CHAPTERS

What You Will Find In This Post

ITINERARY DAY 1

West Tiber Bank

For the first day of our 3-day tour we focused on the west Tiber bank, starting with the Castel Sant’Angelo, then going to Vatican City. After a scenic walk by the Tiber we’ll reach the Travesteve neighborhood and will finish by the Jewish Ghetto.

We began our first 72 hours by walking to the nearby (10 minutes walk from Relais Orso) Castel Sant’Angelo. Situated in the end of via della Conciliazione, this amazing Castle built during the middle ages by popes lays on the Tiber and offers terrific photography point of views.

Castel Sant’Angelo view from the Ponte Sant’Angelo

We were just speechless when we arrived in Vatican City…  No wonder why it as been designated a Unesco world heritage site, with the San Pietro Basilic, the breathtaking Sistine Chapel and the innumerable and invaluable artworks in the Vatican Museum…

Legend of the picture here

It is the 5th largest museum in the world with its 43.000m2 gallery and famous artwork from Michelangelo, Raphael, Bramante! Honestly, we’re not that much into paintings and museum usually, we’re more into natural landscapes and outdoor activities but this was pretty impressive to be in front of such iconic pieces… If you don’t mind the crowd, we would definitely recommend visiting it but at least, make sure you have booked your ticket or Roma pass in advance on Internet in order to avoid the infinite line!

Trastevere is one of the coolest and the most picturesque neighborhood in Rome. With its colorful buildings, the small and narrow streets, the ivy houses, the flowers over the balconies. Although it is a touristic area, this district has a feel of Roman authenticity, with its lively streets and cafés. 

Lovely street in Trastevere leading to the porta Settimiana

We then decided to walk back to the hotel passing through Isola Tiberina (Tiber Island), which is a tiny boat-shaped island on the Tiber connected to Rome by two bridges. There is not much to see there so I wouldn’t budget extra time to visit it but if you are going to/from Trastevere or the Jewish Ghetto than you can walk pass it as there can be some nice pictures opportunities…Then, we walk passed the Teatro di Marcello (Marcelli Theatre), which is an ancient Roman open air theatre (that looks a bit like the Colosseum with its network of arches, corridors and travertine materials) built between 17 and 12 BC, on top of which residential apartments were built around the 16th century. Honestly, I am not sure it is worth is to try getting inside as the outside is what’s more interesting. Sometime, the area in front of the theatre hosts outdoor concerts.

The theatre borders the gorgeous old Jewish Ghetto,which is one the quaintest areas of Rome. It is a pedestrian-friendly, with its cobblestoned narrow streets and in our opinion, one of the best areas for a walk in Rome. The area around the portico d’ottavia with its view on the church dome just behind offers some nice pictures opportunities.

Finally we walk parts of the Via Giulia,which is a 1lm long avenue of historical and architectural importance. It is home to a number of cultural landmarks including the Arco Farnese, the Sant’Eligio degli Orefici church whose construction is attributed to Raphael, and other numerous palaces.

Portico d’Ottavia in the Jewish Ghetto

For us, there was nothing best after hanging in the streets and having walked so many kilometers, than enjoying a beer in our private outdoor hot tub with an amazing view over the old Roman roofs! 

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For dinner, we had booked a table at La Pergola, a Michelin 3-star restaurant housed in the iconic Cavalieri hotel. Located on top of the Monte Mario hill, on the outskirts of Rome, the restaurant boasts an incredible view of over the Eternal City. The food was delicious, especially the pastas but rather expensive. You clearly pay for the location as much as for the food, so if you’re only into getting a good gastronomic meal there might be more interesting options from a quality price ratio standpoint.

Fois gras dish like a forest at La Pergola restaurant

ITINERARY DAY 2

Old Rome & Colosseo

For our second day, we had planned to explore the Colosseo, the Roman Forum, Capitoline Hill, the Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon and Piazza Navona.

After our 10 course dinner paired with 10 glasses of wine… at la Pergola, it was rather difficult to wake up early and be energetic… but we had planned to start with the Colosseum so we wanted to get there as early as possible to avoid the crowd. …Sooooo, long story short, the morning was difficult and we took a cab to get to the Colosseum. 

No wonder why the Colosseum, is the biggest symbol of Rome. The iconic amphitheater is one of the most remarkable monuments in the world. Visited by more than 6 million people every year, the incredible 2000 years old monument will make you travel in time even better than the DeLorean does! It is the greatest roman amphitheater where more than 50 000 people could enjoyed the exhibitions of exotic animals, the battles of gladiators and the execution of prisoners. So many peaceful delights that erects the colosseum in 2007 as one of the Seven Wonders Of The Modern World 🙂

Street between the Roman Forum and the Colosseum

The first public meetings in the open-air Forum seem to have began around 500 B.C when the Roman Republic was created. Today the site attracts 4.5 million of visitors annually. We really liked it, the antiques are mysterious and camera ready!

Roman Forum taken from Capitoline Hill

It is one of the most beautiful areas of Rome. From here you can see an incredible combination of Renaissance architecture while looking out across monuments that are 2000 + years old. The Piazza del Campidoglio was designed by Michelangelo and it is just mesmerizing.

