How many of you did not care for Rome and were suprised by that feeling?

I love Rome. I'm also a bit of a history nerd so I can't help but love a place that was the center of one of the greatest societies in human history. Not everyone falls in love with Rome, my brother has the same opinion as you do. Where he sees a dirty and over crowded city. I see a place that has been a major city for the better part of 2000+ years and continues to be as vibrant and alive as it was at the time of Caesar. I wouldn't fret too much about it. Out of curiosity what time of year did you go? If you went during peak season, I would suggest going shoulder season if you ever decide to return. Rome in the spring is gorgeous. Also if you hate Rome never go to Naples.

I've heard this from others as well but I just can't say that I felt the same way. I loved Rome & wished we had stayed longer than 5 days. I did notice the graffiti & it did seem to be everywhere but otherwise, I really enjoyed the city. Glad you enjoyed the other places you visited. Sharing our different opinions is the reason I like this forum. Thanks for your take on Rome Kelly. Happy Holidays.

I recently visited Rome for the fourth time. First time was incredible, being surrounded by "history." Second time was brief with lots of walking and a re-visit to the Colosseum. Still great. Third time was a 7-days RS tour; I missed the Galleria Borghese because of illness. So I returned this year to see the Borghese and anything else I felt needed re-visiting. I spent time at St. Peter's, the Forum, the Pantheon, Galleria Borghese, the Museum of Rome near Termini, with a daytrip by train to the town of Anzio. Now I'm done. The city is noisy and dirty with way too many people and vehicles. For a big city, I'll stick with Paris. For Italy, I'll stick with the smaller cities/towns.

Amen Scott & Sheron, but Kelly I can identify with the intensity and chaos. I loved Rome, but like New York City, the pace is crazy and the residents are a bit tired of tourists, I think. Still, we will go back in a year to start on the list of things we did not get to see in 5 days and to soak up the atmosphere, crazy as it is. (Next time we'll stay a week.) We also had an apartment, which was a quiet refuge. Like Scott, I am amazed at the blending of ancient and contemporary: Rome is eternal! Personally I did not like Siena as much as I thought I would. It's pretty enough, but not as mesmerizing as Venice and Rome, IMHO.

You are not alone Kelly. It takes me several days to get used to Rome and until then it drives me crazy. No other city in Europe has that effect on me. But it's worth it for the amazing sites and museums.

This just goes to show that there is no "one-size-fits-all" approach to traveling. We've been twice and absolutely love love love Rome. Our first stay was for four nights then our second stay (a few years later) was six nights. We're going back in May for our third visit and will be staying six nights again. We found it to be packed with energy and life and vitality and there's no shortage of amazing things to see and do for the rest of one's life. We were disappointed with the graffiti but, as someone else has pointed out here, there's even ancient graffiti in the ruins of Pompeii, so it's part of a long tradition (made easier in recent decades by the invention of spray paint, sadly). I also think that one's experience of a city can be drastically different depending on all sorts of factors - weather, lodging, interaction with a local, fatigue, etc. And I agree 100% with Scott's comment above - If you don't like Rome don't even think about going to Naples. Multiply everything you didn't like about Rome by ten and you have Naples. Kelly, the experience you had with Rome is the one I had with Naples. I had fully expected to love the "grittiness" I had read about. Instead I found I couldn't stand it.

The first time I took my wife to Paris she was not impressed however after multiple trips to Paris this is now her favorite city. I love walking all around Rome and seeing some of the greatest historical sites in europe. The many fountains,squares,and gardens around Rome are beautiful. The only thing I do not like about Rome is the transportation system and the many scooters that people use for transportation. My top 5 european cities are 1. Paris 2. Amsterdam 3. Rome 4. Prague and 5 Venice.

