I'm going to Italy in late may / early June and I would really appreciate any suggestions on hotels in Venice, Florence, the Amalfi Coast (Sorrento or Positano) and Rome. I really don't want to pay more than $150/night in most cities. Maybe a more chic hotel on the Amalfi coast -- but no more than $250/night. Hotels, B&B's, family-run inns, etc. are all fine. I would just like the hotels to be in the city center as I won't have a car. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Many thanks!
--Chrissem

As a general starting point, many of "us" (regulars) routinely recommend that you use www.venere.com for browsing - - and good for booking also (though others will occasionally comment on being able to get a better rate directly from a hotel itself).

The hotels that seem to get the most consistently favorable reviews as (upper) middle class hotels are now a good bit above the price range you have indicated - - closer to 200 euro per double per night.

And this is advice after the fact (as I see you have already re-posted with ITALY in the message header) - - but I will still repeat this request, as other "newbies" might read this.

In general, it is worth your while to read the "HELP" (frequently asked questions) - - in the upper left hand corner, in tiny red letters - - especially this advice:

From http://www.fodors.com/forums/faqs.cfm#Q6

Finally, create a title - make sure it is concise and <b>clearly describes your message (and destination, if applicable)</b>

(emphasis added on my own)...

Welcome to the forum...

Best wishes,

Rex Bickers
Floyds Knobs, Indiana

You've got to be kidding me, right?

kidding you about what?

You should easily be able to do this. During previous trips to Italy I have used: www.italyhotelink.com to make reservations and/or checked the Rick Steves book. My one suggestion would be to book your room in advance so as to avoid being ripped off.

Casale-Villa in Abruzzo
http://www.angelfire.com/film/casale