Capitoline Hill

The Baroque Style monument’s water is coming from the Acqua Vergine one of the oldest aqueducts in Rome! The fountain dedicated to Oceanus (the god of water) is really picturesque! 

Trevi Fountain

One of the biggest architectural masterpiece of all time, built by the emperor Hadrien (118 BC). No wonder why Tom Hanks in Angel and Demons was amazed when he first saw it!

Pantheon and the Fountain of the Pantheon

It is a very nice place with many terraces and artists (painters, street art)… Enjoy an aperitivo! Also Check out the Four Rivers Fountain built by Bernini. 

After such a lovely day, we came back to the hotel and were again so delighted when drinking a good fresh beer in our outdoor Jacuzzi!

We then had a magnificent diner at One star Michelin Glass Hostaria, situated in the lively Trastevere. 

Delightful desert at Glass Hostaria Restaurant

ITINERARY DAY 3

Freestyle & Shopping Time

We often like to have one day of buffer, in order to see what we didn’t get the chance to see, or in order to come back to the best places we visited undersuboptimal conditions…The weather was great during the first days of our trip and we were quite happy with our photos, we decided that it was time for us to chill a little bit, to wander in the streets of Rome without a « military planning »!

We started with the Piazza Di Spagna, we loved the lights, the ochre-colored buildings, the fountain done by Bernini, the steps towards the Santa Trinianta dei Monti’s church… the place makes you travel time in the 18th century!  The view after climbing the 135 steps is nice, not mind-blowing though. 

And it was time for Ally to enjoy some shopping time as the piazza is close to Gucci, Bulgari, Valentino…every brands that have made Italy the Epicenter of style!

We wandered in the area, going to via dei Condotti (the street has the greatest number of Rome-based Italian fashion retailers), via Margutta…

Piazza Di Spagna (Spanish Steps)

Spending all our money in clothes eventually made us hungry, and we decided to go to Da Francesco, which came in highly recommended by our Roman friends. The piazza where the restaurant sits is really authentic, with old roman playing chess outside while smoking cigars, but the restaurant by itself is doesn’t look really fancy with it’s plastic garden chairs on the terrace. From a food standpoint though, it was simply the best trattoria we have done in Rome, and maybe in Italy!

Delicious Pizza 🍕 at Da Franscesco (Fico)

ALSO SEE

Stuff We Regretted Not Doing

So, to conclude, we are not going to tell you that our itinerary was perfect, and we’ll tell you what we could have done to improve it further. If you have some extra time make sure to check out these:

Appia Antica (one of the oldest road that connected Rome to the rest of Italy), the Catacombs, the Baths of Caracalla, Santa Maria della Concezione crypt, The Mouth of Truth, the Pyramid of Cestius, Ostia Antica and the circo Massimo.

For the most beautiful panoramic views over Rome, you should definitely check out these 3 places:

The Villa Borghese: close to the Spanish Steps and Piazza Del Popolo, the gardens are considered the green lungs of the city. The place is very peaceful and perfect for a stroll, especially since there is a limited amount of people who can visit at the same time (you have to make an advance booking). Fountains, lakes, museums, there are many things you can enjoy there like the Galleria Borghese with its numerous Italian masterpieces, Temple of Asclepius which sits in the middle of an artificial lake (I think you can even rent a small boat), the Pincio Terrace which gives you one of the nicest viewpoint over the city (ideal for a beautiful sunset picture!), the piazza di Sienna… You could spend easily a day there if you have time.

Giardino Degli Aranci (the Orange Garden). Close to the Colosseum the garden is considered to be one of the most romantic places in The City of Love. It is located on the Aventine Hill and also provides a stunning view over Rome and Vatican Dome. The trees make the place picturesque with the symmetrical with the central path leading to the viewpoint over Rome and its iconic dome and photogenic trees on each side. Before entering the gardens, make sure to checkout the insta-famous Aventine Keyhole, which is literally a keyhole that you can look into which gives you a sneak peak of the view you can get from the garden. Only, through the hole trees are perfectly aligned with the dome for an interesting perspective. To see it go on Via di Santa Sabina, pass the gardens until you reach the end of the street. There you can’t miss the people lined up in front of the door!

Janiculum hill (Gianicolo): Another spot famous for its incredible view over Rome. Make your way up the hill either by foot if you are courageous or if you feel the need to exercise after a pizza and a gelato. Alternatively you can go by car or vespa. The place is touristy so be prepared to meet a lot of tourists and vendors but still worth it given the view over the Palazzo Venezia, Spanish Steps… If you liked the movie la Grande Bellezza you can check out the Fontana dell’Acqua Paola there.

We were quite frustrated sometimes because the places were crowded with tourists and wished we’d have taken one of the more exclusives tours which give you access to visit before opening to the public or after. For the Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel you can check out this tour visit the Sistine Chapel before it opens to public, it is pricey but next time we will definitely try it.

One other thing that we regretted not to do is taking a cooking lesson. We do that very often on holidays and we are so fond of Italian food that this was definitely a miss.

On the food side, one things that could have been interesting was to go to the Campo de’Fiori, literally “the field of flowers”. Is a place you should check out if you like fresh food markets. The market seems to take place everyday from Mondays to Saturdays,. So if you need to source fresh ingredients for your Italian recipes, you can try it The square is not far from the famous Piazza Navona.