Dec 14, 2016, 9:56 pm
Last edit by: JBD
Where to Stay In Rome
There is an abundance of choices when deciding where to stay in Rome. We encourage you to post on this thread with questions about specific properties or with your specific needs - whether it be using hotel points, or wanting to be near certain attractions or transportation, etc. And the more details you give us (i.e. what time of year your stay will be, your budget, how many in your party), the more fitting our suggestions can be.The consensus for the "ideal" area for the typical tourist to be based in - is around the Pantheon. The reason is three-fold.
First: The places most visitors will want to see are situated in a relatively small area within the city of Rome, and somewhat encircle the Pantheon. This map is put out by a particular hotel, but it's representative of the typical "tourist" map with the major landmarks noted. Arguably, the two sites of popular interest that are the furthest away from each other are the Vatican and the Colosseum, and according to Google maps the walking distance between them is 3.5 km, or 2.17 miles. If you were based around the Pantheon, then your walk to the Vatican would be about 2 km, or 1.25 miles and your walk to the Colosseum would also be around 2 km /1.25 miles.
Second: The area around the Pantheon is on level ground, which means you won't have to climb/and descend Rome's fabled hills every time you venture out. Here is a map of Rome's walls but it also shows its hills, colored grey, with the flat-ish areas colored beige.
Third: The area you see around the Pantheon is comprised of Rome's most quintessential piazzas and labyrinthine cobblestone streets. Here is google's satellite view of this area and beyond.
But certainly there are also wonderful spots to be based in throughout the whole area seen on that satellite map, which will put you basically in the center, if not perfectly equidistant to all the sites. (And all the common sense rules apply regarding avoiding a noisy choice: avoid being directly on a busy road, or piazza, unless assured of double paned windows).Second: The area around the Pantheon is on level ground, which means you won't have to climb/and descend Rome's fabled hills every time you venture out. Here is a map of Rome's walls but it also shows its hills, colored grey, with the flat-ish areas colored beige.
Third: The area you see around the Pantheon is comprised of Rome's most quintessential piazzas and labyrinthine cobblestone streets. Here is google's satellite view of this area and beyond.
Rome's Tourist Accommodation Tax
Below is a cut and paste from the official 060608 site (made in May 2017; verified for current accuracy in April 2019). And here's the link to the 060608 page for the most up to date information:Roma Capitale - Tourist Accommodation Tax
Anyone staying in a hotel, bed& breakfast, holiday home, guest house or camp site in Rome, with the sole exception of hostels, is subject to pay an overnight accommodation tax for every day spent in the Eternal City.
The rates are per person.
Hotels:
1-2 Star Hotels: € 3,00 per night, max 10 days;
3 Star Hotels: € 4,00 per night, max 10 days;
4 Star Hotels: € 6,00 per night, max 10 days;
5 Star Hotels: € 7,00 per night, max 10 days;
Bed & Breakfasts, Guest Houses, Holiday Homes and Apartments:
- € 3,50 per night, max 10 days;
Tourist Farms and Residences:
- € 4,00 per night, max 10 days;
Camp Sites, Open Air Facilities and Equipped Park Areas:
- € 2,00 per night, max 5 days;
How to pay? You can pay cash or by card, at the end of your stay, directly on site. You will be given a personal receipt. The overnight accommodation tax is applicable up to a maximum of 10 consecutive nights within one solar year, provided that you spend the nights at the same accommodation facility. The payment is due for a maximum of 5 nights for the guests of camping grounds, open air facilities and areas equipped for temporary stops.
Exemptions. Persons who are residents of Rome, children up to age 10, all who accompany patients for health reasons, members of the State police force and the other armed forces, and one coach driver and one tour leader/tourist guide for every 23 group members.
The rates are per person.
Hotels:
1-2 Star Hotels: € 3,00 per night, max 10 days;
3 Star Hotels: € 4,00 per night, max 10 days;
4 Star Hotels: € 6,00 per night, max 10 days;
5 Star Hotels: € 7,00 per night, max 10 days;
Bed & Breakfasts, Guest Houses, Holiday Homes and Apartments:
- € 3,50 per night, max 10 days;
Tourist Farms and Residences:
- € 4,00 per night, max 10 days;
Camp Sites, Open Air Facilities and Equipped Park Areas:
- € 2,00 per night, max 5 days;
How to pay? You can pay cash or by card, at the end of your stay, directly on site. You will be given a personal receipt. The overnight accommodation tax is applicable up to a maximum of 10 consecutive nights within one solar year, provided that you spend the nights at the same accommodation facility. The payment is due for a maximum of 5 nights for the guests of camping grounds, open air facilities and areas equipped for temporary stops.
Exemptions. Persons who are residents of Rome, children up to age 10, all who accompany patients for health reasons, members of the State police force and the other armed forces, and one coach driver and one tour leader/tourist guide for every 23 group members.