The first time I took my wife to Paris she was not impressed however after multiple trips to Paris this is now her favorite city. I love walking all around Rome and seeing some of the greatest historical sites in europe. The many fountains,squares,and gardens around Rome are beautiful. The only thing I do not like about Rome is the transportation system and the many scooters that people use for transportation. My top 5 european cities are 1. Paris 2. Amsterdam 3. Rome 4. Prague and 5 Venice.

Hi Kelly. I understand what you mean - I've been to Rome twice and while I appreciate it as a unique city, it isn't my favorite big city in Europe. When you cross a street, Italian drivers slow down but don't stop, and come very close to you. This was disconcerting to me when I was first there, but it doesn't bother me now. It's just something to get used to and obviously bothers some people more than others. I do hate scooters - they are in every Italian city and they can go places that cars can't (i.e. down narrow streets and up on sidewalks). When I hear them coming I look for them and get out of the way. But this wouldn't stop me from living in Florence if I could. (One company that makes them is called Ape, which means "bee" in Italian - how apt!)

I wouldn't go so far as t say I don't like Rome. I do like it. I'd like to go back some day. There are just a lot of places I like more. (The only place I don't want to go back to is Pisa. (Sorry Pisa lovers)) I think you hit on something; you may have been comparing it to other places. Perhaps someplace that sang to you. Sounds impossible to Rome lovers. I went to Brugge from Paris. Brugge is very nice. It has lots of history and art. And quaint as all get out. But found myself comparing it to Paris. I found myself standing outside a cathedral thinking about the Michael Angelo inside. And thought about the Louvre and Orsay. And went got a beer instead. After my 7th quaint German village on the Rhine. They started looking alike. Still pretty. But.... Maybe I was quainted out. Kind of like cathedraled or castled, or Museumed out. I went to Rome after several days in Florence. And was in Paris 6 months before. (Paris sings my song. It seduced me in such a nice way. And I don't know why. I just enjoy it.) I found myself comparing what I saw in Rome to what I had seen elsewhere. I know I kept comparing the Vatican Museums to the Louvre and Orsay. And they're very different museums. But, then I'm just a guy with a degree in archaeology who doesn't like art and history. After all, there's no art and history in Paris, or Venice, or Florence or all the other places we've seen.

I was back in Rome briefly last year, after not having been for several years. It did appear dirtier and grittier than I remembered, which surprised me, but I wasn't there long enough to decide whether I liked it less than before. Sometimes when revisiting a city, you have a different experience and it changes your relationship with it. Guess that's why I'm willing to give Pisa a second chance, if i ever have the opportunity to go back - the first visit didn't impress me all that much!

Rome is a different place in cooler months than it is in high summer season as the tourist crowds are smaller, so perhaps that contributed to your impression. I understand the comment about graffiti, but it didn't bother us so much. We didn't have the same experience with traffic or sidewalk crowds and we did a lot of walking. I will add that Rome is a safe city as well.

Rome was my dream since childhood. I was so fearful it would disappoint me when I finally got there but it exceeded all my expecations. Everyone likes different things. As someone suggested order of itinerary can even colour your opinions. For instance I visited Warsaw before Krakow and loved it. I might have noticed its failings more had I been to Krakow first. I didn't fall in love with Paris, but we were there in February 2010 (brrrrr!). I'd like to try it again in better weather but of course when it comes time to spending our vacation dollars we want to see new things or repeat the successes, so I don't know when I'll get to Paris again.

Excellent point about Rome being a safe city. There aren't many other world cities of that size that could say the same thing.

