1 day
One day
- 1.Morning: the Colosseum, the Roman Forum, the Palatine Hill.
- 2.Lunch in Monti.
- 3.Afternoon: the Pantheon, Piazza Navona, the Trevi Fountain.
- 4.Dinner in Trastevere.
Lazio
Rome
The Eternal City, chaotic and captivating. Every alley has a story to tell.
Overview
The Eternal City
Rome is a chaotic, intense and deeply fascinating city. The traffic, the noise and the disorderly pace live side by side with history you can see at every corner: ancient ruins, churches, palazzi and working-class neighbourhoods are woven into daily life.
Visiting it means accepting its unpredictability. Between a crowded piazza, a narrow lane and a neighbourhood trattoria, Rome surprises you precisely because it never follows a straight line.
Character of the place
What to expect
Landscape
Seven hills, the Tiber, the pine groves of the Janiculum and Villa Borghese.
Sea and coast
Ostia and Fregene, 30 km away and easy to reach by train.
Towns and villages
Trastevere, Monti, Pigneto, Testaccio, the historic centre.
Where it is
Location & getting there
Where
Central Lazio, on the Tiber.
Area
Capital of Italy.
Getting there
Fiumicino and Ciampino airports. Termini station connects to the whole country by high-speed train.
Trastevere: getting lost in its lanes is the best way to discover it.
Curiosities
Did you know…
- 01
The Pantheon has the largest unreinforced concrete dome in the world, built in AD 126.
- 02
The Vatican Museums hold more than 70,000 works, of which around 20,000 are on display.
- 03
The Mouth of Truth is actually an ancient Roman drain cover.
- 04
Carbonara as we know it today only appears in cookbooks after 1944.
Itineraries
How to experience it
2 days
Two days
- 1.Day 1: ancient Rome (Colosseum, Forum, Palatine, Mouth of Truth).
- 2.Day 2: the Vatican (St Peter’s, the Vatican Museums), Castel Sant’Angelo.
3 days
Three days
- 1.Days 1–2 as above.
- 2.Day 3: Galleria Borghese, Villa Borghese, Trastevere and the Janiculum at sunset.
Not to be missed
Places and experiences
- 01
Colosseum and Forum
One combined ticket.
- 02
Pantheon
The best-preserved ancient building in the world.
- 03
Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel
Book well in advance.
- 04
Galleria Borghese
Bernini and Caravaggio one after another, timed-entry tickets.
- 05
Trastevere at sunset
Rome’s thirteenth rione, famous for its iconic alleys.
A feast for the eyes
Rome in pictures
Photo: Pexels. Henry Acevedo · Leefinvrede · Wai Sing · Can Alibali · Valentina Bešker · Marija · Ludovic Delot
Highlights
Icons of Rome
- Colosseum
- Vatican
- Pantheon
- Trevi Fountain
Practical tips
Before you go
Best time to go
Spring (April to June) or autumn (mid-September to October). In these months the weather is mild and ideal for walking outdoors, avoiding the scorching summer heat and the winter rain.
Ideal length of stay
3 nights minimum, 4–5 ideal.
Good to know
Comfortable shoes (cobblestones everywhere). The metro and trams work, but the centre is best done on foot.
Keep exploring
Other destinations
Ischia
Thermal springs steaming on the beach, lush gardens, the Aragonese Castle rising from the water.
Discover
