My family and I stayed at Alice’s place during our first trip to Rome. Alice was very easy to communicate with and met us upon arrival to let us into the apartment. The apartment itself was just as the pictures depicted. It was very clean, comfortable beds, good water pressure and a court yard to look out on with lots of plants! Alice recommended a local pizzeria that was just a few minute walk from the apartment. We had a lot of fun there and it was a great way to kick off our time in Italy. The neighborhood had lots of groceries and other little shops near by as well. On Friday there was actually live music and a night market in the square just down the road. I do not know if this a normal occurrence, but it was a lot of fun!
As for traveling to the popular attractions, the bus stations are close to the apartment. It seemed like you could get on the busses for free, but to take the metro you needed to pay for a pass. Overall, having the apartment be away from the big attractions was no problem and it was nice to come home a quieter neighborhood.