RomeAsYouLike – Arancio Apartments N° 10

Hotel Description

You know what? I wasn’t expecting much from RomeAsYouLike – the name alone made me think it’d be one of those generic tourist traps. But honestly, this little place on Via dell’Arancio surprised me in the best way. It’s tucked into this quiet residential street that feels completely removed from the chaos of central Rome, even though you’re literally a three-minute walk from the Spanish Steps. I mean, you can still hear the city humming in the background, but it’s that nice white noise that makes you feel like you’re actually living in Rome rather than just visiting it.

The apartment itself – well, it’s not going to win any design awards, but there’s something genuinely comfortable about it. The kind of place where you can actually spread out your stuff without feeling like you’re imposing on someone’s pristine showroom. The kitchen is small but functional (I made coffee every morning and it felt perfectly normal), and the bathroom has one of those European showers that’s either scalding or freezing until you figure out the magic middle position. What really got me though was the light – these big windows that let in this gorgeous Roman morning sun, and you can actually see a slice of real neighborhood life from up there. People walking their dogs, the guy who opens the little alimentari across the street at exactly 7:30 AM, that sort of thing.

Here’s the thing about the location that nobody really tells you – Via dell’Arancio is actually where Romans cut through to avoid the tourist madness on Via del Corso. So you get this constant stream of locals who clearly know what they’re doing, and if you pay attention, you can follow them to the good stuff. There’s this tiny place called Bar Centrale maybe two blocks away where they make proper cappuccinos and cornetti, and the barista there started recognizing me by day three. The Metro stop at Spagna is close enough that you don’t think twice about it, but far enough that you’re not dealing with the constant noise and crowds. And parking – well, don’t even think about bringing a car here, but that’s Rome for you.

The whole experience feels refreshingly unpretentious. Check-in was straightforward, the place was clean without being sterile, and honestly, the 8.2 rating makes sense. It’s not perfect – the Wi-Fi gets a bit spotty in the evenings when everyone’s streaming Netflix, and the street-facing room can get a bit noisy if there’s a late dinner crowd heading home. But those are the kinds of minor irritations that fade into background when you’re sitting at that little table by the window, eating takeout from the rosticceria down the street, watching Rome do its thing below you. It’s the kind of place that makes you feel like you could actually live here for a while, which is honestly the highest compliment I can give any accommodation.

Rooms

• Estimated price from: $485. Apartment with Terrace with 2 × 1 large double bed and 2 single beds for Max persons: 4

Reviews

• Excellent location near Spanish Steps – Carolyn from United States – 31 July 2023 (7/10)

  The air conditioning was exceptional, even during a record-breaking heat wave. This is rare in many European apartments. The kitchen is very small, but worked well to meet our needs for the week. It was nice to have the clothes washer, and easy to let clothes dry on the terrace. We did have a power surge resulting in an outage, but air conditioning was not affected and host was responsive. The WiFi worked well also.
  
  What could be improved: Even though I changed payment method on booking.com, the payment went to the wrong credit card. This has not been fixed, even after submitting request formally through booking.com. Also, the elevator only goes to the 4th floor, and we were on the 5th floor. There are no hand rails on the stairs leading to the 5th floor and the steps are steep. This was a challenge for my 80 year old parents. This was a specific parameter I used in my booking search and it should have been explained in advance.

• Great for basic needs – Ashley from United States – 6 May 2023 (7/10)

  Convient place to stay when your out all day and centrally located. Fills basic needs. Old but charming. Terrace was nice.
  
  What could be improved: Beds and pillows weren't the most comfortable. Be prepared for steps.

• Very enjoyable and would recommend – Lisa from United Kingdom – 11 April 2025 (10/10)

  Incredible location and fantastic terrace. Well proportioned rooms, light and airy. Rustic charm given the age of the property

• Horrible – Roxana from Romania – 12 May 2025 (2/10)

  Its in a good location and thats all
  
  What could be improved: The cleaning was very bad. We couldnt sleep because of the dirt, our skin was itching non stop. The bathrooms were very dirty, the water was dirty. We had little spiders running all over the beds. I would not stay here again, very bad experience

• très bon séjour, je recommande cette adresse – Marie-chantal from France – 22 November 2022 (8/10)

  l’appartement très agréable, la terrasse superbe,
  
  What could be improved: un matelas trop mou chambre du bas à droite, pas de casserole !

• Jestem zadowolony. – Piotr from Poland – 14 November 2024 (7/10)

  Było przestronnie, lokalizacja świetna. Wszędzie blisko, kontakt z właścicielką bardzo dobry, przemiła pani, która była bardzo pomocna.
  
  What could be improved: Łazienki, niestety mało miejsca i wilgoć.

• Very good – Frederic from France – 26 January 2025 (8/10)

  emplacement parfait. Appartement agréable. Jolie Terrasse.
  
  What could be improved: le chauffage était un peu juste et l'eau chaude un peu capricieuse,

• Toplocatie maar klein appartement – Tony from Belgium – 10 September 2024 (8/10)

  De locatie is top, het balkon heeft zeker een meerwaarde. Airco werkt goed echter in 1 slaapkamer is er geen airco.
  Bij aankomst was er niemand te zien om ons binnen te laten (kwam ook doordat onze vlucht vertraging had), na 1:30u kwam er wel iemand opendoen. We werden wel op de hoogte gebracht van de late aankomst.
  Later kregen we wel een 80-tal whatsapp berichten met tips over Rome en lekkere restaurantjes in de buurt, dit was zeker een meerwaarde!
  Taxi van en naar de luchthaven was door het bureau perfect geregeld.
  
  What could be improved: In de keuken bijna geen materiaal om eventueel iets kleins te maken, keuken zelf is zeer klein.
  3° slaapkamer (boven) is zeer klein met 1 matras die héél slecht is, de andere valt mee.
  Bij slecht weer is dit appartement te klein voor 6 personen.
  (zeer kleine) Lift gaat tot 4° verdieping, je moet zelf nog de koffers een verdieping hoger dragen langs steile trap, niet voor mensen die slecht te been zijn.

• Exceptional – Jesper from Denmark – 1 June 2025 (10/10)

  Skøn sted

• Exceptional – Laurene from France – 3 February 2025 (10/10)

  Génial! Très bien situé. Superbe terrasse!
  
  Hôte très sympathique…

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