flygirl2

Monday Feb. 25:
We are staying in the Veneto area about 5 min. from the Spanish Steps. This is our first time to Rome. We are a mid 50's aged couple who want to have a little adventure mixed in with history, museums, ect....really looking forward to some good gelato and finding restaurants off the main roads where the kind people at the place we are staying are happy to set us up with reservations. I am open to any suggestions. Most bike tours start at 10am and also the cooking class so that's why I don't have anything planned before that time in the morning.

Arrive FCO at 755, check in at hotel. Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, Villa Borghese Park
Tuesday Feb. 26:
10am 3 hour Bike Tour, Pantheon, Colosseum Roman Forum, Palatine Hill
Wed. Feb. 27:
Attend the Pope’s last Papal Audience 1030, Galleria Borghese, Piazza Navona,
Stroll the Trastavere area to explore, Campo de Fiori
Thurs. Feb. 28:
815 Vatican, Sistine Chapel, St. Peter’s tour, Castel San Angelo
Fri March 1:
Train to Florence for day trip
Sat. March 2:
1000 Cooking Class, Catacombs, Capitoline
Sun. March 3:
Fly Home

willowjane

I can't give any advice, but the trip looks great to me. Please post a trip report so i can read it.

flygirl2

Will do! I'm open to suggestions to bike tours and cooking class. The cooking class I'm planning on right now is http://www.cookingclassesinrome.com/?page_id=7 Please post if you have had a bike tour or taken a cooking class.

jgg

I guess overall it looks good. But I'm wondering if you will actually go inside the Colesseum on the bike tour or if you will just ride by it. It is quite interesting to be able to go inside and now they also have some new areas open to the public that haven't been open before - the hypogeum (underneath the colesseum) and the top tier of seating.

Do you already have your tickets to the Borghese? You need to reserve them in advance.

I'd be flexible with the daytrip to Florence, you may decide you just want to stay in Rome - so much to see and explore.

I believe you will also need tickets to the Pope's last Papal Audience. Also, if you do decide to go to Florence you will probably want to get advance tickets for the Accadamia and the Uffizi, so you can maximize your time that day and not have to wait in long lines. The proprietor of your hotel should be able to help you with all of these (though not sure of availability for papal audience).

Also, depending on how long your cooking class is doing Catacombs and Capitoline maybe ambitious. Though we love the catacombs so I would make that a priority after the cooking class.

gh21

Do you have reservations at Borghese? They are required for a timed entry.

jgg

You were typing at the same time I was, so just now saw the link for your cooking class. My daughter is studying in Rome right now and one of her roomates is interning with CookingClassesinRome. Sometimes she brings home leftover food and apparently it's delicious!!

RobIm

I think you have a great itinerary. We did the catacombs of Priscilla as suggested by Rick Steves. Less crowded. Beware that many churches and the catacombs close between 1 and 3:30. Darn! Here is our latest trip report on Rome (2012) -

http://www.rimerson.com/Cruise-Rome-2012/Rome-2012.html

or my home page at -

http://www.rimerson.com

Grassshopper

Wow, your chef is gorgeous! I want to take a class from him.

flygirl2

@ Grasshopper: I'd like to say that had no bearing on choosing him but.... @ jgg Is your daughter's roommate working with the chef in the link I attached above? We wanted to come up with a firm itinerary before we got the Borghese tickets so will do that. Also the hotel owner is picking up or has picked up our Papal Audience tickets. I really appreciate all your feedback. The hardest thing was coming up with what to do on what day as many places are closed on Monday and some on Tuesday but I'm glad to have this done. Now to focus on packing and we hope to each have one carry-on plus a backpack. We will see...

willowjane

I am stealing some of your itenerary for our meeting on sunday to firm up our plans. Glad to see all the tips.

jgg

@flygirl2 - Yes! Confirmed with my daughter that is the chef her roomie works with! Have fun!

flygirl2

That makes our excitement for the class that much greater! The weather in Rome looks like 70-80% chance of rain for both Tues. and Fri. Florence isn't forecasted for rain on Tues. so we may think about switching Tues. and Fri and foregoing the bike tour as I think the day would be pretty full fitting that in on top of the colosseum, Roman Forum, ect... I just hate the idea of traveling outside of Rome on the first full day we are there but we will see.

jgg

Check weather again. Tues. looking clear in Rome. Have a great trip!

kybourbon

I can't imagine doing a bike tour in Rome (except at Villa Borghese or Appian Way). Not sure how you would maneuver since pedestrian areas are quite clogged with people walking and no way I would ride in the street.

I would regroup some things. The Pantheon is a couple of streets from Piazza Navona so I would group them together. The Capitoline Museum is next to the Forum.

>>>Attend the Pope’s last Papal Audience 1030, Galleria Borghese, Piazza Navona,
Stroll the Trastavere area to explore, Campo de Fiori<<<

The Borghese seems like the outlier on this itinerary. It's got you crisscrossing Rome. You are staying Veneto (where on Veneto?) which is next to Villa Borghese. You plan to head over to Vatican City for the Papal Audience, backtrack to the Borghese, crisscross again to Piazza Navona, across the river to Trastevere and back to Campo.

FYI - Make use of the 116 bus if you are staying on Via Veneto.
http://www.atac.roma.it/files/doc.asp?r=9