Which areas to stay in when visiting Rome, Florence, Venice?
 

As I search hotels on this website, it seems there are so many different areas to stay in. My husband and I don't mind doing some walking....we're in our late 20's fairly active people so walking isn't an issue. Although, I don't want to be too far away from everything. Any suggestions? Thanks! These forums are awesome!

Rome? Proximity to Vatican City's a good rule of thumb.

Florence? Proximity to Ponte Vecchio (either side of the Arnaud) will stand you in good stead.

Venice? Close enough to Piazza San Marco without being too close. You'd be surprised just how quickly and easilya kilometre or two passes. Ditto the Rialto Bridge.

Thanks, knockerbocker. Could you clarify where Ponte Vecchio is? When I look at hotels in Florence on this website, that's not a location to look at
This is what I'm seeing: Duomo | Fiesole | Florence | Lungarno Sud | Palazzo Pitti | Piazza della Repubblica | Piazza della Signoria | San Marco | San Niccolò | Santa Croce | Santa Maria Novella | Santissima Annunziata | Santo Spirito | Santo Spirito/San Frediano

Thanks!

In Florence, I don't think location is quite as important as having the type of accommodations you want in your budget category. Florence is rather small, and active people in their 20s would have no problem staying almost anywhere near the historical center. (FYI, Fiesole is a suburb a few kilometers from the center of Florence.) While you're looking at various sources for hotel recommendations, you should have a map of the city so that you can see where hotels are in relation to the sights, the train station, etc.

In Rome, everyone has their opinion of the "best" place to stay. Near the Vatican would not be my choice. The hotel we have used for several trips is about halfway between Piazza Navona and the Spanish Steps. Again, it's best to have a city map when researching hotel recommendations.

I'll leave it to the Venice lovers to discuss hotels there. We have stayed near Piazza San Marco and in the Dorsodura area. I preferred the latter.

Besides searching on this board, also look at www.venere.com and www.tripadvisor.com.

Thanks, that's a lot of help!!!

I think Jean makes some good suggestions. Florence's historical center is small, and the location is less important than finding something that fits your style and range. I wouldn't stay outside of the city (like Fiesole), but would stick to area in or around the historical center. Focusing your search around the duomo might help; that's a major landmark in Florence.

In Rome, I would also not stay near the Vatican. It's a bit out of the historical center, and is quite a walk to most of the sights. I think of the area in the vicinity of the Pantheon and Piazza Navona as being my ideal location.

Venice is also easily walkable. I LOVED staying in Dorsudoro (Pensione La Calcina), which is very near everything but feels away from the crowds. I much prefer it to the area around San Marco (way too many tourists).

Paule

I'm another one who would not stay near the Vatican in Rome. The only thing you would be near would be the Vatican. Much better to stay near Piazza Navona, the Pantheon or Campo de' Fiori. Much more central, good bus connections, dozens of good restaurants, close to a lot of what you will want to see.

Florence:
Check out Residenza Il Villino. Lovely rooms, modern baths, nice courtyard, charming host/hostess, free internet, and Sergio's wonderful capuccino for breakfast! We had the duomo-view room...very nice.

It's 3 or 4 blocks from the duomo. And it's usually deservedly rated #1 on Trip Advisor.

http://www.ilvillino.it/home.cfm
or
http://www.florenceby.com/villino/pages/profile.htm

In Venice don't book away from city center (san marko - rialto - accademia) for two reasons: 1st you won't have to walk too much every day and night (although Venice's charm can only be explored by walking). Consider that you may want to take a little rest or nap at mid-day, wouldn't you want to be close to your hotel? And 2nd isolated areas could be very desserted at nights and you can easily get lost. I have gone 4 times to Venice and can I surely tell this. Of course only some 1 and 2-star hotels are affortable near piazza san marco or near rialto... but Venice DOES worth all the money!!!

I agree with others who are recommending that you try to stay in the centro storico section of Rome. That way you can walk to most of the main sights except the Vatican. You also might want to consider an apartment depending on how long you will be in Rome. They are good value for the space compared to hotels. Lots of threads about this on this forum.
We rented an apartment in the (old Jewish) ghetto section and found that to be an ideal location since it was convenient to the Forum, Palatine and
colosseum as well as the Pantheon/Piazza Navona/Campo de Fiori and Trastevere. However there aren't many places to stay in that neighborhood. (lots of good restaurants, though) The Piazza Navona and Pantheon area would offer more options.

Other people really enjoy staying in Trastevere.
Here is a good thread with ideas for that part of the city
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34792021

Hi TT,

The historic area of Florence and Venice are fairly small, so that where your hotel is located is less important than the quality of hotel and cost.

In Rome, many folks like the Piazza Navona area.

((I))

Agree with ira re Florence and Venice. BTW, I wouldn't make staying near the Ponte Vecchio in Florence a priority. Not that it's necessarily a bad idea, but I don't see any great advantage to it.

As mentioned above, I loved the area of Venice along the Guidecca canal. I also stayed at Pensione La Calcina, and highly recommend it.