Greetings!
We are booked for a RS tour in Italy in April, we wanted to get there a few days early to "look" around before the tour.
The1st Hotel for our tour is already booked up, (Hotel Sonya ) Does anyone have a suggestion on where elese
we might stay? We have never been to Rome before so some help woudl be nice if anyone has some insight.
Thanks
Nate
We've stayed at the Aberdeen Hotel and it was clean, comfortable, and well-located. It's about a 4-minute walk from Hotel Sonya according to Googlemaps. We liked the hotel very much and would stay there again - if you do stay there, I'd recommend making sure that you get a room that away from the Breakfast area as it can be noisy in the early morning.
I stayed at a hotel near the Sonya at the end of my RS trip.
This hotel is about 4 blocks from the Sonya - closer to the main train station.
Hotel Contilia
When I did Heart of Italy last May the Sonya was booked as well for the days before the tour. We wound up at Hotel Selene which is just up in the next block from the Sonya (toward the Termini). The morning of the day the tour started we took our bags down to the Sonya. My SIL was ill and the Sonya was able to get her in to a room by about 10AM which was exceedingly nice of them. For the rest of us, they put our bags in our room as they became available during the day. The breakfast room and the actual breakfast at the Selene was a little better than the Sonya.
It was our first time to Rome as well. There were 5 of us so I knew a taxi from the airport wouldnt work, so I booked Rome Cabs. Their regular transports were full, so I booked their VIP tour and what a good idea that was! The driver was awesome and whizzed us around Rome for about an hour and half. I naively though it would help us get our bearings, lol. It did not but the tour was great! We did manage to go back and find one of the spots the driver showed us...the Aventine Keyhole.
You will have so much fun!
How long are your "few days"? If it is more than one or two - why not consider getting a hotel in a totally different area of Rome - for example Trastevere, or Piazza Navona which would put you right in the centre of things? I have heard good things from friends who regularly stay at the Smeraldo near Campo de Fiori.
Agree with Lesley in Canada! I don't like the area around the train station, unless it's for one night before departure. It's too far to get to the places I like to go, and not convenient to stop in mid-day for a clothing change, etc. For a few days do stay in the Campo di Fiore or Trastevere neighborhood, and you'll have more fun. Nothing against hotel Sonia, have stayed there just too out of the way for me.
I enjoyed Albergo Abruzzi right on Piazza della Rotunda (the piazza that contains the Pantheon). We booked a cheaper room in a building adjacent to the main hotel, but ended up getting moved into the main hotel. It was lovely to have a view of the piazza at night and was a great location.
Nicolas Inn in Rome is a good choice. Great location and owners (Melissa is American) are extremely helpful.
Nate,
In Rome, I stayed at Hotel Smeraldo and definitely enjoyed my stay there. It is very well located, a very short walk to Campo de Fiori. Piazza Navona as well as the Pantheon were only a few minutes walk away, with the Colosseum/Forum at a walkable distance. The room I had was a little on the small side, but it was modern, clean and well kept. The service was great and the price was reasonable.