Did not like Rome as much as I thought I would. I had all sorts of romantic notions about the city that got crushed.
We tried the Rome by Night Walk and couldn't walk side by side due to too many people herding through like cattle. We were interrupted by so many street vendors while at the Trevi Fountain and Spanish Steps that we just had to leave. It was mid-summer, very hot, and for some reason, possibly just bad luck, we had trouble with the ATM machines. Do ATM Machines go on strike? :) Didn't seem like anything worked. All the escalators were stopped at the metros. The yellow time stampers for the train tickets were iffy. We had a frightening bus ride back from Tivoli. The driver was late and tried to make up time. It was like being in the movie "Speed." The watch person at the Hadrian Villa Museum was rude. He followed us around and every time we looked at a statue he would say, "Don't touch! Keep moving!" We were the only people in the museum. It was the same at the Etruscan Museum in Rome: Surly people sitting in chairs telling us "Don't Touch! No Photos!" in every room. Stood in line for the Vatican Museum for what seemed an eternity in the hot sun then had to hurry before it closed. We booked the river boat to Ostia and the confirmation gave us the wrong departure point. It was a scrabble to get to the right place in time. The Ara Paca was closed for some photo shoot our whole stay. We planned a relaxed itinerary, but all these little problems turned it into a hurried and frustrating affair. The pan handlers were oppressive, even in the restaurants they would infiltrate past the waiters and ask for money at our table. We'll do Rome again, but with lower expectations and a different season.

I was torn about Rome. One of my problems was that I had been traveling nearly 6 weeks by the time I got to Rome and I think I was too tired to appreciate it and give it the energy it needs and deserves. Once I got to a particular site, I loved it. The history quite often blew my mind. But the transportation, taxi scams, beggars, etc., can be a turn-off. It was definitely not my favorite place, but I was not THAT surprised. I much preferred Florence and it makes sense with the kind of person I am. That said, I am planning to go back to Rome, and I'm starting my trip there this time around. We'll see if that, plus some extra time to do research, makes any difference. But I would not feel badly at all for not liking it as much as you thought or hoped you would. It happens! I didn't like Amsterdam and Vienna at all, but a lot of people love them. so you just never know.

I had been to Rome along time ago, and felt the way you did. Three years ago, my husband and I were planning a trip to Italy (he had never been), and I thought I could skip Rome. All my friends said that with his love of history we should include Rome. I am so very glad we did. It is now one of his favorite cites in Europe. It was interesting experiencing Rome thru his eyes. and love of history.He made the city and it's history more meaningful, it has so much I did not appreciate before seeing it with him.

Kelly, I find Rome to be chaotic, exasperating and tiring at times, but it's still one of my favourite cities. The traffic, Scooters, crowds, Graffiti and the other things you described make it somewhat unique, and are part of the character of the city. I just accept it for what it is. I was in Rome again in May, and when I arrived at Termini from the airport, I stopped for a coffee and just enjoyed watching the "hustle & bustle" and enjoying the feeling of being back. During the time I was there, I was annoyed by "scammers" trying to sell cheap Umbrellas (they appeared with the first drop of rain!), pelted with rain, endured long waits at restaurants (had a great time visiting with other travellers during the wait) and got short changed by an ATM machine. None of that will deter me from returning. There's lots I haven't seen yet! Cheers!

Having lived in Rome for three plus years, I understand the frustrations posted here... and there are more you can add as a resident - primarily the bureaucracy, government actions, paperwork, legal issues, inconsistent rules and regulations, strikes, traffic, parking, etc. That said, it's still the most favorite spot we've lived - and we have moved about 30 times! To visit Roma can be challenging. Just learning to move around the city can be intimidating. I can understand that there are "pre-perceptions" and the graffiti, grime, things not working, and Italian drivers can change your thoughts - and perceptions - quickly. But to know Roma, you have to go far deeper than a three-five day visit, or visit one or two times. First, I have to admit; I miss driving my motorino. Yes, driving in Italy - especially on a motorino - is like the Wild West... anything goes. I always liken traffic in Rome to the game "Frogger." And sometimes you're the FROG! For newcomers, just crossing the street can be an experience. But after you lived here, you learn that jay-walking... and motoring around jaywalkers... is an acquired "art form." In three years of crossing the streets, I was brushed once by a taxi - which stopped and pleaded with me not to report him! So while intimidating, it's actually "safe." Okay, I say that as a learned resident... Here in Copenhagen, NO residents' jay walk! And driving a motorcycle you don't get to cut in-and-out through traffic – AARRGGHH!!!!

