Let me take you to my favourite city in the world: Rome, where 2,700 years of history are blended with the mundane cocktail of everyday life in the 21st century.
Given two weeks you can hardly do the city justice, and most visitors try to give it four days before they move on. This is a five-night, six-day itinerary. You will find tons of information on Rome, in every language in the world, but let me show you the city my way.
When to Visit Rome: Winter, Spring, Summer, or Autumn?
Rome is good to visit almost any time of the year. August, however, is not the month for Italy. The weather is hot, and virtually everyone and his dog has gone on holiday. It is not uncommon for restaurants and even small hotels to be closed in August. The Roman winter is usually mild, except in an unusual year like 1985, when it snowed for the first time in 26 years. I prefer the cooler months.
Where to Stay in Rome for Six Days
Piazza della Repubblica, viewed from Via Nazionale.
I would recommend staying in central Rome, from where all the historical sites are easily accessible, often within walking distance. It will save you time and money. Rome has thousands of hotels of all categories, and central Rome is no exception. My suggestion is to stay on Via Nazionale or in its vicinity.
The location is convenient. It is a short walk to the Piazza della Repubblica Metro station, travelling on the Metro is easy, and many interesting sites are only a short walk from a station. Do note that apart from vending machines, Metro tickets are available at any tobacconist. Look out for the Tabacchi sign with the big letter T.
A hotel with a lot of old-world charm on Via Nazionale is the Hotel Quirinale. It was built in 1865 and is named after the Quirinal Hill, one of the original seven hills Rome was built on. For opera buffs, the Quirinale has its own private entrance to the Opera.
Another of my favourite hotels is the Hotel Forum Roma. The structure is an 18th-century monastery that was converted into a hotel. Some rooms can be small, with hardly a view. You must bear in mind that it was a monastery, and that many of the rooms were inhabited by monks once upon a time. Among the celebrities who have stayed there are Jackie Kennedy, Alain Delon, Liz Taylor, Brigitte Bardot, King Gustav of Sweden, and Gregory Peck. The list is long and impressive. The Forum has some excellent views of the ancient Imperial Forum from its rooftop restaurant, and it is known for its breakfast with a view.
Please note that in all Roman hotels you will have to pay extra for a view if you want one. Visitors accustomed to the hotels of the Arabian Gulf should also remember that the service culture of Southeast Asia, which has been imported into the Gulf, does not exist in Europe.
Day One: Arrival, and a Leisurely First Afternoon
Benvenuti a Roma.
Most long-haul flights, especially across the Atlantic or from the Gulf, arrive at Fiumicino early in the morning. After you clear immigration and customs, you will be ready to proceed to your hotel.
Getting From Fiumicino Airport Into the City
If you wish, you can take a taxi directly from the airport to the hotel. Always take a taxi from the official taxi rank, and do not accept transport offers from any of the touts who offer to drive you into town for a fantastic price.
A convenient alternative is the Leonardo Express train from Fiumicino Aeroporto to Roma Termini, the central station. It is the quickest and comparatively less expensive way to travel from the airport to the centre of the capital. The journey takes only 32 minutes, prices start from around €17.90 per person, pets are allowed, and there is no limit on your baggage allowance. If you are travelling alone or as a couple, this may work out cheaper than a direct taxi from the airport.
There are three ways to buy your ticket. You can buy on the internet ahead of time through the Trenitalia website, in which case make sure you are buying a ticket on the Leonardo Express and not on a regional train, and have your smartphone ready to capture the QR code that becomes your ticket. When I last checked, the first train departed Fiumicino at 06:23 and the last at 23:23, with departures from Roma Termini between 05:35 and 22:35, but schedules change without notice, so do check before you travel. If you do not care for digital processes, you can queue at the ticket office in the airport train station instead, and after buying, check that your ticket has been validated; at least one of the staff will speak English. The third option is the automated vending machines in the station.
Validating your ticket before travel matters, because failure to do so can attract a considerable fine. Tickets bought online are already validated, and the validation machines for the others are located after the turnstile.
On arrival at Roma Termini, you can take a taxi to your hotel. Some hotels are within walking distance of the station, although dragging your baggage over the sampietrini, the cobblestones, may present a challenge even if it has wheels.
Checking In, and the Value of a Good Concierge
Check-in and check-out times at hotels in Rome are usually midday. If they have a room ready, they may let you check in early, but that usually does not happen. It would be best to leave your baggage with the concierge, remembering to get a receipt, and to explore the area around the hotel at leisure. You could perhaps even find a trattoria, traditionally a family-run restaurant, or a pizzeria, for some pizza and a glass of wine. Do get back a little before noon to check in.
