DOC 2 BE

Oh no, I don't intend to do that all that much, although I probably will drive into it sometimes. I have driven in Paris and am not intimidated at all I guess it has to do with all my driving in NYC), although one MUST watch out for those motor bikes!! In addition, I can drive like the best cabbies!

I was in Rome in the Fall, and I thought that the traffic was not that much of a problem, but finding a parking space would be!!!

Anyway, my orginal plan was to drive around OUTSIDE of Rome. At least this way, I could take full advantage of the Hilton's remote location, and turn it into an advantage!

Thanx for the tips!

ALW

I will be passing through Rome on my way home from a conference next month but haven't yet decided how long to stay (but I cannot arrive early enough for the FCO-YYZ flight same day, so I will be one night at least). I see three options and would appreciate any advice I can get.

1. Arrive FCO Friday evening and leave for YYZ at noon on Saturday. In this case the airport Hilton would be a no-brainer.

2. Arrive FCO Friday evening and spend one day in Rome, leave for YYZ at noon on Sunday. In this case the airport Hilton would still seem worthwhile, I would take the train or a cab into the city on Saturday but would do it without my big suitcase, carry-on, etc.

3. Arrive FCO Friday evening and spend more than one day in Rome. At two days (three nights), the airport Hilton might still be worth it, but any longer and it would seem the train ride each morning and evening would be a pain.

So my questions are:

a. The Hilton seems pretty nice (~EUR144/night), is it?

b. How reliable is the train? It claims to run once an hour and take 30 min.

c. Any opinions on staying at the Hilton if I'm in Rome for two or more days? One day?

d. Does FCO still have a checked-luggage facility? It's on their website but I wonder if recent events will have changed that. (I recall that LHR did have such a service and CDG didn't, earlier this year). If I only had a small carry-on or even a backpack, staying in central Rome would seem more convenient.

e. Any recommendations on where to stay in Rome? I was looking at places near the train station and among others, Hotel des Artistes sounded good. 3 ***, non-smoking hotel, five blocks from train station.

Any other suggestions will also be appreciated. I'm thinking of taking one or two half-day 3-hour bus tours if I'm there one day, and maybe trying for something guided if I stay two days (I know nothing of Rome, and I don't have a lot of time to get oriented).

I have no status with Hilton HHonors.

Thanks!
andrew

drtravels

I stayed there 1 night last August on a departing morning flight and wasn't overly impressed. 4-5 on a 1-10 scale.

a. The Hilton seems pretty nice (~EUR144/night), is it?

Again, 4-5 and I thought the staff (front desk, exec lounge, and pool)wasn't very pleasant but they could have been busy.

b. How reliable is the train? It claims to run once an hour and take 30 min.

I think the express runs more often. No problem

c. Any opinions on staying at the Hilton if I'm in Rome for two or more days? One day?

Stay in the city unless less than 10 hours before your flight.

d. Does FCO still have a checked-luggage facility? It's on their website but I wonder if recent events will have changed that. (I recall that LHR did have such a service and CDG didn't, earlier this year). If I only had a small carry-on or even a backpack, staying in central Rome would seem more convenient.


Don't know.

e. Any recommendations on where to stay in Rome? I was looking at places near the train station and among others, Hotel des Artistes sounded good. 3 ***, non-smoking hotel, five blocks from train station.

Stayed at the Marriott and it was very nice. Award stay so it might be $$$$.

Any other suggestions will also be appreciated. I'm thinking of taking one or two half-day 3-hour bus tours if I'm there one day, and maybe trying for something guided if I stay two days (I know nothing of Rome, and I don't have a lot of time to get oriented).

I'm not into guided tours but certainly the Vatican/St. Peters and the Coliseum shouldn't be missed. Check out www.fodors.com and go to the travel talk area and search Italy/Rome for some more information and links.

I have no status with Hilton HHonors.

Thanks!
andrew[/B][/QUOTE]

Have fun.

canacapitl

We stayed there for 1 night night since we had an early connection the next morning. I pretty much agree with drtravels. Basic hotel, very convenient airport access. Don't stay outside of the city if you want to experience Rome. You will want to walk as many places as possible so it is most central to stay somewhere between Piazza
Navona and Spanish Steps. A very clean, basic place to stay in a convenient spot is the Hotel Tiziano. They are wonderful & friendly ask for Paolo. Keep in mind this is not the St. Regis or Marriott Hotel Flora but it is a great value.

aflyer

I stayed there for 3 nights last February. It was fine. Got upgraded to the executive floor...lounge was OK...breakfast was acceptable but not amazing. Free drinks all day, VERY limited appetizers at night (very NICE appetizers, but not any selection and not a whole lot.

It took about 10 minutes to walk from the hotel to the train platform. Then we'd catch the train, which took about 30 minutes to get into town. We took the NON express train most of the time...it's half the cost, and since we just wanted to get to a metro station, and didn't need to get to the termini station, we just got off at the stop one or two stops beyond trastevere, which had a metro stop, and then took the metro to wherever we wanted. We then took the hotel bus back each evening from the pickup stop which is near the Capitoline hill downtown in Rome. That took about 30-40 minutes as well, and was free.

We found it to be fairly convenient, and since we were using points, it was a free stay, and more convenient (and took much less points) than the other Hilton in Rome.

It is definitely an American style hotel...which is sometimes nice, and sometimes a bit plain...depending on what you want.

Have fun!

