First trip to Rome - only 3 days

I suggest you get the Rick Steves Rome guide. I traveled in Rome (for the fourth time overall) with the Rick Steves guide and his ook is very solid. Italy is probably his strongest country because it's his favorite, if I recall correctly.

I liked all of his audio tours. Just remember to download and print out the maps.

I prefer to do my own thing when travelling. I tend to find a guide becomes 'white noise' in the background whilst I disappear into my individual experience, if that makes sense.
Read up as much as you can prior and it all makes sense once you are there. Refresh yourself with guide book detail later on, over coffee, lunch, drinks.
Rick's audio guides would be a great free tool to fall back on.

If you don't have a particular interest in something, the RS audio guides should be sufficient.

I am studying, REALLY studying Rick's Italy book. Rome is our first stop, so it is my primary subject right now. It is NOT that I don't trust his info. I am wondering how often I will wish I could ask a question. Will I use my time wisely? Is my "35 days until we leave" anxiety making me want to put that responsibility in someone else's hands? Am I capable of making the most of our time and money? Your reassurance is helpful.

The Rick Steves guides have helped us travel solo for the last 3 trips now. 1 to France and 2 to Italy. His advice is sensible and perfect for the first time traveler. His audio guide for some places is decent like the Colosseum and the forum. At other places like the Borghese gallery and museums in Florence it appears out of date as museums move stuff around regularly and you can't keep abreast of the changes.
We had 3 days in Rome too and it was perfect for the first time. Threw a coin into the trevi fountain, so I hope to be back.

Have a great trip.

I utilize primarily guide books from the library. I may start with RS and Eyewitness. I have a small notebook for notes. My husband and I are active individual who like to hike and bike. For this topic I primarily utilize internet search. Recently I picked up an older Formmer for Amalfi, it lead me to a Italian site for Amalfi hiking. Similar to another site but full information from an italian's perspective. I am not a history or art buff but I do a little research, share it with my hubby, and put points in my notes. I looked at a child's book for the history of Pompeii and read a historical fiction book. That is enough to not hire a guide. If I did not have time for research I would most likely hire a guide. Something in my ears is not my thing. In Italian cities there are many tourists but in other countries sometimes I have been able to hear brief comments from surrounding tour leaders.

If I could have a professor near me when I do anything of interest, I imagine every experience would be greatly enhanced.

IMO, there is no substitute for a great tour guide. Some of my favorite moments from Rick's TV show come from his interviews with his favorite local guides. A great tour guide will bring a scene to life before your very eyes.

Rome is the perfect place to walk with a professor of architecture, Canon law, linguistics, or a well-known art historian. Your travel budget would need to allow for this educational service. If your tour time is restricted (ie: 3 days), a great tour guide can add efficiency to your short visit.

For those who can't afford to hire a private docent at any price point, there are plenty of print/audio resources for walking tours. You can save money by doing things on your own, but you may need to spend time reading instead of looking, and there will be no one to answer any of your questions. A great tour guide is often a superb source of information that's not easy to find anywhere else.

The major benefit of a tour guide, in my opinion, is the ability to go in the tour entrances to major sites instead of waiting in very long lines. You can see a lot in a compressed amount of time too. But don't fill your entire time with guided tours. There is no substitute for sitting at a café and simply soaking up the local scene. Wander into some of the back streets - Rick's guides are great at pointing you toward interesting neighborhoods. We've learned to plan twice as long as Rick recommends for his walking tours because there is so much to take in. Also, be sure to look up. One of the best photos I have from Italy is of an older woman leaning out her window and taking in the street scene. You can buy the postcard views anywhere, but real life is so much more interesting.

So many interesting perspectives! Thank you!! I had not thought about using a children's book. I love that idea.
So....We arrive at FCO at 1230 after about 10 hrs. of flying. Will try to sleep on the plane, but who knows... taxi to bnb near Campo de fiori, lose the luggage (all carry on), and start wandering (trying to beat jetlag). Hopefully, we can do an audio walk, eat well and stay awake until 2000 or 2100! Days 2 and 3 will be crammed with the top sights using Rick Steves suggested "2 days in Rome".
An interesting alternative "tour" has caught my eye: Friday night happy hour at the Vatican. Anyone experience this first hand? My only hesitation is that we leave for Sorrento the next morning, so we can't do more, if we leave unsatisfied.

