Rome is a city in which you can breath history... Wherever you look there are sculptures, building or ruin that has been there for more than 2000 years. We will try to provide as much information about Rome as we can in this post.
We spent 4 days in this city, and we believe that is the minimum time you need to stay if you want to get the whole picture of Rome, seeing all the typical places of the city, although we know that this is a more personal topic.
Hot to get to Rome city centre?
- By Train:
This is the easiest option, as any train to Rome will arrive to Termini Railway station. Near Termini Railway station you may find the cheapest hostels, and you have really good public transport services in this zone (buses and subway for any place in the city).
- By Plane:
There are many options to reach Rome city centre from both airports. We include here the one we think is the most convenient.
- Fiumicino Airport: Bus Terravision: From Fiumicino to Termini or from Termini to Fiumicino. Single ticket: approximately 10€.
- Ciampino Airport: Bus Terravision: From Ciampino to Termini or from Termini to Ciampino. Single ticket: approximately 10€.
Transport in Rome
Some of the typical monuments in the city are not far away between them. In this case, the best way to go from one place to another is by walk.
However, Rome is a big city, and sometimes you will have to go through a big distance that is not suitable to make it by walk.
As Rome subway has only 2 lines, the best way to move across the city when you need to go for a long distance, in our point, is using the buses.
Bus lines have night services, they cover the entire city, and they have a really great advantage: they are "FREE"!!! :D
We are not going to recommend people not to pay the ticket, but we must say that we stay in the city for 4 days, during that time we took several buses to go to many places in the city, and we didn't pay the ticket in any of them, nor any inspector checked the buses. In case an inspector gets in the bus, you can always get out of it before the inspector reaches you. ;)
This is why we can not say how much is the prize of a single ticket... what we can say is that drivers do not sell tickets, so in case you want to buy one, you'll have to do it in the ticket machines that are supposedly near bus stops (supposedly because we never saw any of them), and also in Termini train station.
However, Rome is a big city, and sometimes you will have to go through a big distance that is not suitable to make it by walk.
As Rome subway has only 2 lines, the best way to move across the city when you need to go for a long distance, in our point, is using the buses.
Bus lines have night services, they cover the entire city, and they have a really great advantage: they are "FREE"!!! :D
We are not going to recommend people not to pay the ticket, but we must say that we stay in the city for 4 days, during that time we took several buses to go to many places in the city, and we didn't pay the ticket in any of them, nor any inspector checked the buses. In case an inspector gets in the bus, you can always get out of it before the inspector reaches you. ;)
This is why we can not say how much is the prize of a single ticket... what we can say is that drivers do not sell tickets, so in case you want to buy one, you'll have to do it in the ticket machines that are supposedly near bus stops (supposedly because we never saw any of them), and also in Termini train station.
Hot to move around Rome from Termini train station?
As mentioned above, Termini is a good starting point to move around Rome. Here is a list of bus lines that takes you to the most important tourist places:
Coliseum: line 64
Piazza Venezia and Vatican: line 64
Piazza Spagna and Trevi Fountain: line 492
Campo di Fiori: line 64
Coliseum: line 64
Piazza Venezia and Vatican: line 64
Piazza Spagna and Trevi Fountain: line 492
Campo di Fiori: line 64
Rome city map:
Here is a really good map of Rome city: Rome Map
Rome monuments
Below there is a list of some places to visit in Rome.
Colosseum / Palatine:
When you visit the Colosseum, you need to know that there will be many tourists, in other words, you will spend some time in the queue before you can get inside.
Opening hours: from 9.00 am until one hour before sunset.
The normal price of entry, which includes both monuments is € 11.
If you are an EU citizen and you have between 18 and 24 years, or if you are a student, there is a reduced rate, which I think it was € 6.50.
Inside you can get also an audio guide, whose price is around € 3, or reduced to € 1.50.
Something good if you want to avoid queues, is to buy the ticket in the Palatino, because there is always less queued than in the Colosseum, and then you can go back to the Colosseum, because if you have the ticket, there is a special queue that is much faster than the other one.
It is a visit that will take you almost all day... once you are inside the Colosseum, you want to stay there for a long time! It's amazing! :D
A recommendation... around the Colosseum there are many people disguised as Romans... You have to know that to take a picture with them you must pay! And it is better to ask the price before taking the picture, because if you first take the picture and then ask how much is it, the will say a really expensive price.
If you ask before, maybe you can ask them for a lower price.
Opening hours: from 9.00 am until one hour before sunset.
The normal price of entry, which includes both monuments is € 11.
If you are an EU citizen and you have between 18 and 24 years, or if you are a student, there is a reduced rate, which I think it was € 6.50.
Inside you can get also an audio guide, whose price is around € 3, or reduced to € 1.50.
Something good if you want to avoid queues, is to buy the ticket in the Palatino, because there is always less queued than in the Colosseum, and then you can go back to the Colosseum, because if you have the ticket, there is a special queue that is much faster than the other one.