Where to stay in Rome [Merged thread]
Nov 10, 2014, 3:05 pm
#32
Suspended
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 472
-exterior of the Vatican
-Sistine Chapel
-Spanish Steps
-Altare della Patria/National Monument to Victor Emmanuel II
-outside of the Coliseum, probably no need to go inside?
-Italian Air Force Museum (Museo Storico dell' Aeronautica Militare) 20 miles NW of Rome
-large or medium sized modern supermarket
-Roman Forum
-Trevi Fountain (defer that because it's closed for repairs)
-Galleria Alberto Sordi (also known as Galleria Colonna)
-Torre Eurosky (look at the building from the distance is ok, lowest priority in this list)
Last edited by Box5; Nov 10, 2014 at 3:12 pm
Nov 10, 2014, 3:09 pm
#33
Suspended
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 472
Stay length is unknown. Likely to be 3 full days, maybe 4. Could be extended to a full week, including travel time and both weekends, which is about 6 days plus the day of arrival.
Taxis are an option if used to a limited extent but the person doesn't like to "waste" money on taxis.
Taxis are an option if used to a limited extent but the person doesn't like to "waste" money on taxis.
Nov 11, 2014, 2:20 pm
#35
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: SFO, VCE
Programs: AA EXP >4 MM, Lifetime Plat
Posts: 2,881
I think that you should consider this to be doable. I wanted to take an elderly person to Italy, Rome specifically, to experience it when he was in roughly the same condition and could only walk a few blocks due to a stroke. It didn't happen and it's too late now. It's one of my regrets.
I think that using a hop on hop off bus by MrHalliday is good advice if that type of travel fits you. I've never done it, but I understand you can buy either a 24 or 48 hour pass, and get on and off at various stops.
I don't think that standing around in lines, or visiting museums is an issue. It becomes an issue if your reason to visit Rome is to see the art in the museums because the elderly person you are traveling with is really into seeing the art. Standing and walking around museums for hours is not the only reason to visit Rome. There are plenty of other things to see and do.
To do it you might have to break some of the usual, "rules" about how to visit Rome. Generally, it is best not to stay right near the Colloseo or Forum unless you are staying in one of the really expensive hotels there. However, if you are bringing an older person staying where he or she can just walk outside and see the Colosseo is probably a good location. I say that because there is probably no more unique and spectacular sight in Rome. It's also a completely different sight at night. There's a bit of scaffolding on it because they are cleaning it, but it doesn't affect it that much. There are reasonably priced hotels in the area.
Also, from the Colosseo, if you just walk down the hill you get to the Forum. It's more than a 2-4 block walk. It's about half a mile. Most of the hills in Rome are not steep. They are just mild inclines. This is where you break another rule. You generally hear that you should not sit down at a bar, and should have your coffee or sandwich standing up at the bar. The price can be as high as double if you sit down, for even just a minute. You should break that rule, because it's only true based on context.
I usually go into a bar and order a coffee and have it standing at the bar. It costs one euro. If I sit outside in the plaza, it costs 2.50 euros. However, the custom is that when you pay for a table in Italy that is your table for as long as you want it. If you sit there for three hours, the waiter will not bat an eyelash or start to rush you. It is normal for you to stay as long as you want. So for just over two euros you can sit in a beautiful plaza in Italy for an hour, two, or three and watch life unfold. That's a cool touristy thing to do for such a low price. When you say that the elderly person can only walk 2-4 blocks I assume that means at once. Sit down at one of the numerous outdoor cafes, have a coffee, a panino, or a pastry, rest, then go further down to the Forum. I'm assuming you are not going in the dead of winter, when it might be too cold to sit outside.
Next, you can keep going downhill and arrive at Piazza Venezia, and see the massive Vittorio Emmanuel monument. This is also quite a sight at night when it is lit up. Plenty of outdoor bars there. You will have to take a cab back.
If this is a once in a lifetime, you are going to have to just budget 100-150 euros for cabs, and that's that. I wouldn't rely on the bus, for several reasons. First, they are not so easy to get onto, and once you do you often won't be able to find a seat. It's pretty easy to avoid getting pickpocketed, but many buses are ground zero for that. I wouldn't want to be dealing with that with an elderly person. Trains are fine, but they usually won't leave you right where you want to go, so you'll need a cab anyway. Cabs are not that expensive. If walking the half mile from the Coloseum to the Forum is too much, a cab is only going to cost a few euros. It's about 3.5 euros for the initial drop, and then about a euro per kilometer. It's worth it to get this elderly person to see this wonderful place.
Just make peace with the fact that you will need to use taxis, and you will be doing a lot of sitting in cafes in beautiful plazas, rather than standing in museums. Take a taxi to Piazza Navona. Sit outside in a cafe, look at the beautiful fountains, eat, then taxi home. Go to the Pantheon. Go inside. It was made around 250 BC, or thereabout. There are tons of places to sit outside if the person you are bringing gets tired.
