Hotel Columbus by Jamie Dunford Wood

If you're not too fussed about comfort and want to be close to the highlights of Christian Rome, as well as indulge in some authentic Roman hospitality, the Columbus is a wonderfully quiet haven from the madness outside. Right on the Via del Conciliazione which leads up to St. Peter's, it has a series of wonder fully frescoed Renaissance reception rooms (painted by Pinturicchio) and grand baronial halls, a delightful garden and loggia restaurant, and walls adorned with 17th/18thC oils of cardinals, popes and tortured saints. It feels like a college for cardinals, a few paces from St Peter's, an impression reinforced by the mostly very plain rooms which resemble upmarket monks cells - cheap wooden furnishings, a single desk and chair, plain white walls, with a forlorn TV perched on an unexpected minibar. Bathrooms are tiled and basic, and some have no tubs. The whole place is perfect for those who yearn for some contemplation away from the commercialism and modernity of many hotels. For the full effect go for the terracotta tiled floors of the 2nd floor rooms - those on the 3rd and 4th floors are sinfully carpeted. Some, too, have more ornately papered walls and strange grilled balconies. The cheaper rooms can be small, so unless you really want to flaggelate yourself pay the extra for some space. Ceilings are tall and the rooms are cool in the summer, though there is no air-conditioning in the public areas. For those with a Papal pretensions, the spacious Cardinal Aloisi suite has an ancient coffered ceiling and a red velvet chaise longue, sofa and chairs.