Any recommendations for hostels in Rome?? My husband and I are traveling in December and are starting to look at options. It seems everything has mixed reviews. Thanks for any input!

Oops forgot to mention that we would like to stay somewhat central since we will only be in Rome for a couple days. Walking distance from things is awesome. We both are athletic and welcome the exercise!

Time to book something now! The Beehive is the most recommended hostel, but it's probably already full.

I would suggest looking at their companion site - http://www.cross-pollinate.com - to see if any of their other options suit you.

Have you investigated convents? Again, it's probably too late to snag a cheap room at one, but many of these are better located than Rome's hostels and cost little more.

We stayed in Hotel Albergo Sileo about a month ago and it was nice enough. It was near the train station so I thought it was very easy to hop onto the Metro every time we wanted to go somewhere. Breakfast was included and the staff was really nice. Maria let us keep our bags there all day the morning we checked out because we weren't leaving on the train until later that evening. The only downfall was the COLD shower, but it was a cheap place to stay and we were on a tight budget.

www.hotelsileo.com (Ann speaks English)

How would I find convents to stay in?? Not familiar with this. Thanks!

When I was researching convent options I found this website helpful
http://www.santasusanna.org/comingToRome/convents.html

(We ended up renting an apartment rather than staying at a convent. You might want to look into a small apartment if you are staying in Rome for a week--the rates are usually much lower than hotels)