By the way, if you find a person at the concierge desk wearing the Chiavi d’oro, the golden keys, on their jacket lapels, you can ask them for information on almost anything. Members of the Chiavi d’oro pride themselves on their collective knowledge. If they do not have the answer straight away, they will usually get it for you fairly soon.
The Rome Metro and the Tourism Cards
Before we get to your first afternoon, here is some brief information on transport and tourism cards.
There is a travel card called the ROMA 72H. It is excellent value and valid for 72 hours from the time of validation, at a price of around €18.00. The cards are available online, at ATAC offices, at authorised shops, and from vending machines. Within the territory of Rome, the card is valid on buses, trams, and trolleybuses, on Cotral buses on urban routes, on the Metro lines, on regional trains on urban routes including Trenitalia second class only, Roma-Lido, Termini-Centocelle, and Roma-Viterbo, and on the 520 and 720 bus lines connecting Rome to Ciampino Airport.
The Rome Tourist Card costs in the region of €108.00 per adult and gets you into three of the city’s top attractions: the Vatican Museums with the Sistine Chapel or St Peter’s Basilica, the Colosseum with the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill, and either Castel Sant’Angelo or the Pantheon. Buying it is convenient, since booking each ticket individually is far more time-consuming, and a time slot is reserved for each attraction so that your visit is guaranteed. All the tickets arrive by email and can be saved to your phone, the audio guide provides some interesting information about Rome and the Pantheon, and you save ten per cent on any additional sightseeing tickets. Children pay reduced fares depending on their age.
Piazza di Spagna, the Spanish Steps, and Via dei Condotti
Being the first of your six days in the historic Italian capital, let us take it easy this afternoon. We can take the Metro to Piazza di Spagna, the Spanish Square. It is interesting to note that it gets its name from the nearby Spanish Embassy to the Holy See. The steps leading up from the piazza are popularly called the Spanish Steps but have nothing to do with anything Spanish.
Piazza di Spagna and the Spanish Steps on an ordinary afternoon.
When you exit the Metro station, turn left and the whole piazza opens up to you. As you face the steps, at the left corner is the well-known Babington’s Tea Room, established in 1893, and at the right corner is the Keats Shelley Memorial House. In front of the steps is the Fontana della Barcaccia, sculpted by Pietro Bernini and his more famous son, Gian Lorenzo Bernini, and completed in 1627.
One of the principal occupations on the steps is to sit there and watch the world go by. When you are tired of watching people, walk around. There are many artists and caricaturists who will sketch or paint your portrait for a fee, and others trying to peddle various items. You can climb the steps to the church at the top, and the views change at every level.
Eventually, when you decide to leave the steps and walk down, right ahead of you across the fountain is Via dei Condotti. It is the principal street for Italian fashion in Rome, and every famous Italian designer has a store on it. Gucci used to have three. About ten metres from the beginning of the street, on the right, is Rome’s oldest coffee shop and bar, the Antico Caffè Greco, opened in 1760. Many a celebrity has been a customer. Keats and Shelley had coffee there when they lived in Rome, and the list goes on almost endlessly: Goethe, Byron, Liszt, Wagner, and even Casanova. It is rumoured to be one of Sophia Loren’s favourite cafés in the city.
If you sit down for your coffee at the Greco there will be a cover charge, but most Italians simply stand at the bar with friends and chat over a cup of coffee and an amaretto. Do go in and have a look. Afterwards you could visit the designer stores or just window shop for ideas. It is said that the fashion colours of the year are seen in Rome earlier than anywhere else in the world. Once you are through with the exclusive stores, at the end of Via Condotti you could turn right into Via del Corso, where you will find more upmarket clothing shops at prices lower than on Via Condotti.
After strolling around the area for a while, and having had a few more cups of cappuccino or glasses of vino, if you have paced yourself correctly it is probably time for dinner. Restaurants in Rome are usually open for dinner from 7.30 pm to midnight, and you may already have found one whose menu looked appetising. If not, retrace your steps to Piazza di Spagna, turn left at Via Condotti and take the second street on the left, which runs parallel to it. That is Via della Croce, and on it you will find the Re degli Amici, well known for its pasta. As always, it is worth booking ahead.
For Italians, dinner is a very leisurely affair. After the antipasti it usually consists of at least three courses, starting with pasta. You have a choice: you could either do as the Romans do, or elect to behave as a foreigner and settle for a single course. It is up to you. Buon appetito. After dinner, head back to the hotel for some well-deserved rest. I would recommend a little bedtime reading about the places you will visit tomorrow.
