Our family of 4 stayed in a quad room (room #9), for 128 euros a night, in Jan '07. It had 4 single beds in it and a private bathroom. The shower is not enclosed so the whole bathroom gets wet, but the water pressure is good and there's lots of hot water.
It was very clean and we always felt safe. The beds were comfortable and the heat was on at night, so we always felt warm under the cozy blankets.
The sisters were very sweet. Sister Cecilia speaks english well, and the others speak a few words.
They gave us tickets for the papal audience, after we mentioned to them that we planned to go out early Wed morning to get tickets.
There is no lift, but the stairs aren't bad.
Breakfast was basic but enough to get us going in the morning. After the first morning, we brought some of our own stuff to supplement breakfast - some breakfast bars and juice. We had dinner there once and it was delicious.
Overall, we had a great time there. We loved the location - it was close to everything! We would stay there again if we return.

We have just returned from a week in Rome and stayed at the Fraterna Domus. I had read various reviews on this site and knew it was going to be basic but was pleasantly suprised. We stayed in room 19 (by the bell tower), the room was large as was the bathroom and they were both exceptionally clean. I would definitely recommend this as a cheap, clean place to stay (78 euros for the room). The staff were lovely, and did speak limited English (learn a few words and phrases before you go). OK the breakfast wasn't huge bread, jam, nuttela, biscuits and coffee, but it kept us going for a few hours. We also ate at the convent one evening (the food was good, basic and reasonably priced 13 euros each).

It is definitely well situated, 5 minutes from Piazza Navona (the place to go at night and wander around and eat), across the river from Vatican (around a 15 minute stroll). We never used public transport and walked everywhere from here.

I read all of the rave reviews on this B&B, but because the price was so low, I arrived with very low expectations. I was pleasantly surprised. The lobby and breakfast room were actually rather charming. The rooms are definitely "no frills," but quite comfortable. They appeared to be newly appointed. The white walls and the bright red bedspreads made the room feel bright. The bathroom was big (separate shower, but no tub). The beds were firm, the way we like them and the pillows were decent. My biggest complaints were (1) there was no shower curtain (so the bathroom floor got soaked, and the water even ran under the door into the bedroom) and (2) the towels were on the skimpy side (small, rough and thin) - I would recommend bringing your own towels. There is also no lift, so if climbing stairs is a problem, do not stay here. There are a lot of stairs, especially if you are in room 19. Breakfast consisted of bread and jams, but they served real American-style coffee, which is unusual for Italy. You can't beat the location of this B&B. It is perfect. To quote another reviewer, "The location is excellent, walking distance to the Pantheon, Piazza Navona, the Vatican, the Spanish Steps, shopping brand name stores and more. It has a bus stop right across the street that takes you to the Roman Forum and other places of interest." Actually, the bus stop is a block or two away. Fraterna Domus is close to the Tiber River where we took many strolls both day and night. The sisters were very helpful. We would definitely stay here again. We did not eat any meals at the Fraterna Domus, but we probably should have, just to see what it was like. Other people who ate here seemed to enjoy it. There are two very good restaurants nearby. One especially good restaurant is La Compana (Vicolo della Campana, 18 (telephone 06-686-7820), and the other was Taverna Le Coppelle on Via delle Coppelle. Another good restaurant not too far away (but on the other side of the Tiber) is Il Matriciano at Via del Gracchio 55. Be sure to have both the carciofi alla Romana (artichokes Roman Style) and carciofi alla Giudia (artichokes prepared Jewish style). Both kinds of artichokes are fabulous. One last recommendation … be sure to go on one of the Angel Tours (Tel. 39 06 5800944). We took the Colosseum/Forum tour on March 27, 2006 with Jenny. It was just the three of us - Jenny, my husband and me. Another couple was supposed to take the tour, but they did not show up, so we had our own private tour. Jenny was extremely knowledgeable and informative. She was happy to take all questions, and stayed with us well beyond the time when the tour was supposed to end. Also, as we witnessed the following day, Jenny is very good with children. We took the Vatican tour the following day, March 28, 2006. More people showed up to form a larger group, so it was split between Jenny (who took the two families with children), and we went with Liz. Our group consisted of my husband and me and just one other couple. Liz, too, was extremely informative, pleasant, and periodically added a bit of humour to the tour. We definitely felt as though we got our money's worth out of these tours. We highly recommend Angel Tours. Generally, the tours are intimate because each group is small. Because you are with a tour guide, there is no waiting on lines. That alone is worth the price!

I was a little disappointed in Fraterna Domus based on the rave reviews it had received here. There was nothing terrible about it, but I think you can do as well or better at lots of places in Rome.

Pros: Good location, sweet nuns, very clean.

Cons: Room was very small, bathroom was tiny, a lot of street noise at night and early morning, very spartan room, little English spoken, no credit cards and no web site (and slow responding by e-mail) and fairly meager and expensive breakfast (all in comparison to other places we stayed). Maybe the other rooms are larger and quieter. All I have to go on is ours. I will probably look elsewhere next time, but this one was certainly acceptable.