With a multitude of sleeping options from dorm beds to deluxe doubles, Des Artistes is a place for all budgets. Run by an enthusiastic young couple, it has rooms decked out in wood and gold, with faux-antique furniture and three-star trappings such as satellite TV and Internet...

Slick and professional, the Alessandro is a cheerful, well-run hostel near Termini. Staffed by efficient Australians, it has a large kitchen, a laundry and a friendly common room while beds are in eight to 12-person dormitories. There are two other Alessandro hostels in the area.

The M&J is one of Rome's new breed of hostel-cum-hotels. There are a number of colourful dorms, two of which are girls-only and some of which have their own bathrooms. Private rooms are decked out in a modern Zen style with low beds and black bathrooms. They also have air-con,...

A perennial favourite with backpackers, the Pop Inn is laid-back, lively and a little tatty round the edges. Rock music fills the common rooms and the multilingual staff are friendly. Beds are available in dorms or private rooms with/without en suites.

Run by a friendly international crew, this great little hostel has doubles, triples and quads, all with a comfortable, homey feel. Thoughtful touches such as clean towels, a bottle of wine on arrival and vouchers for breakfast in a nearby café make it a truly excellent choice....

A cross between a hostel and a hotel, this two-star place has 14 clean, basic rooms. There are doubles, triples and dorms, all with plenty of light, air-con and their own bathrooms. Breakfast is served in the rooms. The same management also runs the popular Hostel Beautiful on...

Thanks to its photogenic look - rooms are brightly and individually coloured - this excellent hostel-cum-hotel makes frequent appearances in guidebooks and magazines. But it offers more than jazzy colours - there's a laundry, a tiny terrace adjoining the fully-equipped...

With its bright reds, greens and yellows, the reception of this above-average hostel resembles that of a contemporary design hotel. Facilities, if less eye-catching, are excellent and include an internet room with four terminals.

A women-only hostel in a beautifully restored, 16th-century convent, this place is run by the Casa Internazionale delle Donne (International Women's House). There are 35 beds, including singles, doubles, triples, quads and a room for eight, some with a private bathroom, some...

Apart from some dodgy wallpaper - fans of cloying green and pink rose patterns will feel at home in the dorm, others won't - Papa Germano is a good budget option. The English- and French-speaking owners are cheerful and easy-going, and the rooms somewhat smarter than the...

A homely pensione, the Hotel Ercoli has sparkling clean rooms furnished with one eye on convenience (hence the telephone, TV and hairdryer) and the other eye, well, shut. The chintzy decor is nothing to get excited about. Still, breakfast is included and the owner is a...

For Rome, this friendly, family-run place offers great value. An unassuming two-star, it has well-appointed rooms decorated in pastel tones and plush blue fabrics, for which you could easily pay more. The mosaic-tiled bathrooms are small but manage to fit everything in,...

The merry couple who run this homely pensione are a chatty pair but how much you understand will depend on your Italian - they don't speak any English. It doesn't matter, though, as they keep a lovely house. All the rooms are slightly different and even if they're small,...

A cosy little hotel run by a jolly Londoner and her daughter, the Giuliana ticks all the right boxes. Its rooms, divided into standard and superior, are elegant without being excessive; the location, near Via Nazionale, is convenient; and the service is affable and efficient....

Sister of 58 Le Real B&B, this smart B&B has seven cool cream rooms, five on the 4th floor and two on the 2nd. With their high ceilings, lush green carpets and double glazing, they are airy, comfortable and quiet. The bathrooms are spotless and the Jacuzzi showers are a treat....

Get past the grouchy receptionist and you'll find 37 comfortable rooms spread over five floors, including several nonsmoking rooms and junior suites. The pick of the bunch are on the 5th floor, where each room has its own small terrace with table and chairs. The views, though,...

This charming little hotel is proof that size isn't everything. It has five stylish rooms decorated with a simplicity that perfectly suits the original 17th-century building. The tight corridors are lined with photos of cheeky street urchins while the picturesque garden...

A quick glance in the guest book at the Modigliani reveals phrases such as 'loved this place' and 'great staff'. And it is indeed an excellent choice. Staff are young and helpful, rooms are pearl grey, spacious and light, and there's a quiet internal courtyard for drinks.

The owners of this charming B&B have gone to great lengths to create a stylish environment that combines modern convenience with refined decor. That means flatscreen TVs and dimmer lighting in all of the seven rooms, crystal chandeliers, polished walnut bedsteads and, in room...

The Columbia makes a good first impression with its brick-floored reception and smiling staff. Beneath the smart veneer, however, signs of wear and tear are beginning to show (scuff marks in the lift, for example). But these are minor gripes. Rooms are bright and reasonably...

Perhaps it's because you're in Rome that you forgive the extraordinary combination of mosaic floors, heavy Baroque furnishings, frescoes and trompe l'oeil that comprises the decor at this eye-catching hotel. The mid-sized rooms, equipped with flat-screen TVs and wi-fi, are...

Occupying five floors of a large 19th-century palazzo, Hotel Amalia has rooms divided into 'classic' and 'superior' categories. The difference is largely one of decor: superior rooms boast blue-and-yellow striped fabrics, smart wood furnishings and marble-clad bathrooms....

Casa Howard (Howard's House) is a gem. Fine fabrics abound and the paintings perfectly suit the individual colour schemes in the 10 striking rooms (five at Via Capo le Case and five at Via Sistina 149). The location is great in both cases, there's a Turkish bath and breakfast...

Housed in a converted 17th-century cloister, the Santa Maria is a gorgeous haven of tranquillity. Its 19 attractive rooms, set hacienda-style round a central courtyard, are cool and relaxing, combining terracotta tiles with cream walls and wrought iron bedsteads. The...

Bernini's Elefantino trumpets the presence of the grand old Minerve, one of Rome's historic hotels. A favourite of 19th-century grand tourists, it owes its current look to architect Paolo Portoghesi's 1990 renovation. Rooms vary; some have original 17th-century wood-beamed...

With its billiard table and black and white-tiled floor, Residenza in Farnese exudes an air of fading colonialism. Occupying the 15th-century home of the Military Order of Teutonic Riders of the Blessed Virgin, it offers 31 rooms, no two of which are the same. The general...

Few hotels in Rome boast a better location than this one, smack-bang opposite the Pantheon. This is great but it means that a) rooms are much in demand, b) they're relatively expensive, and c) they're noisy until late at night. Still, the management's friendly and the recently...

To step into the red light of this über-chic hotel is to enter a vision of hell. Inspired by Dante's Divine Comedy, the sexy decor features acres of black marble, models of samurai warriors and plenty of red leather. Rooms feature sharp modern furniture set against large black...

The pick of hotels in the Vatican area, the Bramante is a model of effortless elegance. Tucked away in a side street behind St Peter's, it occupies the 16th-century building that was home to Swiss architect Domenico Fontana in 1575. Five centuries later and the original...

A mix of marble, leather and fake frescoes, the Britannia is a fun four-star just off Via Nazionale. Rooms range from the traditional to the mix 'n' match, combining the modern (large photos of Roman statues) and the curious (a bathroom door hidden in the wall). Staff are...