Rome The Vatican area help
 

Hi,<BR> Has anyone stayed at the Hotel <BR>Domus Mariae at 481 Via Aurelia? What is the neighborhood like around the Vatican. Any feedback is appreciated.Tim

I would not stay near the Vatican. there is nothing there, but that. The area is not nice. stay central in rome. you will be much happier and the hotels are great. casa howard is very nice and near spanish steps. casahoward.com<BR>marios is nice, too.

I wouldn't recommend it as a location because it's not central. It's a brisk 40+ minute walk to the Pantheon for example. If you look on your map most tourist-oriented sights are in a walkable radius from the historic center Centro Storico.

We stayed at the Hotel Genio near Piazza Navona this June...short walk to Vatican and great hotel

Dea Tim:<BR><BR>I stayed in the Vatican area several years ago and thought it was fine. Very quiet, mostly residential and close to St. Peter's. Needless to say, we spent lots of time at St. Peter's and walked EVERYWHERE! We were always pooped out!!!<BR><BR>Just last month, I was in Italy with my mother and sister, staying near the historical center(Piazza Navona). It was wonderful!!! More going on, things to do and see, such as the Piazza Navona, Pantheon, Trevi Fountain etc. A great outdoor cafe scene. Our hotel was about 2 minutes from P. Navona and a 20 minute walk to St. Peter's. <BR><BR>Good Luck, <BR>Michelle

Agree w/previous poster. Vatican area is ok but why settle when there are so many charming neighborhoods to stay in?<BR>enjoy your trip regardless and go every where!

In 2000 my husband, son and I stayed at the Hotel Spring House (Via Mocenigo, 7) which is a few blocks from the Vatican. It was our first visit in Rome and I thought it would be important to be close to the Vatican so we could be in line before they opened. Although we had no problem walking everywhere from there, it was certainly not an area that you wanted to window shop or eat. Next time, I'd stay in the Piazza Navona area. Just my prefernece, now that I've seen the other areas.

We were in Rome the last week in September this year and enjoyed all areas of the city. I loved the Spanish Step area (Spagna) for the activity, the window shopping and the most beautiful churches along the Via Corso, but we actually moved from the area due to the noise at night(vespas!) and spent the last two days in the Vatican area at the Hotel Amalia. I felt this neighborhood was more like what I expected..more friendly, I liked the atmosphere after the busy, rushed area around the Steps. Remember the public transportation is excellent and if you get familiar with the schedule, it doesn't really matter which area you stay in. Some of our most memorable experiences were those we just stumbled on...be sure to visit the Trevi Fountain at night...wonderful..we ended up there a lot while in that area.