Child Friendly Hotels in Rome (on a budget!)

[goatinaboat]

Just looking for a bit of advice if anyone has done this before. I'm going to book a 3 or 4 night break to a Rome with my Husband and my 2 and a half year old daughter. We originally weren't going to take her, but I've read there's plenty of things there to keep her occupied, so why not?! Only thing I'm struggling with is finding a family friendly hotel that is not too far from the centre and doesn't cost a fortune. I don't mind travelling a little bit each day if it's cheaper to stay further out, but obviously not too far with a toddler in tow. If anyone has stayed anywhere good in Rome and can advise, it would be appreciated. Thanks!

We took DS age 10 to Rome last year and I would say he was the right age. I'm so sure for a toddler unless you get a hotel with garden/pool. It's busy, streets are narrow, some cobbled, some without pavement. The Colosseum is fab but her legs won't be long enough to do the steps.

We stayed at the Hotel Traiano which is very central, reasonably priced and the staff were child friendly !

That should say NOT sure for a toddler.

What about a flat rent? There are agencies that manage flats by the day and it is so much easier to have your own space with little kids.

I did think it might not be great navigating our way around, but I've looked online and lots of people recommend lots of things that little ones can do, but for all I know they've probably got a lot of money to splash out on somewhere amazing! I may regret this decision!

I'll look into renting flats as well, sounds like a good option.
Thanks!

As you say it won't be keeping her occupied that's a problem but the difficulties another poster mentioned.
The entire centre consists of very uneven cobbles in pedestrian areas or packed pavements. You have no choice to walk around a lot because the sites are everywhere. It's not like London or Paris for example where you can jump on the metro to see the next thing. If you take her you will have to miss out a lot or prepare to carry her. As the previous poster suggested even the steps will be too big for her to manage on her own.
If you do go make sure you book colosseum in advance because the queues are so huge. There are massive crowds also so you will need to hand hold most of the time too.
Apartments are great idea in Rome.Unlike many hotter cities hotels won't have pools so you don't feel like you missing anything. Be aware that many buildings will be too old to have lifts either.

It sounds like I may have to rethink and leave her at home with her Grandma instead! I knew I'd get more realistic advice on here than the things I've googled so far online, thanks for the info! ??

I think so. Then you have a good excuse to see Rome again when you have to take her back there!

We're taking ur 15 month old daughter in May. Don't italians live kids? Don't italian kids get by ok in Rome? I want my daughter to experience different cultures so she needs to come but I'll make sure that I've planbed our activities around he and I'm sure we'll have fun

Patfola- of course but they aren't tourists. They aren't shelling out hundreds of pounds for a memorable trip. They aren't limited to five days to see the sights or get a feel for the place.

We don't take our very young children to see all the sights of London in a few days do we?

I'm sure you will have a lovely time. It's a great city. However I bet anything you'll be wanting to go back and " see it properly" when she's older. We aren't making it up when we say the streets are busy, very uneven and there are many steps.
And not forgetting most church's including the Pantheon expect silence.Toddler tantrums are not the done thing.

We took our 2 year old to Rome in January. He had a great time. I think it's a very family friendly city but it depends what you plan to do there. If you want to see all the famous stuff I'd probably leave her at home. We'd been to Rome several times before so weren't so bothered about the Vatican or the Colosseum - which probably wouldn't be fun for/with a toddler.

There's so much stuff for young children to do in Rome, especially in Villa Borghese and there's some nice parks and playgrounds. We also went to the Explora museum which DS loved.
He was very welcome and cooed over in all the restaurants and just generally by people on the street.
We stayed at UNA Hotel which was midrange price and just next to Termini train station. Very family friendly.
Before we went several people said we were brave insane to take a toddler to Rome but he really had a good time there and still remembers and talks about it 2 months later!

I stayed at the Sweet House Cinzia in March and had a great time on my own. So cheap, and it's just off Piazza Vittorio which has a nice little park, and close to Termini. Ten minutes walk to the Colosseum through a park, and I did see lots of children and buggies around. Rome's a really friendly city so I'm sure a toddler would be welcome almost anywhere but you do need to do a lot of walking unless you can splash out on one of the tours with a driver.

Rome is great for children of all ages. I can't believe the negative comments about taking a child to a fantastic city! Getting around in Rome is no more tricky with a toddler than anywhere else.
Plus the Italians really do make a fuss of the little ones which is lovely.

We just got back and used Air BnB. Stayed here: airbnb.com/rooms/1312353?s=8. Central, comfortable, highly recommend

We went to Rome when my son was almost 2. He had a lovely time. We didn't do anything especially child friendly - he liked climbing up and down the Spanish steps, throwing coins in the trevi fountain. We took him to the Vatican and the colosseum. There were lots of cobbles, but the buggy held up ok, and lots of steps but there were 2 of us to manage them.

It's a very friendly place for children and the food is obviously very toddler friendly as well. He'd nap in his buggy in the afternoon and we'd go for a beer - perfect!

We stayed in an apartment in the centre and walked everywhere.