View Full Version : When in Rome...
We're off to Rome for a week from Wednesday as a family, (me and wife Sue, Tamzin 16 and William 12). It was a "milestone" birthday treat for Sue. I've been before, but the others haven't. I know the obvious tourist attractions that have to be done, but just wondered if any of you have been and have any suggestions on a "must see" or do in the City? Or any tips or tricks on how not to get ripped off!?
If any of you have been relatively recently and have any great restaurant recommendations that would be fab, too!
(I've just noticed that the King & Queen are there, arrived today! I expect that will mean big crowds in some spots for the first couple of days we are there, and I didn't realise when I booked it last year that 2025 is a "Jubilee Year (https://news.sky.com/story/catholic-jubilee-what-is-it-why-are-the-king-and-queen-going-and-should-you-still-travel-to-italy-13339826)" where three times as many visitors are expected than "normal" years... :doh: )
Of course I have spent hours/days Googling, but you can't beat personal experience or recommendations - so if anyone has any ideas to pass on it would be much appreciated. Thanks in advance!
Wishing you all have a wonderful time.
Sadly I cannot offer you any advice, as the only parts of Italy I have visited have been in the north: Merano (crossed over from the Austrian Tyrol); most of Tuscany, and Venice.
Have a great time.
Thanks Barry. :)
(We have done Lake Garda/Venice/Verona and the areas around both with and without kids, and we love Italy, so Rome was the obvious choice.)
I am also looking at the best way to do Pompeii/Herculaneum (which I have also done but the others haven't) - it's only about 2.5 hours away, and the kids would love the historical aspect of it. Hiring a car would probably be the easiest way, although I went by train last time and Italian trains are surprisingly reliable in my experience.
I went in 2014 - Kevin (CageyH) recommended me a restaurant. It was amazingly good:
Al Forno della Soffitta
Excellent, thanks Martin/Kevin - will definitely give that a try.
Mikeandvan
08-04-2025, 10:17
I've never been, I've never been anywhere in fact. But a Spanish friend tells me the food is amazingly good, and the food in Spain is good of course. To be on the safe side and avoid tourist traps I'd recommend using trip advisor or Google for reviews.
Patrick Dixon
08-04-2025, 14:26
I'd have thought that Pompeii is too far away from Rome to do in a day. When we went a few years ago we used the train (Frecciarossa - red arrow) to Napoli and the local train (Circumvesuviana) to Pompeii and later on to Sorrento, but we stayed for a week. The train is pretty quick, but you wouldn't get much time there if you were coming back the same day. We wandered around the Pompeii ruins on a couple of different days and spent another half a day or so at Herculaneum.
Love Rome, the Sistine chapel is great but when we went it had only just been reopened and there were no crowds - I think it's pretty choca these days! So much to see, or just wander around or sit in a piazza and soak up the atmosphere.
Have a great time!
Random photo of a journey on the circumvesuviana
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A little live music on the circumvesuviana
Yesterday was our first full day touristing. We headed to the Metro station and then into the city. Started with the Trevi Fountain.
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Then had a wander through to the Spanish Steps
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The beautiful church at the top of the steps
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Lunch, then the Pantheon which I only saw from outside last time I came. Amazing.
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The Emmanuel Vitoria memorial
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And then walked back past the Forum to get the Metro back from Colloseo.
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We only walked past the Forum/Colloseum, having the full trip there tomorrow.
Then back to the hotel and dinner out locally in Pigneto where we are staying.
We packed a lot in, over 20,000 steps and feet a bit sore this morning.
Today as my son gets a bit bored with all the museums and ruins we re off to the Bioparco - Rome Zoo, via Villa Borghese Gardens, where my daughter wants to get a rowing boat!
I see your covering all the bases - when I was there we walked 14 miles in one day.
Parthenon is my favourite I think, followed by the Colosseum and the Vatican.
Great pics Alex, thanks for sharing.
Only been to Italy once, a dirty weekend in Turin in 2002, back when Ryanair were doing those cheap flights.
Was a bit gobsmacked when we saw the Trevi Fountain 25 years ago......our shower is bigger than that :lol: One scoop of ice cream from the nearby sellers was 2 Euros.....Now?
Had a lovely holiday based initially near Rome and then stayed at Sorrento.....fab place, beautiful sea views over the Bay of Naples and atmosphere at night down the Via San Cesareo a maze of narrow streets packed with shops and eateries is magical.
My experience of Rome is that it would be easier to compile a list of where not to eat when in Rome as it will be a far shorter list than where it good to eat. It's Italy - everywhere is good a good place to eat.
