Celebrity Hotels - Rome

[RTR 21-0]

Anyone booked a hotel in Rome through Celebrity?  If so, which one and location?  Pros/cons booking hotel with Celebrity?  Never been to Rome but I've been told by several people to stay in the city center.  I'm going to check out the Rome forum but any and all suggestions are appreciated!

[mom says]

Why on earth would you book through  Celebrity? By all means stay at one of those hotels. But book through the hotel website. Unless you want to pay twice the hotels rate (or more). Remember that you will pay per person through celebrity, while the hotel (normally) has a flat rate on the room, up to its max capacity.

[RTR 21-0]

46 minutes ago, mom says said:

Why on earth would you book through  Celebrity? By all means stay at one of those hotels. But book through the hotel website. Unless you want to pay twice the hotels rate (or more). Remember that you will pay per person through celebrity, while the hotel (normally) has a flat rate on the room, up to its max capacity.

I didn't say I was going to book through Celebrity.  Simply weighing my options and trying to gather information. No need to begin your reply to me so brash.  I think my original post was pretty clear that I don't have a history using Hotels by Celebrity and was looking for information.  

[Turtles06]

Definitely head over to the Italy forum, tons of info there on hotels in Rome, lots of personal recommendations.  And you have been given good advice to say in the Centro Storico; it's beautiful and historic, and (unless you have mobility problems) you will probably be able to walk anywhere you are likely to want to go.   (The Italy forum will also be useful in planning your visit.)

 

As noted above, if you book a hotel through Celebrity, you will be overpaying.  There may be a transfer to the port included, but even then, you'd need to price that all out to see if it made any sense. 

Rome is spectacular.  Enjoy your visit!

[RTR 21-0]

20 hours ago, Turtles06 said:

Definitely head over to the Italy forum, tons of info there on hotels in Rome, lots of personal recommendations.  And you have been given good advice to say in the Centro Storico; it's beautiful and historic, and (unless you have mobility problems) you will probably be able to walk anywhere you are likely to want to go.   (The Italy forum will also be useful in planning your visit.)

 

As noted above, if you book a hotel through Celebrity, you will be overpaying.  There may be a transfer to the port included, but even then, you'd need to price that all out to see if it made any sense.

Rome is spectacular.  Enjoy your visit!

Thank you 🙂

[marycruz]

21 hours ago, RTR 21-0 said:

Anyone booked a hotel in Rome through Celebrity?  If so, which one and location?  Pros/cons booking hotel with Celebrity?  Never been to Rome but I've been told by several people to stay in the city center.  I'm going to check out the Rome forum but any and all suggestions are appreciated!

We stayed in a Celebrity host hotel a few years ago.    Celebrity used this as their hospitality hotel.  They set up in the lobby and also had a tour set up to take those staying in Rome to the different sites.   It was great.  We stopped at one other hotel and picked up a few more Celebrity cruisers.  We put our luggage on the bus and they dropped us off at the port after the tours.

[LGW59]

22 hours ago, RTR 21-0 said:

I didn't say I was going to book through Celebrity.  Simply weighing my options and trying to gather information. No need to begin your reply to me so brash.  I think my original post was pretty clear that I don't have a history using Hotels by Celebrity and was looking for information.  

You were very clear to me.  As others have said you will love Italy/Rome, truly a magical place.  I vacillate so much between  whether Italy or Ireland are the most beautiful countries I have ever been to, so I have decided that to keep my Irish family happy I will fib to them and tell them it is of course Ireland, wink wink!  But seriously I’ve got a few recommendations for a couple of nice, small and very reasonable priced hotels in Italy- Rome (near Coliseum/Forum) and another just steps away from both Trvevi Fountain, Pantheon and the Jewish Quarter, which if you have time I VERY highly recommend the Jewish Quarter walking history food tour.  I’ll post a bunch of information on the Italy information forum here.  Whatever you decide you will enjoy!!

[swigso]

Hi

there are so many fabulous places to stay in Rome, I have never used Celebrity for a pre cruise hotel stay but have met people in the ship that always do, simply for peace of mind and not having to worry about transport to from the port.

However for me as I love to research so I will always book my Hotel either direct or through the App. Over the years I have gained status with the big hotel chains and sometimes get a room upgrade.

