Our 4 Night Draft itinerary in Rome
 

I've seen some great advice here so would love your help.
We plan on spending the last 4 nights of our 10 night Italy trip in Rome. Have i taken on too much each day or is this doable? Here is what I am thinking:

Night 1
Arrive 10:45 A.M by train
Hotel check in or drop off luggage
Lunch
Spanish Steps/Piazza Spagna
Piazza Barberini
Trevi Fountain
Piazza Colonna
Pantheon/Piazza d Rotonda
Dinner

Night 2
Piazza campo D. Fiore (fresh market
open only in a.m)
Walk past Piazza Navona to Castel
Sant' Angelo (Vatican area)
Lunch
Private 1-4:30 tour Vatican Museums/ Sistine Chapel (less crowded time since following day will be free Sunday)
St. Peter's Basilica
Piazza S. Maria Trastevere -Santa
Maria church - (Peter crucified )
Dinner at Trastevere or Jewish Ghetto

Night 3
Breakfast at hotel
Colosseum, Palatine Hill Roman Forum
San Pietro in Vincoli (across the street-
Michaelangelo's statute of Moses)
Capitoline Museum
Lunch
Villa Borghese Gallery (Bernini's Apollo
& Daphne)
Villa Borghese Park (dinner there/picnic?)
Dinner


Optional Night 4
Tivoli:
Tivoli (2 Villas)
Lunch in Tivoli
Rome Underground
Dinner in Rome

Or

Pompeii (leaning towards this option since I've heard Pompei is worth seeing. Not sure when we will be back in Italy.

2.5-3 hr trip to Pompeii
Lunch
3 hours in Pompeii
3 hour trip back
Dinner in Rome

>>>Night 3
Breakfast at hotel
Colosseum, Palatine Hill Roman Forum
San Pietro in Vincoli (across the street-
Michaelangelo's statute of Moses)
Capitoline Museum
Lunch
Villa Borghese Gallery (Bernini's Apollo
& Daphne)
Villa Borghese Park (dinner there/picnic?)
Dinner<<<

No way all that fits in one day. The Colosseum/Forum/Palantine will take all morning.

Tivoli would be all day also by the time you travel there and back.

Thank you! Sounds like if I cut out the Capitoline museum, the day should work. Or maybe I can push it back after lunch and take the latest apptmnt available at the Borghese gallery to do both?

"Walk past Piazza Navona"?

That's like saying "Walk past Times Square"!

You need to allow time to actually SEE the places you're visiting, not just 'pass thru".

I'd narrow your list to one major site per day (or 1/morning and 1/afternoon) and give yourself time to walk, enjoy a cafe', get lost, sit at fountains, etc.

Also, most of the places you want to see will have lines, security checks and will take time to get into. How are you getting around? Walking? Bus? Cab?
Take a look at a map of Rome to get an idea of where things are and plan your days so you're not doubling back and forth.

I think your schedule is very do-able other than maybe cutting out Capitoline museum. We were only there for 2 days plus one evening (3 nights total), and we did everything you listed except for Capitoline museum. We never felt rushed and even had time to just sit and relax in Villa Borghese, plus do a bit of shopping in the Spanish steps area. Other than venturing over to the Vatican, Rome is a compact and easily walkable city. Make sure you leave time just to walk around and explore without a plan. It's especially enchanting at night.

If you're going to the Vatican, definitely try arranging a Scavi Tour. I know there are other threads describing the details, but I think that was our favorite event in Rome. The Scavi Tour takes you under St. Peter's to show you St. Peter's tomb and the excavation of the necropolis that the Vatican is built on. SO COOL!

Also, try to book your Colosseum tour in advance, if you'd like to take a tour. Booking directly with the Colosseum was much much cheaper than using an outside group. For 18 Euro, we got to see the underground area where gladiators were kept, the 3rd floor and had a great tour guide. This price let us skip lines and also got us into the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill. I believe it's called pierrici. I'm in the process of writing up a trip report of my time in Rome, so I'll have more info there. Enjoy!

Thank you all for your comments! I am going to take book the colosseum and all tickets I can in advance including the Vatican tour. A friend of ours did Rome underground. Has anyone done that? I wonder if that is the same as the Scavi tour.

It could be the same as the Scavi tour but they could also mean the catacombs. Better ask your friends about their tour.

<<<A friend of ours did Rome underground. Has anyone done that? I wonder if that is the same as the Scavi tour.>>>

"Rome underground" could mean a number of things where you visit ruins still underground.

Like on your own with an admission fee, the lower levels of the San Clemente Church or the ruins beneath a modern theater near the Trevi Fountain.

And other sites either booked directly with the official site or thru a third-party like a tour company.
Example; 'Walks of Italy" Colosseum underground tour.

But from what I've read the St. Peter's Scavi Office will not except third-party for profit (TA, tour company, etc) bookings.
The excepts are non-profits like universities, churches, etc.

So it's unlikely your friend's "Rome underground" tour was the one under St. Peter's Basilica.

Rostra, thank you! My friend couldn't remember but when I looked up San Clemente, it's exactly what she described!