First time (or even second and third time) visitors are often relegated to the "tourist" sites - the must-sees. Yes, these will be crowded, often poorly staffed or maintained, and probably most folks surrounding you are NOT Romans... to us, this is not the "real" Rome. I'm sure folks who lived in NYC or Washington will say the same thing. To learn Rome, you MUST get away from these scenes. Too often to the locals the Colosseo is just a metro stop. Many of our Roman friends have not been to the Colosseo since they were about 7 years old and on a school trip. Rome is an exhilarating city - and although one of the major tourist attractions in the world (they and Paris often both claim to be the #1 spot) - it's still a "working" city. The chaos - especially if you're driving in it - does have a flow.... but "being in Rome" is an acquired skill. The chaos does have systems, priorities, and rules. The problem is that it takes a while to learn these - and no one tells you! For visitors, on a compressed time schedule, this can be quite frustrating. Heck, it was frustrating living there! Sitting down with other expats we were always comparing notes on our "experience" of the day. But once you "acquired" a skill set – or learned the "rule of the day" – you fell a little more in love with Rome. Despite the number of visitors Rome gets, I would not regard it as a tourist friendly city. Yes, it's better than it was a few years ago... but there are still the pickpockets, gypsies, con-artists, scammers, etc. that prey on visitors. Unfortunately, the city often tends to turn a blind eye to these practices. Talking to my Italian friends, it seems to be a matter of economics. The economy is in the toilet in Italy. The national debt is only exceeded by the corruption... It's a joke; especially to my Italian friends.

So their attitude to visitors is a little skewed. When you come over with your $5,000 camera and walk the streets... well, they think you're a millionaire. And thus you get treated... differently. To put it in perspective – Our landlords were Italian teachers. Mrs Di**** had been teaching for 34 years. Her pre-tax income... €1,800 a month. That's about $27,000 a year for thirty-plus years of work. She spoke four languages, was an expert on Greek history and art... and after taxes brought home a little less than 20k. We paid her in cash, as they did not CLAIM the income as to avoid the tax ramifications. So if two older school teachers are "cheating" on their taxes – EVERYONE is cheating on their taxes. There are plenty of rules in Italy, but they are often "discriminately" applied. And of course, they will be most applied to tourists... you have neither the time, nor often language skills to contest... but you certainly have the money! Living overseas, and I've been in Europe for more than ten years of my life, is different. Values, perceptions and the resulting reality all make it unique. I wish Rome was cleaner, and that the escalators worked, or I could get ANYONE to fix ANYTHING in August... but that is the Rome Reality. But once you lift the curtain, and peer behind it... Rome can be beguiling. The food, the culture, the "pace," the people, the chaos – are what make Rome ... Roma! Notice I did not mention the Colosseo, the Vatican, Trevi fountain, etc. Those are just places, and not really places that Romans visit too often! Yet the neighborhood café in the morning, the market, the hardware store on the corner , the older-gentlemen playing chess outside Da Francesco, the humanity on the metro, driving hell-bent through rush hour traffic inches away from other motorini, cars, and pedestrians... that's the Rome I know and miss!

Of course, that's not why most of you GO to Rome. And certainly our "affection" for the city developed and changed over the years. First you moan and complain how difficult and different Rome "is;" How you can't find anything and it's not the USA. But after a while, you start celebrating the differences and the uniqueness. Not knowing the rules, the culture, and mastering the chaos is challenging, but once you have the knowledge, it's quite fulfilling... you're becoming a Roman – and you can't do that on one (or perhaps two or three) trips to Rome. I would suggest not judging the book by its cover – and unfortunately in a short visit that's all you get. But come back, again and again. Just as mentioned previously, my first impressions of Paris were similar... but after returning 8-10 times, I now LOVE Paris. So perhaps familiarity breeds comfort. Even though we visited the city often before relocating.... Roma was NOT what we expected when we moved there – she was better!