Day Two: Coins in the Fountain, the Pantheon, and St Peter’s Basilica
In every new city that you visit as a tourist, I would recommend one sightseeing coach tour to kick-start the trip. In a city like Rome there are scores of tours to choose from, and I would recommend any tour conducted by an established and reputable operator. The tour will usually take you to some of the must-visit sites. You can then, if you wish, go back to a site to spend more time there, or divert your attention to other places of interest.
The Fontana di Trevi. Throw your coin over your shoulder to ensure you come back.
For Rome, I would recommend the tour usually referred to as Classical Rome. Every operator worth his salt will feature it. It is normally a morning tour, and they may stop in three or four places to give you a closer look at the monuments before taking you back to the hotel. You could also opt to stay on at the final destination, or turning point, and make your way back to the hotel on your own.
With Classical Rome the stops are usually the Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon, Piazza Navona, and St Peter’s Square in the Vatican City. The Fontana di Trevi is an absolute must-see. Remember to throw your coin over your shoulder to ensure your next visit to the city.
During the tour you will drive past Piazza Venezia and Il Vittoriano, which houses the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Because of the white marble and the enormity of the structure, American GIs gave it the name Wedding Cake during the war. In front of the monument is what is perhaps the largest equestrian statue in the world. It is said that after the foundrymen set up the statue, some of them celebrated with a party inside the belly of the horse. On the same piazza you will pass the Palazzo Venezia, from whose small balcony Mussolini once delivered his speeches.
The Pantheon was completed in 126 AD and is one of the finest remaining functional buildings of ancient Rome. It has been a church since the 7th century. Sadly, all the outer marble has disappeared over the centuries, and the bronze from the interior was melted down to make cannonballs. There are also claims that some of it was used by Bernini to create the Baldacchino, the canopy over the central altar at St Peter’s Basilica, where only the Pope celebrates mass.
The High Renaissance painter Raphael Sanzio is buried in the Pantheon. On his marble sarcophagus are inscribed words in Latin which, translated, read: “Here lies that famous Raphael. Nature feared to be conquered while he lived, and at his death, feared herself to die.” So excellent was his depiction of nature in his work. On the opposite side is buried Vittorio Emanuele II, the first king of a unified Italy.
St Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican, the largest church on earth.
I would recommend that you get off the tour at the Vatican City, because the one hour they give you to visit St Peter’s Basilica is inadequate for so magnificent an edifice. Of the four papal basilicas in Rome, St Peter’s is the largest, and it is indeed considered the largest church on earth. Anyone’s first time inside is bound to be an unmatched experience. There are no paintings in St Peter’s. All the works of art are either sculptures or mosaics, and they are all absolutely beautiful.
To me, one of the most significant altars in the church is the first altar on the right as you enter. It holds Michelangelo’s Pietà, now behind bullet-proof glass after the last attack on the work. The first time I saw it, I was moved to tears. Michelangelo sculpted Mary as the Eternal Virgin, a young woman in her teens, while Christ, taken down from the cross, is his full thirty-three years. The pain on Mary’s young face is incredible. It is very difficult to depict pain on a face so young.
Many people who saw it for the first time refused to believe that the sculptor was Michelangelo. Some said he was too young to create such a work. Others said he was too small. The sculptor was so upset by people’s remarks that he went back that night with his chisel and mallet and carved right across the tunic of Mary his full name, Michelangelo Buonarroti. It was the only piece of sculpture he ever signed.
Three altars held the bodies of popes in glass coffins. I think the number has since increased to four, with the coffin of Pope Blessed John XXIII being brought up into the basilica. If you walk down the central aisle of the church you will find, marked on the floor, the lengths of other major churches and cathedrals around the world. Do look out for the ones you know. It will prove to you that most other churches can really be fitted inside St Peter’s.
To the right, almost in the middle of the church, is a bronze statue of St Peter with the keys. Notice that all the touching and kissing of his right foot by the faithful has almost worn away the toes. Just at that corner is a door that leads to the crypt where many popes are buried, although visitors are no longer given access through it. After you have finished with the interior of the basilica, do visit the crypt. Unfortunately, these days you will have to queue to get in. As you leave the church, also look out for the Holy Door. The doors are sealed on the inside and are only opened during the Jubilee years designated by the Pope.
When you have finished with the church, you may wish to pick up a few Vatican coins in the souvenir shops at the corner of Piazza San Pietro, close to where the Swiss Guard stands. You can also post picture postcards to friends, and to yourself, from the Vatican post office nearby. Do not forget your photographs of the Swiss Guard, who is always there at the side of the church. After that, you can head back to the hotel for some rest before your plans for the evening.
