B&B Living

I don't recommend this place. The price is high for what you get, and this was not a typical bed and breakfast. There was no shared living room where guests could spend time together, just four small rooms in a converted condo. The walls were thin, and I could hear people in their bedrooms, as well as noise from other apartments: dogs barking and a child running and screaming until 11:00 pm. There was lots of street noise too, from traffic and people. I couldn't get into the building and had to knock on several condo doors for help. One owner called The Living owner to get instructions. The owner supplied coffee and sweet rolls, but there was no milk for two days. I messaged her twice asking for a partial reimbursement and got no response. There were other problems inside the property. The garbage smelled, bathroom pipes banged loudly when people flushed or ran water, and the shower floor was slippery like glass, so I had to be extremely careful not to fall. People cooked and left food on the stove for hours, and I could smell it. People also smoked in their rooms, and the smoke came into my bedroom. Many nights I couldn't sleep well because of it. The refrigerator in my room smelled musky. The owner cleaned it, but it still made an annoying noise. When I unplugged it, I could hear water dripping, which kept me from sleeping well again. This lack of sleep left me exhausted and put a damper on my first trip to Rome.

The breakfast isn't served at the B&B. They give you a coupon for a coffee shop. The street is so loud that sleeping with the window open is impossible, and the worst part was the bell at the entrance to the building. Any guest could ring it in the middle of the night, and everyone could hear it. One guest kept ringing because the host wasn't there, which was really annoying when we were trying to sleep. When we arrived, the host wasn't there. That alone wasn't the issue, but she was very conceited. We called her, and she came to the accommodation after 20 minutes. I would never book this place again.

The room was small but clean and sufficient. Getting around was easy, since the B&B is right by a metro exit, with several places nearby for food or coffee. Breakfast was just crackers in the shared kitchen, or an espresso and cornetto at the small bistro across the street.

I was meeting two friends in Rome, and they were staying at a B&B only 50 metres from B&B Living. Since it was my first time in Rome, being near them mattered, so I booked two nights at B&B Living through my travel agent. I also paid an extra $25.00 to send a telegraphic transfer from New Zealand to prepay, because I wanted to make sure my accommodation was secured. Instead, my driver called Sonia, the owner, after taking me to the booked address. She told him to take me to another B&B. I was driven to a different part of Rome and left somewhere unfamiliar, not at the B&B I had booked and paid for. I felt confused and apprehensive, unsure where I was or how far away from my friends. Apparently there was a problem with Sonia's B&B, but Sonia never contacted me to explain what was happening. I felt very disappointed and let down by her.