best budget hotel or hostel in Venice and Rome

I would look into the Beehive in Rome... If you are really trying to keep the budget down but prefer hotel as opposed to hostel I have also stayed at Hotel Cervia Roma a couple times in the past and it was fine for me. The bathroom down that hall thing has never bothered me. I am not as familiar with Venice but stayed at Hotel San Maurizio last spring and was fine with it. Its like Hotel Cervia Roma... If you are trying to save some cash and open minded with a few quirks... They are fine places to stay.

Chantielle, I am traveling to Rome in the next couple of weeks and trying The Beehive out. It looks like a great place and very convenient to the train station.

Is the beehive a hotel or hostel? How can I find it?I tried searching it on hostels.com and only found one in melbourne. Great prices btw, but not what I need for this trip to Europe :)

http://www.the-beehive.com/

I wasn't sure whether to post this under your "whirlwind Europe" thread. The Beehive is a little eco-friendly B&B less than 10 mins walk from Termini Station in Rome. No A/C, all shared bath. The same folks run a B&B booking website, cross-pollinate.com, so you can try that if Beehive is full. There are many budget choices around Termini. The area south of the station can be a bit dodgy, though people on this board don't seem to have had any trouble there. There's a laundromat near Termini. In Venice, the best-value budget accommodation I've found is Hotel Santa Lucia, a 5 min walk from the train station: www.hotelslucia.com. Clean, bright rooms that really should cost more than what they're charging! There's a choice of private or shared baths (cheaper rooms).

Another option in Venice - about the best for the low price I know is the Hotel Santa Lucia.

Chantielle,

For a "budget" Hotel in Venice, you might have a look at www.albergodoni.it/ It's in a very convenient location for walking to Piazza San Marco and the Vaporetto stops.

For Rome, the previous suggestions for The Beehive are good, however they usually book up fairly quickly so you might want to contact them straight away.

Another Hostel in the Termini area is www.hostelsalessandro.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=52&Itemid=33 (about 10 minutes easy walk from the station). Although this is a "Hostel", a double with bathroom will be €110 at the time you'll be there (high season).

Whichever Hotel you choose, it would be a good idea to get bookings SOON.

Cheers!

The Beehive

I'm a little apprehensive to just book at the beehive, maybe I'm not understanding the website 100%, I hope you all can help me out :)

This is what I see on their site:

€80 (per double room) from Mar 1-Oct 31
€60 (per double room) from Nov 1-Feb 28
+€15 (per double room) Jan 1, Dec 24, 25, 26, 31, Easter Sunday/Monday, May 1
extra bed - €25 additional - maximum 3 people

I just want to be sure this is the total cost and not per person. I know, maybe it sounds dumb, as I can read, and I see it says per double room, but I just want to make sure before I put all my cc info in their form to reserve my room that I only be charged the 80 Euro and not 80 per person.

Let me know :)

Chantielle, it should be the price per double room. Meaning you would pay 80E for one room that sleeps two people. You should be good to go. I totally understand your apprehention. It is always better to be safe than sorry!

I stayed at Hotel Italia, Via Venezia 18, in Rome and the price was quite reasonable. They also give a 5% discount for cash in advance when you check in (though somehow I didn't pay until midway through my stay, and they never asked). The staff were all extremely nice and very helpful, it was clean and comfortable, great location, just off Republica, about 15 minute walk from Termini, 5 minute walk to the Republica metro, 20 minutes by foot to the Colosseum, etc. A couple of good trattorias very close, a supermarket across the street, etc. And they have individual AC units with remote controls. Free wifi too.

If you end up there, PM me for details. The entrance is a little funky, if you don't know in advance.