Post by stinkyfeet on Jul 31, 2014 22:39:57 GMT -5
Just starting planning a trip to Rome in November. Yay!! I'd love any hotel or restaurant recommendations. And must see sights. I havent been there in about 20 years so it's like new to me. :-)
Post by amberlyrose on Jul 31, 2014 23:05:18 GMT -5
We stayed at the Best Western Hotel President with a large group. It's right next to a subway stop and walkable to the colosseum. It was fairly decent and very clean.
We enjoyed our stay at the Ripa Hotel in Trastevere. It wasn't fancy, but it was clean, modern, and welcoming. Service was great. Free breakfast buffet was a nice perk.
We loved the pizza at Dar Poeta (also in Trastevere).
Avoid the Waldorf Cavalieri. Since you say you have a good budget, you might come across this one. Definitely stay somewhere central and most definitely go to the pizza place miso mentioned. It's amazing. Also, gelato. As much as your stomach can handle.
Fun! We are going to Venice and Florence for our 10th anniversary this fall.
I also recommend staying near Piazza Navona. We rented an apartment nearby through www.rentalinrome.com, and we were even able to arrange for transportation to and from the airport through the website. We chose this apartment and were so pleased with the apartment itself and the location; we were able to walk everywhere and only took one cab when we didn't want to miss our early morning reservation at the Galleria Borghese.
Here's what we did in four days (including many stops at all of the churches along the way since H loves them):
Day 1: Piazza Navona, Pantheon, Trevi Fountain, Spanish Steps (best in the evening, imo)
Day 2: Vatican tour through Dark Rome, St. Peter's (and dome), Castel Sant'Angelo, Trastevere
Day 3: Colosseum/Palatine Hill/Forum tour through Walks of Italy (which is worth it for the exclusive arena, underground, and third tier access), Capitoline Hill, Trajan's Forum, St. Peter in Chains, Victor Emmanuel Monument (with another great view from the top)
Day 4: Galleria Borghese and Villa Borghese, with a little side trip to the Capuchin Crypt (to make up for our lack of time to trek out to the catacombs)
It's near the Spanish Steps and we were able to walk to all the sights. IIRC, back when we went you could pay extra for the hotel to send a car for airport pickup. After a long redeye, we thought it was worth it.
KKD reminded me, the Villa Borghese is an absolute must see. You have to call and make a reservation, but it is 100% worth the extra trouble. It is my favorite art museum.
Also, eat some fried artichokes. They are a Roman specialty and delicious. I've tried to recreate them at home a few times and failed miserably.
I was there late June this year and the Trevi fountain, the fountains on Piazza Navona and at the bottom of the Spanish steps were all empty for restoration and behind large boards. That does not mean that the rest of the city is not magical, but maybe you could check when these works will be finished?
Oh, and take the 25 Eur fast passes to go and see the sixtine chapel. The ceiling has been restored 10 years ago and it is stunning!
And for the only real Roman pizza go to Trastevere : pizzeria dei Marmi. The service is less good for tourists, but the pizza is worth the wait!!!
We're going later this month and are spending 5ish days Rome. We're staying in Trastevere in a hotel. You should grab the Rick Steves Rome book as he has tons of guided walks (we loved the ones we did of his in Paris). Here's my rough itinerary:
Day 1: Arrive. Walk around neighbourhood. Begin eating all the food. Day 2: Pompeii and Naples. It's a Saturday (train trips were 2 for 1 on Saturdays). Day 3: Colosseum, Forum, Palatine Hill etc. and a Rick Steves walk. Day 4: Vatican. Wandering. Day 5: Eating Italy food tour (we're doing the 4 hour, 12 "course" Testaccio one...it's expensive but I'm SUPER excited). Not sure what else to see that day as we'll be done the tour at 2. Day 6: Orvieto day trip. Day 7: Leave for Venice.
Anyone have suggestions for Day 5?
ETA: We got the Roma Pass. You can buy most of your train trips online beforehand. Also, buy your Vatican ticket online beforehand as well.
Galleria Borghese!
And um more eating haha. It is also pretty close to the Spanish Steps and the piazza del popolo.
One thing I've never done which I would love is to go to Santa Maria Della Vittoria to see the Ecstasy of Saint Teresa because I <3 Bernini.
