The "O Solo Mio" is NOT Venetian - The Dormus Orsoni, Venice

After the pitstop at Milan and meeting up with a couple of friends for dinner (yeah, am finally living my Paris, London, New York lifestyle, NOT!) we quickly left for Venice. Husband's never been there so I thought it'd be fun to take him around since I've visited Venice at least twice before - I can share stuff I love about the place. 

This time around, instead of a hotel or the usual apartments we normally opt for during our trips, we decided to stay at the Domus Orsoni. I chanced upon this place when I was of course googling for places to stay. 

It was indeed an interesting find and the bonus is that it is situated within a quieter neighborhood, not too far from the train station and not too many bridges to cross with your heavy suitcases. They don't have a full fledged reception so you'd have to schedule your arrival with them but it's really no trouble at all. The Domus Orsoni was probably one of the old homes turned to either shops or boutique hotels so you will still get the charm of old Venezia in terms of its structure. Rooms are NOT plenty - if I'm not mistaken, I only counted 6-7 rooms in total and a tiny breakfast room and a tinier room that served as an "office/pantry/larder" of sorts for the innkeepers. We really loved it coz it's different than the normal "you've seen one, you've seen 'em all" kinda hotels. 


(you wouldn't have figured out that this was actually the hotel entrance, right?)

Okay, so here's the interesting thing. Upon entry, you'd be greeted by a "small museum" of sorts displaying different mosaic pieces. There's also a display of how people made mosaic in the old days and some books on it too. Beautiful framed up mosaics are also hung on walls. If you like, they'd even arrange a tour of the mosaic factory just behind the hotel. So actually, the Domus Orsoni is something of a 2in1 business where they specialize also in manufacturing Venetian mosaic. How cool is that? It explained all the different types of mosaic displayed or used in each room. They're all different. 

   
(pix of the reception on the ground floor; and upstairs, a common lounge with rooms facing each other). 

So yeah, it operates as a little B&B with friendly, informative, and helpful managers, Valentina and Flavio. You'd love them both. They show concern for your welfare, without being intrusive but will always be there if you need even the smallest of things. Now, the hotel's location is quite tricky to get to but they were both very patient in furnishing us with info on how to get there and took time to answer our endless questions. They were also clear in terms of when they would be available via email or phone and would also share their whereabouts (roughly) so you're duly informed. Flavio is quite funny and will offer you tips on nice places to visit or eat that are off the beaten track. Another nice aspect of our stay because you wouldn't want to spend alotta moolah on restaurants operating as tourist traps. The overall atmosphere that these two provided were so homey and comfy that we actually came out in our jammies to have breakfast just like you would in your own home! 

 
(when it's not cold, you can have breakfast on this verandah at the back of the hotel overlooking the small factory. we opted for the cozy room coz it was freezing out!)

As I said earlier, there were very few rooms so you know that breakfast in the cosy little room (or the courtyard in summer) will definitely not be crowded! Breakfast is good enough to start your morning with juice, coffee/tea, bread, cereal, yogurt and pate. If you want a hearty breakfast, there are plenty of shops nearby to do so. Our room for two was large enough to fit us AND our two large suitcases with plenty more room to dance about and it's joined by a sizeable bathroom, all decked out with its own mosaic concept (our bathroom was decorated with gold mosaic below. Looks big but it's really not that big). The room is adequately furnished with standard amenities offered. Very comfy beds too. It's not that expensive but this is one of the few hotels that we thought commensurate its offerings with the price you pay. 

  

If you want modern luxury, this establishment may not be for you. But it is still comfortable, warm, cosy, and charming that we'd recommend it to our friends without hesitation. 

Oh, by the way, during our stay, I couldn't shake the feeling of deja vu. It was as if I'd been there before. After days of figuring it out, it finally dawned on me the day before we left - they had actually been featured in Samantha Brown's Passport to Europe and I had seen it on TV a couple of years back. I checked with Valentina and she confirmed it. Humble about it too, if you ask me. She could've put some kind of display upfront to let the world know that they were in fact, on NatGeo, but that's the sort of people they were, and we really liked them for it.  

So yeah, I can now say, I've stayed where Samantha had recommended. Cool.