How to Order Coffee Like a Roman

Budget Travel's Kate Appleton has a quick instructional video on how to order coffee like a real Roman. Short, sweet, and filmed at Tazza d'Oro near the Pantheon, this video will definitely show you how to drink as the Romans drink.

Budget Travel's Editor is Back-and Your Rome Questions are Answered

See Kate Appleton's "First Report" upon her return from Rome. Many Budget Travel readers asked questions about lodging, transport, and dining. Her answers are here, along with many readers' comments. Read all about her pasta all'amatriciana at Da Augusto in Trastevere-a simple but real Roman experience.

Budget Travel Answers Your Rome Questions

Do you have specific questions about visiting Rome that Molto Italy can't answer for you? Pop over to Budget Travel, where Kate Appleton, one of BT's editors, will answer your queries. Recent topics include where to stay and sightsee if you are a woman traveling alone, kid friendly spots, and how to save your Euros.

Secret Hotels of Sicily

Budget Travel has a great list of villas and farms that have been turned into hotels. Each property starts at below 150 Euros and promises to offer an authentic and unique Sicilian experience. The Villa Letizia in Palermo is right on the waterfront and near one of the city's most charming quarters. The Hotel Gutkowski in Siracusa's historic Ortygia district (pictured) offers sea views and a real regional Sicilian breakfast. The Villa Nettuno in Taormina is situated in a lush garden overhanging a seaside cliff. For more "Secret Hotels" read the article on BudgetTravel.com.

Rome on the Cheap

Budget Travel has some great suggestions for saving money in Rome (and in many other expensive cities). They suggest using public transportation, refilling your water bottles in the fountains (the water in Rome is pristine!) and eating pizza by the slice. 10Best.com has some great suggestions for pizzerias, many of them in Trastevere.

Budget Travel's Italian Menu Decoder

Confused by cavolo and caponata? Puzzled by polpo and passito? Part of the joy in dining out in Italy is trying new things (and not limiting yourself to restaurants where the menu is printed in English!). Budget Travel has a very convenient Menu Decoder that you can study before you leave or take with you when you dine out. You'll never be stymied by saltimbocca (above) again!

Share Your Italy Travel Stories with Budget Travel and Win a Trip to Fiji!

Using their community feature, Budget Travel is looking for photos, videos, and Travel Journals from Rome, Venice, Milan, Siena, and Amalfi. To entice readers to register for their site, they will enter you to win one of three prizes if you contribute. The grand prize is airfare and seven nights at a beachfront resort in Fiji. See their most recent entries and register now.

Virgin Vacations: Rome At Its Best

If you are looking for an all-inclusive package to Rome, Virgin Vacations has a really great offer. Starting from $939 from New York for travel in January, the package includes six nights hotel accommodation, round-trip airfare, daily breakfast, and hotel taxes and service fees. Fees increase slightly depending on your departure city, preferred travel times, and hotel standard. There are 20 hotels to choose from (including the Hotel Lord Byron), 15 US departure cities, and availability between now and the end of March. See Budget Travel for more information or go straight to Virgin's website to book.

Budget Travel Interviews Reid Bramblett from Frommer's

Budget Travel outlines some of Frommer's writer Reid Bramblett's tips for making travel in Italy affordable. He recommends looking for other lodging besides hotels like campgrounds and monasteries, comparing car rental prices with AutoEurope.com, and trying Italian villages which have been turned into hotels (alberghidiffusi.it). You can also see his own website for recommendations at ReidsGuides.com.

Italian Parks from Budget Travel

Last Friday Budget Travel's blog, "Affordable Europe," listed some parks in Italy that are perfect for walking (a favorite Italian pastime), lounging, picknicking and even watching theatrical and musical performances. Among the many Italian parks listed were two in Rome, the Villa Borghese, which the Modern Traveler has mentioned before, and the Villa Doria Pamphilj, which is located atop the Gianicolo Hill. The park itself is the largest within the city of Rome and contains a Renaissance palazzo surrounded by manicured gardens. Admission to the park is free (as is admission to the Borghese Gardens) but to enter the gallery in the palazzo there is a fee. For more parks in and around Rome, visit the Italian state website, www.parks.it.

Alitalia in Trouble

Dozens of articles in the past few weeks have highlighted the trouble that Italy's airline, Alitalia, is facing. Because the EU has ruled that governments can no longer fund private airlines, Italy has been forced to pull its funding from Alitalia. This has left Alitalia with not nearly enough cash to run for more than a few more weeks. The newly reelected Prime Minister, Silvio Berlusconi, has vowed that he will make saving Alitalia a priority, but until another company comes along to bail them out, you should definitely avoid making any reservations on Alitalia. See Budget Travel for some tips on making the most of your reservation if you already have booked with Alitalia for this summer.

Transcripts from Budget Travel's Trip Coach Ann Hanley-Travel Tips for Rome

To find out all sorts of tidbits of travel information for Rome, see transcripts from the live Trip Coach session with Time Out Rome's Ann Hanley on March 4th. Get tips on getting to Rome from the Amalfi Coast, seeing the Pope, pickpockets and renting apartments, to name just a few topics!

Affordable Hotels in Rome

Budget Travel has some great suggestions for affordable hotels in Rome. The hotels are on the small side, in great neighborhoods like Campo dei Fiori and the Trastevere, and not one of them is over $160 for a double room with private bath. Two that sound particularly interesting are the Hotel Antico Borgo di Trastevere, which is a private residence from the 13th century, and the Hotel Daphne (pictured) in the Centro Storico, whose proprietors give you a cell phone preprogrammed with numbers, including their own, just in case you get lost.

Trip Coach available on Budget Travel

On Tuesday, March 4th at 12:00 pm, Anne Hanley, the author of Time Out Rome will be available on Budget Travel for real-time advice on your next trip to Rome.