My husband and I are fortunate to add 4 days of vacation to a business trip over next weekend IN ROME!! As first time visitors,but knowing it's the off season, can any one help with: what sites may be closed, will resteruants/stores have different hours, how about the metro? Any general advise about Rome in January? Thanks!

How wonderful for you both. <BR><BR>Here are some site which should answer many of your questions very quickly and which I found extremely helpful in planning our trip:<BR><BR>Museum Information: http://www.museionline.it/eng/cerca/default.htm<BR><BR>Welcome Rome: http://www.alfanet.it/welcomeItaly/roma/ (maps, neighborhoods, bus info, etc.)<BR><BR>Travel Tips: http://www.experienceitaly.com/Italy.Italy.whats_new_links.html<BR><BR>Rome: http://www.twenj.com/romevisit.htm<BR><BR>If you have any specific questions, write me. Have fun.

I don't know about January, but I went last February and had a wonderful time. Although we wore winter coats, they were always unzipped. All of the attractions were open. We did take a day trip to Pompeii and again, it was a great visit.<BR><BR>The underground train was a block from our hotel and it took us everywhere we wanted to go. Be prepared to walk. Most of the attractions are the outdoors type. There are very few benches except along the river.<BR><BR>Plan to spend at least one day at the Vatican (if you intend a visit). I actually wished we had gone on a second day since we missed alot of it. Try and see the 4 cathedrals - St. Peter's, St. Paul's, St. Mary's and St. John's. They are breathtaking.<BR><BR>Speaking of breathtaking - if you are in reasonably good health then go to the top of St. Peter's. Once you start your climb you cannot come back until you reach the top. The view is incredible.<BR><BR>Most stores close early - around 5:00 pm, except on Wednesday when they were opened until 7 or 8. Although we received many warnings about pickpockets, we found the city to be very safe. Of course, we were very careful by wearing a waist bag/fanny pack. <BR><BR>There are many stores to exchange money. Note that each store will have a different exchange rate and the rates change daily. The euro is very easy to use and the exchange rate is pretty much dollar = euro.<BR><BR>A few things notable differences. First, most restaurants do not open until 7:00 pm. Most days we did not want to eat that early so we ended up with sandwiches. Next, there was not a vegetable to be found, except in the sandwiches. For example, you could order a fish or meat dish but they did not have vegetables available. They seem to favor spinich sandwiches. I lost 15 pounds in Rome. The pasta was orange or lemon flavored and not to my liking.<BR><BR>Rome is on the top of my list for return visits. I felt so comfortable there I could easily have taken up residence. Oh, we did not find speaking english to be a problem. The Italians are so friendly they helped you speak italian and you helped them with english.<BR><BR>Enjoy.

Hi,<BR>I really enjoy going to Rome in the off-season. It is not crowded, not hot, and you should easily be able to go wherever you like without much of a wait. The only restaurant I tried to go to that was closed was Tre Scalini. I believe it's closed through the entire month of January. I was able to wear a raincoat with a zip-in woolen lining, and it was sufficient. I also packed &quot;light layers&quot;. The large department store on via del Corso is the only one I know of that had different hours in winter, but in general, everything was available when I wanted or needed it.<BR><BR>I had no objections to the pasta or any part of any meal in Rome. I'd recommend Giolitti for gelato, and La Rosetta, and the Bucca di Ripetta at 36 via di Ripetta. The last of these is closed on Mondays, and only open on Sundays from noon until three. Not sure on the hours for Giolitti or La Rosetta.<BR><BR>&quot;Regular sites&quot;, like the Vatican Museum, the Borghese Gallery, etc., as far as I know do not have abbreviated winter hours.<BR><BR>The Metro is a terrific way to travel. I stayed near the Spanish Steps and took the Metro to the Vatican (I also walked there another day, it was fine) and to San Giovanni Laterno. If you have a day with very clear weather, it might be good to go to either of these two places for a view of the Roman skyline: the top of Castel Sant Angelo or the coffee shop at the top of the Vittorio Emmanuelle Monument (the last building is called &quot;The Wedding Cake&quot; by many Romans, or simply &quot;The Vittoriano&quot;.<BR><BR>I hope you have a really lovely time!<BR><BR>Buon Viaggio,<BR>BC

Vegetables are readily available in Roman restaurants, but you have to order them separately. They are listed as &quot;contorni.&quot;

Have dinner one night at Orso80 (see Rants'and Raves) and order the mixed antipasto as your first course. You will have more veggies than you can imagine as well as other wonderful delicacies. We counted 14 different plates, all for one low price, for the WHOLE TABLE (whether there is one, two or six of you!). And as stated above, check out the &quot;contorni&quot; section of the menu.

I found the city buses to be just as useful if not moreso than the underground system. The subway was great for longer distances, though.

I was in Rome last month. The weather was awesome. I didn't wear a coat during the day. We did carry an umbrella a coupld of days, &quot;just in case,&quot; but it was not needed. <BR><BR>All sites we wanted to visit were open. We had no trouble finding places to eat, shop, etc... Metro hours were certainly sufficient to get us to the sites when they opened and to get us home at the end of the day. I don't know what time the metro actually quit running...

We just came back from 2 weeks in Italy and I would highly recommend going at this time of year. The weather was mild (Rome was 60 degrees) and it was not crowded at all the major sites.