First day in Rome

It's always best to stay outside when fighting jet lag. Having lunch at an outdoor cafe is a better solution than eating inside.

Piazza Navona is a great outdoor place to go for a meal. If you don't want to eat there you could walk to the Campo dei fiori area and find something there.

Donna

In most instances the hotel will gladly store your bags until your room is ready, so you will be free to get out and walk. Getting sunshine and exercise is a sheer joy after being cooped up in an aluminum mailing tube for hours and then going through the arrival process at the airport and meeting your shuttle.

If it were me ... I'd walk the four blocks west from the hotel to Via Veneto, then walk all the way down the elegantly serpentine Via Veneto to Piazza Barberini. From there it's only five or six blocks west to Fontana di Trevi. Then go north about ten minutes' worth to Piazza di Spagna and see the Spanish Steps, which are still under renovation. If you still have energy to burn, continue north to Piazza del Popolo.

By that time you have not only outsmarted that ol' monster jet lag, but you have seen some of the nicest sights of Rome -- and other than buying a gelato or two, and coins thrown into the Trevi Fountain, it hasn't cost any money!

Restaurants on Piazza Navona are overpriced and underwhelming, except for the view. A couple of blocks away, Via del Governo Vecchio has several good choices. Then go back to Piazza Navona for an overpriced coffee in the most beautiful piazza in Roma.

I recommend you go to the top of the Victor Emmanuel Monument. It will give you a great view of Rome and help to orientate you to where the major sites are in Rome in relation to each other.

Jet lag affects everyone differently so you may or may not feel radically different. Eating outside may also be iffy in mid November, and evening will come early. I'd plan on getting as much fresh air and exercise as weather allows, catching an early dinner, getting settled, and turning in on the early side. We usually get a second wind once we've dumped the bags as we're so excited just to BE there!

A poke in and out of a few open shops and churches wouldn't hurt but just enough to keep things interesting: engaging with anything at all that's interesting can help keep the eyes open. LOL, Rome has NO shortage of fascinating things to engage with.

Kathy are you suggesting we skip lunch?

I normally arrive in Europe utterly exhausted, but I think that's because I hardly doze at all on the plane and often have slept very little the night before departure. I don't think the time-change itself is too big a deal for me. Maybe you will be equally lucky and get some sleep on the plane. I'd just have a few ideas of places to walk in the area around my hotel and play it by ear.

If practical, I'd make a trip to a nearby tourist office to pick up useful brochures and find out whether there are any interesting special events scheduled. That's my first or second stop in every city I visit.

Without prior experience don't know how severe jet lag will be for you. Everybody has jet lag. Some just like to deny it. Obviously, getting a little sleep on the plane is important. Two schools of thoughts - neither a proven method - One is to stay active in the sun, have a light evening meal and go to bed early - maybe 7 or 8 pm. The other is to stay active in the sun, take an afternoon nap of no more than two hours - 2-4, 3-5, have dinner at normal time and to bed around 10 or so. We have tried it both ways and for us taking a nap is far superior for us. We set the alarm for a max of two hours but generally fine we wake on our own after about an hour and a half. We then get back outside walk around some more, have an 7/8 dinner and to bed by 11. The next morning is great. Unfortunately you need to decide what works best for you. Your body will probably tell you.

My (adult) daughter and I took a walking culinary tour the first night.

She was coming from London, so it was not that big a deal for her. I was coming from the USA eastern time zone and this worked wonders for me in alleviating jet lag.

The walk kept us out until about 10:30pm and we got multiple tastes of local foods and drinks along the way in different neighborhoods. Then I went to sleep for a GOOD 9 hours and the next morning , I woke up without assistance on regular Rome time. It was tough to stay up that long on the first day, but this did the trick and for the next two weeks in Italy, I never felt any residual tiredness from the overseas flight and time zone change.

I agree with Victor Emmanuel Monument. We went up top on our first day and it was a great way to orient where we will be going to see things in Rome. Fabulous views and you can stay up there as long as you want. Don't forget your camera.

If you are hungry, eat. If you are not, don't. Definitely drink some fluids as you and Mom will probably be a little dehydrated. Sometimes I have taken a nap, sometimes I can make it without. I normally go to bed early so I try to stay up until 7 or 8 and then go to bed but I have 9 hours time difference.