I forgot to mention: one thing we didn't get to do was the tour of the necropolis under St. Peter's, where he was buried. Access is limited, and by reservation only; you have to submit a request in order to get assigned a tour time. I didn't hear about it until it was almost too late, and the time we were assigned conflicted with the only day the Colosseum tour worked for our schedule.
I agree with finding a great apartment in the Trastevere neighborhood. We loved this area and went back everyday to eat and walk around. It is more residential and is just so charming! We also really enjoyed our underground Colosseum tour.
Also, the catacombs of San Sebastiano on Via Appia, outside the city, there is a bus.
I am not religious, but this place made a real impact on me. There are sculls and bones of course, but there is also a small place where the early christians held their hidden masses.
However, if you are afraid of small dark places underground, don't do it
Go put your hand in La bocca della verità ! Rent vespa's and do Vacanze Romane!
Restaurants: -Taverna de Coppelle -Bar Ristorante Esquiline
Sites: -Vatican Museums -tour of the scavi under St. Peter's -Capuchin Crypt -San Giovanni in Laterano -Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli -Santa Maria Sopra Minerva -the Pantheon -Basilica of San Clemente -Forum/Palatine Hill (get a guide) -the Underground Tour of the Colosseum
We did an underground tour of the Colosseum. They take you to the main floor of the Colosseum, underground to the channels used to flood the arena, and the otherwise off-limits third tier. It was my husband's favorite tour in Rome. Unfortunately, you have to call to book it, and it took several tries to get through, but the person was very helpful and we received an email confirmation.
Our favorite meal was at an outdoor patio restaurant called Il Chianti near the Trevi Fountain. They had an an amazing meat and cheese antipasto platter that included a housemade spicy blackberry jam which I'm still thinking of 5 months later.
It was so good!!! For our main courses, my husband got roasted suckling pig and I had pumpkin ravioli in a butter sage sauce and everything was absolutely delicious.
It's a bummer that the Trevi Fountain is drained right now for renovations. I read they're trying to keep a small portion open for people to throw in coins, so hopefully you can still enjoy it. I think they're about to start renovating the Spanish Steps too.
Bring a water bottle with your on your trip. Rome has water fountains all over the city with clean water that's safe to drink.
It was so good!!! For our main courses, my husband got roasted suckling pig and I had pumpkin ravioli in a butter sage sauce and everything was absolutely delicious.
It's a bummer that the Trevi Fountain is drained right now for renovations. I read they're trying to keep a small portion open for people to throw in coins, so hopefully you can still enjoy it. I think they're about to start renovating the Spanish Steps too.
Bring a water bottle with your on your trip. Rome has water fountains all over the city with clean water that's safe to drink.
If you're looking for a daytrip, Villa D'Este and Villa Adriana are not that far. (Tivoli) Villa Adriana in particular is incredible.
San Ivo is a block off of Piazza Navona and is one of my favorite churches. Lots of churches are always just open so you can walk in and check it out. (I'm a fangirl for Borromini. Another church of his to check out is San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane.)
We're going later this month and are spending 5ish days Rome. We're staying in Trastevere in a hotel. You should grab the Rick Steves Rome book as he has tons of guided walks (we loved the ones we did of his in Paris). Here's my rough itinerary:
Day 1: Arrive. Walk around neighbourhood. Begin eating all the food. Day 2: Pompeii and Naples. It's a Saturday (train trips were 2 for 1 on Saturdays). Day 3: Colosseum, Forum, Palatine Hill etc. and a Rick Steves walk. Maybe Trevi Fountain and Spanish? Or the next day. Day 4: Vatican. Wandering. Trevi Fountain and Spanish steps I think. Day 5: Eating Italy food tour (we're doing the 4 hour, 12 "course" Testaccio one...it's expensive but I'm SUPER excited). Not sure what else to see that day as we'll be done the tour at 2. Day 6: Orvieto day trip. Day 7: Leave for Venice.
Anyone have suggestions for Day 5?
ETA: We got the Roma Pass. You can buy most of your train trips online beforehand. Also, buy your Vatican ticket online beforehand as well.
I did the Eating food tour of Testaccio in April and it was wonderful!!!! I wanna do it again!!!