We need advice from experienced travelers! After flying through the night and arriving in Rome around noon, will we be too tired for an afternoon or evening tour? We were thinking of Scala Reale's Orientation Stroll or Through Eternity's Rome at Twilight tour.

I wouldn't recommend it. If you do decide on a tour, I would opt for an evening tour after you have time for a nap and to freshen up.

Lina,

I would play it by ear and not plan anything for the first day. That way you won't be disappointed or out any money if you're not up for the tour. We've always found it hard to predict how we'll feel after a long flight. It really depends on things like whether you're good at sleeping on planes, and whether the plane got in on time, etc. You may get a second wind due to the time difference, and you may not. Anyway, I'd leave the tour for another day.
Have a great time!

I don't know about your stamina, but my husband, son, and I are so tired and cranky after a transatlantic flight esp. with a stopover that no way can we think of taking a tour soon after arriving. All we want to do is get to the hotel, unpack a few things, and rest. Then we try to get familiar with the surroundings.

If you can sleep the majority of the time on the plane you would probably be in good shape, but if not, you will be nodding off.

Why not check out a wonderful restaurant on the first night and relax instead? That is what we did after flying to Rome from the US East Coast.

I wouldn't do it. On my 2nd day in Rome, I took Scala Reale's Orientation STROLL, as opposed to their hike, after their Roma Antica tour. It was very enjoyable, but it was still a lot of walking.

I don't know where you're staying, but maybe you could take in some lunch, coffee and gelato while exploring a nearby piazza. Then, a nap before dinner and perhaps a stroll near the Pantheon, which is beautiful at night. Whatever you choose, have a great trip!

I have found it best to sleep as much as I can on the flight, try to stay up until evening after unpacking and freshening up at my destination with some light sightseeing, and then go to bed early after an early dinner. This way you can adjust to jet lag the fastest by being pretty much "on schedule" the next day.

I agree, you never know how you will feel that first day/night, you are there. I also don't make any hard plans for the next morning. I roam around the first day/night, have something to eat and take a sleeping pill and go to bed and sleep as long as it takes to switch over...I'm usually a little slow the next morning too and I don't want to rush, I just want a lot of coffee and breakfast since I'm usually famished and then I feel great...usually by around 10 or 11 am. Have a great time.

The only kind of tour I'm up for on the day or arrival is one of those bus tours that lasts about an hour and gives you an overview of the city. Otherwise, our energy is focused on staying awake, light walking, frequent cafy stops, as early a dinner as the Europeans will allow us, and bed by about 10 pm at the latest.

Tough question. I think it depends on how well you tolerate the trip over and how well and how swiftly you arrive at your hotel.
I usually do NOT take a nap after I arrive AND I do try to get out in the sunlight. Then I turn in earlier than usual to sleep about 8 or 9 hours to rejuvinate and get local time.

If you do anything, do it at your own pace so that if the adrenalin rush suddenly subsides and you feel totally done in, you can take care of yourself.

I know on my first trip to Switzerland, I was all fired up. We took the train from Zuerich to Lauterbrunnen, went to our apartment, and then I was ready for a walk after a round of grocery shopping. We walked about 2 miles up valley and returned. By then I was hungry and sleepy.
Last year, I was all ready to look around Paris and did for a while. Then we ate supper and turned in.
But listen to what your fatigue is telling you. Be in a position that you can call it quits when you want.

I like doing an evening tour on my first night. It helps to orient me and it keeps me awake so I don't go to bed too early. Yes, I'm tired but it doesn't mean that I don't want to see the area. It also means that I don't have to have the mental faculties to figure out where to go on my own.

I have found that the best way to get rid of jet lag is to try to keep going that first day of arrival, even if you are exhausted and get to bed by 9 (too early and you wake up too early!!). The sooner you can get on the others time schedule, the better off you will be. I also find that taking a nap is not helpful for me (and my family!!!) because you just don't want to get up and then once you do, it is often hard to get back on the new schedule. I try to do as much walking in the sunlight (and actually, taking a passive bus tour would probably give you a great opportunity to nap, which would not be good!!!!)and have an earlier dinner and then go to bed. Good luck!!

