A feature in the Wall St Journal this morning took a look at religious guesthouses as inexpensive lodging possibilities in Europe. Here is a list of the references included in the article:

• The Church of Santa Susanna
www.santasusanna.org/comingToRome/convents.html
Offers a detailed list of places to stay in Rome.
 
• Accommodations at Convents and Monasteries in Italy
www.initaly.com/agri/convents.htm
Offers a sampling of places to stay in various regions. Newsletter costs $6.
 
• DolceVita Travel
www.dolcevita.com/travel/convent/convent1.htm
Offers a map of monasteries around Italy.

SELECTED GUESTHOUSES

Here's a sampling of notable religious guesthouses where you can rent a room for the night.

• Abbey of St. Peter, Solesmes, France
www.solesmes.com3
The abbey guesthouse is open only to men, because it's part of the monks' enclosure, but another nearby guesthouse run by nuns houses men, women and families.

• Hospice du Grand-St.-Bernard, Bourg-St.-Pierre, Switzerland
www.gsbernard.ch/gsb.htm4
Open during the winter, with lots of skiing nearby. (To see the site in English, go to google.com, type in the site, and then hit "translate&quot

• Casa di Santa Francesca Romana, Rome
www.sfromana.it5
Guesthouse dates back to the 1400s, sits in the popular Trastevere neighborhood and has private bathrooms and a courtyard.

Oops -- omit the numbers after those websites. I didn't notice the footnotes when I was copying and pasting. Here's the corrected list.

www.solesmes.com
The abbey guesthouse is open only to men, because it's part of the monks' enclosure, but another nearby guesthouse run by nuns houses men, women and families.

• Hospice du Grand-St.-Bernard, Bourg-St.-Pierre, Switzerland
www.gsbernard.ch/gsb.htm
Open during the winter, with lots of skiing nearby. (To see the site in English, go to google.com, type in the site, and then hit "translate&quot

• Casa di Santa Francesca Romana, Rome
www.sfromana.it

Thanks for keeping us informed! Note that the DolceVita article is from 1996 and may be outdated.

Staying in a convent is a GREAT idea! I stayed in a Ukranian convent in Rome 2 years ago and was very pleased. First, you know the place is going to be clean and safe. Second, it's going to be much cheaper than even a bargain hotel. Third, the one I found (can't remember the name) was in a great location, about a 10 minute walk from the Vatican and a 5 minute walk from a subway stop.

I thought I'd be get the willies staying in a convent, but the nuns were very nice (and they offered a good, affordable dinner). As long as your plans in Rome don't involve a booty call, you shouldn't have any problems.

I just found a grerat website for this time of lodging in all aresa of italy.

www.hospites.it

List of convents with email (by janepost):
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threadselect.jsp?fid=2

Tesoro, will you check that URL? It doesn't appear to be correct.

I am not sure what post that Tesoro meant, but if you scroll down the page on this link, you will see what is likely the same list:
http://www.ricksteves.com/graffiti/graffiti23.html

Some of these are women-only, but not all of them certainly.

Thanks, WT. Here's the list as originated by Jane Post on Rick Steves' Grafitti board:

Convents, Female-only lodging in ITALY
ROME
www.casainternazionaledelledonne.org - hostel for women only
Il Rosario [[email protected]] Single room w/o bath 38 Euro
Mestre Pie Filipini [email protected]] Single room w/o bath 35 Euro
Suore di S. Elisabetta [[email protected]] Single room w/o bath 35 Euro
Istituto Nostra Signora di Lourdes [[email protected]]Single room w/o bath 44 Euro
Casa Tabor [[email protected]] Single room w/o bath 45 Euro
YWCA [[email protected]] Single room w/o bath 37 Euro
Istituto Santa Giuliana [[email protected]] Single room w/o bath 45 Euro
Casa Bonus Pastor [[email protected]] Single room ensuite 76 Euro
FLORENCE
http://www.venere.com/templates/go.p...&ref=27723 – hostel for women only
< Suore di S. Elisabetta [[email protected]] Single room w/o bath 35 Euro
C.S.D. Foresteria Istituto Gould [[email protected]]Single room w/o bath 32 Euro
VENICE
Centro Don Orione Artigianelli [[email protected]]Single room ensuite 70 Euro
Istituto Ciliota [[email protected]] Single room ensuite 70 Euro
Casa per Ferie Caburlotto [[email protected]] Single room w/o bath 37 Euro
CINQUE TERRe, Monteresso, Soviore [[email protected]]/ www.soviore.it Single room 60 Euro