We've successfully booked our rooms for London, Paris, Florence and Venice! That just leaves Rome. I've been looking and looking, no success yet. Either it's not what we are looking for (meaning not in the budget) or it's not available for our dates. We are looking for an apartment rental, because we plan on shopping for our own groceries sometimes and we really want to get a sense of "living" as Romans. We will be staying 5 nights. Our budget is $50 a night per person (so $100 total, 74 euro). We are only paying $60 a night in Venice for a studio rented out by a B&B, so I don't think there's any reason we should pay more than $50 a night in Rome (when Venice is supposed to be more expensive). We are staying at a hostel in London for $33 per night, an apartment rental in Paris for $47 per night and a hostel in Florence for $44 per night (prices per night per person). Please, throw all suggestions you may have this way! I desperately want to stay near the Pantheon, but I realize this is probably not possible due to our budget :( I've just heard that it's the best place and where we would want to be, if we could choose. Other than than, I just want a pleasant, safe area preferably with a food market nearby and easy access to public transportation to get to all the sites in 10-15 min at the most. Thanks for all your help!
Posted by
Seattle, WA, USA
7737 posts
You might get more helpful responses if you say when you will be there. Prices vary depending on the time of year. That said, you might look into The Beehive. It gets lots of positive recommendations here and is in the RS books. It's near the train station. www.the-beehive.com Good luck.
Posted by
San Diego, CA, USA
38 posts
Yes, when are you going? I may know of a place, but need to know timing.
Posted by
Pa and Italy
4152 posts
74 euros per night is not a lot of money. Did you check venere.com for b&b's or apartments? You may have to raise your budget a little if you wish to stay in the city. As for Venice supposing to be more expensive, that's not necessarily true where hotels are involved. We found a wonderful hotel on the grand Canal for a lot less than we would have found in the city center of Rome. With a quick look on venere.com I found: http://www.venere.com/apartments/rome/apartment-palazzetto-degli-artisti/#location You can limit your search by type of lodging and cost. I was able to pull up about 15 listings all under 70 euros. Donna
Posted by
OP
Charleston, SC, USA
62 posts
Sorry, I've just been posting a lot lately so I always forget to include my dates because I'm here so often now, haha. We will arrive in Rome on May 20 and depart on May 25.
Posted by
San Francisco, CA, USA
1 posts
As mentioned in RS book, the beehive folks also run www.cross-pollinate.com, a booking service for apartments, B&Bs, and guestrooms. We stayed at an apartment in the Trastevere area for 45 euros pp.
Posted by
St. Louis
239 posts
Hi BethanieThe Pantheon is central, but you will overpay to stay there. Sounds like you got some great deals on your other stays; as others have suggested, I would check sites like venere and Orbitzwe've gotten cheap rooms in Italy from both of those sites. I would hunt for a deal somewhere near Campo dei Fiori, where you could be near the morning farmers market, near public transportation (bus and taxi stands at Largo Argentina) and centrally located to walk to most sites. Renting an apartment is such a good idea because of the money saved on food and the chance to live like a temporary local. Have a fabulous trip!
Posted by
OP
Charleston, SC, USA
62 posts
Thanks so much for your replies, everyone! We have found a lovely little apartment in the Re di Roma area...in the heart of San Giovanni. There are rave reviews for it and the owner has been extremely nice in our communications. 400 euro for a 5 night stay, everything included. So we went a little over our budget ($54 per person per night instead of $50) but I think it's a great value and we are very happy with our decision! It's only a few steps from a metro station, and although I wanted to stay someplace much more central, I couldn't argue with the price.
Posted by
San Diego, CA, USA
38 posts
Great! You'll have to make sure to stop by the famous Cafe Pompi, the self-proclaimed king of Tiramisu in Rome. It's just off of Re di Roma at Via Albalonga. Ask anyone that looks Italian where Pompi is. Make sure to try not just the regular tiramisu, but the strawberries and cream and the nutella and banana. I got those as my birthday cakes one year, it was the BEST. There are definitely other great tiramisus in Rome, but since that ones right there, you'll have to check it out!
Posted by
OP
Charleston, SC, USA
62 posts
Great Steve, thanks for the tip! Tiramisu is one of my favorite desserts, so I will definitely have to go there.