Can you spend a week in Rome and have enough to do? Yes indeed, more than enough in fact! Planning takes time and we're here to help you plan the perfect adventure for you and your family or friends. Here's a day in the life of our perfect Roman holiday...
We decided to make our home base for the week in an amazing apartment in the Monti neighborhood which abuts the colosseum, forum and palatine hills. It's so helpful to have an apartment with a little kitchen in order to be able to make an easy breakfast and hit the ground running each day, especially in a city with as much to see as Rome!
First stop of the day: the Domus Aurea. We donned our hardhats and took the guided tour through the underground excavations of Nero's Golden Palace, well a few dozen rooms that have been excavated anyways. It was cold, dark and fascinating. There was a virtual reality room where we put on the goggles and were transported back in time which gave an incredible idea of what this palace must have looked like 2000 years ago. After the tour we found a sandwich shop (Pane & Vino) and had delicious paninis before heading to the Forum.
The line at the Forum was at least an hour long even though I had already pre-purchased our tickets so we found another entrance to the Palatine Hill (on Via D San Gregorio) and explored that first. It was heavenly walking up to the top of the hill - the sun was hot and the views were incredible. It was all a verdant green and provided a relaxing haven above the hubbub of the city. We began an audio tour we had downloaded as we walked down the hill which brought us to the perfect starting point in the Forum (Arch of Titus). What a perfect way to do explore the Forum - we all started at the same time on our phones and it took us through all the highlights, explaining the history and putting everything in context. We loved every minute of it and were completely riveted throughout!
We had to backtrack to leave the Forum (exit at Capitoline Hill was closed) and wind our way towards the Victor Emmanuel monument which we circled around to get to the grand staircase up to Campidoglio Square and the Capitoline Hill museums. The square was gorgeous and the museums were incredibly interesting.
We left the museum and strolled down the main Via Dei Fori Imperiale which was free of cars for the day and back to the apartment at 6:00. We relaxed for an hour before heading back out to a very delightful meal (Cuoco & Camicia). We had very unusual dishes that we certainly couldn't get anywhere else and everyone was adventuresome and happy. We made it back home almost hitting the 12 mile mark so a successful day all around!
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