Rome is nicknamed the Eternal City. Not gonna lie, I’m pretty jealous of that nickname. I come from Portland, so enviously nicknamed The City of Roses.

Really?

The name Eternal City makes Rome sound like a mythical badass. Meanwhile being called the City of Roses totally strikes fear and envy into the hearts of others. Now I know how House Tyrell feels with their lovely motto ‘Growing Strong’.

 

Another golden rose, how original. I eat from plates stamped with roses, I sleep in sheets embroidered with roses, I have a golden rose painted on my chamber pot… as if that makes it smell any better. Roses are boring, dear.

– Lady Olenna from Game of Thrones

 

It’s actually easy to see why Rome gained his nickname, after all Rome and Greece are the cradles of Western Civilization. Many of these remnants from their bygone era are scattered throughout the city. With Rome’s massive size and scale, it’s going to be hard to see everything in a timely manner. Most of us will be limited by time or money as Rome is one of the more expensive cities in Italy.

So once again, here’s a sample itinerary for Rome so you can make the most of your time. This itinerary will provide easy starting and ending points close to public transit hubs so it’ll be easy to use regardless of where you’re staying. It will also highlight some of the biggest attractions due to time or money restraints. The Italians actually keep their entry fees very reasonable but there’s so many attractions that those little fees will quickly chip at your budget.

 

Day 1

Colosseum and the Arc of Constantine in the morning, Palantine Hill and Roman Forum afterwards. If you have the energy, visit the Monument to Vittorlo Emmanuel, walk to the river to Isola and Tiberina on the island.

“The beating heart of Rome is not the marble of the Senate. It’s the sand of the Colosseum.” – Gracchus in Gladiator

 

The Colosseum is the most iconic and largest archaeological site in Rome and most visited. Here’s some fun facts I had to get out of my system.

• It was actually named the Flavian Amphitheater but took the name of the Colosseum since it was next to a colossal statue of Nero.
• The Colosseum can house up to 70,000 people of Rome’s one million occupants, and took 600 workers (slaves) to operate the Colosseum.
• You could catch lunchtime executions where people were fed to animals. Way to get your appetite going.
• Similar to the oh-so accurate movie Gladiator, an emperor would sometimes decide the fate of the gladiator. If he decided to kill the gladiator, he’d have to pay the owner the cost of the gladiator including training fees. So we can imagine emperors were more merciful than not.
• There are 5 different levels of the Colosseum for the different classes. Woman had to be in the highest levels since the Romans were afraid of them falling in love with the gladiators.

 

Adjacent to the Colosseum is Palatine Hill and the Roman Forum. These ruins give you a glimpse of the grandeur of what was once the Roman city. You get to walk around the old temples, markets and even the many emperors’ mansions.

Some of these are apartments, which are pretty big for being 2000 years old

 

The best part is that access to both of these archaeological sites are granted on one combined ticket for 12 euro. I’d highly recommend buying the ticket online if you don’t go in the morning when visiting he Colosseum. If you don’t, go early or buy online, but the ticket at the Palatine Hill entrance. The line is always much shorter than the Colosseum and will save you queuing stamina.

If you’re a big Roman history junkie (totally me), you can book a tour for the underground and the third level of the Colosseum for an additional 6 euro. These areas are not accessible otherwise. As for the Palantine, I’d recommend downloading an audioguide prior or paying for one as the placards are limited in information.

You can also get a view of the Circus Maximus from the Palantine Hill, so there’s little reason to walk down to the old race-grounds. And the Constantine Arc is right around the corner from the Colosseum for an easy stop.

Bonus

Depending on how long you spend at those two sites, it should take until after lunch. Its a fair amount of walking and if you still want something to do before dinner,  just down the road is the Monument to Vittorlo Emmanuel. Like the Colosseum, it’s pretty hard to miss. A monument to the first king that unified Italy and also houses probably the most fancy tomb in the world to the Unknown Solider. It also houses a few museum and provides some great views of the city. The elevator to the top does cost an additional 5 euro if you choose to take it. Then there’s a nice walk along the river that’ll pass by the picturesque island that houses Isola and Tiberina if you want to walk further.

