You’re planning a trip to Rome or thinking about planning a trip to Rome and you’re suddenly in the mode of read-all-the-things or watch-all-the-things, which quickly gives way to buy-all-the-things. Maybe you’re a long planner. You plan your trips at least a year in advance, right down to every last detail. Maybe you’re a short planner. You get an idea to travel, you book the basics (flight, hotel) and then realize a few weeks before you go that you KNOW NOTHING.
That’s me. I’m the short planner. I feel like it’ll all work out. And it does all work out. My family relies on me to make sure it all works out. But “working out” requires work. You don’t have to plan every last detail (in fact, I don’t recommend it) but you should know some basics and then give yourself freedom to explore the rest as it comes.
This post is for you. You’re my people. You’re not a nomad. You need direction and a home base but you’ll kind of figure it out as you go. Well, fresh on the heels of my recent trip to Rome, I figured out a LOT and I’m going to cull it down for you so don’t get lost in the mire of trip planning and lose the joy of the travel. Here are my top travel tips for Rome.
Figuring out transportation to/from/in Rome
Let’s start here because everyone has to get to Rome. I’m approaching this as a U.S. based traveler but I’m going to let you in on how I generally start my travel planning process… I look for cheap airfare.
Getting to Rome
Over a year ago, I subscribed to a site called Going (formerly Scott’s Cheap Flights). As a member, I put in my home airports. I live in a good spot and can travel out of Washington, DC, Baltimore, Philadelphia, or even Newark. We found a great deal out of Washington Dulles and booked it!
TIP: When flying to Europe, make sure you look at the total cost of flying when booking. That cheap airfare make skyrocket when you add in meals, seat assignments, and checked baggage. We bypassed all of that by flying on an all-inclusive carrier, Turkish Airlines. It meant a longer journey as we needed to connect through Istanbul but it was worth it in the end!
(For more tips on how to find a cheap destination, check out my last post!)
Getting from the airport to Rome
This one is going to be heavily dependent on where you are staying in Rome, how many people you are traveling with, and how much luggage you have. One of the cheapest and easiest options is to take the train. You can purchase a ticket for around €13 that will take you directly from Fiumicino Airport to Rome Termini. That’s a straight 42 minute shot from the main airport to the main train station. From there, you can either walk or take a taxi to your destination (note: Uber is not commonly used in Italy).
We were staying in the Trastevere area of Rome, which is nowhere near Rome Termini. And the nearest train station to our place would be about a 30 minute walk. I wasn’t mentally up for that task after a long international flight. And although I could have caught a taxi from the airport for about €50 (it’s a flat fare), I booked a private taxi through Booking.com. For about €70, I had a private driver tracking my flight, texting me when I arrived, greeting me near baggage claim with a sign, and walking me to their private car. Totally worth it for the door to door service.
Getting around Rome
This was the thing I was most worried about. How does one get around? There are buses and trains and taxis and this suburban girl felt overwhelmed by it all. If you’re overwhelmed by all of that, here are three easy options for you:
- Walk! Yep, you can just walk everywhere. Rome is a really walkable city and we racked up about 20,000 steps per day. One morning, we decided to visit the Food Market at Rome Termini, which was about 60 minutes away on foot. In normal life, that seems like a lot of walking but when you’re sightseeing, it gives you a chance to see so much of the city and discover little cafes and gelaterias along the way.
- Taxi. We didn’t officially take a taxi but it is easy to do. You just have to know where to find them. Don’t expect to walk into the street (a la NYC) and flag down a cab. There are designated taxi stands throughout Rome where you can catch a cab pretty quickly.
- FREENOW. If you’re familiar with Uber and Lyft, you’ll like the FREENOW app. Same concept but make for Europe. And if you’ve ever experienced problems with Uber or Lyft (like someone changing their minds and ignoring your pickup request), you’ll get that too. But when we needed it, it worked just fine.
Finding a place to stay in Rome
With all that walking or riding, you’ll want a nice place to stay at the end of your day. But I have to be honest. Rome is not cheap. The hotels average at least $300+ per night (and these are not high end hotels). And they’re small. I figured out pretty quickly that the best option for my family of three was to rent an apartment. The good news is that it’s easy to do.
The first step is to figure which neighborhood you want to stay in. I’m not an expert but I do know how to find expert sources. This article was really valuable in helping me decide to find a place in Trastevere. It’s known to be family friendly and full of great places to eat (side note: it can be very lively at night but then, so is most of Rome).
The next step is to find a property that meets your needs. We only needed room for three so I found a one bedroom apartment with a pull out sofa in the living room for my son. You can look at VRBO or AirBNB but I had the most luck on Booking.com as the fees are significantly lower. Check out Scala Holiday House where we stayed!
Figuring out what to do in Rome
This is the fun part! But it’s only fun if you book in advance. When I traveled to Rome almost 25 years ago, I showed up with no hotel reservations and no itinerary. I just winged it. Oh, to be young and single again! Now, if you have your heart set on key sights, you typically need to have reservations in advance, especially if you want to avoid the lines.
