Ai Boteri Hostel

At first this place seemed like a blessing. Affordable (for Venice) and well located so I booked a room for two. When we arrived, instructions were not clear as how to get in and when we finally reached reception, we were greeted by a staff member who clearly had better things to do than check us in. From the reception we could see the place was dingy and dirty, it was budget so not that surprising, but it still managed to surprise me. After paying the 4 euro tax per person we waited in the lobby for the man to finish setting up our room. Another guest stormed out of the lobby with his bags in a huff. he looked us in the eyes and said, "There's bed bugs", and left (forever grateful to the kindness of strangers). This set us on edge and made the dusty chairs we were sitting on even more uncomfortable. We were led into our room, small and basic with a double bed, a sink, minimal lighting and a fan. We sat our bags onto the table as to not get them infected with potential bugs and began to look. I think it took us 2 minutes to find a cluster of bed bugs. We asked the man in to show him the bugs. He looked annoyed, but not surprised and after making us prove to him that they were in fact bed bugs he offered another room on another level. In this room we did not find full bodied bed bugs, but rather eggs and bug droppings - enough for me to get the hell out of there. After a bit of back and forth the man phoned his manager and offered me a refund on the platform I booked through (Booking.com, spoiler they never refunded me and Booking.com's customer support is useless) so we went on our way to find a lovely place for less money that had better views, cleaner rooms, friendly staff and an aircon. It has been a month since the ordeal and I can't get a hold of Ai Boteri and Booking.com keeps saying my request is processing, but never actually gets in contact with me to resolve it. For your own health and safety, there are far better places to stay in Venice for the same amount of money, and even if you pay a little more it will be cheaper than fighting for a refund you will never get. Avoid like the plague - you just might catch it...

Well located in the center. The reception is okay, but they wanted to charge me a tourist tax higher than what I owed... however, the condition of the establishment is deplorable. Significant lack of cleanliness; I left with a lot of bites due to bed bugs. Clogged shower, broken shower door, broken toilet flush, and especially a broken fridge, so no cold and it was full, so no need to mention the smell with the heat. Not all outlets work, or you have to prop the device when plugging it in because it doesn't hold. The bedding is mediocre. Lockers that do not close. Well, I cannot list everything. One thing is for sure, it is an establishment that has no standards, not even the basics! without necessarily seeking comfort. Of all my road trips, even in poor countries, this is the most negative one.

I’ve been traveling a while and I leave plenty room for what may or may not be a bed bug infestation. I spent one night here and under my pillow was fresh blood from a bed bug being squished after feeding and next to it was evidence of the bed bug molting. I diligently checked the room when I first checked in and the mattress was clean but I believe they are living behind the wall-mounted furniture. I also had a private room with a shower, I tried to shower late at night but the hot water was not working. It was working the next morning. Staff upon check in was okay. Staff upon my early checkout was very reasonable.