Where to Stay and What to Do in Venice

How to Get There: litalia flies nonstop Los Angeles to Milan; Pan Am/TWA provide service via New York City. Connecting flights to Venice: 40 minutes. Travel time by train from Milan to Venice, 2 1/2 hours; by car, 3 hours.

Where to Stay:

--Gritti Palace, Campo Santo Maria del Giglio, 2467, Venice. Rates: $280/$296 single, $320/$425 double.

--Hotel Cipriani, 10 Giudecca, Venice. Rates: $286/$440 single, $390/$575 double.

--Hotel Patria Tre Rose, San Marco Calle dei Fabbri 905. Rates: $80/$92 single, $120/$148 double.

--Hotel Casanova, San Marco Frezzeria 1284. Rates: $112 single, $153 double.

--Locanda Cipriani, Torcello Island. Rates: $256/$265 single, $512/$528 double (meals included). (Note: Due to inflation and the fluctuation of the dollar, rates are subject to change).

For other hotel information, contact your travel agent or the Associazione Veneziana Albergatori, 2475 San Marco, Venice.

Getting Around Venice: Vaparettos (cheap); water taxis and gondolas (expensive).

Weather: Expect rain March/April, November/December. Winters are chilly; summers, muggy. Best months: May and October.

For more information: Italian Government Travel Office, 360 Post St., San Francisco 94108, (415) 392-6206. Office hours are 9 a.m./5 p.m. (Telephone calls are taken between 9 a.m./1 p.m. only). Ask for sightseeing information--brochures and booklets on Cortina d’Ampezzo as well as Venice.