Rome

doyoumrjones

Hi

Was wondering does anyone have any advice for a trip to Rome? Was wondering is it good to book tours for the colosseum in advance and can anyone suggest a company to do so?

Also has anyone been to Ostia antica and how is the best way to get there?

coylemj

I wouldn't bother booking a tour for the Coliseum, just go there (metro station Colosseo) and walk around. It's basically a big ruin, full of wild cats and you can explore at your leisure. Stay away from the guys dressed up as legionnaires, they are there for the purposes of jumping into your photos and then aggressively demanding money.

You need to mind how you dress if you want to get into St. Peters, have your shoulders covered and generally dress conservatively. Wear good shoes, Rome is like New York, you will do a lot of walking. Be warned - the metro stations are dirty and reek of soot.

ollaetta

Ostia Antica is amazing. Went there 3 years ago and it was one of the highlights of our Rome trip.

It's very easy and cheap to get there. Take the metro to Piramide stop and change to the mainline rail station across the road. Trains leave here every 15/20 minutes to Lido and Ostia has its own station along the way. Journey is half and hour or so and it costs something like two quid!

sarkozy

If you want to get into St. Peter's and the Vatican, go really early. The queues can be mental.

Indeed, lots of walking is required for Rome, which isn't a bad thing entirely. There are, of course, many, many excellent places to eat quite cheaply (Roman local dish is 'cacio e pepe' - pasta with grated pecorino cheese and lots of cracked black pepper).

Try to be aware of whether public transport routes are not running, and ask if there are major protests/strikes happening. It helps with planning and avoiding disappointment.

Don't stay anywhere near the train station.

I wouldn't say it's my favourite city, but Trastevere was our saviour. The only place with real nightlife. We're not clubbers or bar flies, but crave atmosphere, which is severely lacking in the rest of the city.

clumsyklutz

We didn't book in advance of our trip to Rome for the collosseum, however the place we stayed in reserved our tickets the day before we went to the collosseum. It saves so much time too, as the queues were quite literally out the door. Check with your hotel, they may offer this service (it is a quick phone call)

You go to the reservations desk with your reservation num and they print the tickets out for you.

We also had the added benefit of a reduced fare as we were under 25 which was I think 7 euro instead of 12.50.

The ticket is valid for two days for one entry to the collosseum, forum and palatine hill, so it's great value for money!

nudger

sarkozy wrote: »

If you want to get into St. Peter's and the Vatican, go really early. The queues can be mental.

Indeed, lots of walking is required for Rome, which isn't a bad thing entirely. There are, of course, many, many excellent places to eat quite cheaply (Roman local dish is 'cacio e pepe' - pasta with grated pecorino cheese and lots of cracked black pepper).

Try to be aware of whether public transport routes are not running, and ask if there are major protests/strikes happening. It helps with planning and avoiding disappointment.

Don't stay anywhere near the train station.

I wouldn't say it's my favourite city, but Trastevere was our saviour. The only place with real nightlife. We're not clubbers or bar flies, but crave atmosphere, which is severely lacking in the rest of the city.

Why?

I will be staying in the Termini area near the station.

nudger

doyoumrjones wrote: »

Hi

Was wondering does anyone have any advice for a trip to Rome? Was wondering is it good to book tours for the colosseum in advance and can anyone suggest a company to do so?

Also has anyone been to Ostia antica and how is the best way to get there?

Another thread that might help, when are you thinking of going?

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055670061

murria

I have beena few times and would highly recommend the free walking tour. It's at 5.30 every day from Piazza di Spagna outside the Yeats museum at the bottom of the Sanish Steps. Our guide was Andrea and he gave us an excellent tour which lasted over 2 hours, you just give adonation at the end.

http://www.newromefreetour.com/rome-free-walking-tour

As someone else said I wouldn't bother booking for the Colosseum, if the queue is long there just walk back to the Forum or Palatine Hill (they are all together) and buy your ticket, it covers all three areas.

If you want to do the Vatican you can book online. We went to buy tickets for next day and were told at the booking office it wasn't possible. We walked round the corner to an internet cafe and booked them online for the following morning!

naughtysmurf

nudger wrote: »

Why?

I will be staying in the Termini area near the station.

Termini isn't the nicest part of the city,

Mind your wallet / purse / cash, pickpockets are rife especially on the Metro, Buses & market areas

Sheldons Brain

Termini isn't the nicest part of the city,

A large proportion of hotels are here and the city side of Termini generally is fine.

OkayWhatever

I went to Rome a few weeks ago and loved it. I stayed about 10 mins walk from the station and found it fine. I did go to the Colosseum but bought my tickets in the Forum too so saved a good bit of time, I wouldn't bother with a tour.

And as a previous poster said about covering up going to St Peter's, they take it very seriously, I got refused entry which was very annoying after queuing. So even just bring a small cardigan in your bag to cover your shoulders, I doubt the weather at this time of year permits shorts!

Rome looks amazing at night, but do be careful and keep an eye on your belongings, at all times, not just at night. Trevvi Fountain, Colosseum and the Vatican all look lovely in the dark and all lit up.

Rome is a beautiful city and would definitely recommend walking around it as much as possible. I don't think using metros a lot is necessary but I would be very keen walking around exploring although I understand some people aren't as keen.


Enjoy your trip and the epic coffee

nudger

Buongiorno from Rome.

Got in yesterday, great city from what I've seen of it so far.

tip no 1, don't buy your bus ticket to Termini in advance or on the flight, just go outside to where the busses are and go up to the guys who work the queues and they will sell you a ticket there for the next bus leaving.

There are 5 or 6 bus companies and if you have a ticket for 1 your stuck with that company.

Bought ours on Ryanair like the other 100 so had to get into that queue.

Termini (Via Cavour) area is fine no problems with pickpockets so far.:)

Thargor

ollaetta wrote: »

Ostia Antica is amazing. Went there 3 years ago and it was one of the highlights of our Rome trip.

It's very easy and cheap to get there. Take the metro to Piramide stop and change to the mainline rail station across the road. Trains leave here every 15/20 minutes to Lido and Ostia has its own station along the way. Journey is half and hour or so and it costs something like two quid!

I know this is an old thread but it was this tip that made me look into Ostio Antica this morning when I was looking for stuff for us to do and I wanted to say thanks, absolutely amazing and I'd never even heard of the place, just spent about 6 hours there.

It started off kind of pessimistic with the grubby metro to the middle of nowhere and inside the gates its just holes in the ground and indistinguishable mounds in an old cemetery but when you get into the main ruins it's absolutely incredible, way better than most of Rome imo. Best of all was it was completely deserted, you'd run into the odd person here or there but apart from that you had whole Roman streets and buildings to yourself with no tourists ruining your pics.

Highlight of the trip for me tbh, it's an absolute must see, better than Pompeii.