Hotel Bauer Palazzo Historical Timeline

Origins

The building began as an 18th-century Venetian palazzo on Campo San Moisè, a short walk from Piazza San Marco and directly on the Grand Canal.

Turning points

German hotelier Julius Bauer opened the property as the Grand Hotel d'Italie Bauer-Grünwald in 1880, one of a wave of grand hotels established in Venice as the city became a fixture of the European Grand Tour.

Influential people

In the mid-20th century, the hotel's owners added a new wing built in a Rationalist, distinctly modern style -- a deliberate contrast to the historic palazzo it adjoins, and unusual among Venice's grand hotels, most of which expand by absorbing further historic buildings rather than building anew.

Cultural evolution

The hotel has changed hands and undergone renovation several times since, with the palazzo wing's Grand Canal-facing rooms and salons preserved even as guest facilities throughout the property have been modernized.

Present-day significance

Hotel Bauer Palazzo remains one of Venice's grand luxury hotels, valued as much for its Grand Canal and Piazza San Marco-adjacent location as for the contrast between its two connected buildings.