-exterior of the Vatican: Nothing special. It looks like any other building. Saint Peter's Square is what you want to see, and to go inside of Saint Peter's. the Vatican is actually a country within Italy, not a building, but I think you mean the Vatican Museum. It's nothing from the outside.
-Sistine Chapel: There are long lines to get into the Vatican Museum, where the Chapel is. If you go late in the day, maybe an hour before closing, unless you are right in the high tourism season you can generally just walk right in and beeline it to the Sistine Chapel. If not, there are tour guides that have, "front of the line" passes, but they are there to show you the highlights of the whole museum, and that would be too much in your case, so hopefully you can just show up late and not deal with lines.
-Spanish Steps: There is some construction going on, but it's still worth seeing. Like most sites in Rome, seeing something during the day and night are very different. You will just need to take a cab.
-Altare della Patria/National Monument to Victor Emmanuel II: sitting outside in Piazza Venezia and having a drink at night and looking at this monument is a great way to close a day. If you do stay near the Coliseum, you will need to take a cab back up the hill because it's about a mile.
-outside of the Coliseum, probably no need to go inside?: Correct, don't go inside. Just see it during the day and at night, from outside.
-Italian Air Force Museum (Museo Storico dell' Aeronautica Militare) 20 miles NW of Rome: I've never been there.
-large or medium sized modern supermarket: Dicey question. Italy has always been about small, mom and pop shops. Apartments are small, and people usually cannot shop for a whole week. There's no place to store all of that food in a small apartment. Every day or so you just go to the local grocer. Large supermarkets are somewhat frowned upon because they are putting the mom and pop shops out of business. There are some exceptions. If you take a cab a few miles to the Testaccio area, they turned the old slaughter house into a fantastic food market. Campo dei Fiori is an outdoor market during the day, but it's gone way overboard with being touristy and tacky. Unlike the Testaccio Market, you won't find any italians shopping or even eating there. Also, if you can combine it with going to the Vatican, a few blocks away from the Vatican in the Trionfale district there is a nice Trionfale Market. It's not worth it to go to one of the corporate, modern, large supermarkets. Testaccio Market is probably best. It's only a few euros each way by cab from say the Colosseo, and you can eat very delicious and authentic food there for a very low price that will overset the cost of the cab.
-Roman Forum: Yes, also must see at night. You don't need to go down into it. Just see it from the street. There are three main ones fairly close to one another, across the street from each other.
-Trevi Fountain (defer that because it's closed for repairs): Probably the second best site to see in Rome. Unfortunately, the construction will still be going on for around another two years. Unless things have changed in the last few months, there is nothing to see.
-Galleria Alberto Sordi (also known as Galleria Colonna): it's nothing special. It's OK. It's a good place to go in for a coffee and drink and to rest the legs, but it's not really a great site or place to shop. It's a place to stop in if you happen to be walking by, and nothing more. If you want a taste of Roman shopping not too far away is Via Condotti, the high end shopping street. It ends at the Spanish Steps. It is far nicer than the Galleria.
-Torre Eurosky (look at the building from the distance is ok, lowest priority in this list): Yuck.
Really, if you stop and sit in cafes so that the elderly person can rest, and you just accept the fact that you will have to budget 100-150 euros for cabs, there is no reason why you cannot see the highlights of this city, and maintain an everlasting, precious memory.
I think that using a hop on hop off bus by MrHalliday is good advice if that type of travel fits you. I've never done it, but I understand you can buy either a 24 or 48 hour pass, and get on and off at various stops.
I don't think that standing around in lines, or visiting museums is an issue. It becomes an issue if your reason to visit Rome is to see the art in the museums because the elderly person you are traveling with is really into seeing the art. Standing and walking around museums for hours is not the only reason to visit Rome. There are plenty of other things to see and do.
To do it you might have to break some of the usual, "rules" about how to visit Rome. Generally, it is best not to stay right near the Colloseo or Forum unless you are staying in one of the really expensive hotels there. However, if you are bringing an older person staying where he or she can just walk outside and see the Colosseo is probably a good location. I say that because there is probably no more unique and spectacular sight in Rome. It's also a completely different sight at night. There's a bit of scaffolding on it because they are cleaning it, but it doesn't affect it that much. There are reasonably priced hotels in the area.
Also, from the Colosseo, if you just walk down the hill you get to the Forum. It's more than a 2-4 block walk. It's about half a mile. Most of the hills in Rome are not steep. They are just mild inclines. This is where you break another rule. You generally hear that you should not sit down at a bar, and should have your coffee or sandwich standing up at the bar. The price can be as high as double if you sit down, for even just a minute. You should break that rule, because it's only true based on context.
