mcmomx4

Four children 13,11,9,7 in Rome for 4 nights...need some suggestions on:<BR><BR>1. Best gelato <BR><BR>2. Best family restaurant<BR><BR>3. Best evening activity<BR><BR>4. Best window shopping<BR><BR>5. Best outdoor market<BR><BR>6. Best &quot;fun fact to know and tell&quot;<BR><BR>Great help here on FODORs! Thank so much we are getting PUMPED!!!<BR><BR>mcmomx4

LeslieC

My kids were 10 and 12 when we were in Roma. But, the best Gelato my kids had in Roma was at Giolitti's, a few blocks of the Piazza della Rotonda (Pantheon). <BR><BR>As to restaurants with kids, well, the best one is the closest one with nice waiters (all we visited) and pasta/pizza on the menu, with minimal waiting when the kids are hungry. (In other words, timing is key so I would pick places you see while on the go, rather than reserving a time). Note: they tend not to begin serving dinner till 7:30 or 8:00 pm, so late afternoon snacks for the kids are a must.<BR><BR>Window shopping, well, we all liked the stroll down the via Condotti, starting at the Piazza di Spanga, but these shops are really not kid oriented, Gucci, etc. But we liked that it was a pedestrian-way so we got away from the noise of all the vespas. My kids favorite place to shop was from all the street vendors on the Piazza Navona, but for me, that was disappointing because it literally cluttered a beautiful piazza with trinket vendors.<BR><BR>In the evening, the Fontana di Trevi is lovely.<BR>

Grinisa

We brought our daughters, then ages 7 and 4, to Italy in Nov. of 2001 and will be returning with them in 10 days. At that time, they liked Giolitti's gelato very much but just about any gelato was fine with them. Pizzeria da Baffetto on Via Governo Vecchio 16, near Piazza Navona, was their favorite pizzeria and Dar Pallaro in Largo di Pallaro near Campo di Fiori their favorite restaurant. When we went in November, we ate between 7:30 and 9 and since it was pretty chilly at night, didn't stay out after that. But now we are looking forward to more evenings in the Piazzas and possibly one at the LUNA amusement park in EUR. There is pretty good window shopping on Via del Corso and your older kids might like to go into the huge music store there and the younger ones might like the large toy shop there too. There are two other toy shops on Piazza Navona, Al Sogno and Berte, that the younger kids might enjoy. Best outdoor market is Campo di Fiori. Go early in the morning. The seafood is still alive and wriggling on their bed of crushed ice. My girls were fascinated by this market. Make sure to stop into the Capuchin Crypt under the church of Santa Maria Concezione if your kids like scary things. There are chandeliers and other decorations made out of the bones of thousands of monks. A pretty &quot;fun&quot; fact. If you haven't already, pick up a copy of Fodor's &quot;Around Rome with Kids&quot; for some great suggestions on what to see and do and eat with kids in Rome.

MFNYC

There is gre gelato all over the place. My favorite family restaurant is Mario's on Via del Moro i Trestavere. It is very inexpensive with excellent food. It's loaded with local Italian families. Piazza Navona is nice in the evening, all the fountains are lit. There are street artists and musician (day and night). It's very lively. We didn't do much shopping but my daughter liked the stores along via del corso. Many shops with 'teen' type cloths. In the piazza Navona area there are also lots of little estores with mostly little souvenier type things. In the evenings in Trestavere, there are people outdoors selling jewelry and other little things. If you need a break and the kids are high energy, have them count the spanish steps. My kids went up and down twice counting and never got the same answer.

elaine

Feb 2001 Fodor's forum: L’ARCHETTO, via dell’Archetto 26, phone 06 6789064, just south of the Trevi Fountain; &quot;a bargain haven for spaghetti with 67 varieties of sauces, from the exotic to the mundane. I paid about $18 for a small half-bottle of wine, a fabulous bruschetta with salmon and mozzarella, spaghetti Nikita (also very cheesy—I’m a cheese nut), and gelato. This cozy place came recommended by the wonderful Sandra Gustafson of “Cheap Eats” fame… &quot; <BR><BR>Open for lunch, and for dinner from 7pm to midnight.<BR>close to the Trevi fountain and Piazza Venezia. You can sit outside in fine weather.<BR><BR>For an outdoor market that is literally colorful, go to Campo dei'Fiori in the morning--fruits, vegetables, and flowers.

mcmomx4

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Weadles

There's a great series of books put out by Fodors for the major European cities, entitled ROME WITH KIDS, LONDON WITH KIDS, etc. These have been a big hit with my family, and proved to be a great source of information.

capo

Another vote for Marios in Trastevere! We loved it.

cmeyer54

Gelato - Blue Moon. We were in Rome last summer with 2 teenagers and giolitte wouldn't let us sit at a table inside unless we were ordering more than Gelatto. Family restaurant - we like a little cafe right at Campo di Fiori but also liked Mario's near the forum; Evening activity - loved the night walking tour wiht Eden tours. You'll have more than enough fun facts when that is done and you'll get a Gelatto stop as well. Our tour guide was from Florida and there doing some academic translations Window shopping - any little side streets but for upscale stuff you'll need to browse by Spanish Steps. For an outdoor market, go to Campo Fiori but arrive early in the day as they will close up by mid afternoon.

julie_Colorado

We stayed in Trastevere - and ate all all meals here. Each restaurant was wonderful and not touristy. And they each were very obliging of my children.<BR>The worst gelato we had in Rome was wonderful. And at night - we just liked to wander. Go with the flow - your kids will like everything about Rome.

raerose

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mcmomx4

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Iregeo

Hi mcmomx4. We returned from our trip to Italy 1 week ago and I am happy to report that every place we went happily welcomed my 11 year old son. In fact, just last night I asked him which meal he liked best in Italy and to my suprise, he chose the fanciest one we ate at because he liked the proprietors so much! (Spirito di Vino in Trastevere)

At night, he liked the Pantheon area, but do go at least once early enough to see the interior, which is closed at night.

The best gelato he found was the one we were in front of when he wanted gelato -they're everywhere and he's not an afficionado.

Unfortunatley for us, the window shopping he liked best was at the souvenir stands. We saw each one between Rome and Venice!

Have a great trip!

Sylvia

There was a recent feature about this subject in Sunday's Observer.

Sorry about long URL
http://www.observer.co.uk/travel/sto...944109,00.html

mcmomx4

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