Day Three: The Colosseum, the Imperial Forum, and Campidoglio
After an early breakfast, we can take the Metro to Colosseo station. When you exit, the Colosseum is right in front of you. In its heyday, the exterior was clad in white marble, and the columns on the three outer levels were Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian. The Romans say: “When stands the Colosseum, Rome shall stand; when falls the Colosseum, Rome shall fall, and with it, the whole world.”
During the early eighties, when I first visited Rome, one could just stroll into the Colosseum. There were not a lot of tourists then, or even tickets to visit the amphitheatre. Today you will have to queue, and the queues can be long, to buy your ticket and enter the arena. The Rome Tourist Card can help you circumvent that.
At many Roman sites, headphones or electronic devices are available for hire. You can listen to descriptions and commentaries at several designated areas and handle the visit at your own pace. You will do well to hire a device for each of you.
It is only when you are inside that you are struck by the enormity of the structure, which was completed in 80 AD. You also realise that it is elliptical rather than circular. It could seat over 80,000 people. During the inaugural games, over 9,000 animals and hundreds of slaves were killed. The collapsed hypogeum today exposes much of the underground structure where animals and slaves were once held, and there are plans to restore it to its original shape and form.
Once you have finished with the Colosseum, we can proceed towards the Arch of Constantine and on to the Via Sacra, once the main road into Rome, as far as the Arch of Titus. The road leads through the Imperial Forum to Campidoglio, or Capitoline Hill. It was the route of many a triumphal march by victorious Roman armies returning to the city.
Once past the Arch of Titus, I will leave you to chart your own path through the Forum. We will meet again at Campidoglio late in the afternoon. Do not miss what were once the largest arches in the world at the Basilica of Maxentius, the temples of Romulus and of Antoninus and Faustina, both of which are churches today, the temple of the Vestal Virgins, and eventually the Arch of Septimius Severus. The walk through this ancient forum is a walk through Roman history. Every column and stone has a story to tell. It is the stuff of legends and scandals, of heroism and treachery, of power and misery.
The Temple of Saturn, seen from Campidoglio. Once the treasury of Rome.
We meet again at Campidoglio. From here you have some of the best views of the Imperial Forum. As you gaze down the Via Sacra, right in front of you are the ruins of the Temple of Saturn, which had been completely reconstructed in 42 BC. All that is left are the magnificent eight columns of the portico. It was once the treasury of Rome, and here was stored all the gold and silver the Romans looted from other parts of the world. There are some superb photographic opportunities from this point.
After we have finished with the Imperial Forum, we go on to the Piazza del Campidoglio. Michelangelo completely redesigned this piazza, turning the view away from the ancient forum and towards the modern city. In the centre of the square stands the replica of the equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius. Do look for the statue of Romulus and Remus with the she-wolf; the original is in one of the museums on Campidoglio.
The rest of the evening is yours to do whatever you wish with. For those who must sample the nightlife of the city, you will need to proceed to Via Vittorio Veneto. You need to be there early, because it all happens from sunset for a couple of hours. To get to the street, take the Metro to Piazza Barberini and walk up Via Veneto. You will pass the US Embassy, housed in the Palazzo Margherita, a palace the US forces took over towards the end of the war and retained as their embassy. Further up the street is the Excelsior Hotel, made famous by the film La Dolce Vita. Be sure to get a good night’s rest. Tomorrow’s itinerary will test your walking capabilities.
Day Four: Pompeii, the Lost City Rediscovered
You will need to get up early to be ready for the pick-up for the full-day excursion to Pompeii. Our coach will head south on the Highway of the Sun towards Naples. We will be in Pompeii in about three hours and, after lunch, we will visit the ruins.
Pompeii, as you know, was destroyed by the last great eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. It is an active volcano even today. That massive eruption destroyed four Roman settlements: Herculaneum, Stabiae, Oplontis, and Pompeii. The cities were destroyed mainly by volcanic ash and pumice, and Pompeii itself by pyroclastic surges as well. Several sections of the ruined city have been excavated for visitors to see and admire.
A street in Pompeii, lost to the world for 1,500 years and now a UNESCO World Heritage site.
They knew from the writings of Pliny the Younger of the existence of Pompeii, but the city was lost to the world for 1,500 years. Today it is a UNESCO World Heritage site.
