Can anyone point me to somewhere were I can find out information about the different neighbourhoods in Rome? My husband and I are trying to narrow down the apartments we are looking at, but I have no idea what the neighbourhoods are like. Any advice would also be great. We won't have a rental car in Rome, so we prefer to be within walking distance of the major attractions, as well as markets, restaurants, etc.

Thanks!

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Kim,

We have a map and a little bit of info on the site:
Italy - Trip Planning - Maps

I will link to the map here so we can see it.

Sandy, if you post the apartment locations (i.e., street address), you'll get a bunch of feedback as to neighborhoods.

This site has interesting clickable descriptions of a number of the neighborhoods. As others have said, Rome is a very walkable city - you're almost always in the center of something , but this will give some idea of what.

The neighbourhoods that have apartments that we are particularly interested in are:

Campo dei Fiori
Trastevere
Testaccio
Veneto

Can anyone offer any advice on which are the most desirable, safe, etc?

Having just spent ten days in trastevere (my third stay in the neighborhood), I have to say that, for me, the area is no longer my favorite. I found it overly congested with people, loads of cars parked so that walking is difficult, and slim on good 'deli' resources. There are some OK restaurants. I certainly wouldn't stay on the east side of Viale di Trastevere; that whole area is long streets with large forbidding-looking buildings. The trastevere neighborhood in general just seems a bit more shabby now, with rough, filthy streets and grafitti everywhere. I still had a great time seeing friends and relaxing, but next time in Rome, I'll stay elsewhere, probably around Campo di Fiori. Lots of interesting streets and resources there.

Testaccio has a lot to offer, but make sure you understand its location---might be a little on the far side for getting to the centro in a speedy manner. The Veneto area I'm not yet really familiar with, but would be interested to find out what you discover about it. Best of luck !

I'm with Nancy on this one; my first choice would be in the vicinity of Campo dei fiori.

Completely off the subject, this has given me an idea for a second slow travel entertainment event. In addition to "Slow Travel, The Musical", we need someone to write and produce an epic battle story with groups representing the Trasteverians, the Campo de' Fiorites, the Navonans, the Pratians, etc. We could choose sides and make it a performance piece at get togethers!

Ellen---When I lived in Mahwah, in the woods, deep in the woods, I used to have great ideas like yours. Too bad there wasn't any internet then!

Nancy, believe it or not we still have woods in Mahwah. I live as much in the middle of nowhere as it is possible to do and still be in Bergen County. I'm willing to blame the odd brain function on "mountain" air or well water.

Thanks for all the advice. We have actually narrowed our selections to 4 apartments, one in each of Campo dei Fiori, Veneto, Piazza di Spagna and Pantheon areas. Thanks for posting the map of the neighbourhoods Pauline. It was a great help, as was Nancy's feedback from her recent stay in Trastevere. We had seen several apartments in that area that we were interested in, but decided not to stay there based on Nancy's recent experience.

Thanks again for all the feedback!

Sandy,
Our family stayed in an apartment near the Piazza Navona/Campo dei Fiori area last summer. We did not have a car and walked everywhere. My teens enjoyed walking all over Rome from this central location.

Fabulous idea Ellen - you could write it up so that it was entertaining, but also explained the benefits of each area and .... submit it as a contest entry!!

Well Pauline, I don't think I'm that clever, but maybe I should go see Spamalot (is that spelled right?) and get inspired. It feels very Monty Pythonesque.

quote:

Originally posted by Sandy S:
Thanks for posting the map of the neighbourhoods Pauline. It was a great help, as was Nancy's feedback from her recent stay in Trastevere. We had seen several apartments in that area that we were interested in, but decided not to stay there based on Nancy's recent experience.

Sandy: I hope you will wander over to trastevere and explore, even if you don't stay there. I'd be interested in your impressions, that's for sure. I've just finished my essay, trip report, whatchamacallit, about my trip. There's lots more about trastevere in it.

Hope you have a wonderful time in Rome.