Older traveler in Rome and Florence
 

Any tips for how to make the long walks easier?
Places to go that don't require long walks?

Thanks for your tips. We (my daughter and I) are staying centrally in both Rome and Florence.

Linda

For Florence, you do have to be careful of the small sidewalks in some areas, and the uneven pavement. A good thing is that Florence is small and most everything is very central, and there are more and more pedestrian only areas - Florence is like a village compared to Rome. I would definitely plan more carefully for Rome and maybe take a bus or taxi to a general area where you can fit several things in at once without having to walk too far at one time.

Without knowing where you are staying or what you plan to see, it's impossible to suggest routes or shortcuts.

I don't know what you consider a long walk. Things in the historic center of Rome are close to each other: Trevi Fountain to Pantheon to Piazza Navona is about a quarter-hour at a normal walking pace.

Buses go everywhere in Rome, and the little electric buses are particularly useful:
http://www.atac.roma.it/files/doc.asp?r=9

A single ticket costs 1 Euro; a one-day pass costs 4 Euro; a three-day pass costs 11 Euro.

In Rome you can also use a taxi to travel between places. Of course, it does not help you once you get to spread out places like the Palatine Hills.

In Florence, what you are doing, staying in the center, is a good strategy.

I agree that central Florence is so small you don't have to worry about long walks. If you want to go to San Miniato al Monte you can take a bus up and down. Otherwise, it's all right close together. And there are plenty of cafes where you can stop and rest a little and watch the people go by.

In Rome, go to the nearest museum and but a Roma Pass which gives you cheaper entry into a lot of sites, and also bus travel. If you stay around Piazza Navona/Pantheon/Campo de' Fiore, you will be very close to the Corso (Corso Vittorio Emmanuele) where many buses run, and it's also not far to Largo Argentina, which is a big transfer point. Get a map of Central Rome and you can see what I mean.

I forgot to say that DH and I are in our 70s and we found both cities quite doable.

Linda, my ideas might be too general, but I learned a few things when I took my Mom to these cities a few years ago.

Zerlina's suggestion of using the little electric buses in Rome is excellent. You can buy tickets cheaply in the little tobacco stores you'll find everywhere; the buses run all through the historic centre and can save your legs -- especially if you're heading up to the Galleria Borghese! We also used taxis a fair bit, they're relatively cheap and again, can save your legs and energy for more important things. Even taking a cab just one way can be a help.

Don't rush. And don't over-extend yourself. It can be so exhausting if you plan to see several sites in a day, and then rush around madly trying to do everything in your plan. (I'm really bad for doing this!) If you begin to tire, give yourself a break; sit in an cafe for a half-hour and relax. And use the bathroom -- wherever you see one, even if you don't think you really need a bathroom break! It might be a while before you find the next bathroom. (Or a lot of wasted energy looking for one!)

Drink a lot of water. Even if it's not roasting hot weather, becoming dehydrated really saps one's energy and makes everything seem harder.

Get good maps and think carefully about where you want to go; plan your route to limit the liklihood of getting lost or backtracking. That said, sometimes the most wonderful things can be discovered when you get lost -- perhaps something even better than what you were looking for originally.

Pack extra shoes -- sometimes even favourite old shoes can unexpectedly turn on you, leading to blisters. Have a few backup pairs.

And have a wonderful time!