Hotel Review Archives | North of Something

Our family of three recently went to Venice for the first time and stayed at the Residence Ca’ degli Antichi Giardini for three nights. We rented a two bedroom apartment, which had a queen bed in one room and a twin bed in the other. Everything seemed brand new, including the appliances, painting, window shutters, etc. They offer two and three bedroom apartments, some that are split level and some with a canal view. We got the most basic two bedroom apartment they offer.

Below is a photo of the larger bedroom. I’m not sure if the bed was a queen or the European king size… hard to tell.

And here is the smaller room that our son stayed in. The TV was actually bigger in the smaller room. :)

Samy met as at the apartment to give us the keys and gave us a tour around the apartment and a map of Venice. He sat down with my husband for a few minutes and showed him how to walk to all the places we wanted to go. He gave us his cell phone number in case we needed any more help over the weekend. A very nice gesture!

There were a set of towels for each of us (bath towel, hand towel, and wash cloth) and a few bottles of shampoo.

While we were signing papers in the kitchen, my son was in the bathroom telling us he was so excited that there was a kid-sized sink… Then I went in there and saw him washing his hands in the bidet (yuck!)

There are also lots of wine glasses in case you want to throw a party ;)

Along with all the stuff to make coffee, there is a nice stove-top coffee percolator.

There was a patio outside the living room, but we didn’t spend any time out there because it was raining on and off.

Since we came by train, it was a relatively short walk (about 10-15 minutes depending on if you have a backpack wearing 4 year old in your group). They offer check-in as late as 8pm which was nice because our train arrived in the evening. There is a locked gate to get inside the property, and then another locked door to go through to enter the building. Our apartment was on the bottom floor so we only had to go a few feet from the entrance to get to our room. We liked the fact that we needed 3 different keys to get in our room – a nice safety feature!

You can find more info and book your stay at the Residence Ca’ degli Antichi Giardini at their website.

We recently spent 3 days and 3 nights at a beachfront cottage at Barking Sands, Kauai. It’s on the Pacific Missile Range Facility (PMRF) which is about 45 minutes from the Lihue airport. It was $110/night for the 2 bedroom cottage with full kitchen, dining room, living room, flat screen TV, and…. FREE WIFI in each cabin! The cottages are available to active duty, retired reserves, and contractors of the U.S. Military.

Here’s the view from the front of our cabin (1130). There is a grill and an outdoor shower to wash the sand away before going inside. The cabins are a short walk to the beach and it was virtually empty every time we went. Swimming isn’t recommended at most beaches on this side of the island because of the strong currents, but we had fun splashing around at the edge and chasing crabs.

After imagining my son waking up in the middle of the night and stumbling sleepily to the ocean, we spent awhile looking for a piece of driftwood to jam the sliding glass door (in addition to the normal lock). Then we realized there was another safety lock at the top of the sliding glass door, which made me feel so much better!

I really thought the free wifi was a nice touch. Most hotels have slow, crappy internet that you often have to pay for, but here at the beach cottages all spread out across a few acres you get free wifi.

The bathroom was very clean and had sealed towels and toiletries just like a hotel. Guests that stay at the cottages are responsible for cleaning the place before they go. Cleaning supplies are provided: broom, vacuum, garbage bags, etc.

The restaurant on Barking Sands is called Shenanigans and has a great view. There is also a small NEX for groceries and other items you might need.

There are a surprising amount of chickens and other birds around Kauai. Some of the birds are endangered and need to be left alone, but my son had fun chasing chickens around the cottage!

While you are on Kauai you don’t want to miss seeing the Waimea Canyon and other lookout points on the drive up there. You can see my full post on Waimea Canyon here.

Overall we had a wonderful time and it was WAY cheaper to stay at a cottage at Barking Sands than most of the popular hotels on Kauai. You can find more details here.

We love going on family adventures together, but it can be hard to fly with littles ones sometimes. Check out my tips for airplane travel with kids in these posts:

A Successful Flight (Minus the Swearing)

8 Tips for Airplane Travel with Kids

Venice Apartment Review: Residence Ca’ degli Antichi Giardini

Barking Sands, Kauai (PMRF)