My husband and I, both in our early 60's - fit and healthy will be spending 4 days in Rome August, 2010.

I have been doing a lot of researching on where to stay.........near Trevi Fountain or in Trastevere and in particular the Arco del Lauro B & B.

From what I can see - from Trastevere, it appears to be only a 20-30 minute walk in direction to Trevi Fountain, Colosseum, Spanish Steps etc.

I would like some feedback on staying in Trastevere......do you think a couple the age we are would enjoy it...............and your comments also on Arco del Lauro.

It can get pretty confusing trying to get the most out of a short time.

Any feedback would be most appreciated.

Thanks

Lots of info on this B&B on tripadvisor.com where it is very highly rated.

I would say 30 minutes at a good pace is a fair estimate but the heat in Rome can be awful in August so factor in your comfort as well.

We have not stayed in Trastevere but always visit for dinner at least twice when in Rome as there is such a nice selection of dining there and the streets are always busy and energetic. We also go during the day for some of the public markets.

I am not a big fan of the area around the Trevi as it is so busy all the time and jammed with tourists. We like to stay near the Borghese or the Colosseum as we get a respite from the crowds, which Trastevere will also provide.

If you are considering Arco del Lauro due to budget, you can stay closer to the historic center at budget hotels such as Hotel Panda or perhaps Nicholas Inn. Hotel Julia is also well regarded and reasonable.

I would pick the Trastevere location myself. Here is a good thread describing it and other parts of Rome
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...odistricts.cfm

I know there are other threads with information about Arco del Lauro if you do an advanced search for that

Hello, we are your age and stayed twice in Arco del Lauro and loved it. You have to walk to go to most places which are reasonable close, we walked to Campidoglio, Forums, even the Colosseum, Piazza Navona, Fonta de Trevi etc but you can also combine walking and taking buses. There is a good little electric bus, very tiny, no. 116 that goes around all the little streets. Sometimes we take it one way. Buses are 1 euro. You buy your ticket in a Tabacci shop
( they are all over ROme, closed on Sundays), you can also buy a pass, but I prefer buying tickets as long as I need them always being sure you have an extra one in your pocket.
To the Vatican is far, so no problem , you take the 23 bus, a tramway runs along the Trastevere that is simple, is line 8 the only one that runs in there and so on....to the Termini there is a bus the H. THose are the only ones we have taken on some occasions. But we are big walkers and Rome has hills which sometimes makes things a little harder, I have never been in August, which is hot and low season too .
Being in the Trastevere is delightful due to the many little restaurants, and ice cream shops and cafes.
It is a nice neighborhood only problem lots of tourists.
The Arco del Lauro is wonderful, see my postings and others in trip advisor,,
it is clean, rooms face inside patio, so no view but also NO NOISE.
Just walking around is a wonderful thing to do. You can also simply buy an ice cream in Mc Donald's in Viale del Trastevere, delicious and only .70 cts most ice-creams elsewhere are over 2,3 euros or more.
Of course you need to walk, but waling in Rome is so fascinating.....
And take the car they offer it is a good deal, do not fall for the train+taxi, it amounts more or less to the same amount of money and what a difference. Arrive in style.

I mean the car to get to Trastevere from the airport. Unless your hotel is close to the Termini it is a bad deal, taxis to most places amount to 15 euro.

Sorry I made a misstake we are older than you. You are YOUNG. Have a great stay.

Trastevere is the REAL Rome...non touristy, great restaurants, incredible pizza, some beautiful old churches to explore, and a twenty to thirty minute walk to all Rome as to offer...over the Tiber River, plus...a 30 minute walk to the vatican....have been to Rome on four occasions....Trastevere is my favorite neighborhood.....mike

We (mid 40s) rent3ed an apartment in Trastevere two years ago. Loved it. Wanted to stay at the Arco del lauro, but it was full (good sign). We have had friends stay there and they recommended it.

You can walk anywhere in Rome within 30 minutes from Trastevere, plus there are buses and some underground/subway areas.

We really like the area and found a couple really good low cost (and one good, but no so cheap right near Arco del lauro) places to eat in Trastevere where we had dinner every night.

I was in Rome this summer for one day and ate off the Campo di Fiori and it was not good at all.

Check out my trip report Days 4-7: http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...nromeparis.cfm

Enjoy

Book marking

Do you have to go in August? It is soooo hot then.Make sure you have a place with air conditioning or you will wither.

We are a bit older than you, and have been to Rome several times. Last visit, we finally made it to Trastevere. I looked around and promised myself to return to Rome just so I can stay there and take pictures. I found the area most charming.

We just spent two weeks in an apartment in Trastevere and absolutely loved it. I would not recommend staying near the Trevi Fountain or Spanish Steps area just because it is the heart of the tourist area and while the sights are wonderful, I don't think it's a particularly appealing location as a place to stay. We have stayed at Arco del lauro and didn't find it in particular to be that special although it was very quiet and clean.

Thank you all again for your feedback.

Our reason for going to Rome in August was to escape some of our Australian winter.......though, by what I am reading I am hoping that the heat wont damper our holiday.

I have decided to stay at Arco del Lauro for a number of reasons.....the reviews on the whole have been very positive, the location seems to have a charm of its own and the owner seems to be very helpful and friendly.

Now my only concern is the WEATHER!!!