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jkgourmet1 Dec 23rd, 2013 09:50 AM

Rome - Need hotel or B&B QUICKLY for 5 night stay
 
We made reservations for a last minute cruise out of Rome, and will be staying in Rome for 5 days prior to departure on the cruise. We have never been to Rome before and frankly, know very little about it. Since we are leaving on Jan 2nd, I have VERY little time to get this organized! We are an older couple, and my husband cannot walk long distances or do stairs very well anymore.

We are on a budget, and are very open to B&B's. (the convent based hotels do not sound particularly appealing to us.) I like the sound of the Trastevere section of Rome, mostly because of the number of restaurants and cafes in that area and the less touristy feel of the area (at least, that's how it sounds to me), but I'm open to other areas. I'd very much like to keep the hotel down below $110 per night if at all possible.

HELP!!!!

MmePerdu Dec 23rd, 2013 10:19 AM

Trastevere, being a bit off the beaten path with fewer transport options compared to the city center, may involve more walking than other parts of Rome. Just a thought. But if you don't mind taking taxis then I loved staying there and would recommend it's for it's less formal feel.

annhig Dec 23rd, 2013 10:36 AM

Given your lack of time, I would suggest starting with TA, and putting in your dates and price limit, to see what comes up. you can select BnBs if that's your choice [and why not?] but with the urgency of your situation, I wouldn't restrict myself to one sort of accommodation.

then look at venere.com which allows you to select by area with a very handy map. Trastevere might not be a bad choice as it is fairly level, unlike some parts of Rome, and there is a handy tram which connects with the centre of Rome at Largo Argentina. otherwise save for your price constraint, I would suggest the piazza navona area as being both very central and having level walking; however getting a place for less than $110 in that area might be difficult.

however you won't know til you start looking!

Caliban Dec 23rd, 2013 11:07 AM

If you don't want to walk far but want to see things, central historical Rome would be better than Trastevere which is across the river from most of the sights. Even if you aren't going to use them, hotels.com has a good search engine. Put in a central location such as Campo di Fiori and a short distance say 1 mile and a budget and see what you get. At this late date, best book directly with a hotel as there will be no time to fix glitches.

jkgourmet1 Dec 23rd, 2013 11:25 AM

Thank you for the super quick replies!

Anybody know this one? Imperium Suite Navona
Vicolo della Palomba 19

jkgourmet1 Dec 23rd, 2013 11:30 AM

and what would be the neighborhood name for campo di fiori on TA? (sorry to sound so totally stupid)

annhig Dec 23rd, 2013 12:19 PM

have you looked at the imperium suites on TA?:

http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_R...ome_Lazio.html

They get pretty mixed reviews, I think that I would keep looking.

Campo dei fiori is generally described as the campo dei fiori area - [note spelling] but on TA this seems to translate into "Ponte" and on Venere.com it's included under Piazza Navona. [so
not stupid at all, all the websites use different descriptions which is confusing]

round the Pantheon is also very central, but again it may be beyond your budget.

bobthenavigator Dec 23rd, 2013 12:25 PM

At that price you may have to share a bath--is that OK?

jkgourmet1 Dec 23rd, 2013 12:25 PM

Again, thank you. Unfortunately, I'm still confused. When looking up hotels or B&B on TA, using the neighborhood function, there is no Ponte, Piazza Navonna or Pantheon. So very frustrating!

annhig Dec 23rd, 2013 12:29 PM

putting what I believe to be your dates [3-8 Jan] into TA and limiting the price to £78 per night, I got the following:

http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotels-...io-Hotels.html

the first 2 are way out of town, but some of the others are more central. it's worth looking at the reviews they get on the booking sites too - like booking.com - as they are only submitted by people who have stayed there, unlike on TA.

good luck!

thursdaysd Dec 23rd, 2013 12:33 PM

This is a nice hotel near the train station with availability in your price range. Not the area you asked for, but handy if you're taking the train to the ship. It's where I stayed a few years back.

http://www.hotelaberdeen.it/inglese/hotel.htm

jkgourmet1 Dec 23rd, 2013 12:43 PM

Thanks, all. Thursdaysd, that hotel might be a good idea for after the cruise - we have one night more in Rome. It would be easy to get to the airport from there as well, yes?

Otherwise, that area does not seem very pleasant for walking and dining, especially at night. I may have to increase the budget a bit for the five nights precruise. I figured since this was so out of season (winter), it wouldn't be this big an issue.

Searching by neighborhood IS difficult on TA when you are unfamiliar with the city. And TA has a great listing for B&B's, which seem to be less expensive.

Keep the suggestions coming, please. The are MOST appreciated.

Frances Dec 23rd, 2013 01:07 PM

We had four days to find three double rooms when our hotel in Trastavere dumped us. We succeeded in Hotel Arenula close to Trastavere but across the river. I think it came in at about £100 per room. All rooms ensuite. Mostly quiet hotel( rooms siding on to the main road were noisier). Starts on the first floor so some rooms on the third floor with no lift. Would go there again.

MmePerdu Dec 23rd, 2013 02:09 PM

Last year at this time I stayed at the Giuliana, south of the Aberdeen, suggested above, and I liked the neighborhood just fine. They seem to have rooms in your price range and I would certainly stay again, friendly people. There's a regularly held market in the street alongside the hotel with a sandwich maker, among other stalls. http://www.hotelgiuliana.com/Default.aspx?lang=en

jkgourmet1 Dec 23rd, 2013 02:22 PM

How about this one?

Hotel Orlanda
2.0 of 5
Add to trip
Via Principe Amedeo 76, 00185

MmePerdu Dec 23rd, 2013 02:55 PM

More on the Giuliana:

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Rev...ome_Lazio.html

WillTravel Dec 23rd, 2013 04:08 PM

This is what I'd suggest, as pinning down availability may be very time-consuming if you contact the hotels directly.

Go to Kayak.com . Enter your dates (are they January 3-8?).

Check the box Rome hotels only.

I suggest narrowing down the location like this, but you can play with the settings. Select 2 km (km is what shows up for me, but if it's miles, choose 1 mile) from a central landmark, such as the Trevi Fountain. That will get rid of hotels in really outlying areas.

Then sort by Price, and go through the list, discarding all of those that won't work for whatever reason. Most likely the cheapest options are hostels, and/or at the far edge location-wise, and/or have terrible reviews.

Eventually when you find a promising hotel, look up its reviews on different sites.

Good luck!

There's also AirBnB -- I have used it only twice (in North America), but it worked well for me.

WillTravel Dec 23rd, 2013 04:09 PM

January 3-6 are definitely still part of high season. Befana (January 5) is a big holiday. It may be worth it to break your stay into two parts, knowing you'll have to pay more for the first portion.

nytraveler Dec 23rd, 2013 04:13 PM

Yes - but you need to be careful looking at B&Bs. Some do not have elevators and it does;t sound like your DH would want to climb stairs - esp more than one flight. And agree that Rome is hilly (as in the 7 hills of Rome) so if walking and hills are issues I would head for central and places you can walk to, up the budget and figure you can spend less on cabs.


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