I usually go into a bar and order a coffee and have it standing at the bar. It costs one euro. If I sit outside in the plaza, it costs 2.50 euros. However, the custom is that when you pay for a table in Italy that is your table for as long as you want it. If you sit there for three hours, the waiter will not bat an eyelash or start to rush you. It is normal for you to stay as long as you want. So for just over two euros you can sit in a beautiful plaza in Italy for an hour, two, or three and watch life unfold. That's a cool touristy thing to do for such a low price. When you say that the elderly person can only walk 2-4 blocks I assume that means at once. Sit down at one of the numerous outdoor cafes, have a coffee, a panino, or a pastry, rest, then go further down to the Forum. I'm assuming you are not going in the dead of winter, when it might be too cold to sit outside.
Next, you can keep going downhill and arrive at Piazza Venezia, and see the massive Vittorio Emmanuel monument. This is also quite a sight at night when it is lit up. Plenty of outdoor bars there. You will have to take a cab back.
If this is a once in a lifetime, you are going to have to just budget 100-150 euros for cabs, and that's that. I wouldn't rely on the bus, for several reasons. First, they are not so easy to get onto, and once you do you often won't be able to find a seat. It's pretty easy to avoid getting pickpocketed, but many buses are ground zero for that. I wouldn't want to be dealing with that with an elderly person. Trains are fine, but they usually won't leave you right where you want to go, so you'll need a cab anyway. Cabs are not that expensive. If walking the half mile from the Coloseum to the Forum is too much, a cab is only going to cost a few euros. It's about 3.5 euros for the initial drop, and then about a euro per kilometer. It's worth it to get this elderly person to see this wonderful place.
Just make peace with the fact that you will need to use taxis, and you will be doing a lot of sitting in cafes in beautiful plazas, rather than standing in museums. Take a taxi to Piazza Navona. Sit outside in a cafe, look at the beautiful fountains, eat, then taxi home. Go to the Pantheon. Go inside. It was made around 250 BC, or thereabout. There are tons of places to sit outside if the person you are bringing gets tired.
-exterior of the Vatican: Nothing special. It looks like any other building. Saint Peter's Square is what you want to see, and to go inside of Saint Peter's. the Vatican is actually a country within Italy, not a building, but I think you mean the Vatican Museum. It's nothing from the outside.
-Sistine Chapel: There are long lines to get into the Vatican Museum, where the Chapel is. If you go late in the day, maybe an hour before closing, unless you are right in the high tourism season you can generally just walk right in and beeline it to the Sistine Chapel. If not, there are tour guides that have, "front of the line" passes, but they are there to show you the highlights of the whole museum, and that would be too much in your case, so hopefully you can just show up late and not deal with lines.
-Spanish Steps: There is some construction going on, but it's still worth seeing. Like most sites in Rome, seeing something during the day and night are very different. You will just need to take a cab.
-Altare della Patria/National Monument to Victor Emmanuel II: sitting outside in Piazza Venezia and having a drink at night and looking at this monument is a great way to close a day. If you do stay near the Coliseum, you will need to take a cab back up the hill because it's about a mile.
-outside of the Coliseum, probably no need to go inside?: Correct, don't go inside. Just see it during the day and at night, from outside.
-Italian Air Force Museum (Museo Storico dell' Aeronautica Militare) 20 miles NW of Rome: I've never been there.
-large or medium sized modern supermarket: Dicey question. Italy has always been about small, mom and pop shops. Apartments are small, and people usually cannot shop for a whole week. There's no place to store all of that food in a small apartment. Every day or so you just go to the local grocer. Large supermarkets are somewhat frowned upon because they are putting the mom and pop shops out of business. There are some exceptions. If you take a cab a few miles to the Testaccio area, they turned the old slaughter house into a fantastic food market. Campo dei Fiori is an outdoor market during the day, but it's gone way overboard with being touristy and tacky. Unlike the Testaccio Market, you won't find any italians shopping or even eating there. Also, if you can combine it with going to the Vatican, a few blocks away from the Vatican in the Trionfale district there is a nice Trionfale Market. It's not worth it to go to one of the corporate, modern, large supermarkets. Testaccio Market is probably best. It's only a few euros each way by cab from say the Colosseo, and you can eat very delicious and authentic food there for a very low price that will overset the cost of the cab.
-Roman Forum: Yes, also must see at night. You don't need to go down into it. Just see it from the street. There are three main ones fairly close to one another, across the street from each other.
-Trevi Fountain (defer that because it's closed for repairs): Probably the second best site to see in Rome. Unfortunately, the construction will still be going on for around another two years. Unless things have changed in the last few months, there is nothing to see.
-Galleria Alberto Sordi (also known as Galleria Colonna): it's nothing special. It's OK. It's a good place to go in for a coffee and drink and to rest the legs, but it's not really a great site or place to shop. It's a place to stop in if you happen to be walking by, and nothing more. If you want a taste of Roman shopping not too far away is Via Condotti, the high end shopping street. It ends at the Spanish Steps. It is far nicer than the Galleria.
