Safety in Rome
 

My husband and I (early 60's) are planning a trip to Italy next year for our 25th anniversary. We've only been to Rome once on a private day tour. We were thinking we'd like to go and spend 3-4 days there seeing sites at a more relaxed pace than we did before, so we thought we'd stay in the city. But yesterday my husband was talking to a young British guy who told him that Rome is a really unsafe city. Now we're considering staying outside of the city.

1. What are your thoughts about the safety for tourists in Rome?
2. If we decided to stay "outside of the city," do you have any recommendations for where (ie: town/village, Air BnB references, etc.).

We still want to do tours, as we feel like they are an excellent "bang for our buck" if we get the right tour. Also, if we stay outside of the city, we would like it to be in a place with great restaurants and walkable nice places to see.

Loved Rome and felt very safe. We stayed in Trastevere but otherwise walked or took taxis. Just be aware of pickpockets and keep your valuables safe.

I have been to Rome three times, always stayed in the city, not outside and never did I see anything to give me reason to think Rome is not a safe city.
Did this person say what, specifically, was unsafe about Rome?
I would stay in Rome itself, there is so much to see and do there and part of the fun is being able to leave your hotel at night, stroll to a restaurant, enjoy the buzz.
We did a few day tours with Context which were excellent.

We felt very safe every time we have gone to Rome. Be aware as you need to be in any major city.
Our last time there was Jan 2020 right before COVID struck. It was very crowded but never felt unsafe as far as relates to any crime. We walked everywhere at night.
I did have an accident but that was caused by a taxi driver who wasn’t paying attention..

I've been to Rome, I think, 5 times now, sometimes alone (in my 60s & 70s) & never felt unsafe. Originally I'd procrastinated, wondering how clean & safe the city was, but a friend told me to not give it anymore thought, just go. It is indeed clean & safe & a fabulous city I love & make a point of stopping between other places.

Rome: has unsafe places, it is a city, but not especially unsafe in the tourist areas. Pickpockets might be a small pain, but don't get into a crowd where wandering hands may wander. Similarly on crowded trams. Alternatively don't wear jewels and carry wads of money, expensive watches. I'd say that as a capital city it is one of the safest.

Where it is on Vivid I have no idea.

Driving, well Roman drivers are special. If crossing a road I'd follow a local.

Not sure what your concerns are about safety. We've been to Rome a few times and have stayed in Trastevere which we love. There are the usual pick pocket issues that one needs to be aware of when travelling in tourist areas.

We visited two years ago and felt very safe. We are also in our early 60s and walked everywhere. I would stay in the city as Rome is huge and staying outside of it would make for a long journey traveling back and forth wasting your time and energy. Sometimes the outskirts of large cities are not as safe as the central area but I don't know if that is true about Rome.
I would pick a central hotel that has good reviews and you can always ask the staff about the safest way to travel. We have stayed near the Vatican on a few trips (the Hotel Alimandi) and stayed in Trastavere the last time (the Hotel Santa Maria.) If you plan to take organized tours, pickup from a central hotel would be much more convenient.
If you search for other hotels in Rome on this forum, you will get other good suggestions.
We used Rick Steves' Rome guidebook on our last trip and found his suggestions and self-guided tours very helpful.

"Unsafe" is a pretty broad descriptor. On balance I have never felt particularly unsafe in Rome. Crazy traffic/drivers? Absolutely, so be careful crossing streets. Pickpockets? No more, maybe less than, cities of comparable size. Nowhere near as big a problem as Barcelona or even Naples. Use common sense like zipped front pockets for wallet, cross body bag rather than hanging off a shoulder. Have stayed mostly in Prati or Trastevere areas without problem.

I had a young, female shopkeeper in Rome shortchange me, but I returned in 5 minutes and was able to politely point out her "mistake" and get my money back after several minutes of talking to her and her male coworker, who browbeat her into returning my 10 euros. Not unsafe, but years on, I still harbor a grudge against the entire city and have no desire to return. I was jetlagged, and wasn't as familiar with euros and not as vigilant as I should have been--but to someone like me, who's wired to value rules and fair-play, (and maybe expected a little solidarity between women), that was a huge deal breaker. I never suggest anyone visit Rome. (As I said, I hold a grudge.)

