Twin or Double?

Jubilee is in Rome all of 2025 - everything is going to be extra crowded and prices will be more expensive. Try reposting this question in DESTINATION Q&A - ITALY for more responses. You have this posted in ITALY REVIEWS which is a place for you to give us review of something.

A single room is for ONE person.

Have you compared you quotes with the prices for the same hotel and dates on booking.com or similar?

Because of the increased demand due to the Jubilee, I would have expected prices to be significantly higher this year.

Hotels in Europe are pricey, and on Rick's tours we've stayed in some nice places. We extended our stay in Amsterdam this past April at the hotel where our tour ended and we paid about 440 euro/night. We've done 3 RS tours and never found any real great price deals extended to us by any of the host hotels on any of our tours...Ireland, Germany/Austria, Belgium. And we always reserve well in advance with the explanation that we will be on the RS tour. And Rick's tours are definitely not assigned the most premium rooms in the hotel. So you are probably asking the right questions; they just aren't giving you a discount that you may have been thinking you would be given.

Jubilee in Rome 2025 probably doesn't improve the chances.

You are trying to book the same hotel where your RS tour ends, right? If so, email or call the hotel to explain you are on the tour, you want to stay longer and ask if there is a discount. Also ask to stay in the same room so you don’t have to pack and move.
You didn’t say when your tour is, but book your hotel ASAP since Rome is busy this year.

I booked the same tour hotel twice for the night before the tour starts and have gotten better prices than list. I haven’t booked nights post tour since I’m off on my own adventure then.

Rooms in Europe are not like rooms in the USA.

A Single is one bed big enough for one person. There is one bed in the room and they will only rent it to one person.

A double is one bed big enough for two people. (Not necessarily a king unless it says so.)

A twin is two single beds. Each bed can only accomodate one person. Often, this type of room can also be a double and the hotel will push the beds together.

We are starting our RS Italy tour in Rome in May, so emailed the hotel where we are starting, to see about staying there 2 nights before the tour started. They quoted us about the same price per night as you mentioned above, so despite the inconvenience of changing hotel we found 2 nights nearby for a bit less than the same price as 1 night there. Before our Sicily and Greece tours we were able to add days for under 200 euros a night, but it wasn't Rome during Jubilee!

We've had several occasions when the last hotel of a Rick Steves tour was way over our comfort zone. In those cases, if we wanted to stay on in the city, we found a different hotel. For example, the Best of England tour we took last summer ended in London, and a very pricey hotel. We instead booked a room at a hotel we had previously enjoyed, for 1/3 the price.

Check around a bit, although as others have stated, this being a Jubilee year will surely affect Rome prices.

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Do something different ! Try a monastery/convent stay. I stayed at Casa Maria Immacolatta in the Prati area. I looked for dates in June - 150 Euro. I’m staying in a different one this spring because Casa Maria goofed and told me they were full for my dates. Easy to book thru monasterystays.com

I only stay in such places where available in Italy. No need to be Roman Catholic or even any type of Christian.

It’s fun to see friends faces when you tell them you stayed in a convent or monastery !

Posted by Frank II Freedonia 01/01/25 08:10 PM

Rooms in Europe are not like rooms in the USA.

A Single is one bed big enough for one person. There is one bed in the
room and they will only rent it to one person.

A double is one bed big enough for two people. (Not necessarily a king
unless it says so.)

A twin is two single beds. Each bed can only accomodate one person.
Often, this type of room can also be a double and the hotel will push
the beds together.

So if I'm more comfortable sleeping in something wider than a US twin, I have to pay for a "double room"?

Quite likely, and sometimes the double bed has two small mattresses pushed together, with a crack in the middle. It would be smart to contact hotels to inquire. Even looking at photos doesn't provide certainty, since rooms can vary a lot. Many centrally located European hotels are in repurposed buildings with irregularly shaped rooms. Things can be very quirky, especially in moderately priced places.

There's often a category that goes like 'double for single use' which costs slightly less than a double for two people. If you're one person they may want to put you in that category if you don't specify a single. I look first for a true single with a tub, and if that's not available, which is usually the case, I go for a 'double for single use' with a tub if at all possible.

So if I'm more comfortable sleeping in something wider than a US twin, I have to pay for a "double room"?

On a site like booking.com you will see the options for one person. As I find single rooms too small usually, I will pick a double room - but they are generally cheaper if you’ve specified one person. More expensive than singles, obviously, but not usually as expensive as a double for two people (especially if the hotel includes breakfast).

If you haven't already, try checking the hotel on booking.com. We have had some luck with better pricing and availability, than on the hotel website or emailing the hotel directly. Conversely, sometimes you get a better answer by calling/emailing directly. So make sure you have looked at all the booking options! We have also had good luck booking a room separately on expedia or booking.com, then contacting the hotel to let them know we are finishing (or starting) a tour there - often can keep the same room.

Thank you all for the comments. To answer some of the questions, yes, I did email the two hotels we’ll be staying at on the RS tour in April, and explained we’ll already be staying at their hotel and just needed the one extra night (pre-tour in Venice and post-tour in Rome). Those were the rates provided. I understand it’s the year of the Jubilee but unfortunately I did not realize that until I had booked this tour a year ago. Regardless, this will be a great trip and we’re looking forward to it. If I have to pay the extra for the hotel, then so be it. It is what it is. I appreciate the comments. Happy New Year!

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what could the board do without policeman Frank