My fiance tells me that 6 days in Rome is not going to be long enough. I think he is wrong. I think it will be plenty. Any suggestions?

Where are you thinking of going/doing next? Maybe 4 will do?

Long enough for what? We've now spent about four or five weeks total in Rome and still have things we want to do. But if you are limited, you can do a lot in three or four days -- even more in 6 days.
I'm not sure what you are asking.

Hi M,

For some it is not enough, for others it is too much.

If you are going to argue about your honeymoon, what will the rest of your marriage be like?

Well, i really just want to make sure we see all the MAJOR attractions. I dont want to miss out on anything, but I think we could do it in 4 days, but fiance says we need 8 days.

If it's a honeymoon trip, depending on how much time you will have, I would consider spending some of it on the Amalfi Coast.

In 8 days in Rome you can see just about everything you've ever heard of, cover the main museums in detail and still have time for a daytrip or two outside Rome.

No one can tell you how much time YOU need to see what you want to see.

Maybe you two need to sit down and make a list of what you want to see and how detailed you want it to be and that will help you decide. What is the rest of your trip? Is Rome the only place you are going or do you have the same question about the other destinations as well? How much time total do you have to work with?

Buy a guidebook. Each of you highlight the activities/places you'd like to go - break these into MUST visit and WOULD LIKE TO visit. Then determine how many you could get through in a day - and how many days it will take. And there's your answer.

I'm going in a month, and the two guidebooks I bought have itineraries ranging from 3 days to 7 days. You have to discuss with each other what you want to see, what he wants to see, and go from there.

As above, you two should sit and make a list of what you want to see. And make a preliminary itinerary day by day. You better than any of us can answer your own question.

For me, huge busy cities can get on my nerves, so I'd keep it to a couple of days then move on to more laid-back settings. But that's just me.

You still haven't explained exactly how long your total honeymoon will be. If you spend more time in Rome, does that mean you'll be spending less elsewhere?
More details, please.

Well we have 10 days 6 in Rome and 3 in Florence, then probably 1 day in Siena or some other day trip.

Why not compromise and make it 5 (I know not a compromise from his P.O.V.)

That leaves, 1 day for being jet-lagged where you can just wander the Piazza Novona/Campo del fiori area, 3 days for sight seeing in Rome, and 1 day for the Vatican.

I agree that you two need to get some guide books, and make list of everything you want to see, then separate the list into MUST DO and "would like to do." To determine how much/little time you'll need.
I assume you've already accounted for your flights into & out of Italy?

6 days in Rome kills me, but DH could stay longer. In 6 days, I saw a woman hit by a car, a guy attepting suicide from a second story window, and more. I was exhausted! DH, however, found it all quite exciting. He always asks for longer stays when we go to Rome. I think after several trips, 3 or 4 nights is right for me.

I really like Rome, but it wears me out. It is a big busy city with a lot of eccentricities. I like cities, but I like some quieter times on vacation, too.

I think the compromise of 5 would be perfect. Do 3 in Florence, and maybe 2 seeing Siena and San Gimignano.

What time of year?

We had only 3 days in Rome several years ago - after a long haul flight from Australia. This was the beginning of a longer (mainly) Italy trip.
While I could spend months/years in Rome, in 3 days we did see a lot and without rushing about like lunatics. We found Rome to be incredibly accessible and not in the least stressful and we live in a pretty quiet part of Aust. In 6 days you could certainly do most/all of the major sites in a relatively leisurely manner- especially if you stay in a central location.

Hi Mayerfan,

On my last trip, I was in Rome for 5 1/2 days. I am a fairly ambitious sightseer, here's what I accomplished:

1/2 day tour Antique Roma
1/2 day tour Arte Vaticano
Nero's Golden Palace
St. Peter's + climb dome
Galleria Borghese & gardens
Spanish Steps
Fontana Trevi
Piazza Navona
Cat Sanctuary
Santa Maria Maggorie
Santa Maria Sopra Minerva
San Pietro in Vincoli
Pantheon
Via Veneto shopping
day trip to Tivoli for Hadrian's Villa and Villa d'Este
laundromat adventure

Maybe that will give you some ideas!

Buon viaggio!

If you and your hubby-to-be can't work out how long to stay in Rome, perhaps you ought to be rethinking the whole marriage thing?

Anyhow, I think that the answer depends upon the total length of the honeymoon and the relative importance of Rome to the other honeymoon destination(s). In four days, you can easily see all the "major" Roman tourist sites. In six days, you also could spend serious time in the Vatican Museum and throw in a day trip to Ostia Antica. Eight days will give you the opportunity to really start to understand the culture of Rome.

In the end, you have to decide what you really want to do -- the choices and permutations are endless.

What we don't know (and you certainly don't need to tell us) is how much "hotel time" is factored in, since this is your honeymoon. If you're only planning to tour half the day, you'll need 6 days.

I think the amount of time spent in Rome depends on how many churches you want to go into. We spent 6 days in Rome and saw lots of churches. But had we limited our church visits to the Vatican and the Pantheon (if you even count that as a church) and eliminated the Papal Audience, we could have seen the rest in 4 days.

I can't imagine an Italian honeymoon, that doesn't include a few days in Venice.

DH and I always debate how long to spend in each place. It is part of the give and take of marriage. It is natural that we are separate individuals who have our own preferences and marriage is the art of compromise. I don't understand the people who allude to this not boding well for the future...

Anyway, Rome is wonderful but a little overwhelming. If you have 10 days, I would recommend spending at least 2 or 3 days in a smaller city (you mentioned Siena) or in the countryside. When we have 10 days, we usually spend 7 in Tuscany and 3 in Rome (4 would be better, but villas usually rent by the week). This is probably more country time than most people would like.

You can stay in Siena and take a day trip to Florence.

Don't worry too much. You will probably love everywhere in Italy.

My take on this is that it totally depends on what pace you want to maintain. If you want to sightsee all day every day, and your main priority is seeing all the sights, a shorter time may do. If you want to take a more relaxed pace and allow for a lot of down time, a longer time would be better. And as a side benefit, the city might seem less overwhelming with more time to include the things you want to see.

That said, since you want to spend time in Florence and Tuscany, it seems to me that you can't really make the Rome stop any longer. And in six days even at a fairly relaxed pace, you will be able to see quite a bit.

There is more to see in Rome than any other place I have ever been. You don't have to see it all, but it's nice to know it's all there.