Apartments in Italy

My wife, Sandra, and I spent two weeks in Italy with our daughter and 14-year-old grandson in July ’09.

• In ROME we rented an apartment (Vicolo del Bologna 31) in the charming old Trastevere neighborhood. It claimed to have three bedrooms, though one of them was more like a large hall without windows. It also had 1½ baths (one with a washing machine), a large living room and a kitchen.

There were a few problems. It could have used a deep cleaning; the broadband Internet didn’t work, and one of the double bed’s mattresses was totally broken down. The other furnishings were simple but comfortable.

The Trastevere neighborhood was quiet during the day, but it has numerous bars, restaurants and pizzerias, so the streets often were noisy until the wee hours of the morning. When the windows were closed the apartment was quiet, but it didn’t have A/C, just fans, so the bedrooms could be stuffy at night.

Even with all of this, we enjoyed our week in this typical Roman neighborhood within easy walking distance of many of the things we wanted to see and do.

Including taxes, we paid €804 (near $1,155) for the week, which was very reasonable compared to a minimum of €100 per night per room (we would need two rooms) in a modest hotel.

We found the apartment through Vacation Rentals By Owner; it was listing No. 138193.

One impressive sight was the daily trash pickup, and the narrow streets were swept and washed clean early each morning.

• In FLORENCE we stayed in Machiavelli I, a floor in what was once part of Machiavelli’s palace. Located across the street from the Pitti Palace (between it and the Ponte Vecchio), the apartment (Via de Guicciardini 18) had three bedrooms, 1½ baths, a very small living room, a dining room, a kitchen with washing machine and even a small elevator.

The apartment was small but very comfortable for four people and in a great location. We paid €150 (near $215) per night.

We found it through VRBO also (listing No. 145257). You also can directly contact the owner, Mery Barrasso (phone 00390552398400 or e-mail meryb-wolit@tiscali.it), a well-known potter with a shop on the ground floor. She was prompt to answer our e-mails, and her husband, who runs the shop, was helpful while we were there.

• In VENICE we rented an apartment called Botticelli (Sistiere Castello, 3466 Sotoportego Salvioni) in the quiet Castello district just east of Piazza San Marco.

This was a beautifully furnished apartment with two bedrooms, one bath and a large living/dining room combination, plus A/C, a dishwasher and a washing machine.

We found this apartment through Holiday Velvet. We paid €120 per night.

JOHN HICKS

Tehachapi, CA