Pigneto Guest House

We stayed nine nights in Bellissima at PIGNeto Guest HOuse. It was cosy and had a small balcony, but cleanliness was a real letdown. The balcony table was dirty, its floor filthy, and the plastic wardrobe out there was full of rubbish, including bags, empty bottles and hair. Towels or toilet paper were available if we asked, but nobody offered to clean. Guests seemed to come and go after two or three nights, and no one suggested changing our bedding during our nine-night stay. It was extremely hot. The air conditioning ran, but not effectively. The display said 16 degrees Celsius, though it felt more like 26. Getting into the facility depends on an application, which wasn’t easy, especially for older people. You need internet on your phone, and mine often couldn’t connect. The reception is virtual, so help means calling them. They were friendly, though, and arranged our transfer from in to the airport. The coffee and cold-drink vending machine was another frustration: it didn’t work when we needed it. We got up at 5.00 to catch our flight, but it only starts at 6.am and shuts down at midnight. What’s the point if you can’t get a drink when you need one? There was an awful smell in the corridor, as if something had died under the floor. Someone really needs to deal with it. The neighborhood around Malatesta Metro Station felt friendly, but it was very dirty. Bins were overflowing with smelly rubbish, and cigarette ends, bottles and cans were scattered around. I found that Rome was like this in general, even the historic centre, though Romans may be used to it. It can be shocking for visitors. Right beside five huge rubbish bins, there was a popular pizza place serving the most amazing pizza I’ve ever eaten. Small local pizzerias were on every corner, and we had delicious pizza each night, starting at 2,5 Euro for a small one that was enough for one hungry person. There were also local cafés with tasty, very cheap coffee, 1 Euro for espresso and 1,20 for cappuchino or americano, plus nice spots for fresh sanddwiches, pastries and ice cream. The facility is 200 meters from Malatesta Metro Station on line C. To reach the tourist sights, we had to change three times: first at San Giovanni for line A, then at Termini for line B, which goes to most of the attractions. The metro is fast, but trains come every 15-20 minutes, so a 4 km trip to the centre could take 60 minutes. It was tiring to travel among thousands of people all day and wear a face mask the whole time. I didn’t try the buses, maybe they’re better. Late June wasn’t a good time for lots of sightseeing. We could manage one or two places a day before getting exhausted. We went to the seaside twice and loved swimming and relaxing on the beach. The private beach was much cleaner than the public one. You have to pay to get in, but it’s worth it. We also went to Napoli and climbed the Vesuvio, which was insane but great. I threw a coin into Di Trevi Fountain, so I’ll definitely return to Rome one day.