Central area to stay in Rome

Hi Tyler. Strongly suggest you get the Rick Steves Italy or Rome book. It has hotel info and much, much more. Enjoy your trip!

I often use the website below for accommodations in Rome. Their suggestions have always been good in my experience. Once you Choose a hotel, to check availability and make reservation you click on the booking window and the website automatically redirects you to booking.com. www.nycerome.com The website shows a map, you can click on. The most central area is the historical center areas (in the map: Spanish steps, Pantheon, Navona, and also Campo dei Fiori and Via Veneto). This is also the most expensive area. Vatican, Quirinale are less central but good. Termini is less desirable, but logistically good, since the station is the public transport hub and you can get anywhere via transit from there. It's not unsafe, especially near the Viminale and the Opera House, just more frequented by transients and immigrants. Trastevere is the most typical "real" Rome. Its restaurants are popular with locals and it's a very quaint neighborhood. My favorite. However not convenient logistically for the tourist, since it's a walk to most sights. I have never liked the area around the Colosseum and the Forum. I have never stayed there. All other areas on the map are residential areas a little too far from the sights. The northern areas are more upscale, such as Monte Mario and Parioli. "Pariolino", or Parioli resident, is a term often used disparagingly to mean "snobbish pretentious right wing rich spoiled young bourgeois supported by wealthy parents wearing fancy designer clothes and driving fancy cars and thinking is better than anybody else". I don't think there is a term in English that can describe the same thing with one word.

I have stayed twice near the central train station and I was able to walk several places (Forum area, "The Wedding Cake", several places even closer to the station)
and public transportation is a snap to just about anywhere.

Tyler, I normally prefer staying in the Termini area, as it's so very convenient for transportation. If I can't walk to a particular site, Metro or Buses are readily available and travel times are relatively short. Although it's "busy" near Termini most of the time as it's a major transportation hub, I don't mind that, and there are lots of good restaurants in the area. I've used both Hotel Sonya and Hotel Aberdeen in that area, and would highly recommend either one. I'd suggest booking hotels well in advance. Happy travels!

"Pariolino" The English are exceptionally gifted at reverse snobbery, so much so that the newspapers and television channels pretty much make a spectator sport out of it. Try "Toff".

"Pariolino", or Parioli resident, is a term often used disparagingly to mean "snobbish pretentious right wing rich spoiled young bourgeois supported by wealthy parents wearing fancy designer clothes and driving fancy cars and thinking is better than anybody else". I don't think there is a term in English that can describe the same thing with one word. Hmmmm, I live in Parioli....Not young, not rich, no car. :-) Just American. I would not stay here on vacation though. too inconvenient for transportation. I would stay in Prati near the Vatican. Love the area, walk-able to Centro Storico, and great public transit options. Try VRBO.Com or Booking.com for options. Nigel liked it there, right Nigel?

We are in the Termini crowd. Just booked with Hotel Sonya for late October as we are passing through Rome for a couple of nights. You should probably define "affordable" since Rome tends to be expensive.

"Toff" is about as close as you can get to defining a Pariolino. Although toff is more aristocratic. Pariolini also have a political connotation, since the word is also used to characterize the Pariolini as sort of right wing fascists. Regarding Termini, I also tend to stay there when I go to Rome. Because of the convenience of transportation. I like the area south of Piazza Repubblica, around via del Viminale, via Nazionale and the Opera House (Hotel Sonya is there I think, although I never stayed in it). That area is busy and full of life, and clean. It's also very safe being next to the Viminale palace (which is the Ministry of the Interior, i.e. all law enforcement agencies). It's not considered upscale (probably because of the significant immigrant presence), but I don't mind it at all. I especially appreciate the lower prices. The Centro Storico is often outrageously priced.

We like to stay in the Piazza Navonna and Campo di Fiori area even though it is not as convenient to Termini. Have also stayed on Via Nazionale which is close to Termini but like the other areas much better. I think Trastevere would be very nice too as we always visit here when in Rome and there are some nice restaurants here.

On Rick's suggestion (Italy 2012) I stayed at Hotel Robinson. All good but NOTHING fancy. Quite affordable. Very near Termni but quiet.

We have stayed at Hotel Smeraldo close to Campo Dei Fiori twice and love the location. Very Central..We found it in the RS book. It is exactly as described in the book..Great location, small rooms, clean and an ok staff. We walked everywhere from there. There is a pastry shop,cheese shop, wine bar and restaurants all very very close. Charming area day and night..

We have only been to Rome once for a week. We rented an apartment in the Jewish Ghetto. We were able to walk everywhere in the city because it is very central. When we did want transportation, the Largo Argentina bus stop and taxi stand was only steps away. This area is rich with character. I would highly recommend that you consider this area, you won't be sorry.

