Rome on a budget?

Question

I am spending a week in Rome in mid august and was wondering what are some places to see, and eat, that wont cost an arm and leg, but are still worthwhile, also are there any amazing places to see that wouldn't normally fall into a "regular" tourists itenerary.

Answer 1

A cheap hotel in Rome is called the Astoria Garden hotel.  It is near the train station and is a bit shabby, but clean and the breakfast is great.

A cheap place to eat in Rome is a place called Mary Meeting.  They have a fixed price "tourist menu" that tastes good.

You can simply pay admission to the Colusseum and the Forum without taking the tours.  There is a free tour around, but it is hard to find.

Rome is one of the oldest cities, if not THE oldest city, in the world.  Everything has been seen and is considered "regular" tourist itinerary.  If you want to see Rome, see the Colosseum, the Forum, the Catacombs, St. Peter's Square in the Vatican, and look at all the ancient walls in the city, as well as drink from the ancient water fountains (clean water!).

Answer 2

Well, since you are in Rome, it would be hard to do something that is not on the tourist itinerary since at least 1/2 of the population is tourist, however, you still have to see the regular things like the coliseum, Spanish Steps, Piazza Venezia, the Forum, Vatican, etc....

Apart from that though you can also go see the catacombs http://www.catacombe.roma.it/. They are quite interesting, no matter what your spiritual interests.

There is also Ostia where you could spend a day at the beach...the same beach where Romans used to embark on ancient conquests, etc....

There is also the EUR if you are interested in fascist architecture and history.

There are also trips on the river Tiber which are cool and not too expensive.

Basically, in Rome everything is a tourist destination, but you can certainly see lots spanning many centuries of history.

Now for a cheap stay, I suggest you look into hostels. They are not your typical hostels since they are government checked, controlled and have very high standards. They are clean, safe and quite nice to stay at. They are not fancy though, many times providing you with just a bed and maybe a clock radio, but if you are visiting Italy, you will want to only sleep in your room and spend the rest of the time exploring/discovering.

As for food, I suggest any restaurant in the "Trestevere" neighbourhood. Take a side street away from the beaten path, look for a small hole in the wall and eat there. The food is unbelievable and CHEAP! So is the wine. ;-)

Have fun!!!

Answer 3

just for info, get a room with air-conditioning.  while its really not that hot (not like Phoenix or somewhere), its darn uncomfortable (and loud streets).  AC is well worth another $50 a night or whatever