I’m not going to tell you what to see or do in Rome. If you’re going, you probably already have your heart set on things like the Colosseum, Vatican, Roman Forum, Pantheon, Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, and more. What you do is entirely personal in nature. We’re not huge art lovers so we skipped a lot of museums but we love history so we made time to visit Circus Maximus!
Travel books on Rome travel
To help guide you in the right direction, now is a good time to buy a few books (here are a few that I personally recommend):
- DK Eyewitness Top 10 Rome (Pocket Travel Guide) Amazon, $11.99 – great for a general overview of what to see and do in Rome
- Rick Steves Pocket Rome Amazon, $10.39 – great for taking on tour with you to get a little historical perspective either before or during your visit to a sight
And these are both small enough to fit in your crossbody bag (because you do have a crossbody bag, right?).
Social media accounts on Rome travel
Follow some social media accounts. My favorites are people that actually live in Rome and have great, insider travel tips:
Stay Fabulous YouTube channel – I stumbled across this channel when googling some info before my trip and found so much value in so many of her videos
Travel by Mitra Instagram – My husband sent me some of her Reels and I loved her travel tips
Of course, there are tons of resources but all of you have to do is look at a few and the algorithms will recommend about 11,000 more!
Booking some tours
Don’t be scared when I say “tours.” I’m not talking about getting on a motorcoach and having every excruciating detail explained to you before stopping at an early bird buffet for dinner. But you will need to make some plans to make the most of your time, especially if you don’t want to spend hours waiting in line.
I used GetYourGuide to book most of our planned activities including:
- Rome: Priority Access Colosseum, Roman Forum & Palatine Tour – This is the exact tour we booked. It was reasonably priced, conducted in English, had great reviews, and gave us access to the Colosseum floor. Our guide was a native Roman that sounded like a Frenchman. But full of character!
- Vatican: Museums & Sistine Chapel Entrance Ticket – We didn’t want to do an official tour of the Vatican museums (we used the Rick Steves book to guide us at out own pace) so we purchased a “skip the line” entrance ticket. Trust. me when I say this is a MUST if you want to visit this museum. Entrance to this museum actually sells out regularly and the line to get in wound around several city blocks. Book early!
- Rome: Pompeii Tour with Wine and Lunch by High Speed Train – We all agreed that this was our favorite activity. I splurged on this one because I was more interested in spending time on a high speed train and having a nice lunch at a winery that cramming on a 3 hour motorcoach tour with a stop at a casino. Totally worth the price!
What to eat in Rome
And finally… let’s talk pizza, pasta, gelato, vino, and all the other good things that are part of Roman travel. Food is such an integral part of our travels that it’s worth mentioning. Because you’re probably going to be looking for “the best restaurant in Rome for…”
Guess what? There is no BEST in Rome. There is only what you like. I tried some of these best restaurants and was unimpressed. I stumbled into some small family restaurants where no one spoke English and they were amazing! It’s okay to google a few things and read some recommendations but don’t be afraid to venture out on your own.
While you’re venturing, here are a few Rome staples to try while you’re there:
- Coffee and pastries – This is the standard Roman breakfast. I’m not a coffee drinker but even I learned to love a good cappuccino every morning. The standard pastry is a cornetto (croissant) and you must get it filled! Try almond, pistachio, chocolate, or my favorite, cream!
- Pasta – Of course you want pasta. Even if you have gluten sensitivities, I’ve been told by multiple people that the wheat used in Europe does not bother their tummy. Try some of the Rome staples like Cacio e Pepe, Spaghetti Carbonara, and Bucatini all’Amatriciana
- Suppli – These are considered street food, or kind of a snack. They are riceballs, very similar to arancino.
- Pizza – Of course you’re going to eat pizza! Unless you’re sitting down at a restaurant (which I recommend trying), you’ll probably grab a premade slice full of numerous toppings. Don’t be worried that you’re getting stale pizza. It’s totally common for them to place it in a piping hot oven and you’ll never know if wasn’t made at that moment!
- Carciofi Alla Giudia – If artichokes are in season when you travel to Rome (they were when we went), I recommend trying these fried artichokes that are delicious and flaky and unlike any other artichoke I’ve had!
- Cocktails – Yes, Rome is known for the wine but I didn’t find much that I loved. Also, I’m a white wine drinker so that could have been the problem. But if you’re looking for an afternook cocktail, try the Aperol Spritz (slightly bitter) and finish your meal each night with a digestif, like Limoncello!
- Gelato – Rome is known for Tiramisu, which I did not try (I know, I know) but I did fall in love with some nightly gelato, even when I was too full to eat any. This is the one time I’ll give you a specific recommendation. Head to Fatamorgana, with locations all over the city. Just trust me on this!
My last piece of advice is to plan but don’t overplan. We made sure that we had a one specific activity booked every other day and the rest of the time we spent walking around and discovering things. That’s really the joy of traveling!