When they rediscovered Pompeii, archaeologists came across several hollow areas containing fragments of bone. Some of them came up with the idea of injecting liquid plaster of Paris into the hollows to see what it was all about. The results were frighteningly stunning. They produced casts of human beings and animals at the moment of their deaths in 79 AD, twisted forms in great agony that literally show the pain and suffering of the last moments. Many of these plaster casts are on display in Pompeii.
The excavations give visitors a peep into what Roman life was like in the 1st century AD. They had many facilities that few other cities outside Italy had. The streets are well laid out, and one can even visit the old shops, bars, and bakeries of the city. They had advanced systems of water supply and central heating. They had baths and swimming pools.
Quite a lot of erotic art was found during the excavation, and there was controversy over whether it should be shown to visitors. Some early visitors were clearly embarrassed by what they saw, and under the orders of the King of Naples it was locked away for many years. Only in 2000 did it become available for viewing. Young children are not permitted into those areas.
The tour will end in the late afternoon, when we board our coaches again for the journey back to Rome. Your driver may stop at Cassino, famous for the Abbey of Montecassino, for an early evening meal. One small tip: it is always good to take a photograph of your coach’s registration number on your phone, to help you identify it among a host of other buses.
Day Five: The Vatican Museum, One of the Best in the World
You cannot complete the best of Rome without seeing Michelangelo’s ceiling at the Sistine Chapel. As you know, it is the Pope’s private chapel, and the only access to the Sistine for us lesser mortals is through the Vatican Museum. You will have to queue to buy your ticket and get in. The last time I was there, the queue for tickets was well over a kilometre long. Hopefully you will be luckier. In our modern times it is possible to buy entrance tickets to the Vatican Museums online, on the official Vatican website.
The quickest tour through the Vatican Museum will take about three hours. For visitors who do not have a lot of time, what matter most are the Raphael Rooms and the Borgia Apartments, before you head into the Sistine. Again, headsets are the best way to be guided through the museum. The Sistine, which is also the scene of the papal conclave that chooses the new Pope, is an extremely crowded place during the hours visitors are allowed in.
Do take your time to study the frescoes, even if the environment is not too friendly. The Last Judgement behind the altar, painted later than the ceiling, is further proof of the genius of Michelangelo.
It is interesting to read that the artist got into an argument with a senior cardinal who was of the opinion that there should be no nudity in the papal chapel. The Pope, however, gave Michelangelo the go-ahead to paint what he wished. In a final act of vengeance, Michelangelo painted the cardinal as the Judge of the Underworld, with donkey’s ears to boot. Of course, the cardinal went to complain to the Pope. It is rumoured that the Pope’s response was that he had no jurisdiction over the underworld. The portrait therefore remains to this day in Michelangelo’s hell, for all visitors to behold, even after 450 years.
The nudity was later covered up by another painter, after decisions taken by the Council of Trent. I believe no artist has the right to touch the work of another artist, but at the Vatican, the Pope and his councils rule.
After the Sistine experience, you are free for the rest of the afternoon to do some shopping or carry on sightseeing in the city. For dinner on your last night in Rome, I would recommend the Ristorante da Pancrazio, with its authentic Italian cuisine. It is located at Piazza del Biscione 92 and is built over the ruins of the Theatre of Pompey, which was built in 61 BC and is infamous for the assassination of Julius Caesar. Many historians think it actually happened at the rear of the Curia, not too far away from the restaurant, and the debate goes on. Reservations in advance are advisable. The basement of da Pancrazio offers the most sought-after seats in the restaurant, because people want to dine in the old theatre itself. Buon appetito.
Day Six: Departure
We have reached the last day of your six-day itinerary. If you have followed my tips for the city, you will have covered a great deal of Rome and more. It is finally time to bid goodbye. I would suggest an early start, to enjoy one more stroll around your hotel area before you check out and head for the airport.
Arrivederci Roma
I have endeavoured to give you just a glimpse of what, to me, is the fascination of Rome. Personally, I have walked those ancient cobblestones on a couple of dozen different occasions. The city is always interesting. It always brings up a new facet with every new visit. You can never get tired of it. It is truly the Eternal City.
Coromandel Tours does not arrange travel in Italy, our curated destinations lie elsewhere, but the pace this itinerary asks for is the pace we would recommend anywhere: fewer places, more days, and time to sit on the steps and watch the world go by.
Written by
Mano Chandra Dhas ›Founder of Coromandel Tours. In travel since 1975, from Singapore Airlines to Emirates and Carlson Wagonlit, he now curates private journeys through Colombia, Peru, India, and Nepal from his home in Bogotá. Many of the photographs on this site are his.
