I'm traveling for the 1st time to Rome this April with my parents, who are very active seniors. We are staying at the Hotel Mascagni in the historical district. They have never been to Europe. Any suggestions on some not to miss restaurants or absolute must sees beyond the usual? We will be in Rome for 7 nights. Any insider info is greatly appreciated. (I'm having visions of Chevy Chases's European Vacation movie )

Ths hotel seems to be almost unknown on this forum, for some reason - - searching "Mascagni" yields a lot of posts with 0 responses - - though there is a positive comment by rebelrpr on http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34424975

And yet, there is plenty of good feedback on tripadvisor.com

You might think it is in the "historical district" (is all of Rome "the historical district"?), but it is NOT in the Centro Storico ("Historic Center&quot - - i.e., ner the Trevi-Pantheon-PiazzaNavona "axis".

Consider hotels located there?

Some restaurants I can recommend include Carbonara at Campo d. Fiori and Le Volte near the Pantheon.

Best wishes,

Rex

I'm moving to Rome in August for school. Probably some of the best places to see in Rome are Galleria Borghese (admissions is moderate)and the San Giovanni in Laterano (Church, scala santa, and baptistry are free- Cloister is inexpensive). The trastevere is the more livily part of Rome. It houses universities and college students, so it all depends on how active your parents are. Also a great place is Villa d'Este. a great thing to get before you leave would be the Fodor's City pack...it has great sites, a map and listings of restraunts, hotels, and attractions. Hope this was of some help!

As noted above, you are NOT is the historic center, but are instead located at Piazza Republica (an area I'm unfamiliar with). If you can make it over to the historic center "Centro Storico) or end up staying there, then I can recommend these 3 places:
Osteria dell'Antiquario (near Piazza Navona - about 50Euro/person total includes dinner/wine/water/dessert/coffee/etc.)
Trattoria Da Luigi (near Campo De' Fiori about 30E/per total)
Der Pallaro (near Campo De' Fiori exactly 20E/per total - menu of the day only)

Hi lola,

If you go to www.multimap.com and enter the hotel's address you can see where you will be located.

This link might also help you:

Helpful Information: Italy

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34443340

Your hotel is almost across the street from the church of Santa Maria della Vittoria with Bernini's masterpiece, "The Ecstasy of St. Theresa". A good option for a quick lunch or dinner is the tavola calda called "Dagino" in the shopping gallery of the Esedra building which is almost next door to your hotel. Wonderful food at a reasonable price. Owned by Sicilians, they have delicious cannoli and cassata pastries. You are very fortunate to have seven nights in Rome; you will be able to see so much. Get a copy of "City Secrets, Rome" for more ideas of unusual things to see.

Hi
If you click at the top of this page on Destinations (and later, on Restaurants) you will find lots of suggestions. Likewise if you use the little search box just above to search on Rome or Rome retaurants--there are many favorites here.

I have a long file on Rome; if you'd like to see it, email me at
[email protected]

I too prefer the Pantheon/Piazza Navona area for a hotel location.

Since you're planning a seven-day trip to Rome, you may want to consider a day trip to Orvieto or Pompeii. Type these topics into the search box for info about these great destinations.

Piazza Navona sounds like where I'd really like to be staying. I'll start researching that. As my folks are a bit older, I certainly want them as centrally located as possible. Termini doesn't seem to be it, though the hotel sounds wonderful (thru trip advisor)
Thanks to all who replied. ... Lola

If you are using the Fodors website for hotels, look also at locations "Pantheon" and "Campo dei Fiori" as well as "Piazza Navona". These three areas comprise the historic center district. All are equally good areas.

lola - I have stayed at the Mascagni twice, in 1997 and 2001. As has been stated here, it is near Piazza Republica, and not vary far from Termini Station. Not the greatest part of town, but we had no problems while there. The Grand is directly across the street.
The hotel itself is very nice - the rooms and baths are spacious and clean, staff is friendly, buffet breakfast is good, there is a very nice bar and better than average restaurant. I would stay there again.

My husband and I stayed at the Mascagni for 10 days in 2001. although I agree the hotel is nice, large rooms and the service and concierge was extremely helpful in making reservations, like at the Villa Borgese.

I would not stay there again because of the location.
We enjoy walking and exploring, however this hotel was out of the way even for us. This was our first visit and we really wanted to see as much as we could.
When we go in April, we are staying at the Albergo Cesari near the parthenon only for 2 nights before returning home. I hope this is a better location.
I will report our findings.
Good Luck!

This is personal preference, but we did walk to many of the most popular points of interest from the Mascagni...Colliseum, Forum, Wedding Cake, Piazza Navona, Pantheon, and others. While the hotel is certainly not centrally located, the only major attraction that is probably too far for most people to walk to is the Vatican and Castel Sant Angelo, though we did walk back to our hotel late at night from that area on one occasion...with very sore legs, but after a great dinner in Trastevere.