I'm glad you got your airline tickets booked!!

Frances, I never forget my camera. No matter where I go it will be with me.

Pam, it was great to finally get it done but I will not get the printed information from Insight until Friday. I can't wait to get that.

The late afternoon nap, as Frank recommends, is the cure for us. But set the alarm or you'll sleep too long, wake up at 2:00AM and continue with jet lag.

If you are traveling in November, your room might very well be available on arrival. Then you can check in, take a shower, change clothes and unpack before heading out to find something to eat. I know that neighborhood well and can recommend Cantina Cantorini which opens at 12:30, or Al Forna della Soffita, which opens at noon. IMO, the best gelato in Roma is at Come il Latte, nearby.

Try to put your tiredness behind you with the thrill of being in Roma. Take a nice walk (Jeff laid out a nice plan) and stay outdoors, have that 1 1/2-2 hour nap in late afternoon, then get dinner and try to stay awake until 10:00PM. You'll be closer to "on local time" by morning, and excited to embrace Roma! A little nap on day 2 might be a treat as well, but again, set that alarm.
Buon viaggio!

Kathy are you suggesting we skip lunch?

It's up to you. As you can see from the responses above, everyone does it differently. Neither of us can sleep on a plane, and all that sitting doesn't burn any calories so we are never hungry when we arrive. We absolutely could not nap, either: once down, we're down for the count and would feel lousy after just an hour or two. Staying awake, eating an early dinner, and going down on the early side is our standard first-day method for European trips.

I should note that we never eat lunch on holiday. We fill up good at breakfast, eat unfashionably early dinners, and just have a snack in the afternoon. Neither of us need 3 full meals a day but I know that's not the case for everyone.

If you go to the roof of the Vittorio Emanuele Monument, there is a nice cafe where you can get a light meal and lots of fresh air. I think it's open all year.

There is, and it's a great spot: good idea, Zoe! It looks like it's temporarily closed for a management change but probably not for long (high season is here!) With any luck they'll also have a website down the road. Unless hours change, it'll mean eating on the early side as I recall closing times following those of the monument:

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g187791-d2209768-Reviews-Cafeteria_at_Monumento_Vittorio_Emanuele_II-Rome_Lazio.html#review_345350902

http://www.060608.it/en/cultura-e-svago/beni-culturali/beni-architettonici-e-storici/monumento-a-vittorio-emanuele-ii-vittoriano.html

So maybe I should take a walk, eat lunch, and sleep in that order.

I found a restaurant called Cantina e Cucina close to Piazza Navona on Trip Advisor. It looks very good but we may not be that hungry for lunch.

I highly recommend taking yourself on the Rick Steve's Heart of Rome walk. It takes under 2 hours and covers Piazza Navona, the Pantheon, Trevi Fountain, and the Spanish Steps. All the while you can stop and get all the food and gelato you can handle.

For the same reasons most of us don't recommend pre-purchasing train tickets for arrival day, I personally wouldn't pre-book a tour. A flight, luggage, road transport or other sort of travel-related delay can throw a wrench in the plan.

What Jeremy said! Walk and walk some more. Rick will lead the way. If you are hungry, eat. If you're not, have gelato, every chance you get! The best way to avoid jet lag is to get enough sleep the night before you leave on your trip, and then stay up until your regular bed time (after dinner) on your first day. If you go to be too early, you will wake up at 4:30 a.m. for days. Not good.

LOL, Julie. 4:30 is when we get up at home. It's a great time of the morning to be up in Italy!

Biggest suggestion I can make - DONT take a nap when you get there. You will adjust to the time zones sooner if you can stay awake until at least 8-9pm Italian time. Being outside or doing something, rather than sitting would be essential. I come from the US west coast and can't sleep on flights.... One trip I was exhausted and took a nap upon getting to my hotel....and 3 hrs later I awoke, and then couldn't sleep at night. Now I force myself to do something and not sleep until 8-9, then I sleep through the night and generally I am then on Italian time.

I normally go to bed around 2:00 a.m. LOL. That never happens during vacations, of course, but even then 9:00 is very early for me. If I don't take a sleeping pill that might be easier said than done. Let's hope that will not be necessary in Rome.

Any tips for getting more sleep on the plane?