-Torre Eurosky (look at the building from the distance is ok, lowest priority in this list): Yuck.
Really, if you stop and sit in cafes so that the elderly person can rest, and you just accept the fact that you will have to budget 100-150 euros for cabs, there is no reason why you cannot see the highlights of this city, and maintain an everlasting, precious memory.
Last edited by Perche; Nov 11, 2014 at 8:34 pm
Nov 11, 2014, 8:16 pm
#36
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Heraklion, Greece
Posts: 7,564
If one really needs (?) to visit a large supermarket, then Eataly in the "ex new Ostiense" RR station (was built for the football/soccer world cup in 1990 but was never used). A four story building of ~12,000 square meters, open till midnight 7 days a week, full of all kinds of goodies you can think of, at prices that are 10-20% higher than normal supermarkets. Moreover several "restaurants" on every floor. Worth a visit if one has time and thinks (s)he's seen everything lease in Rome.
Nov 11, 2014, 8:21 pm
#37
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: New York and Vienna
Programs: PA WorldPass Platinum, AA, DL, LH. GHA Black, SPG and HHonors Gold
Posts: 3,870
I know a Roman taxi driver who would be happy to drive you around and wait while you and your friend look at various sites. His fee would not be considered expensive or exorbitant but is quite modest.
He speaks English quite well and knows the best places to go for great vistas and photos too.
If you want his information, send me a PM.
He speaks English quite well and knows the best places to go for great vistas and photos too.
If you want his information, send me a PM.
Nov 12, 2014, 4:05 pm
#38
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: NJ, USA
Posts: 2,837
I was in Rome with 85 yr mother, we just took taxis to colosseum, etc she really enjoyed just sitting in cafes near areas such as Pantheon, etc watching the people
We also took a bus to Capri, then boat then bus to top of Capri. Loved the scenery, stops in roadside cafes, and of course view of Capri up to the top. Ate in reataurant top of Capri and went through some shops there.
Don't worry about going to a lot of tourist spots, just visit what is comfortable and enjoy
We also took a bus to Capri, then boat then bus to top of Capri. Loved the scenery, stops in roadside cafes, and of course view of Capri up to the top. Ate in reataurant top of Capri and went through some shops there.
Don't worry about going to a lot of tourist spots, just visit what is comfortable and enjoy
Nov 12, 2014, 4:18 pm
#39
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: SEA
Posts: 3,952
Yup, I think Perche nailed it. There aren't many places better to just sit and look around than Rome. Even if you did nothing but that for a few days, it'd be a nice experience.
I'm also the type that likes to visit supermarkets when I go somewhere new. There's something about that glimpse into daily life. There is a Conad by Termini if you're inclined, or as mentioned, Eataly. Eataly is awesome.
I'm also the type that likes to visit supermarkets when I go somewhere new. There's something about that glimpse into daily life. There is a Conad by Termini if you're inclined, or as mentioned, Eataly. Eataly is awesome.
Nov 12, 2014, 7:27 pm
#40
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Ithaca, NY
Programs: AA Platinum
Posts: 147
To add to what Perchč and others have said: yes, it can be done. Rome has some hills, but much of what everyone wants to see is in the flats, and there are dozens and dozens of hotels in the flats, plus hundreds and hundreds of restaurants, bakeries, pizzerias, bars (coffee shops), boutiques, shoe stores, gelaterias and you-name-it in the flats. One neighborhood that might be especially appealing to stay in or near: Piazza Rotonda. That's the small piazza where the Pantheon is, and there are restaurants on and near it (try the ones on the side streets), as well as a bar, Il Tempio, where you could splurge on an expensive cappuccino or espresso and just sit as long as you wished across from the Pantheon, looking at the building and all the people passing through the piazza, including well-dressed politicians coming from the Senate building nearby. Also near Piazza Rotonda are the Caravaggio St. Matthew paintings, free and easy to see, at S. Luigi dei Francesi, a church only two blocks away. And about a block and a half away are Rome's two best coffee bars plus, going another half block, St. Ivo and the old Sapienza. In another direction, a block and a half are S. Ignazio, maybe even more of a pleasure to visit to look at the ceiling frescoes than the Sistine, since the Sistine has long lines and is miserably crowded once you get into it after walking about a half mile through the Vatican Museums and descending a steep flight of stairs. In addition to its spectacular and colorful frescoes, S. Ignazio also has a trick painting--an illusionist painting--in one part of the ceiling that I won't describe so that it will be a surprise. Finally, Piazza Rotonda is near a stop for the little electric bus that goes around the flats and ends up near the top of Via Veneto. If you could get on it, take the trip, get off, and walk a short distance to the return bus, it would be like taking a tour of parts of Rome. Back to Piazza Rotonda, there also are boutiques only a few steps from the piazza selling handbags, shoes, clothes, toys, and jewelry. There's much more I could list, but I'll just say that if someone who did not want to walk much found herself spending most of her time in or near Piazza Rotonda for 3 or 4 days, she would have a full, lively stay in Rome. By the way, if you take a taxi to see the Coliseum, you can sit at a coffee bar across the street and drink espresso while enjoying the view of the building. It's as nice a way to see it as trampling around inside of the building with several hundred tourists.