Ron: Good to see you here with us again. I'm sure I speak for many here when I say we appreciate your insights gained from living there. After your posts, we're now going to get 5 more newbies wanting to ride motorinos in Rome. Those posts will be referred to you, so you can try and talk them out of this suicidal behavior. :)

Although I can't agree about Rome (I completly loved it and look forward to going back) I do know what you mean. I felt that way about Sorrento and the Amalfi coast. It was beautiful but I just didn't feel excited by it and really just looked foward to leaving. I wouldn't avoid going back but it's at the bottom of my list of places to return to.

Thanks Kent... I do have pictures of one of our motorini after my wife was "flipped" off the bike. The bike was a disaster. She was clipped in the rear as she left a traffic light by a Fiat 500. The offender did not stop, but thankfully avoided running over her - I was not so lucky in one of my "incidente." Fortunately she was only bruised and was back on another bike in a few days. Riding a motorino - especially in rush hour traffic in Rome or Naples - is NOT for the faint of heart. I woud NOT recommend it in the city. Outside Rome, and we drove all over Italy on ours, it's a blast! We did Florence, Siena, Civitavecchia, Sardinia, Nettuno, Frascati, Bracciano, the beaches, etc. on the motorini. But if you are not a skilled and experienced motorcyclist, Italy IS NOT the place to learn. I always post this link to make folks "think" about driving a scooter in Rome - Ciao! http://tinyurl.com/rome-scooter

Ron, I have bookmarked the link you provided, to provide to newbies who write in here to get our blessing before they learn to ride a motorino for the first time, in Roma. And in the event you aren't around to talk them out of this suicidal endeavor, I'll have the bookmark to provide them.

I do remember the time when you were not so fortunate as your wife and did get hit. Was glad your medical insurance covered you in Italia. Eventually, you know, you're going to have to slow down a little on this high-risk behavior. Or maybe not. Keep in touch with us.

Yes, I've gone from navigating rush hour traffic in Atlanta in an automobile, to a 125cc scooter in Rome, and now I'm on a bicycle (no cc??) in Copenhagen! Based on the massive bike traffic here, I'm not sure what's the safest!

Rick doesn't address motorcycles at all. I'm happy to say that it is the best deal in Italy to rent a bike and not a car, if you can, and have that skill. Parking? Park anywhere. Traffic Zones?, you are immune from that as they don't apply to motorcycles. It was easier to get use to driving with a bike than it was renting a car and dealing with all the restrictions to that. My wife likes motorcycles, so its always been okay to rent them other than cars. Cars are silly to rent in Italy. We did get underneath Rome as we stayed out side the city walls and found a neighborhood in the North-Eastern area. That was fun, and the best Italian food we ever had and they called us back as regulars, with unlimited wine. It was the trying to do the usual tour, that frustrated us. That didn't work.

Ron, Wow, what an incredible insight you provided into Rome! You conveyed things that I wasn't able to articulate. To add to my previous reply, although I haven't lived there, I feel "quite at home" and comfortable in Rome (at least in the neighborhoods I'm familiar with). Hope all is going well in Denmark. Cheers!

The first time we went to Rome, we didn't like it. We have now been 7 times, and every time we love it more.

You all have provided awesome insight. The weird thing is that I found the tourist sites the lovely part of Rome and not the Roman aspect itself. I wasn't turned off by the sites. It was the Roman world around it. We had decent weather, anywhere from 30-65 degrees, some days sunny, some days rainy. I did not load up my day with sites as we were always done by 2ish or so. We ate off the beaten path, only using one RS restaurant suggestion out of 4 nights. We ate in a nice Vegetarian restaurant on Via Urbana called Pugliamonte. Small, intimate, but expensive. The menu only in Italian and when we went back the 2nd night, we did our homework and translated the menu so we knew what we were ordering because the 1st night was a surprise.On both nights, one but two panhandlers come in with roses, one after the other, and harrass you for minutes about flowers. You say no thanks, they put flower on table & say free and then stand there to be paid until you just about throw the flower back at them and then yell at them "NO!". It seems that our off the path moments were the less desired moments.
I figure my attitude about Europe would be different if I traveled during the high times. I travel leaving the states on or around Thanksgiving Day. I love that time of year in Europe due to the less crowds all together. I feel like I have it all to myself. But not in Rome. Rome stressed me out and I do not stress easily. I can take the punches as they roll.