Thank you for the words of wisdom. We will only be in Rome for 2 nights and want to see as much as possible. It sounds like we ought to look around on our own the first afternoon, snooze, and then tour with Scala Reale or Through Eternity on the second (and our only full) day.

Well, yes. Get out and see something!!
I would rank order the attractions and save the blockbuster ones, the ones you really want, until the second day.
If you get tired, you can always find a cab and get back to your hotel.
There are so many imponderables here that it, that it is a tough call.

But the way I feel is that particularly in a city, I get energized by the pace around me. I know in Paris we were close to Montparnasse which literally throbs with people and sounds at night until the early hours of the morning.
I was set to charge, but my wife was done in. We compromised and walked some. If your stamina elastic still has the old snap to it, I say push it while you are there. You only go around once. The older I get the more I want to go when I am there. I just don't have the recovery rate I did at 67. So wanting to and getting it done are somewhat incommensurate these days.

No joke. If I don't hurt, I haven't pushed it enough!!!!

But, scientific research, not some old wives tale, has provided good evidence that getting out in the sunlight helps to reset the bodies internal clock. If it is cloudy, get out anyhow.

I think Rome may well energize you more than you ever dreamed!!

I take Tylenol PM on the plane a little before I want to sleep. Be sure to have a good neck pillow - some are inflatable, ear plugs and possibly shades to sleep the best you can. It is also helpful if you start trying to move your daily schedule at home a hour or so closer to your destination's time before leaving home.
An important trick is to stay in the daylight after you unpack. The bus tours especially open buses that let you get to see things, be outside, be in the daylight without doing much physical will help keep you stimulated until supper time.

I've tried everything from melatonin to Ambien, and I just don't sleep on planes much. If I get two hours, I consider myself lucky.

I think the SR ORientation stroll or hike would be great--I've done the hike on my arrival day. Schedule it for the aftenoon--gives you time to get settled, have lunch, perhaps even nap for an hour if you absolutely must (but try to keep going and not nap.)
Do the hike or walk, have an early dinner, fall into bed.

By "Twilight" you're liable to be falling asleep in your pasta, let alone wanting to pay attention to a guide.
Do that another night.

Agree with Elaine. The Scala Reale orientation strolls & hikes are not so intensive that you couldn't do it in the afternoon of your first day. Gets you moving in the daylight, but you are under someone else's "management" & won't have to decide how to get around in a new environment. They can also help you with finding your first night's restaurant - suited to where you are and how you feel at the moment. Then, you are ready to crash & rest up for your next full day of exploration. Have a great time!

thanks for your advice...it's much appreciated!

Is Lina hinting that she does not want anymore replies?

If so, bye-bye.

If not, there is a risk that you may fall asleep on the bus tour (even if you are not cranky). Use the first day to explore the neighborhood or maybe see one of the sites that you plan to see on the 2nd day.

you say you are arriving at noon?
i see no problem with getting a tour set up for that day..
we have flown from LAX..a long flight with transfers, arrived at the hotel just before noon..and were anxious...really anxious to just get out and walk around.
an orientation STROLL from scala reale would be easy to do..(although i prefer their orientation HIKE as it is much more in-depth and may cover some areas you probably woudn't see on your own..)
or~
the through eternity twilight walk is really a light dose of rome, a pleasant walk from the spanish steps to the capitoline (at least it was when we took it) and a nice introduction to the areas in between..
BUT..it would depend on where your hotel is..
scala reale stays around the spanish step area..(the stroll)..and through eternity ends near the forum..
and scala reale is usually earlier in the day..
but~ bottom line here~~
DON'T waste a day ..at least take an afternoon tour!