Rome in 12 Hours
Rome wasn’t built in a day and it shouldn’t be visited in less than one either. We initially thought it would be wise to avoid the heat and overall congestion of The Eternal City in July and save the visit for later. Plans change however, and when you’re booking transportation days out while trying to get from Spain to Northern Italy, you may end up in Rome during peak season.
So there we were--Rome on a hot Friday morning in July, with a train out the following morning. Aware of all the popular points from a trip taken in high school, I proposed to Kimberly that we might as well blitz Rome like tourists in the short time we were there. Would you like to try it for yourself? Here is how we did it:
Preface: We flew in late the night before and had an AirBnB next to the airport for logistical ease. Early the next morning, we caught a bus into town that dropped us off at the train station near our hotel. By the time we were checked in and ready to go, half of the day was gone.
Eternal City Afternoon
Fuel up with some lunch near the Rione XV Esquilino district. Get yourself a big plate of pasta carbonara because “when in Rome...” right?
Walk west along Via Cavour to Basilica di San Pietro in Vincoli. In this church, you should find Michelangelo's statue of Moses and a set of chains said to have shackled the Apostle Peter after he was jailed for preaching about Jesus. Unfortunately, the church is closed from 12:20pm to 3:00pm so you’ll probably be just as disappointed as we were and forced to move on.
From the church, travel in a southwesterly direction and you’ll run into the Colosseum. If you’re there during the summer, lines will be outrageous. Our Friday in July was no exception, which leads us to Travel Tip #1: Entry to the Colosseum and neighboring Palatine Hill and Forum are all on the same ticket. Lines at the Palatine Hill rarely exist so walk away from the Colosseum, past the Arch of Constatine and find the entry to Palatine Hill about half way down Via di San Gregorio.
The lines at Palatine Hill.
Lines at the Colosseum. "Rookies" on the right..."In-the-know pros" to the left.
Once you’ve secured your tickets, start touring Palatine Hill and the Forum. A hired guide or guidebook is recommended here depending on how you prefer to explore. This area is basically the “original Rome" dating back to 8th century BC so there is a lot to soak in.
After the Forum, head back across the street to the Colosseum and enjoy skipping the line of unknowledgeable tourists baking in the sun. Give each level of the Colosseum a walk around and try out that panorama feature on your phone or camera at one of the outlooks. Imagine trying to find your seat for one of the fights or dramas that once took place there.
With your gladiatorial fix satisfied, leave the Colosseum and go towards to the Colosseo metro station across the street. At the station, buy two bus tickets. Taking public transportation is a cheap way to get off your feet and move to your next destination.
Take bus 85 and get off at the Cavalleggeri- San Pietro stop. Once you arrive, refuel with water and gelato at one of the kiosks nearby. If bus 85 was running on schedule like it should’ve been, you may have enough time to get to the Sistine Chapel before it closes at 4pm.
Fact: The letters wrapping the dome are almost seven feet tall.
If it’s after 4pm because bus 85 failed you, sorry…you’re out of luck (like we were) so find an opening in the large wall in front of you (that is Vatican City’s “border”) and head north to the oval shaped Piazza San Pierto. The line to get into St. Peter’s Basilica is on the northwest corner of the piazza.
Travel Tip #2: St. Peter’s Basilica is pretty high on the list of “holiest places in the world” so your attire should be appropriate. Once you have stood in line to get past the security check, a separate “are you dressed appropriately?” checkpoint awaits and they waste no time turning away those showing shoulders or too much leg. Large scarfs come in handy here so if you don’t have one and you’re wearing shorts and a tank top like Kimberly was, you may get lucky and be able to buy one from a Canadian man and his son who purchased a scarf thinking men’s shorts weren’t allowed.
Once in St. Peter’s, take your time as it is quite impressive including many sculptural treats such as Michelangelo’s Pietà and Bernini’s Baldachin. We spent nearly an hour inside and there is an additional tour of the dome if you’re interested.
After St. Peter’s Basilica, go back to the bus stop where you were dropped off earlier. This time, jump on bus 64 heading the opposite direction towards Corso Vittorio Emanuele.
Your next points of interest are Piazza Navona, Pantheon, Trevi Fountain, and Piazza di Spagna (Spanish Steps) and they are all in a nice northeasterly path from the last stop of bus 64. All are famous landmarks within Rome and all of them will unfortunately be crowded regardless of the time of day. [1] Take the remaining of the afternoon to walk between all four and find alleys along the way to wonder and soak up the culture.
Modern Rome was obviously built around the wonderful landmarks of earlier time. You get no warning as you walk up the streets towards the Pantheon and its sudden appearance is a pleasant surprise.
The handful of people at Trevi Fountain.
At this point, you’ve walked approximately 10 miles and toured some major highlights of Vatican City and Rome. Your last order of business is to sit outside at a hole-in-the-wall restaurant and take as much time as possible enjoying a nice Italian dinner paired with a fine wine. You’ve earned it. Saluti!
[1] Summer in Rome is crowded. Very crowded. Crowds can get frustrating and make your view of the city jaded. Your choice is either to suck it up and accept that social media, selfie-sticks, peddlers, and peddlers selling selfie-sticks have made monsters of these locations OR tour around at 4am (see our Iceland story) when everybody else is sleeping. This leads to Travel Tip #3: Don’t tour Rome in the summer and/or in less than 12 hours.