Italy’s been on high alert for terrorism these last few years

 

Day 2

Walk Down Via del Corso from Colosseum. Stop by the Campidoglio, Pantheon, Piazza Navorna, Piazza Montecitorio, Trevi Fountain and Spanish Steps. End at Piazza di Popolo

Start another day at the Colosseum stop or (close to) and head over to the Campidoglio. Its a beautiful square with quite a few museums. Head north down the main road on Via del Corso. This is main road has countless shops and restaurants with relatively fair prices for the old town. Just be careful veering off on the side streets as some of those stores ramp up the prices.

As you walk north on Via del Corso, all of those sights and plazas listed above are easily accessible with a short detour.

At the north end of Via del Corso, you will end you at the large Plaza of the Pope where there’s another metro stop for you to head home.

Quick Lunch Spot:

On the east side of Via del Corso and a couple blocks from the Spanish Steps is an authentic pasta restaurants by the name of PastaFicio. They sell small portions of handmade pasta for takeout. They usually have two different types and the price for either one is always 4 euro.

Best texture ever

 

Bonus (tired yet?)

If you’re okay with a prolonged detour, southwest of Plazza Navorna is Campo de Fiori, a fun but kind of touristy market. Worth a stop if you have the stamina.

Next to the Plaza of the Pope is the massive city park. While not too impressive of a park, you can walk by a few museums and watch many locals go about their daily lives here. Most notably it houses the Borghese Gallery, Museum of Modern Art and the Villa of the Medici. Impressive sites but it will definitely make for a long day.

 

Day 3

Vatican Museum, Saint Peter’s Basilica, Saint Angelo Fortress, Supreme Court

Alright let’s get to the big stuff: God. The Vatican is an independent little city state stuffed right in the middle of Rome. There aren’t any border controls to enter the sacred city or I’m sure the big man wouldn’t have let me in. The only accessible areas are Saint Peter’s Basilica and the Vatican Museum (includes the Sistine Chapel). Walking around the square is free, but access to either the basilica or museum will cost 16 euro for a joint ticket. The ticket can be bought online and a reserved time slot for the Vatican Museum so you can skip the line.

There’s a lot of better pictures highlighting the Vatican’s grandeur out there on the web. So instead here’s a picture of  John Paul II’s pope-mobile that he got shot in.

 

It’s best to take the metro to the Ottaviano stop and walk down to the museum. Then once you’re done, walk down to Saint Peter’s Basilica.

If you’re like me and don’t know much about art, architecture or God, it’s still a must see site. The Vatican houses some of the grandest museums ever. It may be more worthwhile for our types to download or rent an audio-guide since there’s a lot to learn. Since the museum is so large, be prepared for a lot of walking and some potential art overload. I would pack a lunch since you might be in there for a while.

Once you finished with the Vatican, you can walk south to the river to have a view of the Saint Angelo Fortress and the Supreme Court. From there, it’s a short walk north to metro stop Leptanto. Alternatively you can go east across he river to see the Mausoleum of Augustus and the Ara Pacis (if you’re a glutton for even more architecture). From there it’s easiest to keep going east to hop on the Spagna metro stop by the Spanish Steps.

If you didn’t see the Pantheon, Campo de Fiori or Piazza Navrona on Day 2 and you still have the energy, you can make a longer walk south to these sites.

If you’re out in the evening, the Campo de Fiori area becomes very sociable at night for the locals

 

So there you go, that’s three whole days to get you to see the biggest sites in Rome. This can be accomplished with a 3 night stay but as usual, I recommend you stay a bit longer to experience more of the city and not feel rushed.

 

Helpful Tips

• Italians don’t always pay any attention to stop signs, cross walks or many normal road laws. When you cross the street, you kind of just start walking and the cars will weave around you.
• Pizza and pastries are often sold by weight and not by unit.
• Rome only sells bus tickets in newspaper stands or even bars if you’re not a metro stop. It might be good to buy an extra ticket in case you take a bus that’s not from a metro stop.
• Tourist restaurants and cafes will often have a separate price for a take out item and a dine in option. Don’t try to grab take out and sit at a table.
• More than ever, try to eat outside old town if you didn’t do your research on restaurants. Restaurants in the old town are overpriced with no guarantee of quality (which is why I liked PastaFicio). If you’re hungry in old town, do your research or try to follow an Italian office worker on his lunch break.
• Half a liter of wine at a local restaurant will go for 5 euro. Their house wine is amazing for the price. And I don’t even like wine.
• A decent bottle of wine at a grocery store can cost as little as 2 euro.

This is just a regular grocery store

 

Until next time.