genoajim

I've found comments people have made on specific hotels in Rome. But I would like to start if possible with receiving opinions on what AREAS are best for lodging considering such things as Safety, convenience to public transportation, being able to walk to some of the sites, close to restaurants and other factors that are important to enjoyment of the experience. I'm not exactly sure how to identify the areas, but I think these might be at least some of the descriptions. Termini/Marsala, Repubblica, Via Trevi, Via Veneto, Collosseum, Pantheon. Or maybe just by the plaza within the recommended area. My only current thought is that we want to be east of the Tiber.
Any thoughts and opinions on this will sure be helpful to then locate a hotel within the region that you like. We will be there in early June, 2006.
Thanks in advance, Jim

MFNYC

Anywhere near Pantheon/Navona/Fiori/Spanish Steps/Trevi are good.

MFNYC

WHat's your hotel pricerange and type of room (singel, double, triple, etc.)?

genoajim

Thank you MFNYC. The room type we want is a double. The price range is probably about mid-range, say euro 140-180, maybe a bit higher. I was hoping that we could get a decent 3* hotel for that price.

franco

The question you're putting up is really important - Rome is so big and so busy that you can lose enormous time just traveling through the city!
So public transportation is a main issue - and, of course, the atmosphere of the various parts of the city. Restaurants are not - you'll find a place to eat anywhere, and if you're a connaisseur and want to go for a specific restaurant, you'll go across the whole city more than once anyway. Safety, too, is not a big issue - you're not going to book a room in some far-out suburb like, say, Pietralata or San Basilio (mainly to the east and north-east of the center), where Rome might be quite dangerous. Downtown, it is nowhere (with one exception - see below), at least for travelers with a common sense good enough to avoid the deadest of dead ends like Via Appia Antica after dark. I just love strolling through Rome by night, and I never felt uneasy.
The one exception in the historic center is the Colosseum/Lateran area which has not the best reputation by night; personally, I don't believe it's literally dangerous there, but I must admit I didn't check it after dark - after all, there is no reason strolling around there by night, for apart from the monuments (open only by day, of course), that's a grim and not very charming part of Rome.
As for the other quarters you mentioned, Trevi/Pantheon is the same part of the town, as well as Termini/Repubblica. I'd avoid Termini/Repubblica, it's really ugly there, as with most train station surroundings all over the world. Via Veneto is a dead end in a completely different sense of the word - it's a fancy, upper-class dead end. Since the days of the fifties "dolce vita" are definitely over, there is little to attract me in that quarter, and evenings can be boring there.
So of "your" quarters, Pantheon/Trevi is certainly by far the best - much of the very essence of Rome is there, including the Quirinale, and it's unforgettable above all by night (by day, there are sometimes TOO many people around). But what I'd recommend as well is the area south of Corso Vittorio Emanuele, i.e. the former Ghetto and the Via Giulia/Palazzo Farnese/Campo de' Fiori neighbourhood - just marvellous, and (apart from Campo de' Fiori) less crowded by day.
But why don't you want to stay west of the Tiber?? Ok, the Vatican area is not to be recommended - you're losing at least one hour every day simply going hither and wither, as it is sooo distant from the very center of the city. But Trastevere is my favourite spot for living in Rome - not the sometimes over-crowded, more touristy northern part of it (charming as it is!), but the part south of Viale Trastevere - more or less opposite the Tiber island. That's another quintessential Roman quarter, and above all, re: public transport, it has no equal. You can reach the Ghetto, the Foro Boario, and of course the more famous part of Trastevere walking, and you have all the buslines going along the Tiber quais - these are the main routes to reach every point in the city, and you are sparing much, much time, while inhabiting one of the most charming, most unspoiled parts of Rome.

nevertooold

Franco - we are presently contemplating staying at Capo D'Africa.

2 Questions, please:

(a) does this hotel (at a rate of 178E for a triple) qualify as one in the Colosseum/Lateran area that you refer to?; and

(b) what comparable hotels would you recommend in the Trastavere area - we were also considering this area at one time, but went with the Colosseum area as it was not too far from the metro.

Thanks for any assistance.

