We are planning a trip to Italy next April and will be in Rome April 12 through April 18. This is the week before Easter. The Piazza Navona area sounds wonderful, but I'm wondering what to expect at that time of year. For example, are there performers out in the piazza every evening the same way there is in the summer? <BR><BR>Thanks for any information you can give me!

I can't speak specifically about the Piazza Navona, but I can tell you that anywhere in Rome during the week before Easter is going to be full of activity. However, you probably won't be staying right on the Piazza, so if your concern is being kept up late at night, you probably don't have to worry any more than any other time of year. A busy piazza or street in Rome will be busy at any time of year, noisy at any time of year. Find a hotel that doesn't face a noisy piazza or street, then just visit Navona. It's big, it's got variety, and it's very pretty for the first-time traveler.

Actually, my concern isn't noise, but whether there will be enough going on! I don't want to make a point of staying in that area for the fun of strolling around there in the evening if there's nothing happening at that time of year. Sounds like there will be, though. Thanks!<BR><BR>lxb

Hi lxb. Yes, the Piazza Navona/Campo di Fiori area is wonderful and I'd highly recommend staying anywhere nearby. <BR><BR>We were there this past April for four days -- just about the same time you'll be going -- and, while there may not have been as many performers in the evening as there are in the summer, there were a couple of them, including one guy who was an amazing dancer. During the day, there were also a number of the people doing the human statue thing.

P.S. Piazza della Rotonda (the one with the Pantheon) is fairly close to Piazza Navona and was full of people every evening. (In fact, I prefer it to Piazza Navona because of the incredible backdrop of the Pantheon and the fact that it's a more intimate piazza.)<BR><BR>There were also street performers there. One night we listened to a woman sing in French, with a guy accompanying her on guitar, and watched a mime who was hilarious in the way he'd mimic different people passing by.