Venice and Florence, however, was a different story entirely. Everything there seemed magical to me, and the service industry treated me as fairly and respectfully as I treated them. All that I ask from any city.
So my advice is keep a close eye on your money. Use credit cards where you can, but also be ready with the international number in case it's lost/taken. (Rome! *shakes fist*)

OK -- I am a bit confused. It is 'unsafe' to stay in central Rome, but totally safe to stay outside of town and use crowded public transport to travel daily in/out of Rome. Doesn't make sense to me -- but maybe your 'British friend' has actual suggestions for areas to stay??

If you still have fears, why go to Rome at all, I must have been 10 times to Italy before I went to Rome and, because it has been a tourist town for so long, I was underwhelmed and then awed by individual objects and buildings. For example I'm not a big fan of dead bodies laid out in caskets but then I saw some of the carvings in the Vatican and was impressed.

I highly recommend doing the Underground 'Scavi' tour. It must be booked with the Vatican well in advance. Enjoy your trip.

If you Google "how to stay safe in rome," you will find a lot of information. In my experience, the biggest risk is losing a handbag or wallet to opportunistic thieves who are quick to take advantage of one's inattention or carelessness, especially in a crowd and on public transportation. During several visits to Rome, I never saw anything of a scary nature while moving around the city in both daytime and evening. However, I do have an aquaintance who had the terrible experience of a purse-snatching by a man on a scooter when she was dragged and suffered a serious shoulder injury. On my last visit, I did make a point of being more aware while walking, and staying away from the sidewalk edge. I would certainly go back to Rome and stay in the city.

Here's the current information from the U.S. State Department on Safety and Security:
https://travel.state.gov/content/tra...ges/Italy.html

Thanks all who really read what I wrote and contributed this thread. I appreciate it and am excited to say Rome is back on our list. Thanks also for the recommendations. As always, this group has provided us with invaluable information that in the past has enhanced our travel on several occasions.

Yes, we are going to Rome soon and choose a quieter street but close to Spagna Metro. I read a few articles - just google neighborhoods in rome to get an idea of your style!

We went a few years ago and stayed at the Rome Cavaleri which is a Waldorf and just slightly out of the city. We had Hilton points and it is a very nice hotel. They shuttled us in and picked us up at certain drop offs and it worked for us. My daughter had her purse strap cut while posing for a picture in front of some statue. We did not catch it on film, but luckily she was holding her bag and so it didn't drop to the ground as it was intended to do. I personally would not fear going to Rome or staying right in Rome. I would however recommend putting your passports and cash and cards in a hotel safe and just bringing minimal money and one card while out and about. I actually love a bra safe I have that allows me to put a card in my bra.
We also went to Barcelona which I know several people personally that were robbed there and had no issues at all.
So be vigilant and aware of your surroundings and where your money is, especially in crowds.

Zengi, you may feel from reading this thread that Rome is full of pick pockets. It's not. But I think all people are saying is to take the same care with yourself and your valuables as you would in any city, including your own. I also think that the inconvenience of losing your wallet/bag while on holidays in an unfamiliar place makes people doubly (and rightly) wary.

I also have a policy of not signing petitions or taking things which I'm offered by strangers on the street (although the latter might be a bit paranoid). You can suss those things out pretty well.

I would actually feel less safe staying in the suburbs, to be honest, to say nothing of it being less convenient.

Rome is a wonderful city - go and enjoy it!

A good portion of safety is perception. People who have lots of big cities experiences in the US would think of Rome as another big city. Someone from a small rural area of the US might perceive rundown buildings, graffiti, street trash, etc., as evidences of unsafe areas. It is not in Europe since Europe has a lot of old, run down buildings, graffiti, and trash. I have more concerns when in Chicago or New York that I do in Rome. Have spent a total of about 30 days in Rome over the past 30 years and have never had a problem but we are not roaming the streets at 2am. You do need to exercise some caution. We are big fans of using money belts but others are not. It seems to work for us since we have never had a problem of theft in our many, many years of travel. But --- there is always the next trip.

We think of Rome as being very safe.

My thoughts exactly. When in Rome I don't feel that I could be an innocent bystander in some random mass shooting.