We were welcomed so warmly at this place by the hotel bellman and staff. The hotel manager on duty gave me his business card, and took the time to recommend a fabulous restaurant just down the street (not down the steps) called Ciampini's (pronounced Champeenees). Which is a quaint, open air, beautiful restaurant, that overlooks Rome. Highly recommend a wonderful meal here.

The hotel lobby decor at first impression comes across very gawdy. Old deep red drapes along the windows, antique furniture throughout. Was not overly impressed at first sight. But once we got to our room, we found it comfortable, stylish, and the bathroom was beautiful with different colored marbles, very clean, and was very satisfied with it all. We had a room with a balcony overlooking the very small courtyard. It was relaxing to sit out there with the complimentary champagne that they had delivered to the room. Then you go to the 2nd level to the lovely, but very pricey bar and restaurant. On the top floor (6th), they have an open air balcony with views of all of Rome. Went up there on the Sat. evening and they had live entertainment, linens on all the small round tables, and waiters waiting to pour you a glass of wine. It was so utterly romantic, took my breath away. The service at this place is just wonderful, hands down.

The only criticisms are that there is not a lot of cafes immediately around the hotel. All the action and dining is down below at the base of the Spanish steps. And after the 4th or 5th time climbing up and down those steps to get to the hotel, I am sure some people would start complaining. For us, we are relatively fit, so if it was tough for us, I know it would be tough for others, maybe the elderly especially. We did hear there was an elevator, but never found it.

Top attractions for us were the Roman Forum and Colloseum. Palatine Hills is so huge and extensive, wear good walking shoes if you decide to cover it all. To save money and aggravation, be sure to go to Ricksteves.com before you leave for your trip and download for free on your MP3 his audioguide of the Colloseum and Forum. Also avoid the massive long lines to get in to the Colloseum and prebook your tix on line. Get the Rick Steves book on Rome for invaluable information on how to prebook the Colloseum, Borghese Galleria (must be prebooked ahead of time), and definitely book a tour for the Vatican, expect to do a lot of walking. Make sure to get to the Forum, it was even the highlight over the Colloseum for us. To see the ancient Roman Pagan temples still standing with their huge pillars 3 thousand years old, totally awe inspiring. Make sure you research and learn about the history before you go to these places to really appreciate what you are looking at. Another must see is the St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican City. Blew me away the enormity of this place. The Sistine Chapel actually didn't meet expectation. There is so much hype, but it is very dark in there so it was actually difficult to see the ceiling, and what you see leading up to it are much more stunning.

Rome in general exceeded all expectation at how very clean, safe and beautiful it is. I have been to about 8 European countries, and this one so far is the most American-friendly I've found, has the best food hands down, cleanest, safest, and the history here is so overwhelming. This is where Western civilization started. The concept of our U.S. houses of congress is mirrored after the ancient republic of Rome, the architecture of the White House in D.C. was inspired by the Roman Pantheon. We owe a lot to Rome, just overall an incredible destination.