ksucats

I would highly recommend checking out relais trevi 41 for your dates to see what the price is. It is 9:30 right now. We just got back from dinner and plenty of activity in the area and I would not call it bar/club scene.

carsnoceans

As name suggests, i assume its close the fountain?

How would you compare Trevi against Piazza Navona? Is there much difference in the areas?

Perche

Fountain of Trevis is closed, drained of water, covered with scaffolding, and there is nothing to see. People are still charged 15 euros for a gelato in front of the Fountain of Trevi. There's nothing to see there right now until they complete the refurbishing. Piazza Navona has three fountains, one a true masterpiece, but you don't want to stay in these places, you want to be able to walk to them. There are many hotels that hold 4 people. If you stay near, but not on the Plaza where the Pantheon is, you'll be very centrally located and pay 3 euros for a gelato, or a coffee and a pastry, instead of 8-15, have less crowds and noise, and still be only a 5-10 minute walk away.

Fountain of Trevi looks something like this around now. It's scheduled to be finished in about six months, but I wouldn't count on that.
https://romecabsdotme.files.wordpres...fountain_4.jpg

ksucats

Not entirely true. Gelato is 3 euros at the places around here. Yes, it is partially covered, but still worth seeing. There is always several hundred people in the area to see it.

Perche

It is really hard to find a place within walking distance from the Fountain of Trevi where they serve real gelato. It is usually made in a factory somewhere. Easy test; are they serving strawberry or banana gelato at this time of the year? Then it is not gelato. You might like it, but it's not different from what you can get at an ice cream shop in the USA. Real gelato is made fresh every day and doesn't taste like anything you ever had before.

Gelato at this time of the year is usually nut based, egg with vanilla, Bronte pistachio from Sicily, vanilla, chocolate, hazelnut from Piedmonte. If you see watermelon or peach gelato in March, you are not eating gelato because that is not growing now. You can get lemon, plum, clementine, or orange at this time of the year. But if you just go to a gelato spot near the Fountain of Trevi for $3, you are eating something that is not gelato.

There's nothing wrong with eating tourist food, the experience of being in Italy is enough to make it worthwhile. But I do want to point out that there are different ways of going to Italy, experiencing it as a tourist, and something else. At this time of year real gelato will be made of what is available fresh, now.

There are thousands of tourists hanging around the Fountain of Trevi even now when it is closed and covered up in scaffolding, has no water, and the fountain is turned off. It doesn't even have 5% of the beauty that it normally has. Anyone who has seen it before in its glory will not walk around the corner to see it now.

This is not to devalue the great time you are having, because everyone who goes to Italy has a great time, almost, but you can't really compare a 3$ gelato you get near a tourist site with what you get at a real gelateria like fatamorgana, carapina, etc.

It really depends on how you want to experience Rome. You can eat the tourist stuff at the closed Fountain of Trevi, or walk just ten 10 minutes away to Gelateria Fatamorgno, or dozens of other places and eat actual authentic gelato that you are not going to find it at the Fountain of Trevi.
http://www.gelateriafatamorgana.com/web/video.html

carsnoceans

Perche, you are right. Most of tourist hotspots won't care about authenticity. But I guess they have a business to run. I am not going to eat in a tourist hotspot for culinary experience but to join the ambiance of the area.

Is Piazza Navona better experience in terms of restaurants/cafes?

Btw, any ideas when is Trevi Fountain supposed to be functional again?

ksucats

Here is a picture of the fountain from 30 minutes ago from my room. Would have loved for it to be done, but still glad I got to see this much.

(Hopefully the image works. First time trying)

Perche

The Fountain is supposed to be finished in the Fall of this year, but in Italy, don't count on it. I really believe that even if you are in Italy, you should avoid it until it's done. It is one of the most beautiful, jaw-dropping sites in the world. Right now, it's just a bunch of construction. It would be like seeing your favorite movie actress or actor in between shows, in the 7-eleven, eating a donut, 25 pounds overweight. You'll never be able to see them again in the same light. Italy is not going anywhere, so save it for next time.

Piazza Navona is another great area, and it is not undergoing construction. You see it the way it is, just like you can see Piazza del Popolo and all of the other great Piazze. The Fountain of Trevi is unfortunately one of the places to avoid right now, unless you like to look at and hear construction and noise. 95% of the tens of thousands of tourists who show up don't even know it's under construction, they just come, and when they get there they have no idea what they are missing.

To get the ambience of the area there are tourist places to go to, such as Piazza Navona, the Colosseum, Forum, Spanish Steps, etc., but there is also the ambience of Rome itself, a bustling city even if all of the tourists disappeared for a day, and that should not be missed. You can head over to Testaccio, Monti, Prati, and other neighborhoods that are not like the Time Square of tourists, and get an idea of what Rome is like.

If you are a runner and you get up early to take your run you will see all of these trucks at Piazza Navona, Fountain of Trevi, the Pantheon, the Colosseum, delivering frozen pizza, lasagna, pasta and pastry of all types, that comes from a huge warehouse that is like an italian version of Costco. They also serve the high end areas such as almost every place on Via del Corso, around the Spanish Steps, etc. They are basically frozen TV dinners. The tourists eat them and swoon and say, "Oh my god, the best pizza I ever had!" Most of these foods are made in factories in Germany and are driven down for tourists in Italy to eat.

