My husband and I travelled to Rome
in the height of Italian summer with our baby daughter (6months of age). We love traveling with AirBNB and do so often, and were looking for a place in the heart of Rome close to the major attractions. Fiammetta’s apartment is reasonably priced and within walking distance to many of the sites you would want to visit- Trevi Fountain, Pantheon, easy bus ride to the Vatican, Forum, Palatine Hill and Colosseum, or walk if you are fit and healthy! There are many restaurants just downstairs and nearby supermarkets, as well as a laundromat immediately opposite which made washing easy even though there is no machine in the apartment. The apartment is on the first floor and has lift access, although a narrow door opening to get into the lift. This we found to be the case in many places with lifts in Italy, so is not unusual. The small street out the front is charming and cobbled, as are many of the streets in Rome. The pictures posted are an accurate representation of the rooms and facilities. All reported amenities (towels, linen, soap and toiletries) were provided along with a few basic cooking necessities (salt, oil, flour etc) in a small kitchen with adequate pots pans and crockery and cutlery.
Travelers should be aware that this apartment is inside the ZTL and although we were aware of this and very carefully planned our journey to avoid attracting multiple fines, drop off at the apartment and then return our hire car afterwards, it is tricky to navigate through busy Italian traffic to arrive at a particular time, regardless of how well you plan in advance. The ZTL opens at 18:00 so we recommend you plan to arrive after this if you plan to drive a hire car to arrive at this apartment. I would perhaps recommend taxi arrival or bus instead as these drive seemingly unrestricted through the ZTL, but this was not possible for us due to the number of bags we travelled with (with our baby) car seat and stroller etc. On check-in we were greeted by a man Alessandro who said he was Fiammetta’s husband. I arrived with my baby and without my husband as he waited with the car. I was a bit worried not to meet the agreed host as I had to hand over cash (tourism tax) and also provide our passports. Maybe this is because Alessandro speaks better English than Fiammetta, I am not sure, but I prefer always to meet the host with whom I have been communicating through the Airbnb app, or be advised about a change prior to arrival.
As Australians, we are used to hot weather, and it was very hot the week we were in Rome. It was 37-38 degrees for 3 days and then 34 degrees for 4 days. There is no air conditioning in this apartment which we knew and were reminded upon at booking by Fiammetta. We were provided with one electric fan. In our view, 2 are the minimum necessary without having air conditioning, one for the bedroom, and one to generate flow through the apartment at night with windows open between the living area/kitchen. It would be even more necessary if you are travelled here as 4 people and used the sofa bed. We advised our hosts of this, bought ourselves a fan for €80 (cheapest we could find in central Rome) and then managed to sleep better. Additionally, we found the fridge did not keep our food or water cold and quite a bit of our food (tomatoes, apples, milk and cheese) spoiled quickly or prior to it’s expiration date. I advised the hosts of this also and was advised it was likely due to the hot weather, although it is my view that a refrigerator should keep food and drinks cold regardless of the temperature outside it.
The last small issue we had was that the tap in the bath leaked a trickle of very hot water intermittently when the shower head was running water at a comfortable/cool temperature. Also the metal shower handle can get very hot when running hot water. This was easy to avoid for us, but we were very careful to have the taps completely off when bathing our baby.
I hope these small issues will be addressed by the hosts who are very good at communicating so if you have a query about something I have written, get in touch with them - they are very quick to respond!
All in all, this apartment is in a good location in central Rome and would be extremely comfortable in the shoulder season - autumn and spring - months. We had some issues related to hot weather which we don’t blame the hosts for, but think a couple of small adjustments could assist to make the apartment more comfortable if you choose to stay there in the hotter months. Fiammetta and Alessandro were very fast at communicating and helpful with providing assistance via messages, so just ask them if you need something!