Because of the age of some of the buildings, rooms can be small and lifts can be slow. We are sailing from Rome in

September and I booked our hotel some time ago. What I have discovered because I am a nerd and keep checking prices, is that the cost of rooms has doubled since I booked.

 

I would recommend the hop on hop off buses they are a great way to get around and see the sights. I would also advise to book tickets in advance and use a guide to bypass the queues. You will have a great time we love Rome.

 

Edited June 18, 2022 by swigso

[RTR 21-0]

25 minutes ago, LGW59 said:

You were very clear to me.  As others have said you will love Italy/Rome, truly a magical place.  I vacillate so much between  whether Italy or Ireland are the most beautiful countries I have ever been to, so I have decided that to keep my Irish family happy I will fib to them and tell them it is of course Ireland, wink wink!  But seriously I’ve got a few recommendations for a couple of nice, small and very reasonable priced hotels in Italy- Rome (near Coliseum/Forum) and another just steps away from both Trvevi Fountain, Pantheon and the Jewish Quarter, which if you have time I VERY highly recommend the Jewish Quarter walking history food tour.  I’ll post a bunch of information on the Italy information forum here.  Whatever you decide you will enjoy!!

Thank you so much!  I look forward to reading your post and gathering information in the other forum.  Ireland is on our travel bucket list but yes, I have heard that Italy/Rome is a magical place and May 2023 can't get here fast enough.  

[Mr. Click]

Check out the Albergo del Senato.  It is a great hotel with a great location. Right on the Pantheon Square.  Our room over looked the square and it was fun to watch the comings and goings as the began and ended. Some very nice restaurants around the square, a great Lindt gelato place 5 minutes from the square.  Easy walking to many of the sights you will want to see.  Do not cut your time short in Rome. There is so much to see and do 3 days barely scratches the surface.

[Jim_Iain]

It is always a good idea to look at options.    20+ years ago we booked via Celebrity and would never do it again.    Unless things have changed they don't book it by room price but on a per person price that is about equal to what one can book the room for independently.  

 

Also unless things have changed you can't book it online and  have to call into Celebrity to book it and since they didn't' have anything in writing and I was left trying to write down all the information.  Sometimes celebrity offered a package with shuttle service and a tour our two but again price it out and see if it makes sense to you. 

[RTR 21-0]

8 minutes ago, swigso said:

Hi

there are so many fabulous places to stay in Rome, I have never used

Celebrity for a pre cruise hotel stay but have met people in the ship

that always do, simply for peace of mind and not having to worry about 

transport.

However for me as I love to research I will always book through the Hotel either 

direct or through the App. Over the years I have gained status with the big hotel

chains and sometimes get a room upgrade. Because of the age of some of the 

buildings rooms can be small and lifts can be slow. We are sailing from Rome in

September and I booked our hotel some time ago. What I have discovered

because I am a nerd and keep checking prices, is that the cost of rooms

has doubled since I booked.

I would recommend the hop on hop off buses they are a great way to get around 

land see the+sights. I would also advise to book tickets in advance and use a guide to bypass the queues. You will have a great time we love Rome.

 

Thank you!  I like the sound of the hop on hop off buses.  The flight I'm looking at will land at 8:00 a.m. and I'm sure check in at any hotel won't be available until the afternoon.  Dropping off luggage and spending that day on one of the buses might be the way to go since I'm sure we'll be a bit tired from the flight.   

[RTR 21-0]

5 minutes ago, Mr. Click said:

Check out the Albergo del Senato.  It is a great hotel with a great location. Right on the Pantheon Square.  Our room over looked the square and it was fun to watch the comings and goings as the began and ended. Some very nice restaurants around the square, a great Lindt gelato place 5 minutes from the square.  Easy walking to many of the sights you will want to see.  Do not cut your time short in Rome. There is so much to see and do 3 days barely scratches the surface.

That's the type of place we're looking for, somewhere to watch the comings and goings.  We will only have two days pre cruise and one post cruise so yes, I'm trying to make the most of those days and plan wisely.  

[swigso]

Hi We are staying at the Westin Excelsior in September

will give you a heads up when we return.

[12cruise2]

My experience with booking hotels through cruise lines is that even if you arrive at the hotel at 7:00 in the morning from the international flight, your room is ready to be occupied.  I always viewed it as the high price is paying for two nights, so arriving VERY early the first day as stated above, having the room ready, then staying that night as well.  I never thought of it as paying for two people that made it so expensive.  We never had to wait to check in after arriving very early in the morning with a cruise-line-booked hotel room.  Maybe others have had a different experience and have had to wait to the afternoon to check in.  And if you book yourselves separately, chances are you'll have to wait til the afternoon to check in, usually exhausted and jet-lagged from an overnight flight from the U.S.

