06/02/2025
Ciao from Rome, Italy 🇮🇹
Things to make note of when visiting
🇮🇹Accommodation/Public Transport
✅It’s best to book accommodation in the city center.
✅Especially depending on your flight arrival and/or departure times. If arriving later at night most public transportation stops, especially buses. There are some trains that run from the airport to the city center, but just pay attention to how far the station is from your accommodation. Otherwise, the main transportation is taxis, which can be pretty expensive. From the airport to the city center is a fixed rate of about €55 however from the city center to the airport can cost up to €80.
✅ Or if you’re booking a car might be easier for you to travel about the city if staying outside of the center.
Things to do:
🇮🇹Colosseum
✅If planning to visit it is best to book the Colosseum well in advance. As tickets generally sell out online a few days before. You can buy tickets there on the day however, the line can get quite long.
✅ If you happen to plan your trip around the first Sunday of the month entry to the Colosseum is free however you still do have to get a ticket but the ticket line moves pretty quickly or if you get there before 12 PM or after 3 PM is when the line tends to be a bit shorter.
✅ I think the ticket states something like 45 minutes allotted per person however o think I spent 1-2 hours here just taking it all in, reading and taking pictures. I think it just depends on how long you want to be there.
🇮🇹 Roman Forum/Palantine Hill
✅ entrance to the Roman forum & palantine hill is included in the ticket for the colosseum.
✅ the Roman forum is a massive open air/outside museum of the center of Rome day to day life.
✅ I spent 2 1/2 hours walking around the entire thing and still feel like I didn’t see all of it. Really just depends on how much you want to see.
🇮🇹 Trevi Fountain
✅ Really busy area but an absolutely gorgeous place.
✅ People throw coins into the fountain as it use to be seen as like an offering to deities (at least that’s what I read😂)
🇮🇹 Pantheon
✅ I didn’t make it to see it in the daytime however I viewed the outside of it at night, beautiful building and busy area.
✅ Entry I believe is only €5
🇮🇹Spanish Steps
✅ just a massive staircase that people sit on, there’s sometimes someone playing music but overall very lively with people selling flowers, toys etc.
🇮🇹Baths of Caracalla
✅ I tried to go here but had a backpack so I could not.
🇮🇹Saint Peter’s Basillica
✅ I didn’t make it here at all but on the list of places suggested to go in Rome.
🇮🇹 Vatican Museums
✅ I didn’t make it here at all but on the list of places suggested to go in Rome
🇮🇹Restaurant Recommendations
✅I was only there for a full day so I don’t have too much. The biggest thing is most everywhere has the same pizza, pasta, spritz to drink. Try to go to ones you can see them making the pizza or the the pasta or where the menu is in Italian and not English. Generally these are more authentic and taste better than the places with pictures or bowls of examples out.
✅ L’antica pizzeria di Trevi
Good pizza, walked by and saw them making it through the window with the wood fire oven, delicious.
✅Caffe Della Studente
Wouldn’t suggest, went here because it was closed to the colosseum, I think it was the worst pizza I’ve had in Italy. Staff was lovely tho so maybe good for just a drink if around the area.
✅Angelino “ai fori” dal 1947
Stopped here for some lemon gelato while walking by, really tasty and affordable.
🇮🇹Final thoughts/Notes
✅Personally I think it would be easier to visit Rome via a train from a nearby town in Italy due to the lack of affordable airport transportation. However that depends on the kind of trip you want and how much money you are okay with spending/saving.
✅Beautiful City with LOTS to do but VERY busy, and lots of tourists.
✅ Depending on what all you want to do I would say realistically would need anywhere from 2 days to a week to see everything. I only spent 1 full day which really only allowed me the colosseum however that was also due to transportation issues and the Tour of Italy (bike race) going on causing road blocks.