(b)we are presenlty paying app

kangamom

Several years ago we stayed in the Piazza Navona area and felt that we were very well located for sightseeing, walking across the river, shopping, etc. I also loved the Pantheon area. I also loved the Piazza del Popolo area, but it isn't really centrally located (I just love to shop).

franco

Hi nevertooold,

yes of course, that's right in the middle of that quarter - I repeat, I'd not be afraid staying there, but it's certainly not the nicest part of Rome, you're finding yourself in a very decayed and neglected district, and as I said, with a very poor reputation.
As for Trastevere, I'm sorry I can't recommend any hotels, as I'm not the hotel type of traveler - I always prefer renting self-catering apartments, as I love to do some occasional cooking myself, profitating of the markets of a foreign city. But as I said before, try to find something in the southern half of Trastevere, more near Porta Portese than near Santa Maria in Trastevere.

franco

And by the way, the metro is good for nothing. It must be the most useless metro in the world - you're getting nowhere to the more interesting parts of Rome using the metro. It's always the busses that you'll need.

nessundorma

This website, Romeby.com, allows you to search for hotels by price and neighborhood. It has loads of pictures. If you see one you like, go to tripadvisor, plug in the name, and read traveler's reviews.

http://www.romeby.com/

I like the area of Piazza Navona/Pantheon.

Be aware that Rome has not got a great public transportation system, so investing in a centrally located hotel is worth it unless you really don't mind walking your legs off (even if it rains).

nessundorma

PS: On the Romeby.com site, the Pantheon area is listed as "Piazza della Rotunda"

nessundorma

A modestly priced hotel I like near Piazza Navona is Teatro Pace 33. It's on the web.

genoajim

Thank you franco, kangamon, nessundorma and others. Your input has been very helpful. Franco, I especially appreciate your insights into the areas; in fact I will look again at the west side of the river. It sounds like the favorites so far are the areas of Pantheon, Navona and Trevi. Any other ideas?
Thanks to all, Jim

bardo1

I'll also chime in with the Pantheon, Piazza Navona and (to a lesser extent) Trevi fountain areas. I would also add the Campo dei' Fiori and Via Giulia areas.

genoajim

Thank you bardo1 for your additional thoughts on this subject.
Franco, or anyone else, what would you say about the Repubblica and Barberini piazza areas? Are they far enough away from the train station to not have that impact?
I have been surprised how many of the 3 star hotels in the other (better) areas are already full for our days in early June.
Thanks again for any insights you might have on these areas to the northeast of the earlier ones discussed. Jim

franco

Hello Jim, Piazza della Repubblica is EXACTLY the kind of train station surrounding I've been talking about - avoid it! Piazza Barberini is right on the edge of the incredibly nice Quirinale/Trevi/Pantheon area, the Piazza itself, however, is heavily noisy and full of traffic day and night; staying somewhere off the Piazza, however, could be nice.

maryanne1

The first 3 night we stayed in the Nazionale on the Monticetorio Piazza which is a wonderful location near the Pantheon-very walkable to most destinations except the Vatacin. We found a good deal on the internet in Jan. that caused us to make this decision. The last 4 nights we moved to the Aberdeen which is a few blocks from the train station. This is a good, small hotel in a safe location-the Ministry of Defense across from it-much cheaper than the Nazionale. If it were my first trip to Rome I would try to find an affordable hotel in the areas suggested to you,but if price is the main issue then I would say the Aberdeen cannot be beat.
You can read our trip on Maryanne1

nessundorma

I regularly stay near the Pantheon and from the Piazza della Rotonda I find it easy and pleasant to walk to the Vatican. It's about a 30 minute walk -- although I'm not sure I've ever done it without stopping here and there along the way, so I can't be sure exactly.

nessundorma

I also want to add after reading some other posts in this thread that there are some hotels near the Vatican that are convenient to many other sites, especially if your interests are centered on the Jewish quarter, Trastevere, and even the Piazza Navona/Pantheon area (as opposed to the Spanish Steps, Villa Borghese, etc.)

I can highly recommend La Rovere, which is quiet, near the Vatican at the tip of Trastevere and has lovel views of the Tiber. Its rooms range from 130-230 euros.

I've walked from there to the Pantheon, had a coffee, and then walked to the Colisseum and toured the Colliseum before lunch. After lunch I toured the Forum and walked back to my hotel via the Jewish Quarter and stopped for a snack in the Trastevere before returning to my hotel. Then out to dinner in the Campo dei Fiore.

genoajim

One final thank-you to franco and nessundorma and others that have helped me. I have now made reservations at Albergo Santa Chiara which is near the Pantheon. Your input was a definite help and I feel this location will allow us to walk to probably everything that we will want to visit. Also, I feel like this will be a good area for safe night-time activities and walks. Now I can get on with the details and the excitement of planning our time. Jim