My husband and I are planning a trip to Rome March 13-23. We are looking for accomodations. We are staying 9 nights, and our budget per night is about $110. We need a clean, quiet double room with air conditioning in the city center. Are we delusional? Can we get what we want for the price we're able to pay? Any suggestions for hotels we could contact?

Please do not overlook "discounter" sites such as 180096hotel and discounthotel.com We recently stayed in the brand new Boscolo Aleph (a 5-star rated place) and received a huge discount on the room...like 1/2 the published rate. Just a suggestion.

Unless you are able to find a deal such as Bootman described, there is little likelihood that you will find something with A/C within your budget in the city center. You probably have 3 options: (1)Raise your budget to around $130-$150; (2)Get a hotel with no A/C, which in March is a pretty good risk; (3)Stay more on the periphery. I've seen it warm in Rome in March, but not generally; if you feel daring, go for no A/C. Good luck.

I think Pensione Panda at 39 Via della Croce, a couple of blocks from the Spanish Steps, is in your price range. (Forget a/c in March.) Phone 06 67 80 179.

If you are looking for a clean, simple room in a great location, you might want to consider Residence San Pantaleo, or the Primavera, which is in the same building. We stayed at the San Pantaleo for three nights and found it spacious and comfortable - however some of the rooms are a lot smaller then others. There is also a very meager breakfast included. For about 100 Euros a night, it's hard to beat, being a block from Campo Di Fiore.
PS: As great as Rome is, 9 days seems a bit long, as Rome can be exhausting after a while. Have you considered spending some time in the countryside?

Ditto for the recommendation for Residenza San Pantleo, also check out www.eurocheapo.com they give good honest reviews, in my experience.

Best of luck
Fluffy
p.s. also try www.hotelnavona.com there are 2 properties worth investigating.

The only hotel i can think of that fits that range is the Hotel Julia. My friend stayed there a few months ago and said it was fine. Although it is not dead center, it is close enough to most everything.

http://www.hoteljulia.it/

If you want dead center and a nice place try the Hotel Due Torri.

by the way, the Julia has gotten a lot of good comments on this forum.

Although, with the falling dollar, it may now be just a *bit* over your budget, I second Zootsi's mention of the Hotel Primavera. It's in the same building as the also-mentioned Residence San Pantaleo and the building is in a great central location, just a short distance from the south end of Piazza Navona. A family owns and runs it; the grandmother and son are especially friendly and they and the mother all speak English.

I don't think the rooms have A/C, but are you sure you need it in March?

Hotel Primavera: Piazza San Pantaleo 3, 1st fl., 00186. Tel: 06-68803109. Fax: 06-6869265.

We stayed at the Hotel Italia, which is not far from the train station, just off Via Natzionale, for 110 Euros last fall. I just checked their website, and the rate now for a double appears to be 113 euros. Air conditioning is available for an extra charge of 7.75 euros.

We were well satisfied with our room, and we found the location great and the service friendly and helpful, with a decent breakfast included.

It's close to the coloseum and an easy walk to the train station for bus connections.

In other cities, we splurged on fancier hotels, but the Italia was just great for Rome, and a terrific bargain.

Did I understand correctly that you're going in March - next year? We were there in Sept. and the weather was comfortable, our windows opened, and there was no need for air conditioning.

Bradshawgirl,

I meant to provide the link to Hotel Italia's website: http://www.hotelitaliaroma.com/

Most hotels with a/c shut it down for the non-summer months. I think they turn it on in May. We were there March '00 with 80 degree. Our hotel had a/c but not in March (the Santa CHiara 3*). This is typical for the area.

Thanks so much for all the great suggestions, folks! I will print out this thread and research these properties.

Has anyone heard of the Siggiorno Comfort? It's listed on the romeby.com website, and it looks to meet most of our needs as well. If anyone's stayred there, I'd love to hear from you!

As to the ac - For myself, having ac or not is not an issue. My husband, however, requires it. He is hot-natured, and when his body temperature gets too warm, he gets sick. Soooo, I'm really hoping that folks will allow us to turn the ac on.