Ca’ da Mosto is one of Venice’s oldest palaces, on the Grand Canal in Cannaregio, just before the Rialto area. It began as a 13th-century Venetian-Byzantine palace, was later owned by the da Mosto family, and is now part of the Venice Venice Hotel.
 
It is often described as the oldest building on the Grand Canal, and it preserves rare early Venetian-Byzantine fabric there. The palace is also linked with Alvise Cadamosto, the 15th-century navigator and explorer born there, though his historical reputation is tied to Portuguese exploration and the Atlantic world.
 
It is so old. Ca’ da Mosto has a history that is more ancient and stranger than its elegant Grand Canal frontage suggests. It began as a 13th-century palace, probably on even earlier foundations, and it was first owned by the Barozzi family before passing to the da Mosto family in 1266.
 
Interesting facts...
Chiara da Mosto left the property in 1603 to a relative rather than to her own da Mosto kin, which suggests serious family issues!
From the 16th to the 18th it was an Inn hosting emperors and royalty, including Joseph II, who stayed there in 1769 and 1775. The Russian crown prince Paul I also stayed there.