I'd have thought that Pompeii is too far away from Rome to do in a day. When we went a few years ago we used the train (Frecciarossa - red arrow) to Napoli and the local train (Circumvesuviana) to Pompeii and later on to Sorrento, but we stayed for a week. The train is pretty quick, but you wouldn't get much time there if you were coming back the same day.
Having looked at all the options, we have decided to give Pompeii a miss this time. Not so much the time, but looking at all the options it is going to be at least €4-500 for the for of us for a day trip - I’d rather put that towards a week in Sorrento later in the year and then take our time to explore Pompeii and Herculaneum, and possibly Capri. I loved Sorrento, but that was 35 years ago, though I doubt much has changed. Thanks for the feedback Patrick.
Was a bit gobsmacked when we saw the Trevi Fountain 25 years ago......our shower is bigger than that :lol: One scoop of ice cream from the nearby sellers was 2 Euros.....Now?
Had a lovely holiday based initially near Rome and then stayed at Sorrento.....fab place, beautiful sea views over the Bay of Naples and atmosphere at night down the Via San Cesareo a maze of narrow streets packed with shops and eateries is magical.
That’s what I did last time, a few nights in Rome then 10 days in Sorrento - as just mentioned, may do Sorrento later in the year. [emoji846]
My experience of Rome is that it would be easier to compile a list of where not to eat when in Rome as it will be a far shorter list than where it good to eat. It's Italy - everywhere is good a good place to eat.
:thumbsup:
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Change of plan in that we couldn’t get official tickets for the Colloseum today, and no way am I paying a tout, but we have got them for tomorrow, so today was the zoo. It was good, not many animals we hadn’t seen in other zoos but they did have a “Goldilocks” compliment of brown bears which we had never seen before and the best reptile house I think I have ever seen, with some amazing lizards.
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Now chilling at the hotel before forcing ourselves to go out and eat and drink some more! :eyebrows:
Well today was full on Ancient Rome, starting at the Colloseum - or rather the Constantine Arch just outside. I remember this from my 30 year ago visit, and very impressive again this visit.
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Then into the Colloseum proper - a lot has changed in 30 years from my recollection - there’s now a part reconstruction of what would have been the floor, and lots of displays, artefacts and information - last time I recall it was a free for all and you could wander where you wanted, but very much more regimented (and therefore protected) these days.
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The bit in the middle is the only seating area left as far as I could see - incredible to think it held between 40-70,000 spectators!
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Then we moved onto the Roman Forum. I didn’t explore this extensively last time (maybe you couldn’t?) but this time we spent ages wandering around, and it is just mesmerising how vast it is.
These are some views from Palletine Hill, truly remarkable.
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Then we walked to Circus Maximus - very little left of the buildings, but this I find it truly mind blowing how big this was - used for chariot racing and would have made the Colloseum look small, with the “straights” 600m in length. Not a great photo but gives you the idea,
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We then found some very late lunch, and headed over to the main shopping area for a browse, and some gelato!
Now chilling before we go out for dinner - 22,000 steps (10 miles) so far!
Great pics - good weather for it too.
Mikeandvan
12-04-2025, 20:03
Did anyone do the 'I'm Spartacus' thing?
Did anyone do the 'I'm Spartacus' thing?
Damn, no, too late now! :lol:
Pigmy Pony
13-04-2025, 09:19
Damn, no, too late now! :lol:
Never mind Alex, maybe you'll get a chance when you return in June to see Ed Sheeran at the Stadio Olimpico :)
Just to be pedantic the 'I'm Spartacus' incident takes place on the Via Appia outside Rome, not in the Colosseum.
Spartacus never goes anywhere near the Colosseum. It wasn't even built when he was knocking about. (Spartacus executed 71BC, the Colosseum began construction in 72AD).
More appropriate monologue for Colosseum visit:
“My name is Maximus Decimus Meridius. Commander of the Armies of the North, General of the Felix Legions, loyal servant to the true emperor, Marcus Aurelius. Father to a murdered son, husband to a murdered wife. And I will have my vengeance, in this life or the next.”
Although it is harder to remember. And never happened at all.
Yesterday we had a chilled day, Tamzin who is addicted to charity shops and boot sales found a “flea market” apparently Rome’s largest, in Porto Portese, and so we duly obliged. On arrival, it was very busy.
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It soon became apparent to me that basically this is a glorified Scouts jumble sale, but without the cheap prices or the friendly persona of Akela…
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Suffice to say we spent far much more time than any of us apart from Tamzin wanted to on this endeavour. It appears that the line of “stalls” is well over a mile long! She did get a great leather jacket (after looking at about 300 of them) and then we were off to Villa Borghese.
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This was her other discovery, where you can hire a rowing boat in what is essentially the equivalent of Hyde or similar park we have in London.
