I sometimes walk with a cane. I booked ca Rialto and was also worried about the stairs. Without asking, they put us in a room in the main hotel right near the elevator. This may have been because they saw my cane. Our room was very small- not at all like the pictures- and so hot they had to bring us a fan- and we slept with the window open (no screens) in October. No view, either, as you can see from my pictures. I would rather have done stairs! The easiest way from the airport is private water taxi. It will cost over $120, but that’s not bad since that will cover all of you. Next choice is bus to piazzas Roma and then vaporetto (public water taxi), it stops right in front of the hotel. Do not take the alilaguna!! It stops near the hotel but at the far side of a bridge and you will have to drag your bags up and down the steps of the bridge. We also left Venice by cruise ship. We took a vaporetto to piazzale Roma and then a taxi to the ship. It’s only a few minutes by taxi. We had a slight problem because we said we were going to Terminal A and, in Italian, E is pronounced the way we pronounce A, so he took us to the wrong terminal, but we could see our ship and eventually it worked out and the driver was so nice he wouldn’t charge us!

Yes. The stairs are quiet steep. Wouldn’t recommend it for an older couple to be honest.

Hi, everything at breakfast was included in our bill, with no extra charges. They provide a free boat to Murano and a free tour of a glass factory -- just ask at the front desk to arrange it. Note that you have to buy your own ticket to get back (we found one in a newsagents on the island).