Rome with teenagers
 

I will be in Rome this summer with teenagers (15 & 16). I have so much planned, but think I should have some alternatives if we start to reach cultural overload. On a post here, something was mentioned about LUNA park - an amusement park in EUR open in the evenings. Can anyone tell me more about it? Also, is a afternoon at the beach possible or desirable? Any information would be appreciated.

Luna Park is a pretty old fashioned (by American standards) amusement park. It is more like a large carnival with some classic rides so don't go expecting a Six Flags experience. It might be fun for your teenagers because many Roman teenagers go there to hang out and on dates. It is possible to go to the beach for the day. You can take the train from Termini to Anzio which takes about an hour and there is a pretty good beach there. Not spectacularly pretty or clean but not bad. The beaches further south toward Sperlonga, Gaeta and San Felice di Circeo are cleaner and prettier but it's best to have a car to drive down there.

The beach nearest Rome is The Lido di Ostia, only 20 or 25 kilometer from the city.

Message for Rhondah,sorry could not finish my post earlier. Anyway the beach is very close to Rome. Take the metro line B to Piramid, then the Ostia Lido train from Ostiense, trains leave every half hour and the trip takes about 20 minutes.Also buy a ticket which covers both metro and the Ostia train.Ostia is now a large city, but the beach is all right.

Although Ostia Lido is somewhat closer to Rome, I didn't recommend it as your beach destination because IMO that is just not a nice beach. The sea in that area is very polluted, there is a great deal of petty crime on the beach and the intrusion of numerous vendors of cheap junk. Many recent immigrants to Rome and Gypsies live in Ostia and tent communities surrounding it.

I don't thnk teenagers are going to need an amusement park while visiting Rome - heck, it's an antique amusement park in and of itself.<BR>Our teenagers loved the Colloseum and the major sites of Rome, and especially liked visiting Ostia Antica just outside the city.<BR>I wouldn't recommend the beaches that are really close to Rome - they are overcrowded and dirty and really just gross. We stayed in Livinio, about an hour south of Rome, near Anzio, and loved the beaches there.

Thanks for the help. Any other suggestions for &quot;down-time&quot; activities for us?

If your kids are sports fans the soccer might be a draw. Rome has two teams and tickets can be obtained in advance(day of game tickets are hard to get).

What a pity!! When I was there 20 years ago it used to be a nice beach!!Unfortunately all these immigrants coming from everywhere are going to change, for the worse, the way of life in Europe... I have noticed it in the last fews years everytime I go there.

A nice thong to do with your kids might be looking for a &quot;cornettaro&quot;. In Rome they seem to be a lot ^_^. Basically it is a bakery that works for the whole night, preparing fresh (hot!) pastries for other bakeries. You can get there anytime after midnight and have a nice hot cornetto (plain, with cream or chocolate etc.). Since your kids seem to be old enough to stay awake until late night, this might be a fun thing to do, Usually outside these places you will find crowds of youths (and no more so young people) eating their pastries after the cinemas' late show or before going to a club.

Rhonda - As others have said, don't bother with Ostia beach. I wouldn't swim there if you paid me ...<BR><BR>The nearest half-decent beach IMO is Santa Marinella - about 45 mins train ride north of Rome. Trains are very frequent.<BR><BR>If your children are into water sports, Lake Albano is good (- and beautiful).<BR>Take the train to nearby Gandolfo (- the Pope's summer residence). It's a short walk from there.<BR><BR>Steve

Castel Gandolfo - even!

I read these posts so often, but am learning of so many new ideas. Thanks.