Charming House DD724 Venice

The boutique hotel DD724 was established in Venice in 2003, followed a little later by the Charming House DD694, both bearing the names of their respective address acronyms.

Totally renovated in 2014, the DD724 and DD694 offer only a select number of rooms, each with its very own personality, characterized by exposed ceiling beams, a fireplace, exquisite decor and contemporary art, ideal for guests looking for the exclusivity of a boutique hotel.

Situated in the tranquil setting of the Sestiere of Dorsoduro in Venice, the Charming Houses will allow you to experience the exclusive setting of the Accademia art gallery, the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, François Pinault Collection at Punta della Dogana and typical Venetian canals.

ROOMS & SUITES
The rooms at the DD724 feature warm, seductive contemporary Charming House design, each displaying their very own personality and originality, but all extremely spacious with natural lighting.

Rooms provide guests with an enthralling view, facing the Rio Torreselle, a typical Venetian canal, or the garden of the Peggy Guggenheim, and feature elegant, exclusive design furnishings. They are mainly characterized by space, light and art, in the true spirit of the Charming House concept.

SUITE DD724
The Suite DD724 has two sides facing onto the Rio Torreselle, a Venetian canal, as well as the garden of the Peggy Guggenheim Museum. It consists of a double room and separate living area with a sofa bed.

In harmony with the contemporary design of the Charming House, it is furnished with materials of the highest quality, such as linen fabrics for the curtains and natural hemp blankets, Designers Guild fabrics, lamps by Renzo Serafini and Viabizzuno, art works by Gianni Tarli, a coffee table by Saarinen for Alivar, and the finest pure virgin wool carpets.

The Suite DD724 has an elegant bathroom with a bathtub and, in addition to the customary services available in all rooms, 2 Smart TVs and a DVD player.

LOCATION
The DD724 faces onto the picturesque Rio Torreselle, next to the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, Punta della Dogana and the most important museum area in all of Venice, the Gallerie dell’Accademia, in the heart of the city’s art culture, experiencing Venice in all its gracefulness and intimacy.

THE SURROUNDINGS: DORSODURO
Dorsoduro is one of the six sestieri, or districts, of Venice and owes its name to the fact that it stands on higher and more solid ground than the rest of Venice (dorso duro translates to hard backbone).

The district is a hop over the Grand Canal via the extraordinary Accademia bridge, the only wooden bridge in Venice, and is also home to the Charming House DD724 as the acronym of the address suggests.

The sestiere’s Western part, Mendigola island, was the first to be colonized centuries before Rialto became Venice’s beating heart. The settlement then spread to the other islands leading to the reclaim of Punta Della Dogana, Venice’s 17th century customs house.

In 2009, the Punta was renovated by Tadao Ando, a winner of the Pritzker Prize for Architecture, to host François Pinault’s Collection of contemporary art and one of the two most important museums of the city, the other being the Peggy Guggenheim Collection.

PEGGY GUGGENHEIM COLLECTION
At a couple of bridges away from the former, the latter collection is housed in Palazzo Venier dei Leoni, which was the residence of the American heiress and art collector Peggy Guggenheim for over three decades.

An impressive array of 20th century art movements, the collection holds major works by Braque, Picasso, Kandinsky, Mirò, Klee, Chagall, Ernst (Peggy’s ex-husband), and many others. Art works populate not only the museum, but also its splendid garden.

Besides the two museums mentioned above, Dorsoduro is also home to the Fondazione Vedova, recently refurbished by Renzo Piano, and the Gallerie dell’Accademia Museum.

The Galleries occupy the former monastery, church and school of Santa Maria della Carità and host the most outstanding collection of Venetian and Veneto paintings exhibiting invaluable works by Bellini, Giorgione, Mantenga, Tiziano, Veronese, and Tintoretto, just to name a few.

Another art destination only a few steps away from the Charming House DD724 is Palazzo Cini, a refined museum house which displays magnificent works by Tuscan artists, among whom Piero della Fracesca.

DORSODURO ART
Finally, one cannot miss a visit to a palazzo museum and Dorsoduro offers Cà Rezzonico, Museum of the 18th century Venice, whose splendid marble façade overlooks the Grand Canal. Baldassare Longhena, the Baroque architect of the city who designed the Cà Rezzonico Palace, also devised the Santa Maria della Salute church, which displays Tintoretto’s Wedding Feast of Cana.

Other churches which are definitely worth a visit are the Chiesa dei Gesuati and San Sebastiano church, a treasure chest which guards Paolo Veronese’s masterpieces.

Art in Dorsoduro is not confined only to palaces, museums and churches, but buzzes in the numerous small art galleries hidden in the narrow alleys, in the antiques and glass shops, and mixes with the energetic youth of the students of the Ca’ Foscari University, whose activities pulse in several palaces of the sestiere.

It is this mix of history, art, and youth that gives the district its vibrant vibe both by day and by aperitivo time when the bars in the area (bacari) are pleasantly abuzz with people enjoying the city’s most bohemian Spritz and Cichetti.

LIVE VENICE
The sestiere also offers a wide range of exquisite restaurants, trattorie and osterie, among which the Charming House DD724 carefully selects according to the guests’ taste and preferences.

Other Dorsuduro gems include the walk along Zattere and the view of the Giudecca island and the San Mark’s Basin, the nearby San Trovaso squero, the city’s oldest gondola yard where the signature boats are hand crafted and restored, and the typical floating fruit market in Campo San Barnaba, under Ponte dei Pugni.

For shopping treats head to Ca Macana for Carnival masks, Marina and Susanna Sent for contemporary glass, and Saverio Pastor for hand made forcole (oarposts used in traditional Venetian boats).

Rooms: 7

Price: from 236 EUR per night

Source: www.thecharminghouse.com