[-Lew-]

2 hours ago, RTR 21-0 said:

Thank you!  I like the sound of the hop on hop off buses.  The flight I'm looking at will land at 8:00 a.m. and I'm sure check in at any hotel won't be available until the afternoon.  Dropping off luggage and spending that day on one of the buses might be the way to go since I'm sure we'll be a bit tired from the flight.   

 

Although the HO-HO bus works well in most European cities, that's not so much the case in Rome.  This is due to the fact that buses cannot get very close to the sites you're going to want to see.  In most cases you'll need to get off the bus and walk to the various sites.

 

Albergo Del Senato on Piazza della Rotonda is where we'll be staying for our second time this September. It's very centrally located within walking distance of many sites you'll want to check out...Trevi Fountain, Piazza Navona, Spanish Steps to name a few.

 

I second the suggestion to check out the Italy Ports Board...there's a wealth of very useful information there.

[jentravelrn]

Celebrity was offering some Power Up Points for booking a hotel through them, so we booked Beside the Vatican (B&B) for a very reasonable price for our upcoming September Edge cruise. This will be our first time booking a hotel through Celebrity. We're looking forward to our trip!

[Fly and Sail]

On 6/18/2022 at 2:39 AM, mom says said:

Why on earth would you book through  Celebrity? By all means stay at one of those hotels. But book through the hotel website. Unless you want to pay twice the hotels rate (or more). Remember that you will pay per person through celebrity, while the hotel (normally) has a flat rate on the room, up to its max capacity.

 

Not really. Hotels by Celebrity usually has the same prices as any other OTA such as Orbitz and Expedia. I checked for my EDGE cruise ex Rome in September and the rate for the FCO Airport Hilton was $70 less than what Hilton sells it for on their own website. Only downside of course is your loyalty benefits (for example Hilton Honors Diamond) don't apply that way.

[Ride-The-Waves]

2 hours ago, Fly and Sail said:

 

Not really. Hotels by Celebrity usually has the same prices as any other OTA such as Orbitz and Expedia. I checked for my EDGE cruise ex Rome in September and the rate for the FCO Airport Hilton was $70 less than what Hilton sells it for on their own website. Only downside of course is your loyalty benefits (for example Hilton Honors Diamond) don't apply that way.

Just the exact opposite experience.  Celebrity booked hotels are nominally 1.5 to 2 times as expensive for the same room.  Do yourself a favor: book direct or through a hotel booking site.  Don't overpay to have Celebrity do it for you.

[sunlover33]

You also need to consider if you want a large chain hotel or an independent. Quite a few hotels in Rome especially closer to the centre  are boutique style, loads of character but have quite small rooms  compared to hotels in the US. I would recommend you check the website so you know what to expect. 

Edited June 19, 2022 by sunlover33

[Turtles06]

18 hours ago, -Lew- said:

Although the HO-HO bus works well in most European cities, that's not so much the case in Rome.  This is due to the fact that buses cannot get very close to the sites you're going to want to see.  In most cases you'll need to get off the bus and walk to the various sites.

 

I agree with you.  Rome is not the place for a Ho-Ho.   Walk around the Centro Storico! 

[Fly and Sail]

6 hours ago, Ride-The-Waves said:

Just the exact opposite experience.  Celebrity booked hotels are nominally 1.5 to 2 times as expensive for the same room.  Do yourself a favor: book direct or through a hotel booking site.  Don't overpay to have Celebrity do it for you.

 

I always compare and never found this to be the case. Ever. In the end I usually just use points/certificates to book free hotels.

 

Check Hilton Rome Airport 2-3 SEP for example. 198 Euro with Hilton, $162 with Celebrity. That being said I ended up using a corporate rate that's flex and only costs 155 Euro.

[RTR 21-0]

Thank you all so much for the info.  So very helpful and much appreciated.  Just booked our flights through Celebrity and going to take a few days to research all of our hotel options.  Getting the flights booked has me just as excited as when we booked the cruise.  Will be keeping my fingers crossed tightly until final payment that we get the seats we selected 🤞