Anna_Issa

My husband and I will be staying in Rome 3 1/2 days during November prior to taking a Mediterranean cruise departing from Civitavecchia. We get into Rome on a Tuesday at approx. 9:00 AM and depart to board the cruise ship on a Friday at approx. 12:00 PM. Since 3 days aren't really that much to see all the sites in Rome - and this is my first time to Italy, I need your help on deciding (in order of most important) what I should not miss. A note of importance to me - I love the history of Rome, but don't care much about ruins, at least not on this short trip. I appreciate your expert and wise opinions. "Gracias".

ellenem

Typically, for 3 days, visitors would allow one day to visit the Vatican (the museums and St Peter's), one day to visit ancient Rome (Colosseum and Forum), and one day to cover the sights of the ancient center (Pantheon, Piazza Navona, Trevi fountain, Piazza di Spagna).

It depends on your interests and how busy you want to be--even with only 3 days.

kayd

There are ruins all over Rome, so they might be hard to avoid. And you'd be missing a big part of its history if you skipped the Colosseum/Forum area.
But if you really don't want to see ancient ruins, what are some of your interests? There's plenty of art and architecture, glorious fountains, myriad shopping and eating.
I agree with ellenem that those are the three important elements of Rome.

sandi_travelnut

click on "destination" at the top of the page then find Rome and look at the information. A guidebook also helps.

suzq_trvlr

On our three and a half days in Rome we: toured the Vatican museum, St. Peter's, the Sistine Chapel, Borghese Gallery, Colloseum, Palatine, and Forum. We made several trips to Trevi Fountain and the Piazza Navona and stayed by the Spanish Steps. We checked out Santa Maria della Vittoria, St. Peter-in chains, the Pantheon, Boca della Verita, and the Circus Maximus. We did the Scavi Tour as well, walked from the Colloseum to the Spanish Steps, shopped, and ate gelato at least once per day.

You can do quite a lot or very little - it's all up to you and your interests and what you want your experience in Rome to be. Truthfully, if you do and see a lot (like me) you'll be exhausted for your cruise.

My favorite things we did were the Scavi Tour and touring the Borghese Gallery. The sites I wouldn't have wanted to miss seeing: the Spanish Steps (early in the morning or at dusk is the prettiest), Trevi Fountain, Piazza Navona, St. Peter's, the Sistine Chapel, Collosseum at dusk, and the Pantheon.

Have fun deciding what you think you'll enjoy the most!

Steve_James

Anna - The Rome APT (- Tourist Info Centre) website might be the best place to start. It has recommended itineraries for a 2/3 day stay in Rome:

http://www.romaturismo.it/v2/romain4...in4896ore.html

Hope this helps ...

Steve

Anna_Issa

Everyone. I really appreciate your recommendations. Since my trip is in November, I have more than enough time to plan my perfect trip. I will definitely visit the Vatican, St. Peter's, Sistine Chapel.Trevi Fountain, Collosseum, Spanish Steps, different Piazza's and all I can possibly do in that time frame. I just need to put all those sites in order, so as to really make use of the hours and our stamina.

One more question, is it better to book tours on-line or should I wait to get to Rome and book there?

Woody

It is better to book in advance, especially for places like the Borghese Gallery which strictly limits its attendance.

Woody

Anna_Issa

Steve James. Thanks for the website on Rome turist. I checked it out and printed some pages for reference. It's looking good.

Thanks Woody. I'm going to start checking out tour companys now. Does anyone know of good spanish tours? My husband does not understand english very well, and I don't think I want to be translating.