Fodor's Expert Review San Paolo fuori le Mura

One of Rome's most significant churches is a couple of Metro stops farther down Via Ostiense from Testaccio. Built in the 4th century AD by Constantine, over the site where St. Paul had been buried, the church was later enlarged, but in 1823 a fire burned it almost to the ground. Although the the location near the river can be dreary, and the outside lacks any real charm, the rebuilt St. Paul's is massive, second in size only to St. Peter's Basilica, and has a sort of monumental grandeur that follows the plans of the earlier basilica.

Highlights include the 272 roundels depicting every pope from St. Peter to Pope Francis (found below the ceiling, with spaces left blank for pontiffs to come) and the cloisters (€4), where you get a real sense of the magnificence of the original building. In the middle of the nave is the famous baldacchino created by sculptor Arnolfo di Cambio.