ilene

I am going to Rome in Sept and since most hotels were booked already decided to stay at the Hotel Imperiale on the Via Veneto as part of a air/land package. Will this be inconvenient for sight seeing? I plan to do all the usual sights and don't mind walking. I have a hard time getting a sense of how far away the hotel actually is from the central sights (Pantheon, Campo di Fiori, Trevi Fountain, etc.) from the map. any insights on the location or that specific hotel? The hotel was recommended in the Fodors guidebook.

Joan

Rome is a very accessible city by most standards and you will have no trouble getting to what you want to see from the Via Veneto. Having said that, do take into account that Rome, like all big cities is built for the convenience of those who live there, in this case for a couple of millenia and not for the tourists. You can't, of course, expect to walk to everything-going to the Vatican from the Pantheon on foot, while possible, is a long walk. I am addicted to Rome's excellent bus system. For the equivalent of less than $5 a day you can get a bus pass, available at Termini and other major transit stops, and hop on and off the bus as much as you wish. Any good guide book will tell you what route numbers you need and will also tell you to double-check as these numbers do change. But the basics remain and, besides, we have had some of our best adventures by getting on the "wrong" bus.

nancy

no problem. <BR>We usually walked from the P.Navona /Campo de Fiori area up to the Via Veneto. <BR>the walk is about 20-30 mins, depending. <BR>Your weather will be cooler than in June-July, also. <BR>the via Veneto is very pretty, with all the trees lining the road. <BR>

carol

As I recall, there's a bus at the end of the Via Veneto, in the direction of the Piazza Barbarini, which takes you right near the Piazza Navona. I agree with the posters above, though, the Via Veneto is really a central location (10-20 minutes from the sights you mention), as opposed to the Colosseum area or the Vatican which are 30-40 minutes' walking distance from, e.g., the Spanish Steps.

Ed

We enjoy the location greatly. We've stayed on or near the via Veneto for years, and our favorite hotel is within a 100 yards or so of the Imperaile. <BR> <BR>So, the location is good. The hotel? A so-so "deluxe" (5-star) property. Probably a good buy within the tour package to be honest with you, though I'd not choose it on independent travel. (Having done so once.) I think much of the hotel may have been refurbished since our visit, so it may now be better than I recall. I believe they cater to a lot of tour groups. <BR> <BR>As to location, there are several recommendable restaurants in the area, among them Picolo Mondo, Girarrosta Toscana and Giovanni. <BR> <BR>The Spanish Steps are less than 10 minutes by foot. Trevi Fountain about the same. Pza. Navona perhaps 15 or 20 minutes depending on how much you dawdle. You could walk to Pza. Venezia in about 15 minutes, perhaps 20, which puts you right at the historic Roman center. (Capitoline Hill, Forum, Colosseum.) Though ordinarily we'd use a bus which only takes 10 minutes, more or less depending on traffic. <BR> <BR>Bus stop quite close to the hotel, literally a few paces (two routes as I recall, perhaps one or two more) and the Barberini Metro station is just a hundred steps or so from the front door. <BR> <BR>The upper end of the via is a pleasant place for after-dinner strolling, or an after-dinner drink at a sidewalk table at Doney's or Cafe de Paris.