and that is an IT security concern. That is not a big deal for most but it was for us as having internet access was crucial for our communications with family and friends as well as entertaining our 10-year old. The apartment would really benefit from having its own dedicated wifi that's password protected.