Four centuries as a palace, two more as a hotel, and one of the most complete restorations Venice has seen.
Origins
Palazzo Dandolo went up in the 14th century for the Dandolo family, who gave Venice four doges and a good deal of its foreign policy. The building faces the Bacino di San Marco in the Venetian Gothic manner — pointed ogee windows, a loggia of slender columns, brick and Istrian stone cooled by the water in front of it.
For four centuries it was a private residence and a stage for state receptions. Then, in 1822, a hotelier from Friuli named Giuseppe Dal Niel took a lease on part of the palace and opened it to travellers. Venetians shortened his surname the way Venetians do, and the hotel has been the Danieli ever since.
The three palaces
The Danieli is not a single structure but three, joined internally by bridges — a very Venetian solution to the problem of growth in a city with no spare ground.
The original. Its four-storey atrium is the hotel's great set piece: pink marble columns, gilded balustrades and a golden staircase that climbs through the full height of the building under Murano glass. Every guest walks it at least once slowly.
Added as the hotel outgrew the palace, in a neoclassical register that sits quietly beside its Gothic neighbour.
The most recent wing, completed around 1950 and long the source of the hotel's rooftop terrace and its lagoon-facing upper floors.
The register
The 19th century brought the writers. Charles Dickens, Honoré de Balzac, Marcel Proust and John Ruskin all stayed, as did Richard Wagner. George Sand and Alfred de Musset conducted a famously turbulent affair in the building in 1834. The 20th century brought the film world: Greta Garbo, Charlie Chaplin, Coco Chanel, Elizabeth Taylor, and later Madonna and George Clooney.
The hotel has also appeared on screen more than once — the Danieli's waterfront and interiors are among the most recognisable in Venice.
2022–2026
The hotel closed for a full restoration lasting more than three years, under the ownership of the Italian group Gruppo Statuto. The interiors were reworked by the French designer Pierre-Yves Rochon, whose previous projects include Four Seasons hotels in Paris, Florence, Milan, Geneva and Cap-Ferrat.
Rochon's approach used light, glass and mirrors to open the palaces up, working in a palette taken from the buildings themselves: celadon blues and greens, soft pinks, warm golden yellows and rich terracotta. The materials are local wherever possible — Murano glass, blown on the island since the 13th century; Rubelli fabrics, woven in Venice since 1889; Venetian terrazzo floors and Italian marbles.
The hotel reopens on 26 August 2026 as Danieli, Venezia, A Four Seasons Hotel, under General Manager Christian Zandonella. It is Four Seasons' first property in Venice and its fourth in Italy, after Milan, Florence and Taormina.
Looking after the lagoon
Venice has a sharper interest than most cities in what hotels do with their resources. The restored Danieli runs an AI-assisted food waste system in its kitchens, sources produce from the lagoon island of Sant'Erasmo, has removed single-use plastics, and has fitted LED lighting and water conservation systems throughout the three palaces.
Reservations
The reopening calendar is filling quickly. Check live availability and secure your dates now.