If Rome was the 1st city that I visited on this trip, I would think that there would have been more excitement. & the pace would have been appropriate to match my "OMG, I am in EUROPE" mojo that I get when I first arrive. But I was in a sedated Siena & a vacant Assisi (we were the only guest in the 10 room hotel) prior to Rome. We got to chill the heck out, not be bothered and claimed those towns to ourselves. Rome was the rude alarm clock waking me up on a monday morning to go to work & Rome takes lots of work.

Ive been to Rome 4 times and love the church history there. The McDonalds at the Pantheon offers about the best people watching place Ive ever been to.Each time I walk someplace I take a different route and there is adventure around every corner.

I think one big factor in whether you enjoy Rome is what you're expecting to find. It's definitely not Paris and it's certainly not northern European. It's a microcosm of almost everything about Italy - a bit of rougher southern Italy and a bit of the cosmopolitan nature of the larger northern Italian cities.

Kelly, One additional comment.... "Rome stressed me out and I do not stress easily." Although I always enjoy the city, I often find that touring in Rome can be somewhat "intense" and tiring. I learned an important lesson about Rome after a trip a few years ago. I experienced leg and foot problems due to the amount of walking I was doing, and eventually had to see a Doctor. I didn't know at the time that I was suffering from Plantar Fasciitis, a condition which has now been corrected. After that I learned to "pace myself" and focus on "quality, rather than quantity". My subsequent trips have been much more pleasant! Cheers!

James's point is right on. There's no one city that everyone is going to enjoy the same. (See another thread right now that's arguing about Venice.)

I adored Rome, but I was there in the middle of Feb. I think I might actually hate it though, if I was there in the middle of summer and high tourist season. I thought I would like Paris, but found it just kind of, well, its all nice and everything, but it didn't excite me at all. Though I would enjoy going back, it is nowhere at the top of my list. Rome, however is. There is nothing wrong with not liking a city or country, as long as you have given it a fair chance, which it seems like you did. We all have different chemistries for these places. Heck if everyone liked the same city the same way, they would be all clogged up and our conversations would all be boring, talking about the same thing over and over again.

Kelly's comment, "If Rome was the 1st city that I visited on this trip, I would think that there would have been more excitement. & the pace would have been appropriate to match my "OMG, I am in EUROPE" mojo that I get when I first arrive." I felt the opposite. We flew into Rome and it was the 1st city we visited. Even though I have been in many large cities, Rome did stress me out. I enjoyed the ancient sites, but not so much Rome itself. Maybe because we were tired from our long trip from the West Coast, combined with the constant noise (I have never been anywhere before that had dumpsters on the street in front of the hotel - and they come empty them at 2:00 a.m.!) and chaos, but I was happy to leave Rome. Will I go back? Probably, if it is a logical place to visit with other destinations. Would I plan a trip JUST to go back to Rome. I doubt it. All I know is when we got to Tuscany I felt like I was in the Italy I imagined in my dreams! We also enjoyed everywhere else we went to.

I'm a big history buff, so Rome naturally fascinates me. There are just so much history, everywhere you look. Yes it is very different from the beauty of Venice and Paris, but this is what gives Rome its character.
Went to Rome last year by myself. Then returned this year with my boyfriend. He's not into history or art at all. I was worried that he might not enjoy Rome as much since it is a bit griddy. He absolutely love it! I think the key is to do Rome in the beginning, then slowly travel your way up.