Thanks for the suggestions. By "affordable" I am looking for something $150 or less a night, due to the fact that we are going to be in Europe for 2 weeks, so the hotel bills alone are going to add up even with that price for that many days. Hotel Sonya appears to our #1 option based on what I've read in terms of both value and still a half way decent hotel in a good location. Does anyone that has stayed at Hotel Sonya have any thoughts? Any other value hotels like that that people recommend?

I too am looking at rooms in Rome. Hotel Sonya is 150 Euro per night which is about $200 per night which is quite a bit over your budget. The following hotels/B&Bs are under or close to $150 per night and have good ratings in both TripAdvisor and Booking.com: B&B Domus Liberius; Casa Santa Sofia; Cibele B&B; Hotel Pensione Rosetta; B&B Smart; Hotel Fori Imperiali Cavalieri; B&B Locanda al Viminale; and Gulliver's Lodge B&B. B&B Smart and Gulliver's Lodge have been recommended several times in this forum. I have not stayed in any of these hotels.

I stayed four nights at the Hotel Sonya just a month ago, mid-October. Very reasonable hotel, quite small rooms; good breakfast put out in the crowded lobby, with a smallish breakfast room; small and slow rickety old elevator, sort of a cage that goes up and down. I was first quoted 150 euros a night because they had no singles available, but then a single opened up for 90 euros, hard to beat in Rome I guess. I just did not like the Termini area very much, nothing really bad, just not a fun place to go for a walk in the morning or evening. It is walkable to many major sites downtown, but only with a lengthy and sometimes hilly walk, not nearly close enough that you might easily "swing by your hotel" for a rest or to clean up or drop off packages, as is so often nice to do. Next time I will look elsewhere, one of the other neighborhoods mentioned, if I can find something nice at a reasonable price.

Tyler,

If you want to stay in the Termini area, the two hotels I mentioned above are good choices. At Hotel Sonya, I've stayed in both single rooms and "double single use" and both were nicely appointed.

In that area, you could also look at The Beehive which is more of a Hostel. It's often hard to get a reservation there, as they're very popular so it books up quickly. You could also look at at double room in a Hostel, which will be one of the cheapest options. If you want a suggestion on a Hostel in that area, post another note.

Cheers!

So in talking to some family friends who have been to Rome several times they recommend that we stay near the Spanish Steps for its convenience. In searching, I am seeing most affordable places to stay are B&B's. Does anyone have a hotel they have stayed at in that area that is around the $150 range? Or is everything in that area going to be well over our price range?

The whole area around Spanish steps will be pricier. Your $150/night would be a hard target in that area. And, I personally, don't think of the Spanish steps area as being that convenient. It is closer to the center of old Rome but that is the limit of convenience. We were at Hotel Sonya at the end of October.

Tyler,

have you asked your family friends what the Spanish Steps area is most convenient to? I'd find the Pantheon area much more convenient. The Termini area for short stays is quite convenient too.

The Spanish Steps / Via Veneto area is quite convenient to very expensive shopping.

Ideally since we are only there for a short time (just over 2 days) I'm hoping to stay in location where we can walk to most of the main attractions if at all possible. Now I've actually got the Rick Steves Rome 2014 book on my Xmas list, so I will be able to do some more research here shortly as to which area that will be. But I guess I was under the impression that was the Spanish Steps-Trevi Fountain area (correct me if I'm wrong). The main thing I want in a location is an area where we could grab dinner at night, walk around, take in some sites and then just be able to walk back to our hotel and avoid public transportation if at all possible.

We do that all the time when we stay in the Termini area BUT the walks are longer. Ancient Rome where most of the sites are is fairly compact so if you are willing to walk say a max of maybe 30 mins you can cover nearly everything from the Termini. If, however, standard for walkable is closer to the 5, 10 min mark then you will need to stay in a more central location but the trade off for shorter times is higher prices. Hard to get both.

Try Booking.com --- Flamini Domus Charming Suites
It's a humble, clean place near Campo Di Fiori. Just a few streets away. You can buy food easily around Campo di Fiori. It's about a 20 minute walk to the Vatican from here.

There's the romantic view of a charming antiquated hood where all the major attractions are located, and then there's the realistic view that is Rome, fact is Rome sites are spread out, walking to a site is a big endeavor and after you arrive, add walking within and around the site. If you really want to walk and avoid public transportation, research Rome attractions on the Internet, find them on a map, and then choose a location to stay based on the sites you want to see. That is the location that is central for you, it's near the sites where you would like to walk to. Ideally, some sites might form a cluster, you can research distance on the Internet.

Once you view the map of Rome sites, you will know the location where you should look for lodging, and pieces will fall into place.