Hi,
My wife and I are going on a cruise of the Mediteranean beginning Oct.30 and departing from Rome. We would like to go about 7 days early and sightsee in Rome and surrounding areas. I would appreciate recommendations on where to stay in Rome($100-150/night), what to see, and what to take for clothing. We are both 60 and in excellent health. Thanks in advance for everyone's help. Jerry

You could stay at a convent. If you're interested, let me know and I'll give you a list with location and phone numbers. I've never been there in October so I can't give you advice on clothing.

I think whatever you are taking on the cruise should work just fine. Presumably you are taking something that will keep the chill away in case you want to walk on the deck in the evening. A very simple waterproof jacket with a hood is often great to pack, since you may very well have rain. You can buy an umbrella very easily in Rome.

Comfortable, waterproof shoes are the most important item.

If you are willing to walk up a flight of stairs with your luggage, I can recommend hotel Teatro Pace 33, which has an excellent location near the Piazza Navona and is at the top end of your budget for a double.

But I would also recommend that you take a look at Tripadvisor.com. Your budget is on the low side for Rome, and while you can find something good, it will simplify your life to read recommendations from many travelers.

Also check the Venere.com site. We've found a very nice B&B in that price range.

Hi Dogfather,

I was very happy with Hotel Giardino Rome, great location, cosy, very helpful owner, Katy, and staff. A single in Sept was 90E/night so it should be in your range.

I also really enjoyed 2 tours with Context Rome, the Antique Rome tour and the Vatican Arte tour.

With 7 days, you might want to take a day trip to either Orvieto (1i hours by train), Tivoli to see Hadrian's Villa and the Villa d'Este famous for it's fountains, or maybe a 1 night overnight to see Pompeii! October would be a nice time to visit Pompeii -- cooler weather and fewer crowds.

Buon viaggio!

Hi Jerry, the end of Oct. is great for visiting Rome and surroundings. 7 days will give you time to explore a bit so if you'd like some background info from a long-time resident check www.elegantetruria.com articles page

Thank you for the help/advice. Am I being unrealistic in my hopes of finding a nice hotel for $100-150? We don't need anything fancy, we have stayed at fancy hotels before, but would like something quaint, clean, friendly, and convenient. We can pay more if necessary, but I don't want an American style hotel. Is the trip to Pompeii an overnight trip, or can we go and back in one day? Jerry

$150 is probably doable. I doubt you'd be happy with a hotel priced at $100 in October (high season).

We stayed at Hotel Parlamento. Nothing fancy, great location, quiet, safe. They were remodeling. Ask if the terrace rooms are available. Good reviews.
http://www.hotelparlamento.it/

We spent one week in Rome last November. Temps were in the 50's during the day, cooler in the evening but still very nice. Recommend the Hotel Duca D'Alba, near the Coliseum and the Forum, very Italian and quaint. I dealt with them via fax and e-mail and they were easy to work with. We also day tripped to Orvieta and Florence on the advice of a Fodorite...and these were great day trips via train. Also, did Tivoli via van rental with a driver (Bob's Limousines in Rome). Our driver was great, prompt and a good source of information about the area. Have a great stay!!

You can go to Pompeii as a day trip. I have done this twice. Once we took the train to Naples and commuter train (called the Circumvesuviana) from Naples to Pompeii Scavi, which is right at the entrance to the site in Pompeii. The other time we used a shuttle bus run by Enjoy Rome. See www.enjoyrome.com.

By the way, dogfather, 7 nights in Rome means you could quite easily rent an apartment and save a bundle. I know it sounds daunting, but many first time travelers to Rome who don't speak Italian routinely do it with great success. You could end up with something far better than a hotel room in October.

You have so much time to plan in advance, you really should take a moment to visit the Slow Travel website. They specialize in rentals, and have many, many listings for Rome.

Hello Again,
Thanks for all the comments and please don't stop. I have found a small apt. near Camp de' Fiori for $1100 per week which looks nice and seems like a good central location. I also like the looks of the Hotel Giardino ($177/night). Our tour guide is trying to put us into Hotel del Mellini, I think mainly because she has 50 people to house. Any thoughts on the apt. or hotel I mentioned, or others? Thanks again. Jerry PS..I'm also checking on the Hotel Smeraldo.

Here's the review of Dei Mellini on Tripadvisor, misspellings and all:

"This is a bvery nice little hotel. Lovely rooms and bathrooms. The servic is good and the breakfast is nice. I will say that the location is a bit of a walk to the sites. I like coming home to a little peace adn quiet, but you need to take cabs everywhere if you are not a walker."

That tells me the location is NOT good. After a hard day of touristing, you want to pop back into your apartment or hotel room and freshen up before dinner. And the best Roman restaurants are centrally located. Plus, while cabs in Roma are not exorbitant, "taking cabs everywhere" is not economical.

I don't know where you found the listing for the Campo dei Fiori apartment, but if it wasn't on tripadvisor, check out the reviews over there to see if perhaps other travelers have stayed there and reviewed it. If the apartment is right on the Campo, you may have noise issues -- although by the last week in October, the summer party scene has died down considerably. Other than that, that area is just terrific for sightseeing and restaurants.

Sorry dogfather -- I typed too fast.

Please correct my last post to read that if you didn't find the Campo dei Fiore apartment by looking at SLOW TRAVEL, check that Slow Travel website to see if you can find reviews of there from previous renters.

Hi Dogfather,

I recommended the Hotel Giardino Rome, great location. I walked everywhere except for the Vatican (one way).

Thanks to all, we have reserved an apartment near the Pantheon for a week @ 770 Euro and are excited about it. I will post our opinion of it upon our return. Dogfather