Property
Rome is a charming place to visit with children. For every museum, there is an outdoor attraction like Palatine Hill or the Baths of Caracalla where your child can break free of the travel stroller and run (gently) amok. There are guys dressed up like Gladiators trolling around the Coliseum, always willing to do mock battle for a few Euro. And there’s pizza in every restaurant. What’s not to love? But finding the right place to stay can make or break your trip. The first time I took my son to Rome (along with my 11 year old nephew), we opted to stay in a large chain hotel on the outskirts of the city. It was a lovely hotel but it was impossible to get anywhere without taking a taxi. So this time we opted for the Hotel Cosmopolita, a smaller boutique hotel right in the heart of Rome. You won’t find a pool or a playground here – but its central location means that you never really feel as though you need one.

Location
Tucked away on the Via Santa Eufemia, the Hotel Cosmopolita is walking distance from the Forum, Palatine Hill and the Coliseum and literally steps from Trajan’s Forum. It is also very close to the stops for the hop-on, hop-off bus tour that can get you to the Vatican in a way that feels so much safer than your average Roman taxi.

Sleeps
Depends on the room. And Italy has strange occupancy laws that tend to change with every visit. Your best bet is always to call the hotel reservations desk.

Highlights
The hotel is just a quick walk to most of the main attractions or over to the shopping paradise that is Via Veneto. And there are ample cafes and pizzerias nearby to sate even the pickiest eater.

Good to know
Never leave the room without your key card – even if someone is waiting for you in the room. I tried to make a quick diaper run and found myself trapped in a corridor that required the key card to *exit*. Luckily, eventually, a kindly staffer, used to the silly Americans getting trapped in the hall by the elevator, set me free without laughing too much.

Contact
www.hotel-cosmopolita.com

Written by Kayt Sukel

Property
For blissful three nights in December, my family and I slept surrounded by Armani, Versace and Hermes. Granted, our immediate surroundings consisted of a fairly simple one bedroom apartment in the Spanish Steps section of Rome. But our extended surroundings? Very posh indeed.

Location
This SleepInItaly.com-repped apartment has an enviable position on Via della Croce, located just behind Rome’s famous Spanish Steps. The street itself has a wonderful selection of shopping and dining options (some of which are even affordable!), and the greater area provides easy access via foot or public transport to all that Rome has to offer.

Sleeps
2-4 (the apartment has a double bed which can convert to 2 twins, plus a sleeper sofa in the living room).

Highlights
The location is 5 star, but the apartment itself could best be described as comfortable. If you like to be right in the thick of things but don’t want to worry about keeping little hands off of priceless accessories and decor when you get back to your acommodations, this is an ideal property for your family.

Good to know
Sleep In Italy was very easy to communicate with via email during the booking process, but we experienced a pretty severe language gap with the rep who actually checked us into the property. Lots of gesturing and clueless head bobbing made for a fun “foreign experiece”, but if you really need to know how to work the property’s appliances or want to ask specific questions upon check in, bring a much more comprehensive Italian phrasebook than we had on hand.

Written by Rebecca Tompkins