Nov 12, 2014, 9:04 pm
#41
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: SFO, VCE
Programs: AA EXP >4 MM, Lifetime Plat
Posts: 2,881
One neighborhood that might be especially appealing to stay in or near: Piazza Rotonda. That's the small piazza where the Pantheon is, and there are restaurants on and near it (try the ones on the side streets), as well as a bar, Il Tempio, where you could splurge on an expensive cappuccino or espresso and just sit as long as you wished across from the Pantheon, looking at the building and all the people passing through the piazza, including well-dressed politicians coming from the Senate building nearby.
By the way, if you take a taxi to see the Coliseum, you can sit at a coffee bar across the street and drink espresso while enjoying the view of the building. It's as nice a way to see it as trampling around inside of the building with several hundred tourists.
By the way, if you take a taxi to see the Coliseum, you can sit at a coffee bar across the street and drink espresso while enjoying the view of the building. It's as nice a way to see it as trampling around inside of the building with several hundred tourists.
PS: To OP, if you decide to go and rely on taxis keep in mind that the norm is not to tip a taxi. It is not expected, just as tipping is not expected in a restaurant.
In the USA when a restaurant check comes it has a line for the price of the meal, then for the tax, then a blank line for the tip, then a line for the customer to write in the total. In Italy the bill in a restaurant does not have a line for tax and tip. It just has only one line: a place for your signature. Everything is already included, including a fair wage and health insurance for the waiters. Italians, especially Romans, get ticked off when they see Americans leaving a big tip because they think that by mission creep, tipping will start becoming expected. If one really enjoys the service of a full meal it's OK to leave a few euros, but that's it.
For taxis, there is generally no tipping. It is polite to round up to the nearest dollar, or to give an extra euro or so if the service was good. When I mention budgeting 100-150 euros for taxis that should be plenty to get all around Rome for 3-6 days if you don't unknowingly leave unexpected and unnecessary 15-20% tips.
Nov 13, 2014, 9:05 am
#42
Suspended
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 472
I don't expect anyone to know all of the topography but if the Forum is below the Colosseo, then the better way is to see the Colosseo first, then walk downhill.
The 2 block threshold in the original post is not absolute. 6 blocks might be done.
Nov 13, 2014, 9:37 am
#43
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: SFO, VCE
Programs: AA EXP >4 MM, Lifetime Plat
Posts: 2,881
This is good advice, the downhill part.
I don't expect anyone to know all of the topography but if the Forum is below the Colosseo, then the better way is to see the Colosseo first, then walk downhill.
The 2 block threshold in the original post is not absolute. 6 blocks might be done.
I don't expect anyone to know all of the topography but if the Forum is below the Colosseo, then the better way is to see the Colosseo first, then walk downhill.
The 2 block threshold in the original post is not absolute. 6 blocks might be done.
Nov 15, 2014, 11:37 am
#44
Suspended
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 472
A very rough, first draft of an itinerary has been decided.
a Sunday in 2015:
arrive FCO.
Rent a car (
).
Possibly see Ostia Antica, particularly if the air museum doesn't open until afternoon. Ostia Antica is close to FCO and recommended here...http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/italy...er-advice.html
Italian Air Force Museum (Museo Storico dell' Aeronautica Militare) 20 miles NW of Rome (need to check opening times). Possibly easier to see if you have a car.
Stay one night in Bracciano, where the air museum is located, a town northwest of Rome by a lake. Hotels are probably cheaper, partially offsetting the cost of the rental car.
Monday:
Return the rental car, drop off luggage at a hotel in Rome. Considering a hotel near the Vatican. Unsure of where the ZTL (older parts of a city where visitors' cars are fined but not residents) is located but probably not near here. Reason for location is because it's close to one attraction but maybe has a slight residential feel.
Play it by ear. Maybe see the Sistine Chapel and square outside St. Paul's Basilica in the Vatican. Add one to one's personal "number of countries visited" count.
Tuesday:
Colosseo to Roman Forum to Vittorio Emmanuel monument, in that order, because of downhill terrain.
Maybe the S. Ignazio (post #14 in this thread)?
This day, far less is covered than a marathon rush to see things, but that's the way this trip is to be.
optional stuff in the afternoon if energy permits. Possible hop on, hop off bus or JSpira's tour guide or something else.
Wednesday:
Spanish Steps, arriving at the top and walking down. Possibly some shopping.
