For well-heeled Italophiles, the good news is that bookings have opened for Orient Express Palazzo Donà Giovannelli in Venice, which is welcoming guests from April 2026 onward. Located in a 15th-century Venetian palazzo that reflects both Neogothic and Baroque architectural styles, the hotel has 47 guestrooms, suites, and apartments.
Orient Express is a partnership between Accor and LVMH, the world’s most prestigious luxury company (and not to be confused with Belmond, the company behind the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express and other trains and luxury hotels).
This follows two other Orient Express and Accor debuts in 2025: the unveiling of their first hotel, Orient Express La Minerva in Rome, and the rollout of La Dolce Vita Orient Express luxury train, which I recently wrote about here in Forbes.
Orient Express Palazzo Donà Giovannelli is situated in Cannaregio. This island still feels like the Venice of half a century ago, a quiet place that’s still the lair of residents and thankfully removed from the daily circus of San Marco.
Located at the confluence of two canals, the palazzo was a noble residence built in 1436 during the reign of architect Filippo Calendario, the visionary behind the Doge’s Palace.
Formerly the private residence of the Dona and Giovannelli families,who were great patrons of the arts, it was later gifted to the Duke of Urbino. The Palazzo Dona has a legacy of grandeur and celebration, not to mention gilded ballrooms and hidden passageways.
This extraordinary building was restored under the guidance of architect and interior designer Aline Asmar d’Amman. It’s a theatrical space, with period frescoes and mosaic floors. The architecture speaks to Venice as a crossroads of civilizations, blending the Neogothic and the Baroque, and the façade has seven remarkable hand-carved Gothic windows.
“More than a hotel, Orient Express Palazzo Donà Giovannelli is a transformative voyage through centuries of splendor,” Gilda Perez-Alvarado, Orient Express CEO, said in a press statement. “Rooted in the poetic vision of Orient Express, this Venetian property embodies a heritage in motion where every stay becomes a passage through memory, art, and emotion.”
A stay at the hotel begins with a dramatic journey. Guests arrive by private boat, arriving through a 15th-century Gothic portal on the canal, pass through a discreet doorway into Santa Fosca’s secret garden, or step off the Strada Nova into the courtyard.
The theatrical lobby has a high wooden ceiling and is filled with light. There’s a striking octagonal staircase, a 19th-century addition by Giovanni Battista Meduna, the architect behind Venice’s Ca’d’Oro and the original La Fenice theatre. A celestial stone and glass vault crowns it.
At the Piano Nobile, you’ll find a series of storied rooms, including the Baroque-style Vittoria Ballroom, created for the 1548 wedding of Princess Vittoria Farnese. The Library of Cultures is decorated with lapis lazuli pigments and gilded wood, while the Music Room is redolent of Venice’s golden age.
There are 47 luxurious rooms, featuring 29 rooms and 16 suites, including six Signature Suites, and two Orient Express Apartments. The six Signature Suites are located on the Piano Nobile and the first floor. At the same time, the first-ever Orient Express Apartments are housed in an adjacent building and offer outstanding canal views.
The hotel’s culinary offerings will include an intimate fine dining restaurant with private boat access, an all-day dining space overlooking the courtyard and lush garden – a rarity in Venice – and the iconic Wagon Bar, a nod to the golden age of rail travel.
There’s more to come for Orient Express. They have two sailing yachts that will launch in 2026 and 2027. They also plan to bring back the original Orient Express train, which will travel across various routes in Europe.
For more details on the new Venice hotel, visit Orient Express Palazzo Donà Giovannelli