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I’m a misery guts, I didn’t wear my T-shirt!
Today was Vatican day. Despite trying to get official tickets from the day we arrived, no dice on the official site, and again, I am not paying touts, so we queued…. About two and a half hours, which in the grand scheme of things isn’t the end of the world (I’ve queued that long for tickets to get on a Peppa Pig ride! :lol:) And it didn’t rain, yet!
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No pictures of Sistine Chapel- you’re not supposed to, though everyone else was!
Then on to St Peter’s Basilica and square - the place is incredible.
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Another great day out, and 21,000 steps!
The Vatican is amazing, you wonder how there can be any marble left in the world for kitchen counter tops.
Pigmy Pony
15-04-2025, 14:22
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I’m a misery guts, I didn’t wear my T-shirt!
Put the kids to work, that's the spirit :)
Pigmy Pony
15-04-2025, 14:34
[QUOTE=Alex_UK;1389610]Today was Vatican day. Despite trying to get official tickets from the day we arrived, no dice on the official site, and again, I am not paying touts, so we queued…. About two and a half hours, which in the grand scheme of things isn’t the end of the world (I’ve queued that long for tickets to get on a Peppa Pig ride! :lol:) And it didn’t rain, yet!
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That plague of babies, what's their story?
Some great pictures Alex, captures the scale of it all very well. They knew how to build stuff, them Italians.
[QUOTE=Alex_UK;1389610]That plague of babies, what's their story?
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Luckily I also photographed the information - there’s a little bit missing, but you’ll get the drift - pygmies included!
I can't see any hippopotamus, or pygmies an the base. Maybe they are hiding around the back of the sculpture.
I suppose back in the day it would have been painted.
One museum I went to there had the Greek and Roman statues side by side and you could see how much better the Greek stuff was even though it was older. If you imagine them painted up you could see where they got the idea that a medusa was knocking about. They do look like real people turned to stone.
Funny how they don't paint them so they look how they are supposed to. Would look wrong to us I suppose but it's a bit like going to a car museum that has all its cars stripped back to bare metal.
Today was mopping up the things we had on the To Do list but weren’t considered essential. We started in Trastevere, an area which has lots of food tours running, but we didn’t end up signing up to.
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One thing that has really surprised me is the amount of graffiti - apart from the monuments, it is literally everywhere!
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Anyway, after Trastevere, we headed to Tiber Island - a tiny island in the river Tiber - the only island on the river - and historically a place of healing in Roman times. Now, it is pretty much just a hospital.
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As we crossed the island to get to the bridge off on the North, we were stopped by a film crew. They were filming something, which looking at the cars is based in the late 60’s early 70’s?
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Once back on the mainland, yet another Roman ruin - not especially famous, but they are everywhere and you get a bit blasé.
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Next destination was Piazza Navona with its famous fountains.
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Heading back to the station, the Supreme Court.
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And then Castel St Angelo and the St Angelo bridge
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Nearly back to the Metro now, but a quick detour down Via Del Corso, Rome’s main shopping street, emerging at Piazza Del Popolo.
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Will and I had just been saying that we hadn’t seen a Ferrari the entire time we were here, and as if on cue…
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So that’s Rome done, we have a 7am flight back to the UK in the morning.
It’s been a fabulous 6 days, but pretty tiring, and glad I have the rest of the week off and Easter to recover!
Final stats:
Steps: 127,136
Miles: 55.13
I’ll post some “top tips” at some point for anyone else feeling inspired to do Rome - and I would highly recommend it!
I suppose back in the day it would have been painted.
One museum I went to there had the Greek and Roman statues side by side and you could see how much better the Greek stuff was even though it was older. If you imagine them painted up you could see where they got the idea that a medusa was knocking about. They do look like real people turned to stone.
Funny how they don't paint them so they look how they are supposed to. Would look wrong to us I suppose but it's a bit like going to a car museum that has all its cars stripped back to bare metal.
Aesthetics we're important to the Ancient Greeks, even if it conflicted with faithful anatomical accuracy. So the painting of the statues would probably appear garish and artificial to us today.
Similarly you may have noticed the genitals on the statues of muscular adult male Greek statues seem unrealistically small. That was deliberate, not out of any prudish sense, but simply because the Ancient Greeks thought them ugly.
Well done Alex - you certainly packed a lot in to your week's sojourn.
Pigmy Pony
15-04-2025, 21:44
Agreed - built some great memories with the kids too :)
Pete The Cat
30-04-2025, 13:04
Thanks for sharing all of this.
I made my first visit to Rome just before Covid and was bowled over by its antiquities - it makes other capitals look quite ordinary, even Athens didn't seem to have as much around every corner as Rome does.
Phenomenal.
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