I think that's a slow enough pace but enough to feel that you have seen Rome. There's enough gaps that more can be added.
-----
Not sure, but the most tiring place might be to see the Sistine Chapel due to waiting and walking. The distance from entering the plaza in front of St. Paul's Basilica to the Sistine Chapel then standing and waiting seems to be the most taxing of the proposed trip.
Not sure if it would be a major lapse in skipping the Sistine Chapel and substituting it with the Sant'Ignazio on a different day?
a Sunday in 2015:
arrive FCO.
Rent a car (
). Possibly see Ostia Antica, particularly if the air museum doesn't open until afternoon. Ostia Antica is close to FCO and recommended here...http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/italy...er-advice.html
Italian Air Force Museum (Museo Storico dell' Aeronautica Militare) 20 miles NW of Rome (need to check opening times). Possibly easier to see if you have a car.
Stay one night in Bracciano, where the air museum is located, a town northwest of Rome by a lake. Hotels are probably cheaper, partially offsetting the cost of the rental car.
Monday:
Return the rental car, drop off luggage at a hotel in Rome. Considering a hotel near the Vatican. Unsure of where the ZTL (older parts of a city where visitors' cars are fined but not residents) is located but probably not near here. Reason for location is because it's close to one attraction but maybe has a slight residential feel.
Play it by ear. Maybe see the Sistine Chapel and square outside St. Paul's Basilica in the Vatican. Add one to one's personal "number of countries visited" count.
Tuesday:
Colosseo to Roman Forum to Vittorio Emmanuel monument, in that order, because of downhill terrain.
Maybe the S. Ignazio (post #14 in this thread)?
This day, far less is covered than a marathon rush to see things, but that's the way this trip is to be.
optional stuff in the afternoon if energy permits. Possible hop on, hop off bus or JSpira's tour guide or something else.
Wednesday:
Spanish Steps, arriving at the top and walking down. Possibly some shopping.
I think that's a slow enough pace but enough to feel that you have seen Rome. There's enough gaps that more can be added.
-----
Not sure, but the most tiring place might be to see the Sistine Chapel due to waiting and walking. The distance from entering the plaza in front of St. Paul's Basilica to the Sistine Chapel then standing and waiting seems to be the most taxing of the proposed trip.
Not sure if it would be a major lapse in skipping the Sistine Chapel and substituting it with the Sant'Ignazio on a different day?
Last edited by Box5; Nov 15, 2014 at 11:50 am
Nov 15, 2014, 11:01 pm
#45
Join Date: Mar 2011
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Posts: 2,881
A very rough, first draft of an itinerary has been decided.
a Sunday in 2015:
arrive FCO.
Rent a car ().
Possibly see Ostia Antica, particularly if the air museum doesn't open until afternoon. Ostia Antica is close to FCO and recommended here...http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/italy...er-advice.html
Italian Air Force Museum (Museo Storico dell' Aeronautica Militare) 20 miles NW of Rome (need to check opening times). Possibly easier to see if you have a car.
Stay one night in Bracciano, where the air museum is located, a town northwest of Rome by a lake. Hotels are probably cheaper, partially offsetting the cost of the rental car.
Monday:
Return the rental car, drop off luggage at a hotel in Rome. Considering a hotel near the Vatican. Unsure of where the ZTL (older parts of a city where visitors' cars are fined but not residents) is located but probably not near here. Reason for location is because it's close to one attraction but maybe has a slight residential feel.
Play it by ear. Maybe see the Sistine Chapel and square outside St. Paul's Basilica in the Vatican. Add one to one's personal "number of countries visited" count.
Tuesday:
Colosseo to Roman Forum to Vittorio Emmanuel monument, in that order, because of downhill terrain.
Maybe the S. Ignazio (post #14 in this thread)?
This day, far less is covered than a marathon rush to see things, but that's the way this trip is to be.
optional stuff in the afternoon if energy permits. Possible hop on, hop off bus or JSpira's tour guide or something else.
Wednesday:
Spanish Steps, arriving at the top and walking down. Possibly some shopping.
I think that's a slow enough pace but enough to feel that you have seen Rome. There's enough gaps that more can be added.
-----
Not sure, but the most tiring place might be to see the Sistine Chapel due to waiting and walking. The distance from entering the plaza in front of St. Paul's Basilica to the Sistine Chapel then standing and waiting seems to be the most taxing of the proposed trip.
Not sure if it would be a major lapse in skipping the Sistine Chapel and substituting it with the Sant'Ignazio on a different day?
a Sunday in 2015:
arrive FCO.
Rent a car (
). Possibly see Ostia Antica, particularly if the air museum doesn't open until afternoon. Ostia Antica is close to FCO and recommended here...http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/italy...er-advice.html
Italian Air Force Museum (Museo Storico dell' Aeronautica Militare) 20 miles NW of Rome (need to check opening times). Possibly easier to see if you have a car.
