I'll be arriving at FCO at 7:30 Sunday morning. Twenty-seven hours later, I will get on my return flight to SEA.

Is it quick and easy enough to get into town and then back to FCO the next morning to make it practical to stay at a hotel in the city? Or, should I play it safe and stay near FCO?

It would seem a shame to be by Rome for a full day and not get to Rome. For the time you have you can get two good meals, some rest and see a few of the sites.

Especially for arrival into the city on a Sunday morning there should be no problem gettign in. I, again, suggest a car service. This thread has some suggestions:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=757015

Since there are buses running all night from the Termini, I can't see why you'd not want to be staying closer to the airport. I would prefer to get up and get a taxi (or catch a shuttle/local bus for a short ride) as opposed to running around Termini with my luggage. Plenty of hotels and B&Bs in Fiumicino and Ostia to choose from...

I arrived at FCO on Wednesday evening with a 10 am flight out on Friday morning. I stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn. Got an internet rate. On Thursday morning, I got on the train (11 euro if memory serves) and spent the day in Rome. Got the local train back (5.5 euro if memory serves). Got a good breakfast and a leisurely arrival at the airport. The Hilton Garden Inn has a shuttle that runs twice an hour. It is about 10 minutes from the airport. You can also take the long term parking shuttle there.

The Hilton is at the terminal itself. It has a free shuttle that runs into Rome every two hours.

There was a sign at the airport saying that the minimum taxi fare into Rome was 60 euro in and 40 euro back. I didn't want to hassle with luggage on the train into Rome and then getting a taxi from the train station and then trying to get back out to the airport the next mornig.

I arrived at FCO on Wednesday evening with a 10 am flight out on Friday morning. I stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn. Got an internet rate. The Hilton Garden Inn has a shuttle that runs twice an hour. It is about 10 minutes from the airport. You can also take the long term parking shuttle there.

But it's very expensive. The cheapest (inflexible) rate I can see for it is €109! I'm staying at the Belvedere (http://www.hotelbelvedereostia.com) for €55 incl. breakfast. Doubles are €70. Cheap COTRAL bus runs every 20 mins, 15 minutes to get to the hotel and you get to view the sea instead of cargo city. :D

The Hilton is at the terminal itself. It has a free shuttle that runs into Rome every two hours.

True, but it's horrible. Dirty room, rude/indifferent personnel, cold and stale bread at the restaurant. I'd put it at the 2-star comfort level.

I decided to stay near the Termini. Since I will be arriving after a long trek from SEA, I thought it would be nice to centrally located so I can easily go back to my hotel to crash for a couple of hours before heading out again.

I'll be at Hotel Gea di Vulcano (http://www.geahotel.it/), where I got a double room for €85. Trip Advisor (http://rome-hotels.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g187791-d490191-r7330626-Hotel_Gea_di_Vulcano-Rome_Lazio.html) and Venere (http://en.venere.com/hotels_rome/repubblica_termini/hotel_gea_di_vulcano.html?ref=2960) users rate this place highly. A nice plus is the hotel offers check-in at 10:30am. The check-out time is a little early at 10am, but that will work well with my 12:40pm flight. On the down-side: no internet access at the hotel.

Seattlefred, you made a good decision to stay in Rome. Since you can basically spend from 9 am to 3 am doing things in Rome, why limit yourself to the sterile airport.

The area around the train station is sort of dodgy, so take care.

I liked the 4 Pt when I stayed there a few years' back.