A rooftop dinner, a garden afternoon or a window facing the Colosseum can change how a trip feels. These hotels offer different reasons to spend time at your base, as well as different parts of Rome to come home to.
Our Rome hotel picks
Swipe across to compare.
| What you want | Our pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Best overall | Hotel Artemide | A rooftop restaurant and a spa for the end of a long day. |
| Best on a budget | Hotel Grifo | Simple rooms near Monti’s restaurants and ancient Rome. |
| Best luxury hotel | Hotel de Russie | A private garden for long lunches and evening drinks. |
| Best for families | iQ Hotel Roma | Rooms that sleep four. |
| Best for a honeymoon | Portrait Roma | Fourteen suites and a rooftop near the Spanish Steps. |
| Best for a pool holiday | Rome Cavalieri | Outdoor pools and grounds for whole afternoons. |
| Best boutique hotel | The Fifteen Keys Hotel | A small hotel with a courtyard and rooms with balconies. |
| Best location for sightseeing | Albergo del Senato | On the square in front of the Pantheon. |
| Best for a Colosseum view | Palazzo Manfredi | Certain rooms look straight at the Colosseum. |
| Best near the Vatican | Trianon Borgo Pio | Apartments with kitchens and up to two bedrooms. |
| Best in Trastevere | Hotel Santa Maria | A former convent built around a courtyard of orange trees. |
| Best for a rooftop bar | Chapter Roma | A rooftop bar open in the warmer months. |
Best overallHotel Artemide
Artemide gives you an evening at the hotel worth leaving time for. Start with a drink at Ambrosia on the rooftop, stay for dinner, then save a spa visit for a break between sightseeing days. The Via Nazionale address puts you between Termini and the historic center.
This is a main-street hotel. If a little piazza is part of the appeal of Rome, consider Albergo del Senato instead. Arrange spa access separately.
Best on a budgetHotel Grifo
Grifo puts you on Via del Boschetto in Monti, with wine bars and the ancient city nearby. The rooms are straightforward; it’s a place to consider when you would rather spend more of the trip budget on meals and outings.
Check which building the rate covers. The De Monti annex is on the third floor without an elevator, while other rooms have different access.
Best luxury hotelHotel de Russie
Behind Via del Babuino, de Russie’s terraced garden climbs past orange trees, pines and a small waterfall. Have lunch at Le Jardin, then return for a drink at Stravinskij Bar as the afternoon cools. The garden gives a stay here a rhythm of its own, even with the Spanish Steps nearby.
It suits a trip with time for long meals and afternoons at the hotel.
Best for familiesiQ Hotel Roma
iQ’s quad room sleeps four in 23 square meters. Everyone sleeps in the same room, so it suits families comfortable sharing through the evening as well as overnight. Its Via Firenze address, beside the Opera House, also makes sense when Rome is part of a longer train trip.
For separate bedrooms, compare Trianon Borgo Pio’s apartments. Enter the children’s ages when checking prices.
Best for a honeymoonPortrait Roma
Fourteen suites, Ferragamo-inspired interiors and breakfast above the rooftops make Portrait a lovely setting for a trip for two. Its Via Condotti location is close to the Spanish Steps, but the shared terrace invites you to spend the beginning and end of each day upstairs.
For outdoor space of your own, look at the Studio Deluxe with Terrace. The rooftop pictured here is shared.
Best for a pool holidayRome Cavalieri
Plan an afternoon with a book, a swim and no museum booking to get back for. Cavalieri’s outdoor pools and grounds make that possible, and a week gives you time to alternate hotel days with central Rome.
The tradeoff is the journey into the center. Outdoor pools are seasonal and weather-dependent; the indoor pool belongs to the separately charged spa.
Best boutique hotelThe Fifteen Keys Hotel
The Fifteen Keys sits on Via Urbana in Monti, with a courtyard and a small collection of rooms. The Deluxe Blue adds a sitting area and a balcony overlooking the courtyard, a good reason to return for an hour before dinner.
Choose it if you want to spend your evenings in Monti’s restaurants and wine bars. Check the category for the balcony shown here.
Best location for sightseeingAlbergo del Senato
Step out onto Piazza della Rotonda and the Pantheon is beside you. At del Senato, you can visit the square before breakfast, return between outings and have a drink on the rooftop terrace later. The address makes short walks through the historic center part of every day.
Book a room explicitly described as having a Pantheon view if you want to see it from bed.
Best for a Colosseum viewPalazzo Manfredi
The Colosseum fills the window of the Master room pictured here. At Palazzo Manfredi, that view becomes part of waking up, getting ready for dinner and returning at night. Aroma restaurant offers another place to look out over the monument.
Choose a Colosseum-facing room or suite. The Prestige room overlooks an inner courtyard.
Best near the VaticanTrianon Borgo Pio
Trianon offers apartment living in Borgo, between the Vatican and the river. A kitchen lets you have breakfast at your own pace; the larger layouts add somewhere to sit after the children are asleep.
The Two Bedroom Apartment has a double bedroom, a twin bedroom, a separate living room and two bathrooms. The smaller one-bedroom layout uses a sofa bed for extra guests.
Best in TrastevereHotel Santa Maria
Orange trees fill the courtyard of this former seventeenth-century cloister on Vicolo del Piede. Have breakfast outside, return for a pause in the afternoon, then walk to dinner around Piazza Santa Maria in Trastevere.
The hotel makes most sense when you want to spend several evenings on this side of the river.
Best for a rooftop barChapter Roma
Start the evening at Hey Güey, Chapter’s rooftop bar, over cocktails and Mexican food. From the hotel’s Via di Santa Maria de’ Calderari address, you can carry on through the historic center after dinner.
The rooftop is seasonal. Check its opening dates and whether your room is in the main hotel or the separate annex before booking.
Before you book
Compare the total for your stay with the room type, breakfast and cancellation terms included. Room photographs show particular categories; use the description attached to your rate to confirm the view, terrace or sleeping arrangement.
Questions & answers
Why can the same hotel show such different prices?
Because you are looking at different rooms. A suite with a terrace and a standard double at the same hotel are different stays. Check the room type, the number of guests, whether breakfast is included and the cancellation terms before you compare two prices.
Is it worth upgrading the room for three nights?
Yes, if the upgrade buys something you will use on those three nights: a balcony you will sit on, a view you will wake up to, a second bedroom. If you will be out from breakfast to midnight, put the money toward dinners instead.
How should I compare a family room with two hotel rooms?
Enter everyone’s ages, compare the full price of both options, then check the sleeping arrangements. If your children need to be close by, check whether the rooms connect or can be guaranteed next to one another. A request for rooms near each other is only a request.
Do I need to reserve hotel restaurants separately?
Yes, when a specific meal is part of the plan. Booking a room at Artemide, de Russie or Manfredi does not hold a table at Ambrosia, Le Jardin or Aroma. Ask for the table, the date and the time you want.
Should I use the cheapest nonrefundable rate?
Only once the dates are fixed and you are comfortable losing the money if plans change. Compare the saving against the amount at risk. The lowest price on the page is often the wrong booking for a trip that might move.
Can I choose my hotel before planning every day?
Yes. Decide your main sights and which side of the river you prefer, book the hotel, and fit the smaller outings and meals around it later. You do not need every hour planned to choose a base.
