Need itinerary in Rome
 

We will be arriving in Rome 1 day prior to joining our tour group and want to "hit the ground running" by seeing the few things not included on our trip.
We will be staying at the Hotel Caravel on via Cristoforo Colombo along bus route 714. Our only "must sees" for that day (Monday) are the Vatican, Trevi fountain, and the Spanish Steps. We can leave our hotel at about noon and want to visit the Vatican first. (The others are not time sensative). We'd appreciate the best way to get from on place to another, the cost of transportation & entrance fees to Vatican, travel time between places, and about how long seeing only these attractions might take. PLEASE DO NOT INCLUDE PEOPLE WATCHING time, or gelato stops, we'll have plenty of time to do that later. Also, how do I get the bus back to the hotel?
Thanks,

Well, what is your tour group covering? We need to know that before we can suggest things that it does not cover.

Our tour is covers most of the major attractions in Rome, but not enough time in the Vatican. Our daughter only wants to see the Fountain & the Steps. Thanks for your interest, but I only need the transportation info.

The metro is a quick and cheap way to get around Rome. You can buy a day-pass that lets you ride the metro all day with the same ticket. I believe it also covers city buses (or am I confusing Rome with another city?). You will need to check with the TI when you get to Rome to get the latest information on metro and bus schedules, as this can change frequently and guidebooks can't keep up. This site can give you some trip times and costs:
http://www.atac.roma.it/

I have found taxis to be surprisingly affordable in Rome. I take them almost exclusively in the summer because they have AC.

For the Vatican Museum, it may be a good idea to take this guided tour for 20 euro. You can reserve on-line and avoid waiting in lines in addition to getting an english tour.

http://selectitaly.com/museums.php?p...;product_id=38

The Trevi Fountain & Spanish Steps are walk by sights. Take some photos and move on. I assume the Forum, Coliseum, Pantheon, etc will be included in your tour. The Forum is an incredible sight. Hope you will get to the Borghese Gallery too. Enjoy!