Rome tour of Jewish Ghetto and Travestere and restaurant recommendation
 

Hi,
We will be in Rome in July and wish to tour the Jewish Ghetto and Travestere, see the synagogue, try food in the Jewish Ghetto, etc. Is this a tour we can do on our own or do you recommend a group tour? Can you recommend a tour, if so? We will be doing this tour on a Sunday. Can you recommend a fabulous restaurant? I had heard a few years back about a terrific restaurant that you identify by the red awning. Your help is appreciated. Thanks,

Do this on your own. Exactly the kind of experience you DON'T want to be in a group tour for, IMO....

Here's just one source for self-guided walks.

Download audio and maps for Ghetto & Trastevere and map and print the maps.

- http://www.ricksteves.com/news/trave...udio-tours.htm

This is the restaurant. http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restauran...ome_Lazio.html

I've read there's no awning anymore - making it even more difficult to find. Enter address (Piazza delle 5 scole Rome, Italy) into Google, note street view and print a map...

I did a walking tour of Trastevere a few years ago with a guide from Rome Walks www.romewalks.com.
There were just the 2 of us, so it was a really a private tour.
I would highly recommend them.

I would not call Sora Margherite a fabulous restaurant. Yes it is good and sometimes very good but not fabulous. It is extremely well hidden, you will pay one euro to join as in an eating club as they do not have a regular restaurant license and will eat elbow to elbow with others from the small daily menu.

we did this ourselves - just walked down to the Synagogue, went in after being searched [there is a 24 hour guard outside] did the very interesting tour they offer there, then wandered around the ghetto area ourselves.

we stopped at a very nice restaurant for lunch - full of locals eating carciofi alla guida and other delights.

i don't think you need any help to do this alone, rather than with a guide.

If the 'Jewish Ghetto' is an important site for you to see perhaps for historical or religious reasons I would take a small group tour from a company that specializes in Jewish tours.

Anyone can memorize the facts of any site and give a very good tour and anyone can google research the facts on any site and also give themselves a very good tour.

Or listen to an audioguide tour for the facts.

But if that site is the guide's speciality and passion they will know many small tidbits, stories and the history beyond just the facts of that site.

I have 2 different experiences a few years apart touring the Jewish ghetto with ContextRome.

The 1st tour was only myself and another that showed-up.

This tour was mostly about Roman ruins with the Ghetto as just 1 of the many stops.

But the tourguide asked if we would like to spend more time in the Ghetto because she was a postgrad student doing her studies in Rome to get whatever paper she has to write to get more letters after her name:-).
And her thesis(?) was to be on the Jewish Catacombs, so in-depth Jewish history esp ancient was what she knew most about.

The 2nd tour was with an art historian with the main focus on the the Jewish Ghetto, Synagogue and Trastevere and any Roman sites on the way.
This tour was excellent, I had no complaints.

But it was the 1st tour where I learned the most about the Jewish Ghetto, the history of the ancient Jews in Rome and beyond and the Jewish religion in general.

I mention a few restaurants in my trip report: http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...h-may-2011.cfm