Rick Steves did a wonderful thing 25 years ago with Europe Through the Back Door, showing people how to avoid this, and how to have a richer experience by going authentic. Unfortunately, he's been so successful that the places he recommends are now packed with tourists carrying his guide books, and his recommendations are generally the main door, not the back one. Still, it is possible to get an authentic experience of Italy. Of course when open, you would want to see the Fountain of Trevi, and you of course have to see the Colosseum, Piazza Navona, Spanish Steps, etc., but there is so much more to the ambience of Rome than standing in a crowd of picture-taking tourists with cameras, fanny packs, and guide books.

I would say that you don't want to stay too near Piazza Navona, and Trevi should be out of the question until the Fountain is refurbished and back on. Who wants to pay double to stay at a construction site? Stay somewhere that allows you to walk to the main sites, avoid Trevi, and see it the next time, when you come back. It is so said to see it in its current state. It's as if you went to Florence to see the statue of David, and someone had just desecrated him and put a mustache and clothes on him. Let them finish, then go and see the Fountain the way it's supposed to be seen.

Remember, the Slow Food Movement started in the 1980's at the Spanish Steps, when Carlo Petrini had enough of the tourists' effects on the main areas of Rome, and he chained himself in front of the Spanish Steps and the Fountain of Trevi to start a revolt to block the city from allowing a McDonalds to be built in front of these iconic spots. After numerous arrests and jail time, he won. The Slow Food Movement is now all over the world. I just ate at Eataly, a slow food place in Manhattan.

You can still go to the Spanish Steps and the Fountain of Trevi and have pasta that is a TV dinner manufactured in Germany, bought for a dollar, and served for 28 dollars to a tourist, but with a little effort you can get beyond the tourist trappings, walk to see the tourist sites, then leave that ambience and check out real Roman ambience in a nice hidden trattoria eating in a plaza in Trastevere, Testaccio or Monti that serves real slow food, freshly made gelato, and where if you go into a restaurant and ask for artichokes, they will look at you quizzically and say, "artichokes grow in the spring, they're not out yet." See the tourist sites, then find the hidden door, and see the real Rome

carsnoceans

ksucats, thanks for that picture.

Perche - Thanks for your insight and excellent trips. I infact am a runner and was wondering if Rome would be a good place for carrying by sneakers.
Is the price difference quite noticeable between less touristy trattorias and ones in Piazza Navona? I am not on a budget but I am not excited about paying 20 euros for factory manufactured pasta.

Btw, is Eately as highly priced in Italy as in USA?

Perche

Rome is a great running city. About 2,000 Italians, the majority from Rome, run in the NYC Marathon each year. In the historic center there are lots of cars and you have to stop a lot and wait for lights. You can make planned stops and have coffee or a glass of wine, and take a couple of hours. It's a great way to see the city. If you want to run hard non-stop you either go out early (early in Italy is before 8AM), or you head away from the center to one of the parks or along the Tiber river.

I cannot recommend the Rome Marathon high enough. You start and finish at the Coliseum and run by just about every major site in the city with crowds cheering you on. Eataly in Italy is moderately expensive, mid-range, but you do get to eat well.

trickless

I'm headed to Rome in a couple of weeks and just want to say that this fabulous advice can and should be generalized for most major cities. The specifics about neighborhoods with real food are pertinent and useful in this forum, and I want to throw out a huge thanks to Perche as well for the photos and posts here.

toddmart

Any first hand knowledge or advice is appreciated. This is a points stay. I have SPG and IHG. Right now I have three rooms in hold and can't decide which we will ultimately stay at. I have the St. Regis reserved. I have Westin Excelsior reserved. I have Hotel Indigo reserved. I've stayed at the Westin before and got a great upgrade but that was when I was SPG platinum. I'm Gold now. I have Platinum status with IHG. I've read many reviews (as well as FT threads) and every time I think I've found a winner, I read something else that points me the other way. So I'd appreciate any opinions from anyone who has stayed at any of these especially recently. Thanks!

PWMTrav

Hotel Indigo is the former St. George, right? I stayed prior to the rebrand, but I liked the hotel quite a bit and it's location. I'd see if they'll give you a room with a terrace and stay there if they will. It's nice to sit outside. The rebrand resulted in a renovation that reconfigured some rooms and made the decor really modern, so skip it if you're not into that.

I've also done the St. Regis - it's nice, but it feels a lot like an American hotel. Don't get me wrong, really nice, but as far as SPG points go, I have a hard time with the rates there.

toddmart

Thanks for the reply! Yes, Indigo is St. George. It's good to know you liked the property and location. I wouldn't be put off by modern decor. I'd have to say based on what I've read, the St. Regis has fallen to third place for reasons you stated. But I haven't cancelled it yet. I've got plenty of time. We're doing two nights on points at the Gritti Palace in Venice on the front end of our trip so that's what got me looking at other options in the first place. I'd like to preserve some of my SPG points. Now, if I knew I could get a Westin suite with a Terrace, that may tip the scales to the Excelsior but I doubt I'd get it based on recent SPG experience.

jabez

When in doubt, go with location.