Spanish Steps area of Rome
 

My husband & I are planning a trip to Rome in May. We have never been and are totally clueless regarding where to stay. I've been reading some of the posts on this website and have gotten some good tips. Several posts I've seen have listed the Spanish Steps area as a great area to book a room -- that it's right in the middle of the city, so easy to walk to/from different sites in the city (which is important to us). One post said the metro/train is near to that area too, but I've read on other posts that being near the train station usually means being in a more undesirable part of town. Definitely don't want to be in a dumpy/scary part of town, but do want to be nearest to most of the main attractions. But, really would love to spend 100 Euro (or less) per night for a room. Are there different parts of the Spanish Steps area (some safer, nicer than others)? And, if so, which part is better for picking a hotel to stay in?

The Spanish Steps are near a metro station which is different from being near a train station. It is a upscale shopping area popular with tourists, not scary at all.

The areas around the Pantheon and Piazza Navonna are more centrally located. But there are a lot of places to stay around the Spanish Steps, and it's within easy walking distance to most major sites.

We stayed between the Spanish Steps ad the Piazza Popolo, at the Hotel Mozart. We enjoyed our large, comfortable but not-too-pricey triple room there, but others have had bad experiences there (so <i>caveat emptor</i>).

Do a search on this site for Spanish Steps hotels, and see what you come up with. Have fun!

The Spanish Steps is a safe area - lots of foot traffic and designer shops. There are plenty of budget hotel options there.

In my opinion the Pantheon/Piazza Navona/Campo de Fiori area in the old historic center is much more charming and convenient. Prices are a little higher in the central historic district than in the Spanish Steps area, but there ARE some options close to your budget.

Here's one great resource:

http://www.eurocheapo.com/rome/listings/navona.asp

We stayed at the Hotel Mozart near the Spanish Steps 2 summers ago. We did not really find it within walkable distance to the major sites, although this may have been due to the heat wave. I think staying near the Pantheon, Piazza Navona area is much more central. We kept finding ourselves hopping in taxis to go to the center of Rome. However, I really liked our hotel. The staff was not great but our room was roomy (for me and 3 kids), with a very nice bathroom (bath with shower), a large terrace with table, chairs and lemon trees, and a view. There were frescoes on furniture and the walls, there was a cafe on the roof with drinks and gelato, and breakfast was served in a lovely room by white gloved maids.
Anyway, the area around there is really fun and lively all day and night. Every night we went to the Spanish Steps and the kids went in the fountain... The shops lining the streets there are both gorgeous designer shops and more fad oriented little ones. Very fun area. But not terribly central.

Here's a post with some suggestions in your pricerange, http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34556173

I always recommend the Hotel San Carlo.

http://www.hotelsancarloroma.com/

The best way to reach them is via fax. They take a bit longer to respond to e-mails. I've stayed there several times. Also, Pensione Panda may very well be in your price range and is only a block away from the location of the Hotel San Carlo, still quite near the Spanish Steps.

Buon Viaggio,
BC

I would 2nd the suggestion that you consider the Piazza Navona &amp; Campo de Fiori area particularly if you want to be able to walk to everything. There are good restaurants near by that are reasonable and many of them frequented by locals. We stayed at a wonderful little hotel in near Campo de Fiori named Teatro di Pompeo but I think it is a little more than 100 euros. A good website for that area is:
http://romanhistorybooksandmore.free...om/l_campo.htm. It will give you a great feel for the area. Have fun. Rome is a wonderful city to explore on foot.

Piazza Navona and Campo Fiore are a ten or fifteen minute walk from the Piazza Spagna area, which has one importnat advantage. That being, the Metro stop is right there. I've stayed at Pensione Panda several times. DO NOT accept a &quot;small&quot; room. You don't know what small is unless you stay in one at Panda.

FYI - Unless you aren't into walking - which is all I do when I travel - then Piazza di Spagna is VERY close to the major attractions in Rome. It is literally a 10 minute walk from the Centro (Piazza Navona etc). I actually prefer to stay near the Vatican and St. Peters. The area around there is beautiful and residential - and the hotels are MUCH cheaper than they are in the Centro. It's also a very pretty 15 minute walk to Piazza Navona (over the river with the lights of St. Peters behind you!) and very safe. Hotel Florida - one of my personal favorites, is very friendly, clean and inexpensive. Try a fabulous restaurant between Piazza Navona and Campo di Fiori called &quot;Cul de Sac&quot; - it's fabulous!