You will leave unsatisfied, sorry to say. But then you p!an the next trip. I encourage people to have a guide for the Colosseo, Foro Romano and Palatino. All too confusing IMO. A private guide will make it come alive. A good guided tour of the Vatican a must as well. I do not know the happy hour offering but why not? Maybe a little afternoon nap prior .

You refer to the Rick Steves Italy book -- if you had more pre-trip time I would have suggested also looking at his Rome book for detailed walks/tours of specific areas of interest to you. Maybe next trip ....

An attitude that has always been very beneficial to us is, "We will see that next time!" Greatly reduces the stress of trying to see everything. You simply cannot see everything. We have been to Rome at least six times and have spent at least three weeks if not more in the city. We would eagerly go back tomorrow because there are things that we have not seen yet. So pick four or five sites, see them well, and save the others for the next trip. Live tour guides even in group settings can be very helpful.

Our solution to beating jet lag on your schedule, would be to take a max nap of two hours between 1 and 5 pm. If we don't do that, we are dead by 6 or 7.

You can listen to Rick's audio tours before you go, for free. This way, you can see if you like them or not, and if they seem detailed enough. If you don't like them, or if you already have lots of questions they don't answer, you may want to spend the money for a guide.

I agree that for only three days, without specialized knowledge or interest, Rick's books and audio guides should be sufficient. If you need something more in-depth, you'd want other resources (whether other books, private guides, etc).

Thanks All! Frank, I appreciate the advice on attitude adjustment! That will be our mantra!

Frank has good advice on both the jet lag tip and the reminder - we'll see that next time.

No matter where you travel, it's impossible to see everything there is to see. My first trip overseas was to Rome. I think I spent a lot of my time there just thinking things like -

OMG, I am STANDING in Rome.

OMG, I am walking beside the Tiber.
OMG, I am eating pasta in ROME.

You get the idea. Anyway, no matter how much you plan to do or see, be sure to take a few moments to stop and have that 'OMG, I'm actually HERE' appreciation for where you are. And then next time? You'll still feel just as grateful, but you'll be a little more focused on seeing things you missed the first time. Because then, you're mantra will be - I'm here...AGAIN!!!

Have a wonderful trip!

I'm headed to Rome in 96 days for 2.5 days alone before I hook up with my tour group. I've been pouring over RS books, Pinterest, this forum, etc., soaking up all I can so I don't feel like a fish out of water, but my alone time is to just BE. Be in the moment and appreciate the fact that I am ALONE in ITALY. Holy crap. How awesome is that?! Maybe just pick a few spots that are absolute must-sees and then wander! Let Rome choose what it wants to show you! No matter what you choose to do, you're going to have a wonderful trip! Check back in when you're home and tell us how it went!

Our trip was FABULOUS!! Upon arrival, we found it kind of tricky to connect with our air bnb for 2 reasons: language and not wanting to use our phones unless connected to WiFi. Our apartment could not have been better location-wise plus it was CRAZY charming!
We dumped our bags and walked. Too excited for a nap and we were hungry. With the Victor Emmanuel monument as our end goal for the day, we stopped at a street side cafe (RS recommendation) then walked some more. Took the elevator to the top of the monument. Toward the front we could see “modern” (that’s relative throughout Italy) Rome and toward the back we had an amazing view of the forum and the coliseum. WOW! Walked alongside the forum to the coliseum just to check out our possibilities for the next day.
By this time, we noticed that our jet lag was morphing us into senseless drunks, we took a cab back to our new 3day home and slept 10 hours to start fresh the next morning. Thank you for all of the advice!

I don't understand the need for a 'private' guide. There are plenty of small group tours available.