Rome is one of the most popular cities in Italy. It could be the Vatican, the many jaw dropping fountains or the beautiful details that went into the design of every building. We decided to start our Italy trip there, we thought 3 days would be more than enough. We were so excited to go explore. It was my first time in Europe and Collin and I’s first trip together.
We arrived to the Fiumicino Airport around 10am. Tired and exhausted from our 8 hour flight, we were ready to get to our Airbnb. We decided to hop on a bus shuttle, you can get one right outside the airport. They charged us 6 euros from the airport to the center of Rome.
I was expecting apartments to be small in Europe, but woww was I surprised when we walked into our Airbnb. Pretty tiny, but it had everything we needed and we couldn’t complain about the location. We were staying close to Piazza Navona, about a 5 minute walk. It ended up being about a 30 min walk max to all the historic sites.
The day we arrived in Rome was Collin’s birthday so we decided to have a nice dinner. We watched Anthony Bourdain’s show before our trip, so we decided to visit one of the restaurants he had recommended. He recommended to have “Cacio e Pepe” at Ristorante Roma Sparita. If you haven’t had Cacio e Pepe before it’s a pasta dish with lots of black pepper and cheese, it’s delicious. At Ristorante Roma Sparina they serve it in a bowl made of cheese. How cool right? I know..and trust me! It is delicious!!
Day 1: Vatican.
We had made reservations for a guided tour. We like to do all tours early, so we normally book them between 8 and 9:30am. There is nothing like waking up early and seeing an European city when everyone is still sleeping.
After walking around the Vatican we decided to go all the way up to the Cupola San Pietro. To go up you can take an elevator or go up the stairs. We payed to take the elevator which was 8 euros each (but it saved us going up 320 steps). If you want to go to the very top, you have to go up another 200 steps of stairs (you can’t get there with the elevator). We didn’t know that when we payed the 8 euros but we were still happy we did. Getting up there gives you a 360 view of Vatican City. Its breathtaking and totally worth it. Recommend it 100%.
By the time we came down, there were no tickets left to go check out Sistine chapel so we decided to go grab some snacks before lunch. We wandered through the streets of Rome. Decided to grab some fruits and do some people watching. We then grabbed lunch and decided to walk around and continue exploring for the rest of the day.
Day 2: Colosseum
The Colosseum is the largest amphitheatre ever built. It is also the historic site most visited in Italy. Situated just east of the Roman Forum (which was another site we wanted to visit)
From our Airbnb we were a 30 min walk to the Colosseum. Before arriving in Italy we had made reservations online to get a guided tour. We met up with our tour guide around 9am. We were pleased with the time we had picked. By the time we got into the Colosseum people started arriving and there was a 2+ hour wait behind us. We got to learn so much about the Colosseum. The guide showed us around the Colosseum then gave us some time to explore on our own.
About an hour later we met up with our tour guide but this time at the entrance to Palatine Hill. She guided us through it as well as the Roman Forum and again gave us time to explore and take pictures.
The Roman Forum and Palatine Hill are adjacent to each other and you can walk freely between the two. The Roman Forum was the scene of public meetings, law courts and was lined with shops and open-air markets. In its day Palatine Hill was considered one of the most desirable neighborhood in the city. It was the home of aristocrats and emperors. It is very interesting to see how these 2 amazing sites look after so many years.
Day 3: Walk around
We didn’t have much planned but to walk around. We wanted to check out all the fountains, piazzas and spots you can walk to without waiting in line.
Like I said before we were very close to Piazza Navona so throughout our stay we would walk there at night.
One of our first stops that day had to be Trevi Fountain. We made our way there and woww was it busy. Lots of tourist by the time we got there. But that wasn’t going to stop us from going with the tradition. We each tossed a coin in the fountain to ensure a visit back to Rome.
Did you know? Over 3.000 euros get thrown into the fountain daily. Can you imagine the amount by the end of the year? Crazy!! There are workers who pick up all the coins every night and that money actually all goes to charity.
Next stop…
The Pantheon. It was too busy to walk in so we stood outside and took some pictures while having some lemon gelato. Are you wondering what’s a good place to have gelato in Italy? There are so many different gelaterias everywhere you go but our all time favorite spot was Grom. Yum Yum!! So good!
Another site we wanted to go see was the Spanish Steps. It is a great place to sit down and enjoy a coffee and do some people watching. By the time we got there it was later in the afternoon so it was pretty crowded. The Spanish steps are close to high design stores like: Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Prada, Hermes and many more. It’s also surrounded by many cafes and restaurants.
We decided to head back to out Airbnb and relax. The next day we were heading to our next destination…Cortona, Tuscany.
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