Grand Hotel Villa Dei Papi
Hotel Class: 
4 Stars - 14 Opinions
Selva Ferentina 15/17, Marino, Rome, 00047, Italy
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Amenities
85%
of people enjoy staying here
14 Opinions
- Excellent
- 3
- Very Good
- 8
- Average
- 1
- Poor
- 1
- Terrible
- 1
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Photos
An open window for a photo op
The Last Judgement by Michelangelo
Palatino
Dorotka and Paul's foto
Forum Posts
question on guided tour of st peters
by dnat
this question has probably been asked before so my apologies but I would like to know opnions of the guided tour of st peters, and the basilica versus taking your own tour or audio tour. saving money is not a priority , so if the guided tour is educational and interesting I would lean toward taking it but if its like most guided tours Ive taken (snoozers) Id rather save the time and go through myself with a guide book, any opinions welcome....thanks
dnat
Re: question on guided tour of st peters
by von.otter
In May 2007 we took a guided tour of the Vatican Gardens; because the Gardens are accessible only through the Vatican Museum tours, there was little choice. The main goal was to gain access and see this little corner of the world that few people see.
I did not have great expectations for the tour; and it was OK. Any and all information the guide passed along could be gained through books, the web, etc. The tour group was made up of 22 adults, therefore it was an effort to hear and pay attention; plus, the guide was conducted in Italian, French and English, causing more attention drift.
Here is link to the Vatican Museum's tours
http://mv.vatican.va/3_EN/pages/z-Info/MV_Info_Servizi_Visite.html
Through the offer at the this site, the St. Pete's tour is combined with a tour of the Vatican Museums; it sounds as if it would be interesting but based on my experience described above I would find a very good guidebook and give yourself a tour at your own pace and following your interests.
Re: question on guided tour of st peters
by JohanIsWeg
I found that my experiences in Italy grew exponentially the more I knew about the subject or location. Whether we did guided tours, audio tour or our own iPod tours, it meant so much more!
We found the guided Scavi tour of the Excavations below St. Peter's Basilica a highlight of our trip, and further trusted in our iPod/iPhone podcasts to inform us of the magic of the Basilica and Vatican Museums. For us, it worked much better than books.
Re: question on guided tour of st peters
by dnat
Yohan thanks for your great feedback, can you elaborate on what you mean by ipod podcasts of the vatican?
Re: question on guided tour of st peters
by JohanIsWeg
We downloaded a number of podcasts (for free) from iTunes, which walked us through many of the famous sites in Italy. Much better than a book, because your attention stayed focus on whatever treasure the podcast was telling you about, rather than reading about it in a book.
We also downloaded some excellent apps from iTunes (some free, others very reasonably priced), which would inform us of particular attractions.
Re: question on guided tour of st peters
by sandyboyles
I love ipod walking tours and have found ijourneys.com to be one of the best. I have used her tours in several cities and plan to download both of her Rome walking tours before returning to Rome in Sept.
Re: question on guided tour of st peters
by goodfish
We did our own tour with our Eyewitness guidebook but found some pre-reading from this website incredibly helpful:
http://www.saintpetersbasilica.org/index.htm
It's much too much to download the entire thing but you could print off the pages of places in the basilica that most interest you and take them along. I see there is also a "Sister Wendy" audioguide that can be downloaded.
Re: question on guided tour of st peters
by dnat
thanks sandy great advice will checkout ijourneys, i downloaded some other podcasts that didnt seem that good , rather boring and lengthy
Travel Tips for Rome
Basilica Santa Croce in Gerusalemme
by swisslady
Santa Croce in Gerusalemme, Via Carlo Felice and Via di Santa Croce in Gerusalemme.
St. Helen was the mother of Rome’s first Christian emperor, Constantine. St. Helen made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land and returned with many relics of the Passion, now housed in a chapel in the lower level of the church. Among these relics are the cross of the "Good Thief", nails from Christ’s Passion, a thorn from the Crown of Thorns, the "INRI" sign from Christ’s cross, pieces of the Cross, and the finger of St. Thomas, or "Doubting Thomas."
I was told by many Romans to...
by unigirl
I was told by many Romans to try not to give money to the Gypsies that line the streets begging. Many have young children, and that can really tug on the heartstrings. I don't know if the advice given is due to bias against the Gypsy population or due to genuine concern that the women and children are being exploited, but I guess one will have to use his/her own judgement. One thing I know is that there is a real poverty problem in Rome. Be sensitive to that fact while you are enjoying yourself.
Shopping for housewares
by nihal_gabr about Spazio Sette
This is by far the best houseware store in rome! It has everything from Alessi kettles to a huge collection of candles, carpets, smaller kitchen gadgets and all possible Italian designer labels. Kitchen ware is certainly their strongest point.
The, uh, Metro...
by Jmill42
Ok, being that I was a backpacker, I used the public transport in every city I traveled. I can say, for sure, that Rome's Metro is not the worst (that belonged to Athens and its 30 stations under construction debacle). But, Rome is definitely second worst. It was the dirtiest, grungiest, over-crowded version of a subway I encountered. Plus, when I was there the first time (in the summer heat of Augusto), it was so hot that I lost millions of brain cells from the trip. OK, OK, it was probably the pub crawls, but it WAS hot!
They did get me where I wanted to go each and every time, which is the main thing, but the system could use an overhaul.
Good pasta
by Turska about Esquillino bar
We got hungry by walking in heat for hours(we never understand people,who don´t get hungry in hot weather!We allways walk 20-30km a day(at vacation,not at home!),and in heat we get more hungry than in cold weather),so we thought we will pop in at first place that´s open.This was good choise.Pasta was good,and not too small at that time at day. I had AGAIN spagetti aglio e olio,witch was good and my husband liked his pasta all arabiata.By the way,my sister who lived in Rome for 3 years,told that Italians call aglio e olo"midnight pasta"(pasta di notte or something like that),but i never saw that name at menu.She said it´s popular pasta when coming from pubs to home.Sounds a good idea,if you ask me.
Questions and Answers
Q: First time in Rome "Hello everyone,
I'll be in Rome for the weekend next week. Since it will be my first time there, I would like to know a good..."
A: "If you do please make it a small one. Way too many tour groups in Rome.
Why not go through pages here on VT and plan your own trip, visiting what you want on your own..."
Read 5 Replies »
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Grand Hotel Villa Dei Papi
We've found that other people looking for this hotel also know it by these names:
- Grand Hotel Dei Papi
Address: Selva Ferentina 15/17, Marino, Rome, 00047, Italy
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