I think the reference was to the Stazione Termini, the main railway station, in Rome and not a particular metro stop. I personally do not like to stay in the termini area of Rome.

I prefer the Pantheon area and Piazza Navona over the Spanish Steps. Your budget is pretty low for Rome but there are some B&amp;Bs that could meet your needs.

Domus Julia and Relais Banchi come to mind, as well as Daphne Inn.

I always enjoyed staying on the Via Due Machelli at the bottom of the Spanish steps and stayed at the Pensione Erdarelli which was extremely convenient to the best coffee shop in the world Cafe Greco. Love the place

Thank you so much for all of the great advice! This site is awesome!

We stayed at the newly renovated Oceania and lovedit--across from police sta. We walked all over Rome--you ahould be able to do this no matter where you stay. It is a very walkable city. Be sure to see the Borghese gallery.

I agree that hotels near the Pantheon are in a wonderful and very walkable neighborhood, with lots of good restaurants on nice piazzas. (Note that from your hotel near the Pantheon, you can walk to the Trevi fountain, the Spanish steps, Piazza navona, Campo de Fiori, and although it's a longer walk you can even walk to the Colosseum and the Roman Forum, and then take the public bus back (cheap) if you are tired. (You can't see all of this in 1 day, you'll need at least 2 days to see that, and a third day to see the VAtican and St. Peter's.)

What is your budget for hotels? We loved our hotel, Hotel Nazionale a Montecitorio on Piazza Montecitorio, near the Pantheon, but it's not cheap. Great hotel in a great location. But I hear there are other nice hotels, for less money, also near the Pantheon.

Being near the Spanish steps is a nice location, but not quite as central, because then you would be farther from the Colosseum, Roman Forum, and other Ancient Rome sights.

From the Pantheon area you can even walk to the Vatican, but I don't recommend it, because it's quite a walk, and then you'll be on your feet all day in the VAtican Museums. Better to take the public bus, it's cheap and easy. Have your hotel show you on the map where to catch the bus, and ask the driver if he's going to the Vatican to make sure you are on the right bus.

Nini: where did you book a room for the Hotel Oceania? I have seen this hotel listed on travel review websites and everyone seems to love the place. I haven't seen a bad review yet. However, I can't seem to locate it on any travel booking website to see pictures, prices, or possibly to book it. On TripAdvisor, it shows that you can view the hotel at CheapoHotels, but I searched there and it doesn't list that hotel. Also have looked at Expedia, Venere, etc. and can't locate it. Am I looking in the wrong place?

i felt the spanish steps area was fine, but i felt Piazza Novana or Campo de fiori was more central. i'd say look at attractions you plan to go on a map and get an ideas as to what location may be more favorable for your particular situation. but felt safe walking around the spanish steps around 2am.

Travelx2,

http://www.hoteloceania.it/

Thanks for the responses! I did go to www.hoteloceania.it, but looks like their site is under construction. They don't have a listing of prices, their proximity to various attractions or any other info like that to help me determine if this is where we want to stay. I'm assuming they offer breakfast as part of their prices, as most seem to, but this isn't listed either. They do have an email address listed, so I did email them with these questions, but have yet to hear back from them. We're planning on going to Rome in May (my husband &amp; I). Has anyone been recently and can give me an idea what the prices are like? Or maybe went last year in May &amp; can tell me what they paid then. Hopefully they haven't increased the prices since then. Thanks again!

Not far from the Spanish Steps is a great hotel called Daphne Inn (www.daphne-rome.com). I've stayed in both their locations and can highly recommend it. The rooms are large (for European standards), comfortable, clean and upscale. The owners Elyssa (American) and Alessandro (Italian) are so very friendly and helpful - they'll go out of their way to help you see the things you want to see, offer suggestions, make reservations, etc. The breakfast each morning is more than just a roll and coffee. Check out their website, I think you'll find great prices!