My hubby and i are planning first visit to rome in late september. we have already found a great southern trastevere apt for 6 nights. now i am wondering about taking a day trip mid week for a break from the city. i would really love to NOT rent a car and have had some people tell me to "hire a driver" for a relaxing experience.
Does anyone have any good ideas for either an out and back day trip or else an overnighter. i think something other than more monuments or ruins might be a nice break. is it nice to go to the coast? or has anyone gone to the popes summer home? thanks for the input.

Orvieto - classic hilltown with lots of interest in its medieval quarter

train station at bottom of hill, then a funicular takes you up top effortlessly

one hour from Rome by train

My favorite day trip is to Tivoli and Hadrian's Villa, which can be done by train or bus to Tivoli, a regional town and then by bus to nearby Hadrian's Villa from where you catch a bus back to a Rome metro station.

Tivoli is known for the Villa d'Este built by a fat-cat cardinal and other not-so-pious eccleisisatics during the Renaissance. So-so villa and fantastic water gardens - statues and fountains splish-splashing unless in times of severe drought.

Take a bus from the villa to Hadrian's Villa, to me one of the very finest Roman archaeological sites anyway - pleasure dome built by Emperor Hadrian as a opulent rural retreat. Substantial ruins.

Hadrian used it as a trysting place mainly it seems for his daliances with young boys.

Ostia Antica is another fine day trip and closest to Rome of all - on a metro line. Rome's ancient port and again an impressive archaelogical ruins.

Naples and or Pompeii are longer day trips - Pompeii needs no description but is about three hours each way by train.

There are many other fine day trips from Rome - The Castelli Romani - in the hills where rich Romans and the Pope built summer villas - Pope still summers there in Castel Gondolfo; Viterbo, another classic hilltown and even Florence just 1.5 hours by train.

Lucy
Bob gives you some good options.
I'll be making my 6th trip to Rome this fall. Almost all my stays there are a week at a time. So far, the only "day trip" we have made is to the catacombs and appian way. You really do feel like you are awy from the city there.
This year we plan on Tivoli/Hadrian's.
So, pick a possible "day trip", but leave it open. You may find that Rome has so much that you can't get away from it.

From the train station in Trastevere (or St. Peters) you can jump on the train (Birg all day ticket costs just 9 euro) and jump off again in one of the following towns: Bracciano where Tom Cruise got married, see the castle & lake, or continue to Viterbo to see Europe's best preserved medieval center, inbetwen are dozens of other small unspoilt towns where occasional visitors are welcome. the Elegant Etruria website is full of info and articles about this area.

I know you said no more monuments or ruins but I still highly recommend Pompeii! Without a doubt, it's one of the most amazing things I have ever seen in my life and definitely worth the trip from Rome. You can take the slow train for $5 Euro, which took about 3 1/2 hours to get to Naples, or the fast train for $25 Euro, which takes about an hour and a half. I took an early morning (6am) slow train going. By the time I transferred in Naples to the circumventia, which is the train that actually goes out to Pompeii, it was a little after 10:30am by the time I got to the site. Pompeii is HUGE and EXHAUSTING, but AWESOME. I went there figuring a half a day. I spent over 8 hours there and still didn't see the whole thing. I left because I was completely exhausted. I headed back to the main station in Naples and caught an 8pm fast train back to Rome and was there in time for a late dinner. If you want to make an overnighter of it, Pompeii is right along the Amalfi coast, which is beautiful.

i did the same as vitrella but in reverse. Viterbo really fine - Bracciano i'm amazed doesn't attract more tourists - especially the dreamy castle. Tom Cruise or not - i was there some weeks after the wedding and not a postcard of it anywhere - i was shocked and impressed by that.

Thank you for all the great ideas. I'm excited to look all this up and start making some plans!!!