To do in Rome... NYE

Just_here

Hey,

Myself and best friend heading to Rome for week arriving on NYE- never been there before and really need suggestions especially for NYE and new years day- bars or nightclubs or anyone know if anything special happening!!!Any other activites anyone would recommend for rest trip?Best things to see or do?Want to fit in as much as possible!!

Thanks

heinze

hiya,
i went to rome in march this year for 3 days, and found it to be the best european city i have visited by far. there are so much things to see and we found they were all within walking distance. the vatican to the collosseum is the longest walk but still only takes 25 mins walking through the streets.

its a great place to walk around the old streets and check out all the little restaurants, shops and bars. try to avoid the cafes on the main tourist streets as they are a bit more pricey than the ones youll find just off the beaten track. but in general i found the food to be less expensive than here. the drinks are about the same or more expensive but nothin major. the food was always great too..

check out the sunset walking tour from eden walks , he was really good but make sure to do it before you wander around yourself as we found out we had seen most things before the tour, but it was still really nice. could be a bit colder in december though.

spent one nite , in an irish bar called Scholars Lounge Rome, good craic, and a big crowd too. but the local bars are good for nice food and a laugh too.

enjoy anyway, i cant wait to go back .

SoupyNorman

When/if you want to go see the Vatican Museum (Sistine Chapel) make sure you go early in the morning, I'm talking 7am or so as the queue is constantly huge.
The week I was there the museum closed at 1pm every day. The queue was so long when I came out that people would be still queuing not aware that they were not going to get in. (Maybe check the opening times before you go)

Secondly! When I was there a couple of years ago there were rogue tour guides that operated outside the Vatican Museum and Colluseum. They basically offer you a guide through the attraction and their price includes the ticket. Now they were legit and for the Colluseum I agreed as being part of their group we were allowed skip the 2hour queue and the guide was quite informative as you are basically in a ruin, total cost for that was about €20....however the same crowd were looking for about €40 per person at the Vatican Museum and by god I'm glad I didnt part with my cash then as the Vatican Museum is the most awe inspiring sight I have ever seen, you dont need a guide as there is so much to see, there were poor saps everywhere that were getting a lecture on every little artifact. You can rent electronic hand held talking guides for less then €10, every exibit has a number so you can choose what you want info on.


Sorry for that long post but I think the small tips like that go a long way!


Other then that you dont need to know much, Rome really is an incredible city...even the shabbiest of streets look amazing.

Just_here

Fantastic- thanks so much!!!! Really looking forward to it now! If there are any more suggestions they would be really be appreciated!!
Thanks:)

fonzy157

Hi,
Absolutley love Rome!Its really stunning, just wander around the streets and you'll see loads of incredible sights!
I was there for NYE 2 years ago. We headed to the spanish steps.Its was packed, everyone singing/dancing/drinking and it was great craic.Fireworks aswell!

Just_here

Deadly- Spanish steps sounds fantastic for new years eve- suggestions for locations for drinks and dancing for rest trip and any other suggestions be much appreciated too.....:D

Anouilh

A fabulous city. Much more relaxed than Paris or London.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055658541&page=3

There are quite a few people who have uploaded photos and tips for what to see.

a_chara

Agree spanish steps is prob best area for nightlife, when we were there there was also reps down there selling bar crawls etc. Sounds cheesy but they're handy because they bring you to around a few pubs and on to a club -it's not like an ayia napa yoke or anything you can pretty much do what you like and they give you a shout when they're moving to the next place - you prob be wandering around aimless otherwise.
We found that most of the bars around the centre are pretty much usual resturaunt type bars in most european cities - grand for a quite drink. Irish bar is grand for a few as well, place never seemed to close when we were there.

During the day you should get the open top bus, it's a cool city just to look at. Main attractions are coliseum & forum, basilca and vatican, museum, trevi fountain - check out the panteon around the corner also.

Really interesting city. Good luck with it.

BellaRoma

Hi,
Thought you might want to check out this Note on Facebook regarding NYE in Rome. Great atmosphere and lots of fun! Definitely the place to be.

http://www.facebook.com/note.php?created&&note_id=160115830698268&id=124022604287423#!/notes/odyssey-tours/how-is-new-years-eve-celebrated-in-rome/160115830698268

Have a ball but remember it will be cold!! Lots of fun bars open in the centre after the concerts at Piazza del Popolo finish up.

thegoth

All I will say is get this tour http://www.viator.com/tours/Rome/Skip-the-Line-Vatican-Museums-Walking-Tour-including-Sistine-Chapel-Raphaels-Rooms-and-St-Peters/d511-3731VATICAN

Its not cheap, but well worth it. Best way to see the vatican. Loads of stories about everything you see

NightStrike

Check out the Scholar's Lounge bar when you're there, great craic, food and drink. If you google it you'll get the location although it is quite central.

serenacat

How is the shopping in Rome?

rossie1977

romes a great city but i wouldn't really recommend it for nye, i was there for nye in 2005 and compared to the huge party/events hosted by most major european cities its not comparable at all, the only good thing is that you will be sober on the morning of january 1st and beat the queues in places like sistine chapel, colosseum

be very careful walking around rome at 12am, romans set off their own fireworks where they stand, one missed me by inches and blew up barely inches from my feet

HavingCrack

One thing to be wary of on NYE in Rome-fireworks. Seriously Romans are crazy. They aim their fireworks at passers by :eek:. I've relatives who live there and they say the amount of people injured on New Years Eve from fireworks is really high.

Rot

Hi,
there will be a gorgeus happening in Rome on 31th December at Aleph Hotel.
You can see the place at

http://www.boscolohotels.com/ita/hotels/aleph/hotel-5-stelle-roma.htm?gclid=CJKBts7fgqYCFUkhfAod8yX0rw

It is near the center, I found it in internet and I bought the ticket online.
You can have all informations at info@offcomunicazione.com!

S_Snail

its a great place to walk around the old streets and check out all the little restaurants, shops and bars. try to avoid the cafes on the main tourist streets as they are a bit more pricey than the ones youll find just off the beaten track. but in general i found the food to be less expensive than here. the drinks are about the same or more expensive but nothin major. the food was always great too..

I would agree with this, walking around the streets is the best way to see Rome, try to get to the Jewish Ghetto its really nice and has a lot of places to eat.

Trastevere was recommended to me for night life but I never made it over there. I personally didn't like the area around the Spanish steps, there were too many people trying to sell you things and the restaurants were much more expensive than those elsewhere.

If you have time go out to the Appian Way or out on the train to Ostia Antica.

Enjoy,
S