When in Rome...

My wife and I like to book a city break at least once a year and could think of nowhere better than glorious Rome. We travelled in September, which in hindsight was a great time to go – the weather was lovely and all the main tourist areas were busy but not jam-packed! Rome ticks all the boxes – full of culture and shopping opportunities with endless Italian food and drink options too!

We decided to stay for 3 nights but if budgets are tight, you can definitely see all of the main sights within 2. The great thing about Rome is that all the main sights are very close to each other.

We decided to navigate most of the city by foot but also found the hop-on, hop-off buses a great way to get around. The main attraction in Rome is the Colosseum and it is truly breath taking to see in real life. That said, once you’re inside, there’s not a great deal to actually do other than take a few selfies and move onto the next visit – the queue’s here can be lengthy so if you’re pushed for time, I wouldn’t recommend going in.

For us, the most impressive thing was St Peter’s basilica. We decided to make the mammoth 871 step climb from the bottom to the top. The stairs are not for the faint hearted – they go on forever and aren’t easy to climb - some are slanted and in very narrow corridors that make passing people coming back down a bit of a squeeze! However, the hard-work is definitely worth it, the view from the top is truly stunning – you can see all of Rome and get some fantastic pictures!

Another recommendation is the Vatican – the queue’s for to get in are excessively long so be prepared for a very long wait (typically 3-4hours) or pay for a fast track and go right to the front. The highlight here is obviously the Sistine chapel; we’re not “arty” people but couldn’t help being amazed at such an incredible creation. 

All in all, a trip to Rome is definitely recommended – there’s so much to see and do in this wonderful city.

written by Tom Bullen