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Help with how to order sites to see in Rome for a short weekend trip

Posted by on

Hi there,
I was hoping someone could give some advice on which Rome itinerary would work best? Unfortunately, we have limited time, so I am unable to lengthen the visit. We just want to give our 3 teens a flavor for the city and some famous sites. My husband and I have been to Rome before, years ago, but the kids have not.

In early July, we arrive around 2:30pm by train from Naples, and can check into our hotel by the Colosseum at 3pm. We depart around 10am on Sunday. I know it will be very crowded and hot, but it is what we have to work with.

My question is would it be better to take a cab over to St. Peter's after we arrive, see that and hike the dome. Then grab a quick bite to eat, and do the evening visit to the Vatican/Sistine Chapel? Looks to be 6, 6:30, 7 and 7:30 tickets available. Then, Saturday morning, see Colosseum, Forum and Palatine Hill. Get some lunch and perhaps get out of the heat for a bit. Then do Rick Steve's walking tour and see as much as we can for the remainder of the day/night.

Or, would it be better to flip it, and see the Colosseum/Forum/Palatine Hill when we arrive in late afternoon Friday. Then, do the before hours tour of the Vatican/Sistine Chapel Saturday morning-looks like there is a 7:30am guided tour left. It is 2 hours. Then, head to St. Peter's. After that, get lunch, perhaps rest/get out of heat, and then do the walking tour and see as much as we can for the remainder of the day/night.

The other option was to do the walking tour that first afternoon/evening, and do Vatican in the morning and Colosseum in the afternoon/evening on Saturday, but I have read not to put those in the same day.

Would appreciate any thoughts on the best order! Thank you!

Posted by
25 posts

Too many tours, in too little time. Cut one of them. Your teens will be missing the beauty of the city and their memories of Rome will be of waiting in the sun drenched, sweat producing long lines. I'd chose the Colosseum, early morning and then straight to the forum before the sun is at it's peak. Make sure you stay up late one of the nights and walk Rome after it is lit up at night.

Posted by
60 posts

We're in Rome now.

Don't forget there is a long line for security to get in to St. Peter's which will be frustrating when you are pushed for time so personally I would skip getting in to St. Peter's.

So I would just go for Colosseum/Forum/Palatine Hill and the Vatican (and be sure to visit St. Peter's Square whilst you're there as it is also super.)

We really enjoy the free RS Audio Europe app with his walks (which can be downloaded in advance on hotel wi-fi).

So the walk to and from St Peter's via the ancient Ponte Sant Angelo and along atmospheric Via dei Banchi Nuovi to the starting point (Campo de' Fiori) of Rick's breathtaking "Heart of Rome" walk is magical. This gives maximum flexibility for any of you to break for gelato or coffee or whatever.

Posted by
4370 posts

Your kids might like the Sound and Light show at the Forum rather than seeing it in the daytime. I haven't been but my husband really enjoyed it.

Posted by
2 posts

Thank you for your advice. I appreciate it. It sounds like doing the Vatican on Friday night and the Colosseum/Forum/Palatine Hill on Saturday morning before the heat is what is best. Then do the RS Heart of Rome walking tour on Saturday afternoon/night and just enjoy the city. The light show looks cool, thanks. I will look into that, but that would mean we do that Friday night, and then the Vatican Saturday morning. The morning (including before hours) tours/admission sold out yesterday. I prefer not to spend the extra money on a tour company for the Vatican/Colosseum unless it is really worth that extra cost with teens that won't be interested in listening for that long. We felt the audio tours allow us to adjust as needed. It is strange because I see extended night hours every night of the week at the Vatican, not just Friday/Saturday for our time there. Do they extend every day now in high season? Should I expect crowds will still be less at night? We are fully aware it will be VERY hot/busy that time of year, especially post-Covid, but we are all willing to make the best of it. Our kids are excited just to have the opportunity to travel to another country for the first time.

We really want to see St. Peter's, so I think we will try to do that before the Vatican tour on Friday night. We should be able to get to St. Peter's by 4pm if we take a cab over there from our hotel. If I sign up for the 7:30 or 8pm time at the Vatican (just use audio tour on our own), I am hoping there is enough time to do both. If the lines look too long, we can try to do St. Peter's early Sunday morning before we check out of hotel at 10am. Does this seem reasonable? Thank you so much!

Posted by
15602 posts

St. Peter's opens around 7 or 8 am. That's usually a quiet time, even on Saturday morning. If you take the 7.30 Vatican tour, you won't get back to St Peter's before 10 am. It's about a 15 minute walk from the exit of the Vatican museums and the tour may end at the Sistine Chapel - it's another 15 minute walk from there to the exit. With the schedule you have, I would reconsider the Vatican tour unless you are very interested in seeing the museum highlights. Otherwise you'll be spending 2 hours to have 15 minutes in the Sistine Chapel. You will be walking through many many rooms to get to the Sistine Chapel, then through many many more rooms (mostly with little to see) to exit the building. While the Sistine Chapel is well worth seeing, with your limited time, it may not be all that worthwhile for your family this time around. And if you don't have binoculars with you, it's quite hard to appreciate the frescoes since they are way way up above you. OTOH to visit St. Peter's early in the morning before the crowds show up is awesome.

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