Stay one night in Bracciano, where the air museum is located, a town northwest of Rome by a lake. Hotels are probably cheaper, partially offsetting the cost of the rental car.
Monday:
Return the rental car, drop off luggage at a hotel in Rome. Considering a hotel near the Vatican. Unsure of where the ZTL (older parts of a city where visitors' cars are fined but not residents) is located but probably not near here. Reason for location is because it's close to one attraction but maybe has a slight residential feel.
Play it by ear. Maybe see the Sistine Chapel and square outside St. Paul's Basilica in the Vatican. Add one to one's personal "number of countries visited" count.
Tuesday:
Colosseo to Roman Forum to Vittorio Emmanuel monument, in that order, because of downhill terrain.
Maybe the S. Ignazio (post #14 in this thread)?
This day, far less is covered than a marathon rush to see things, but that's the way this trip is to be.
optional stuff in the afternoon if energy permits. Possible hop on, hop off bus or JSpira's tour guide or something else.
Wednesday:
Spanish Steps, arriving at the top and walking down. Possibly some shopping.
I think that's a slow enough pace but enough to feel that you have seen Rome. There's enough gaps that more can be added.
-----
Not sure, but the most tiring place might be to see the Sistine Chapel due to waiting and walking. The distance from entering the plaza in front of St. Paul's Basilica to the Sistine Chapel then standing and waiting seems to be the most taxing of the proposed trip.
Not sure if it would be a major lapse in skipping the Sistine Chapel and substituting it with the Sant'Ignazio on a different day?
Is there a particular reason why you want to see the Air Force Museum 20 miles out of town. I haven't been there but I hear it's just a minor thing that consists of four hangers, each with a couple of fuselages of WWII vintage planes on pedestals. If there is a particular interest in Italian or WW II military history I can see this. Otherwise, it is an unusual way to spend a first day in Rome. Bracciano is a lake that gets very crowded in the summer because Rome gets very hot, and most houses don't have air conditioning. People go there to escape the heat and the crowds. It's not considered one of Italy's great, scenic lakes, like Lago di Como, Lago Maggiore, or Lake Garda, etc. There are a few towns around the lake. Everything is spread out. You will have to do a lot of steep hill walking on cobblestones, or more likely, just stay remain in the hotel. I ask because the air military museum and Lake Bracciano are unusual choices for a first visit to Rome that consists of only a few days. Plus, renting a car is never that easy in Italy, even if only for a day.
If the person you are taking doesn't like spending a lot on taxis, staying near the Vatican will maximize taxi costs. Of all of the places to see, the Vatican is the furthest away from all of them. It's one thing to stay in central Rome and pay that higher taxi fare to go to the Vatican once to see St. Peter's Basilica and the Sistine Chapel just once, then remain in Rome and take short taxi rides from site to site. If you stay near the Vatican you will have longer taxi rides back and forth every day to get to all of the places you want to go to in central Rome.
People who stay out there are general OK with using the city buses or trains to get back and forth to downtown Rome, which won't be optimal for your.
You probably should have Piazza Navona and the Pantheon in there somewhere. After the Plaza around Fountain of Trevi when it is now undergoing renovation, Piazza Navona is probably the most scenic plaza in Rome. The gorgeous three fountain masterpieces are unforgettable. Getting a coffee there would be pretty special. It's a five to eight minute walk to the Pantheon, which is incredible, and also free. It is surrounded by coffee shops and sit outside places. Unless you have a particular interest in Italian military history to go to the four hanger museum, passing up Piazza Navona and the Pantheon would normally not be recommended.
Italy has many gorgeous churches with incredible artwork. Sant Ignazio is one of them. However, it really cannot be compared to the Sistine Chapel, especially now that the ceiling has been restored. The Sistine Chapel is unrivaled. It will really depend on when you go. As I mentioned, going late, about an hour before closing, when not doing it at peak tourist season, I've had no trouble just walking in and going unobstructed straight to the Chapel, and having it unrushed, pretty much to myself.
If you are going during a fairly crowded time of the season, the tours that get you to the front of the two hour line queuing to get into the Vatican Museum can be taken, but as I mentioned, they want to take you on a tour of the whole museum. And while they help you beat the line to get into the Museum, once inside there is a line to get into the Chapel itself. There are companies that allow you to get into the Sistine Chapel directly, one hour before it opens, or, one hour after it closes. You don't see the rest of the museum, but you have the Sistine Chapel to yourself. You can do it that way. One company is called Dark Rome. Another is called Viator. Saint Ignazio is really no close substitute for the Sistine Chapel, the most famous fresco in the world, and the epitome of Michelangelo's renaissance art. After the Chapel, rest, go into the Basilica, see the Pieta, the altar, and then that's it for Vatican City.
Last edited by Perche; Nov 21, 2014 at 9:46 am