My husband and I and our three children (ages 14,12, and 10) stayed at the Paba Hotel for seven days during Spring Break. It's not easy to find a hotel that can accommodate 5 people in one room, especially in Rome, and what a find this was! We had the "Happy Family" room (love the name!) which was spacious enough for all five of us PLUS our five suitcases! The room, described by Rick Steves as "chocolate-box tidy" was spotless, comfortable, and nicely decorated. It has a king-sized bed (big enough for my husband, me, and the 10 year old, and although we could have had an extra bed set up for her, we opted not to and were fine), a twin bed, and then another twin in an adjoining little bedroom (claimed by my 14 year old son). There's free wi-fi in the room, a satellite tv, safe, hotpot for tea and mini-fridge which was perfect for our drinks and snacks. The bathroom was spotless and included a bidet. Although it is located on busy Via Cavour, we had no problem with street noise. The location is perfect...just a short walk from the forum and colosseum and close to sightseeing, bus stops, two metro stations, shops, ristorantes, bars and gelaterias (very important for kids)! The gem in the crown, though, is Signora Alberta Castelli, who runs her hotel efficiently and lovingly. She was very helpful in suggesting transportation, restaurant, itineraries, you name it. We looked forward to seeing her every morning as she brought us our yummy Italian continental breakfast (fresh delicious sweet croissants, rolls/jelly/butter/cheese, hot chocolate, espresso, orange juice and yogurt). She translated a phone call from an Italian family friend for me, gave us tips for our daily outings, helped me with my (bad) Italian and was always gracious and ready to help. All this for a very reasonable price. Oh--and don't be put off by the exterior of the building in which the hotel is housed. Unfortunately the door has been graffiti'd (as we found was the trend in much of Rome) and the trash cans for the block are lined up outside, but it has nothing to do with the quality of or the interior of the building. It is a great area of Rome in which to stay, with lots of sights to see within a short walking distance and everything else easily accessible by bus or metro. As some other reviewers mentioned, the king-sized mattress in our room was very firm, but the only one who cared was my super-picky husband, who traded with the 12 year old and slept in the twin bed for the last few days and was fine. Pina, the very pleasant chamber lady did an excellent job of housekeeping, providing fresh linens and towels daily. I look forward to my next trip to this incredible city and for sure I will stay at the Paba Hotel.

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.