Travel the way Italians do

Tons of religious guesthouses in Rome — I highly recommend staying in one if you can plan in advance (they often book up) and are all right with very spartan surroundings. They’re spotless, extremely friendly, and deeply, authentically Roman; it is one of humankind's great pilgrimage destinations, after all.

My favorite neighborhoods in Rome to look for housing are Prati, Parione/Regola, Pigneto, and the area around San Giovanni in Laterano.