Rome with small children - where to stay?
 

Hi -

We will be in Rome for 3 days/nights in July, traveling with my husband and almost 2-year-old twins. I haven't been to Rome since I was a college student (and can't remember that far back:). What would be a good area for us to stay in? --- ideally, we would like a nice B&B in a safe area that we can walk to restaurants and shops. It would also be ideal if this place was centrally located -- i.e., walking distance to historic sites/museums/attractions and the metro (we will be coming and going from the Rome airport). Oh, and reasonably priced would be great, too (100-150 euros).

I think your budget - may be difficult if you want to stay in the center and have a family room with AC. And I wouldn;t consider a hotel without AC in July. Start now looking for places with family rooms (most double rooms won;t have any extra space for you to put up cribs or cots for little kids). I would start looking right away - venere.com or eurocheapo - might be places to start.

Snap! We have twins too, ands stayed in a family room in the Hotel Lancelot a few years ago for four nights (they were five at the time). It is literally walking distance from the Colosseum, and you can catch a little bus around the corner which takes you right across town to Piazza Navona. We avoided the Metro as we'd heard a lot about muggings and didn't want to risk it with small kids. And besides, that bus route gave a dropoff point within walking distance of just about everything we wanted to see. And we did a lot of walking, as it's such a beautiful city. There was a great family-run restaurant called Da Domenico on a parallel street, the Via San Giovanni in Lanterno. Great antipasto, fresh made pasta dishes and slow braises. And there are a couple of good pizza and gelato cafes closeby too. The hotel had a good buffet breakfast each morning and the staff were super helpful. There was also a small fruit & veg market each morning around the corner, so we could buy supplies for our outings. I'm not sure of your chances of getting a room in July at this stage though. Good luck!

Just an FYI about buses-there are quite alot of pickpocketings on the buses especially bus number 64 to the Vatican.
Personally,I think that the Colosseum is NOT central Rome and you will find with your twins that you will want something closer to the center area so you can come back to nap and then go out again when it is cooler.You will definitely want and need A/C so go to all of the usual booking sites and see what is available at this late date. I like Venere.com or Booking.com for Italian accomodations-also check out Rick Steves;Fodors,Frommers guidebooks for other suggestions.
I would recommend with twins and luggage to hire a car from the airport through romelimousines.com as it will be easier and less stressful for all of you.
It should usually cost between 35-50 euros for all of you with luggage-they pick you up right outside of the baggage claim and drop you off directly in front of your hotel. If you chose the taxis-don't pay more than 50 euros!The Leonardo express to the Termini station with transfers will be a nightmare with twins....just saying. Good Luck!

Having booked many family rooms over the years, I would not rely on the booking websites alone. They are great to get a range of reviews, but have limited allocations of rooms for each hotel, so may say they are booked out, when in fact the hotel is not. They also often do not display family rooms. I've found the best thing is to research possible target hotels on those sites, and then contact the hotel direct with your booking enquiry. You can also often get a slightly better rate too.

Thank you all for your suggestions so far! We actually only need a double room because our children sleep in the same bed with us, so we don't need space for a crib. Hopefully that will help our search. Dutyfree --- what would you consider "the center area" if we wanted someplace that we could walk to most places?

PATSAT-I work as an international flight attendant and go to Rome quite a bit.Our new layover hotel in Rome is up by the Borghese Gardens and it is a pain to go back to if you want to regroup;meet up with friends,etc. I would select something around the Pantheon,Piazza Navona or even near Trevi fountain so you can really enjoy Rome.
Rome is fabulous but if you are far away from things that you have to walk alot or take public transportation it becomes a pain. The fact that you have your twins with you (and being a mom) it is nice to have a break in the day especially with the heat to freshen up and possibly nap so you can enjoy the later activities of Rome and better temps.Let me take a look at some hotels for you later tonight?

You might be surprised that most hotels(all Europe) will NOT let you have two children in your room without another bed.The Italian government has a law that all people within a room must present their passports for check in and most of the hotels all over Europe I know have firecodes for how many persons can be in a room for sleeping at one time.Its not that they are necessary trying to get more money out of you but the Italians have really strict rules on tourists and hotels!

PATSAT - Check out the Hotel Due Torri near the Piazza Navona. Thye have family rooms but may be just slightly above your price range. A/C + breakfast too.

Thank you all for your replies. We decided location was top priority and found a small B&B in Piazza Navona - a new place opened by the Casa di Sara. Anyone know it?

Glad you found something. My suggestion was going to be an apartment, it would give you a bit more room for the kids. Either airbnb or sleepitaly

You might try Hotel Alimandi which is across from the entrance to the Vatican Museum. Quiet neighborhood. Restaurants and supermarket right on same street, bus access. It consists of a 3star and 4star hotels and apartments.

I would also recommend Hotel Due Torri near the Piazza Navona suggested by jamierin.