Help picking an apartment in Rome

The harsh reality of Rome is that graffiti is EVERYWHERE. Don't judge a neighborhood because of it. Dilapidated buildings? It's Rome. Some of these so called dilapidated buildings have been there for hundreds of years. IN other words they are historical. Campo di Fiori is fine. A nice farmer's market is held there. The other places look just as good. While looking a Google street view did you find out the closest metro stops?

Welcome to Rome. Graffiti is everywhere. Try to think of it as charming. They don't have the money to remove it and keep it removed. But hey, there's graffiti at Pompeii that's 2000 years old. It's a tradition. Graffiti is an Italian word, after all. As for your apartments, I looked only at the first one. It's an outstanding location. The catch with it is all the stairs you'll have to walk up. For August, make sure you'll have AC or you'll die. And find out if there are restrictions on when you can use it. Italians do NOT leave the AC on when they leave for the day, so it may be on some sort of timer. (Electricity is ferociously expensive in Italy. That's also why you rarely find clothes dryers in apartments.) Happy travels. But don't expect Switzerland. :-)

Hi Adarsh, My hubby and I had the same concern when we booked our first trip to Rome. We were concerned that the B&B we chose was on a sketchy street. We decided to ignore that feeling as the B&B had outstanding reviews. Once we got to Rome, we completely forgot about that concern since it wasn't a sketchy area at all. I guess it can look like that from a street shot, but once you are there surrounded by beatiful, historical buildings- you don't even notice the graffiti. Also, the cars parked everywhere and up on curbs...welcome to Italy. That said, I think your apartment choices look great. Trust the reviews. I haven't stayed in an apartment in Europe, so I will let others comment on the specifics of your choices. Just don't worry about the Street view and know that you will have a blast. Also, with a little bit of research you can find hotels with large rooms in Italy. This proved true for us in Rome, Florence and Como. We loved our B&B in Rome, Locanda Del Sole and got it for €200/night. Happy Travels! Jessica

Hi Claudia, Michael, Jessica Thanks a lot for putting things in perspective. Your responses put me at ease. Since my post this morning, I "drove" around much of Rome on Google street view and it's already beginning to grow on me :-) Claudia - Looks like the Metro doesn't come as far as the Pantheon/Navano neighborhood, so we may have to use the bus/taxi if needed. We'll be walking a lot for sure. Michael - Yes, I will double-check on the A/C and the lifts. Good point. I'm leaning towards the Via Della Stellata apartment. It's close to the Pantheon, and while it only has 3 reviews, they're look like they're honest assessments, and hopefully, they'll have a fourth good review from me. Thanks again! Adarsh

Great area Pantheon/Navona. Trust me, you really will not be spending much time in the apt as Rome has so much to see.
Buses are very easy to use. Check out RoninRome's site. He explains everything about buses and really most anything you will need to know about Rome. Have a great trip.

Don't put too much work into trying to find a place near a Metro stop. The buses work really well and the bonus is you get to see stuff in between (not easy to do underground). You'll the see that the historic center of Rome is pretty compact and the Metro kind of rings around the main sites, so it's not as indispensable as a city like Paris. Happy travels.

Any of the areas looks fine. The city is very walkable and public transportation is great. You do not need the metro. Pantheon, Piazza Navona, Campo Dei Fiori are all within easy walking distance to each other. Enjoy your trip

We stayed near the Piazza di Spanga, and loved LOVED the area. Find a smaller establishment with good reviews, and make sure to ask them where to eat. Some of the best food we had in Italy was thanks to our host (and we were in Tuscany for days!). The Piazza di Spanga is also near a metro stop, so it made grabbing the metro to all of the other Rome areas easy...except when the metro workers were striking! Watch for that, they are striking this summer and it shuts down the metro. Grab a train to Roma Termini station from the airport and cab it from there to stave a ton of euro (the trains run during the strike, just not the subway/metro).

Hi Julie, Michael, Carolyn, Patricia - Thanks for adding to this thread ... your tips are very helpful.

We stayed in an apartment near the Pantheon last year. It's a perfect central location: you can easily walk to most of the major tourist attractions. Good advice about the metro; it's not that great in Rome.