US1@ORF

I just booked a seven night stay for March at the Hilton Rome Airport location. Is this a nice property? Since I am using my points it will be free so I'm thinking that will be ok with it not being near any sights and requiring a taxi or bus ride into city.

Can anyone share their experience or opinion on this propert compared to others. Or recommend better accomodations for a touist who has never been to Rome before? All input welcomed.

------------------
US-CP; UA PE; Hilton Gold VIP; Crowne Plaza Gold

schriste

There is a past thread on this if you do a search. I stayed at the hotel last year for one night prior to flying out the next morning. The weekend rate was very reasonable, so you may want to check the rate for some of your nights.

The hotel is directly on airport property with a direct long "sky bridge" connection to both the airport and the train station. I took the local train into town rather than bus or cab.

The hotel is new. The rooms are rather plain but pleasant enough and comparable in size to a US Hilton. The bathrooms have some marble surfaces, so are a bit above average, but still nothing fancy. If you are HH Gold the will give you access to the Executive lounge which is pleasant. The hotel in no way gives you an “I’m in Rome feeling”…

drtravels

I stayed there last August and would use it again only for morning flights out. It's a decent property but much like other airport hotels. You certainly could take the taxi, bus or train into Rome but for this length of stay you might think about staying in the center. The only hotel I can suggest is the Marriott Grand Flora which is very nice and also expensive.

Searching here at FT and at www.fodors.com on the travel board for Rome hotels might give you more information.

Have fun.

DFW DL

As mentioned in the previous posts, the Airport Hilton is a new hotel, which has several advantages over most Rome hotels (large rooms, normal bathroom fixtures, working modem connections, etc.). It is nowhere near the Rome tourist sites but the airport train into Rome runs frequently and takes about 30 minutes. If I recall correctly, the fare is about $8-9 one way. Avoid the taxis if at all possible, as most of the airport cab drivers are dishonest and will try to overcharge you. Legit taxi fare to central Rome is about 80,000 lira (40-45 Euros).

If you plan to travel outside of Rome by car (not recommended for the faint of heart!), the Hilton is actually superior to many of the hotels in town. There is free parking at the hotel ($25/day in town), and within a few minutes of walking out the door you are on the autostrade. It takes ~30 minutes on a good day to get to the autostrade from most of the hotels in central Rome. There are many nice day trips driving from Rome - Siena, Assisi, Florence, the Tuscan hill towns, etc.

However, if you have never been to Rome before, you should spend at least a few days at one of the grand hotels in town (Westin Excelsior, Marriott Grand Flora, Hilton Cavaliere, St Regis Grand, Hassler, Crowne Plaza Minerva). This will put you within walking distance of the tourist sites and give you the "I'm in Rome" feeling that you won't get at the Airport Hilton. Expect to pay more and get a smaller/less well equipped room, but it will be well worth it. I usually stay at the Excelsior, which is on the via Veneto across from the US Embassy. Make sure to ask for a renovated room upon check-in. The Marriott is nice also but they have some very small rooms and telephones that don't work with modems (hopefully not a concern if you're on vacation).

JJeffrey

Adding to what others have said, I stayed there for 2 nights in September for my first trip to Rome. Hilton has a shuttle bus that runs for free from the hotel to the city, approximately 6-8 times a day, every 2 hours or so. For my 2 day stay this worked great, but it might get a little old for a week.

Bottom line: if you're in Rome for 2-3 days, the FCO Hilton is great, wouldn't hesitate to stay there again. But for a week, I'd probably go along with everyone else and look for somewhere in the city a little more convenient.

teammjs

agree, nice clean hotel, but still fits in as an airport hotel. i wasn't too keen on the pool/fitness area, though. one other nice thing is that the windows are thick enough that you really don't hear planes.

the train does run into the Rome Termini station (pretty much in the heart of Rome, you can take a subway from there).

one point worth considering: if you're a real night owl, i believe the train (the Leonardo Express[?]) only runs until around midnight and shuts down until like 6 a.m. considering you may be somewhere else in Rome until 11PM, you may be looking at an expensive cab fare back.

teammjs

US1,

one last point. if you're looking at good Hilton Italian properties for fairly reasonable points, you might want to look at staying at the Sorrrento Palace in Sorrento for a few nights.

i think it's the same rate as the FCO Hilton, is easy to get to (change trains in Naples for the "local"), and is a few miles from Pompeii (highly recommend).

the Palace has THE most amazing view of the Bay of Naples-- you can see Sorrento below, the curved Amalfi Coast, the water, the lights of Naples across the bay, and an imposing Mount Vesuvius. the staff is friendly, the restaurants good and cheap, and the Exec Lounge is actually pretty cool. it's also got one of the most beautiful indoor pool areas i've ever seen (reminds me of the one in the movie Meet Joe Black).

sorry, not meaning to start a discussion of the endless opportunities in Italy, but if you want to stay Hilton, for the same points you might want to consider a day or two at the Palace.

drtravels

I agree with the Sorrento choice. Very nice. It seems like they had rates ~$80/night recently. Great value.

flightrisk

Hmm. Aside from Florence, these all seem to me to be better day trips from Florence, not Rome. I can't imagine day tripping Florence from Rome, there is way too much to see there.

Better day trips from Rome would be Tivoli, Frascati and the other Castelli Romani, Ostia Antica, Civita di Bagnoregio. If you push it, you could also include some Umbrian hill towns, Orvieto being the closest.

US1@ORF

Thanks to everyone for your input. I think we will keep looking for accomodations closer to the major atractions. I'll post a trip report upon my return.

JFL