Airbnb in Rome / 4 couples / May 2020

You might try tripadvisor.com and post your questions on the Rome forum. Lots of experienced Rome travelers and local Romans can help you find lodging that meets your needs.

My recommendation is to watch The Roman Guys YouTubes of neighbourhoods, unless you want to just go for 'Rome Central' around Plaza Navona or Campo di Fiori for location convenience. Know this area could be noisy day and night, so read any reviews very carefully and look for ones that are set back into courtyards, or on alleys off a main square/street. You will also pay for the convenient location and any 'pie in the sky' apartment features ;-) but most likely worth it.
Then go to AirBnB and sort by location and 'Verified' and also 'Superhost'. Include 'elevator'. This is going to be your most restricted search. Then take off elevator - if you are willing to walk up one flight to the 'first floor' or willing to take ground floor' and continue to cut back on the search options for more lodgings.
Keep in mind that even with an elevator, they might not go all the way to the ground floor and may be only as big as 1 person and a sizable piece of luggage....and then there may be the occasion it isn't working and you still have to climb the stairs.
You may also want to consider air conditioning. Not sure whether May is 'legal' to put on central air, and you want to see pictures and clarify what 'air conditioning' means in the listing - central, window, or a plug in fan. There are country (or regional) restrictions of when head and AC can be used, so clarify what you need and want with the host before committing.
On any travel forum you will get those who do and don't support the AirBnB or short let apartment concept. Rome started providing short let apartments through businesses around 20 years ago so there are many alternatives to AirBnB. Perhaps ask for recommendations of 'short let apartments' and ask who the agent was/is. You have to decide whether you are comfortable with the conditions of payment and how they handle damage deposits. They are not all the same.
I am including this link on how to host a short let apartment in Italy, as it spells out what is required by the host and what the rules are per city. Some people are reluctant to sign contracts, or provide copies or details from their passports for rentals (and even hotels for that matter), but this article clearly shows that is part of the host's (so ultimately, also the renter's) responsibility.
https://blog.keycafe.com/understanding-short-term-rentals-regulations-in-italy/
If you don't want to open a link, I just googled 'rome short let apartment regulations' and this was one of the top hits.

One apartment for four couples is a tall order. You may need to rent two apartments.

Don’t restrict yourselves to AirBNB. Try VRBO.com, Booking.com, OneFineStay.com, RentalinRome.com, and even Google “vacation rentals in Rome“. Enter your criteria, i.e., 4 bedrooms, elevator, but be prepared to look for two 2-bedroom apts.

Rome is safe, just keep your wits about you. Most important with location is to stay central and not be lured to some place where it takes 30 minutes to get anywhere you want to go. You want to be in walking distance to the Centro Storico. Rick Steves does a great job of discussing Roman neighborhoods in his guidebook. For convenience, We like Prato (near the Vatican), the area around Piazza Navona and the Pantheon, and Monti.

Also look at Italy Perfect if you can't find what you need on Air BnB.
However, using the correct parameters for your search, you probably can find a suitable one through Air BnB. Customise your search for what you want. We put elevator, a/c,microwave, washer and dryer in our searches.. You may just get a washer but there will be a drying rack if no dryer. There are so many Air BnBs in Rome that you may be overwhelmed by choices.

Heavens. It must be because I am a solo traveler and have a small family, but despite it reading '4 couples' my eye stopped at '4' ...thinking 4 people.
Laurel may be correct that 2 apartments may be better, and then the chances of having them close could be a real challenge.
If you want to stick to 4 couples one apartment, you may find yourself with 3 private bedrooms and one couple on a sofa bed. Even that might be 3 'bedrooms' but no guarantee there will be actual doors or privacy in those 3 bedrooms, let alone the 4th couple.
Europe's tight spaces do are often not compatible for new wave or large families/groups who want to travel and sleep together.
AirBnB allows you to see all the listings of the 'host' so you can see whether they might have another apartment in the same building or near....or you may need to search out a long established rental agency with a list of rentals in compact areas.
A quick check shows 52 rentals with 4 bedrooms for your dates in the central Roman core. I didn't check for elevator, and there don't seem to be as many terraces as one would hope. There are some nice comfortable apartments, however.

Italy Perfect offers two 2BR apartments side by side in Rome.

We were 3 couples in Rome and stayed at the Hotel Regno for 8 nights. Our rooms were on the same floor. We had breakfast together each morning to finalized all the days plans, they do have a rooftop terrace but we were there in February and it was closed. Friends stayed there this past July and loved it too. The location is great, right in the center of the city. Has an elevator. The bus was a few yards down the street and when we wanted a taxi, the hotel called one for us. For a short stay it might be more convenient then apartments.

Wow - lots of Great advice here. I’m going to be very busy this weekend sorting it out. But planning is half the fun! Sincere thanks and safe travels to all. Looking forward to the day I can pay it forward on this forum after returning from Rome.

I was surprised, but I saw some 4-bedroom apartments on OneFineStay, using random dates for a week in May.. One was very expensive (over 1500 a night), but others were around 600 a night. (I don’t recall if those prices were in $$$ or euros). They were very nice apartments with modern kitchens, and nice common space.

For a group of 8, I would be far more comfortable renting from an agency than from an Airbnb host, who can cancel your reservation at any time for any reason. We had this happen to us with a California rental for a family group of 14, 3 weeks before arrival for a family wedding. Fortunately Airbnb worked with us to find another large home in the same area, but I am sure that is not always possible. If you rent from an agency, and the booking has to be canceled for some reason (faulty plumbing, etc.), the agency should find you another suitable property.

And at least the properties offered on agencies like OneFineStay have been vetted for legality, so you do not risk cancellation for that reason. The Airbnb place in California we booked originally was in violation of a local ordinance, and when neighbors complained about a rowdy group of renters, the city council sent the homeowner a “cease and desist” letter. That resulted in the cancellation that caused us a lot of stress (mostly to my sister, the mother of the groom, but I felt really bad for her until it was resolved).

I like Barbara's idea of a hotel, unless all of you plan to be more or less joined at the hip the whole week. Hotel rooms would give you some much needed privacy and/or alone or couple time, and more keys!

Be sure you know how many bathrooms you're getting.

Lola, thank you for your effort on our behalf. Much appreciated! I will be sure to check out OneFineStay as an option.

Jane, didn’t even remember those reasons too. We did separate a few times on various days and no one had to worry about keys. And no bathroom schedule.

Yes, the number of bathrooms is very important. When traveling with friends, several times we had to book a three BR place to insure two bathrooms.