Hotel

Any of the many hotels in the Steves' guide book for Rome would work. Probably a 1000 good choices. You need to decide what part of Rome you would like to stay in before you can refine your choices.

As Frank says, there are almost 2,000 B&B's and hotels throughout the city of Rome. With young ones, I'd try and stay in the center of town and the center of the action. That way you could easily get to your hotel when they run out of gas (or interest) and take a "break" back at the room. For centro locations, you might consider these posts, which have the top-ranked hotel and B&B's by Venere.com and Booking.com: Pantheon Area or near Piazza Navona Your other option would be to stay near a transportation hub and that way you could get back easily for naps. Hey, I often need one too!. The Roma Termini area, which Frank is an expert on, provides easy transportation links and is fairly inexpensive. You might look at this article for some suggestions: The Best Hotels and B&B's near Roma Termini. It's not the most picturesque area but it's safe. And lastly, since they are 7 and 12 and it may still be warm in early October, you might look at these hotels: Rome Hotels With Pools. I'd verify the pools are open still before booking. Some are inside so that's a non-issue. If it is your first trip in Rome, and you'll be focusing on sights, you might be inclined to stay in the center of town. Great for walking - and gelato - at night!

You might want to look at Palazzo Olivia as an option. They offer apartments of varying sizes. www.palazzo-olivia.it. It is very, very close to Piazza Navona and Campo dei Fiori, and within walking distance of many of the main sights in Rome. We loved it. My teenagers especially enjoyed both Campo dei Fiori and Piazza Navona in the evening.

I appreciate all the great advice. We were trying to centralize ourselves like your recommendations. I understand it is quite expensive, so we were wanting to stay comfortably, but spend more out & about, not on accommodations. Would you suggest renting an apartment vs hotel? If so, any recommendations in that department?