My wife and I spent three nights here 10 days ago and really enjoyed or stay. We had a characterful room, plenty of space and very comfortable with a nice view over the garden and the palazzo opposite. The garden is charming and it was great to be able to breakfast outside in late October. We felt we were in a little private world with the bustle of Venice outside. The location is great and it was an excellent base for visiting the city. We followed two of their restaurant recommendations, both of which were really good. Friendly staff, lovely surroundings, well worth a visit.

Stayed here for 3 nights in October 2012. A special treat for my wife and I (no kids!), we had no regrets re our choice of hotel.

Before talking about the hotel, if you can afford it and fly in to Marco Polo I'd thoroughly recommend pre-booking a private water taxi. Not cheap (return fare was 190 Euros) it was well worth it. We flew in at 11pm and still managed to get to our hotel in 45 mins. The great thing is that the taxi dropped us off only 20 metres from our hotel. And the return trip in daylight was pretty special.

The hotel is lovely and the garden as rrerlaxing as other reviews have stated.

Rooms are functional but ours was not luxurious. The bathroom was excellent although the shower cubicle was small. We stayed on the top floor in a junior suite so had plenty of space but it was perhaps, not as luxurious and as special as I'd envisaged. What was nice was the fridge with a generous number of bottles of water that were free of charge.

The breakfast was excellent - lots of breads, cakes, ham, cheese, and copious amounts of fruit. Certainly no complaints there - and to be able to eat in the garden (in late October) was a real treat for someone from the UK.

Finally, the advice given re restaurants was good, and they even made reservations for us which was brilliant. Food in Venice is not - in my opinion - world beating (apart from the costs), but we enjoyed the places we went to and had no complaints.

In summary, the hotel is perfect for a restful break. But there's little to do in the hotel apart from sleep and breakfast. Even getting a drink in the evening was tricky (eg no tonic).

I'd certainly stay there again if I had the opportunity of visiting Venice again...

My wife and I stayed at Oltre Il Giardino as the first stop on our Italian honeymoon. It was certainly an excellent beginning to a wonderful trip! Upon checkin we were greeted by Lorenzo, who was extremely kind and helpful. We booked one of the rooms on the top floor of the main building, and it could not have been a better choice! It was a largish room compared to what I was used to in Italy, with a few chairs and a small table, a console table, a quaint alive under the roof, and a nice bathroom. At first the bed felt a little stiff, but I slept so soundly and so comfortably that it was just not an issue at all. It was so quiet in this area of San Polo sestiere. Breakfast in the garden in the morning was lovely! There was a good selection of food for breakfast, and the serving staff was very cheery and friendly! It is so conveniently located to everything in Venice, no more than a 15 minute walk to Piazza San Marco, the train station, and any number of wonderful neighborhood restaurants! I would love to stay here again for a relaxing, comfortable vacation!

as others have said, this isn't a 5 star hotel with all the amenities.

it IS a pleasant, small property with nice breakfast and super staff. they make recommendations for dinner and can get you into some restaurants that are hard to get in. I think the person who said it's like visiting a family friend in Venice got it right.

would stay again.