It is a visit that will take you almost all day... once you are inside the Colosseum, you want to stay there for a long time! It's amazing! :D
A recommendation... around the Colosseum there are many people disguised as Romans... You have to know that to take a picture with them you must pay! And it is better to ask the price before taking the picture, because if you first take the picture and then ask how much is it, the will say a really expensive price.If you ask before, maybe you can ask them for a lower price.
Roman Forum: Free admission. Open from 9.00 until one hour before the sun goes down.
Vittoriano Piazza Venezia: Free admission. Opening/closing hours: In winter: 9.30 to 16.30. In summer: 9.30 to 17.30.
Pantheon: Free admission. Opening/closing hours: 8.30 to 19.30, sunday 9.00 to 18.00, holidays 9.00 to 13.00.
Basilica di San Pietro in Vincoli: Free admission. Opening/closing hours: 7.00 to 19.00 (in winter until 18.00); to climb to the dome: from 8.00 to sunset.
Recommendation: although maybe you go in summer and the weather is really hot, you should not wear shorts, nor bare shoulders or miniskirts, as they are strict with the Dress Code. This applies to both men and women.
Recommendation: although maybe you go in summer and the weather is really hot, you should not wear shorts, nor bare shoulders or miniskirts, as they are strict with the Dress Code. This applies to both men and women.
Vatican Museums / Sistine Chapel: most of the year, opening/closing hours are from 10.00 to 15.30 (but you can stay inside until 16.45). Free admission on the last Sunday of each month, and opening/closing hours are from from 9.00 to 12.30 (but you can stay inside until 13.45).
Regular ticket: € 13.
With a Student card (plus being under 26 years old), applies the reduced rate of 8 €.
Fontana di Trevi /Piazza Spagna/ Piazza Navona/ Piazza del Campidoglio/ Campo di Fiori
This are all monuments or public squares that obviously doesn't have neither time nor entrance fee... but each one of them (specially the Trevi Fountain) are recommended to be visited during the day, and during the night because of the lighting.
Regular ticket: € 13.
With a Student card (plus being under 26 years old), applies the reduced rate of 8 €.
Fontana di Trevi /Piazza Spagna/ Piazza Navona/ Piazza del Campidoglio/ Campo di Fiori
This are all monuments or public squares that obviously doesn't have neither time nor entrance fee... but each one of them (specially the Trevi Fountain) are recommended to be visited during the day, and during the night because of the lighting.
Where to eat in Rome?
Obviously we are not say anything new if recommend eating pizza and pasta in Italy... but they are certainly the most tasty and cheap things to eat (specially pizza).
We specially recommend a place, located at about 150 meters from St. Peter's Basilica, which sell pizzas of all tastes by weight. To find it, is a matter of keeping track of the people who come around eating pizza in cardboard boxes. Many nuns and priests also stopped there to eat! :)
Another typical thing in Rome are the ice creams! Wherever you go, you'll always see people eating ice cream. In this case we recommend the Gelateria "Da Quinto". It is located on the Via di Tor Millina 14, near the Piazza Navona.
We specially recommend a place, located at about 150 meters from St. Peter's Basilica, which sell pizzas of all tastes by weight. To find it, is a matter of keeping track of the people who come around eating pizza in cardboard boxes. Many nuns and priests also stopped there to eat! :)
Another typical thing in Rome are the ice creams! Wherever you go, you'll always see people eating ice cream. In this case we recommend the Gelateria "Da Quinto". It is located on the Via di Tor Millina 14, near the Piazza Navona.
Where to out at night in Rome?
A good place to go out, drink something and listen to good music is Campo di Fiori. In this square there are many pubs and restaurants, which are not expensive and where you can spend a pleasant time.
There is also the Pub Crawler option, with people that offer you this option in the street... First you have a "happy hour" in a pub, in which you can eat and drink all the pizza and beer you want (or that you can... hehe), and then they take you up and down from one pub to another... which are usually at a distance of 10 or 15 minutes by walk. In every pub you go, they give you a "shot".
The price for the Pub Crawler is around 20-25 euros.
Finally: BE CAREFUL when crossing the streets! :D Even if you're in a pedestrian crossing or the traffic light is green, look carefully to both sides... people there drive really fast and doesn't respect the traffic signs!
There is also the Pub Crawler option, with people that offer you this option in the street... First you have a "happy hour" in a pub, in which you can eat and drink all the pizza and beer you want (or that you can... hehe), and then they take you up and down from one pub to another... which are usually at a distance of 10 or 15 minutes by walk. In every pub you go, they give you a "shot".
The price for the Pub Crawler is around 20-25 euros.
Finally: BE CAREFUL when crossing the streets! :D Even if you're in a pedestrian crossing or the traffic light is green, look carefully to both sides... people there drive really fast and doesn't respect the traffic signs!
Accommodation in Rome
We stayed in a hostel called Freedom Traveller, located very near the Termini train station. Seeking for information to know in which neighborhood we should stay, we read in some forums and blogs that this area was "very dangerous". Based on our experience, rather than dangerous, we felt that it was quite dirty. We did not have any problems there.
