Rome was our first stop on a month-long city-hopping tour of Europe and I couldn't have asked for a better start.

Paba isn't impressive from the outside but is cozy and welcoming inside. The woman who runs the place was very helpful helping us organize our plans and the hotel was in a really convenient location - we walked to everything while we were there. Breakfast was typical of Italy - yogurt, pastries, rolls, cheese... Filling enough to keep us going until lunch.

The room was more spacious than I expected in Rome and although the bed was firm, we both slept well while we were there.

I'd recommend it and I'd certainly stay there again.

From the outside the hotel does not look like much. We were actually disappointed when we saw it from the outside. We found the hotel through Rick Steve's book. But once we got in, it was wonderful.

Location

It is very close to all of the major attractions. We were within walking distance of the roman forum and the colliseum. And to be honest, we walked just about everywhere in Rome. The Trevi Fountain wasn't too far, the Pantheon wasn't bad either. One thing that my wife mentioned is that she wished the better restaurants were closer to Hotel Paba. Most of the restaurants we liked were located more towards the Pantheon side of town. But all in all an excellent location.

Service

Alberta is top notch. Our daily routine included waking up and letting Alberta know that we were ready for breakfast. She would ask what we would like to drink, I liked the espresso, my wife liked the cappuccino. The breakfast consisted of pastries and yogurt. Simple yet filling. Then we would go over our itenerary with Alberta, she would show us the best streets to walk on and where to visit. Incredibly friendly woman.

Rooms

The room was cozy. The decor was clean. The TV was small and the showerbox was useful. Other than that we didn't really used the room much. The AC was comfortable and the window view, well it was just a view of the building next door. She had books available to read about Rome, and that's what I would do at night. The room was cute. I do wish we had internet connection at night, so I could catch up on things, so hopefully Alberta will implement that in the future.

Value

I believe this has got to be one of the better values in Rome. There is a cash discount, so don't forget to ask for it.

Overall

This is where I will stay if I ever get a chance to go back to Rome.

I stayed here for 9 nights in mid January, and couldn't have been happier. I paid only 70 euros a night for a double room, single use. Signora Castelli was a charming hostess, and extremely helpful with arranging daytrips, museum bookings, etc. The room was clean and comfy - and I prefer a harder mattress, honestly. It's better for my back.

Graffiti is a part of Rome, and I work daily in NYC, so the neighborhood didn't bother me at all, and I felt safe there. There are tons of restaurants on the street, grocery stores, and 2 internet cafes as well.

I was on the street side of the hotel, and for the first night I wished I had earplugs, but afterwards the noise didn't bother me - I was so tired I slept through each night.

The Hotel Paba is more of a bed and breakfast than a hotel. Very small, clean and homey. The room was a bit too small especially for tourists like us who had way too many suitcases, but the room was comfortable. The beds were a bit hard, but frankly we had such busy days that we slept pretty well every night. We had breakfast in our room at whatever time we asked. Sra Alberta Castelli was a terrific hostess and happy to help in any way.

We were in during Christmas week. During the days around Christmas Alberta was away but her assistant could not have been more helpful. She made so many telephone calls for us trying to find a decent place for us to go for New Years that was not too expensive.

Only slight negative was that our room was on the main street and at night it was sometimes noisy. That bothered my daughter but not me.

GREAT location - close to a metro stop and just 2 blocks from the Roman Forum, on a touristy street where we felt safe at all times. Across the street from a grocery store, post office.

Great value. If you want a nice comfortable place with easy a cess to everywhere important in Rome and helpful staff, at a reasonable price, this is the place for you. If you want luxury, go somewhere else.