i've been to Rome several times, but husband never

More information is needed to offer any advice. What are your husband's interests? You list what you want to do but make no mention of what interests your husband.

I would not head to Naples just for a pizza. There are plenty of excellent pizzerias in Rome, including some serving the napolitano style. It's an expensive train ride (36e per person each way) for a meal.

You have 7 days so you can see things at a slow pace. Whenever you travel with some - be it romantic or platonic - you need to be willing to make compromises. There is nothing wrong with splitting up for a day or 1/2 a day and visiting sights on your own.

Your response gave me one of those laugh and cry reactions...I'm not quite sure he has any interests other than the pleasure of being somewhere else. He seems to enjoy making the flight and hotel reservations, and when we get there, looking for a restaurant for supper....and then writing postcards at a café....Guess that will be okay, fine and dandy..Thanks again

Suggest a few day trips from Rome...Tivoli, Castel Gandolfo. He gets to plan and buy tickets, you get your coffee in the piazza.

Well, Rome is one of the great walking cities of the world. You can see alot by wandering (Colloseum, Forum, Campo De Fiori, the Piazzas, Fountains), even St. Peters and the crypt is more of a walk than just a sight. He can see things, you get to walk in a beautiful city. If he wants to see the Vatican Museum or the Borghese, there are plenty of places you can sit and have coffee. We enjoyed wandering just looking at menus for prospective dinners and stepping into out of the way churches.

Naples is not worth zipping down for a pizza.
My husband enjoyed the historical ruins, coliseum, Forum, things like that. We had both read Angels & Demons before the trip so we did our own A&D tour to go to each site. In doing this we stumbled across some site that we probably wouldn't have seen. The A&D sites took us 2 days to find, we kept getting distracted. During this we found our evening restaurants. He loved the Pantheon, we ended up staying right there on our next trip. He did not enjoy the Vatican Museum, too crowded, and the exhibits he was interested in were closed. We both
enjoyed the Borghese a lot, a favorite. After all of this walking, stopping for a coffee or glass of wine was something he liked. You can both have fun, you may have to see a few things that you have seen before, but it's fun watching someone see the coliseum for the first time. Have fun!

Love Rome, but plan to get out of the city. There are lakes and Castles around Rome. You can go down to Capri or up to Florence. Rome can look busy, polluted, crowded. It is an amazing city, but take some time away...much of Italy is laid back...great for your market shopping and coffee sipping cafe dreams!

Do everything in RS's Rome book! We didn't miss anything and had a wonderful time! We stop for coffee at least 4 times a day! If you get "done", take the train to Sorrento, and 1. hire a driver for the incredible Amalfi Coast drive, have coffee at the Grand Hotel Tritone in Praiano for amazing views, and shop and EAT in Amalfi or 2. take the ferry to Capri, take the boats to the Blue Grotto, take the bus up to Anacapri, ride the gondola to Mont Solaro for another amazing view, and walk the coastal path from Capri town to the Natural Arch. These are WOW side trips!

Mimi-our four family members are fans of Angels and Demons too! We found every spot in the book and took pictures with the pointing angels!

Thanks to all and please do continue to send suggestions....SamSn mentioned a day or half day doing separate things...How wonderfully simple!! I don't know why i thought 24 hours together was obligatory.
It's a bit late for me to buy a RickSteves Rome to have mailed so i will deal with "in French".
Borghese Museum? I read we need reservations.Can i do that via internet?

Regina,

Here is the website for the Borgehese and yes, you do need reservations as they allow I believe only about 360 people in for a 2-hr window.

http://www.galleriaborghese.it/borghese/en/einfo.htm

There's a lot to do in Rome... May be a sore subject since you're in France but THERE IS A FUTBOL MATCH on that Sunday at the Olympic Stadium. In light of the World Cup, I'm sure the Italians would "welcome" anyone from France - just kidding!

We live here and my wife and I OFTEN do separate agendas. She likes to shop - I like history. So on some days we blend, other days we stay in touch by cell and meet for cafe' or dinner - That might work best for you!

If you're into shopping you can do the Via Corso, Via Condotti, the Rienzo by the Vatican, and Nazaionale. Those are the largest "shopping" areas in Rome - I know, I've been dragged through all of them! If need addresses for the "outlets," send me a reply and I'll forward the ones I have in and out of Rome! Ciao!

Perhaps you underestimate him if I may say so. My husband isn't into art but on our trip I have made sure I have booked tours that appeal to his sense of history and what has gone before, stories about real people. Pompei may not appeal but surely when you get there it will be over-whelming. My husband doesn't know what I have booked, but when we get back he will tell it like it was all his idea - give it a go, don't be too anxious and don't worry about boring him, it's your holiday too, let him take a backseat and enjoy.

We went to Rome last Dec. with friends who had never been there.They visited the Vatican Museum and St.Peters and we found a great spot at a streetside restaurant and watched people.We tried to go to a few places new to us but if we had been there and didnt want to visit again we gave them 2-3 hrs. and we just wandered.

Yes, i think we'll do the go separate directions idea with meet you later as a good choice. Thanks to all

The trick to appreciating museums and cathedrals is to have some idea of the context. The RS self-guided tours are great for this. And now he has them in downloadable audio.

I would also suggest daytrips to Orvieto, Ostia Antica, Tivoli/Hadrian's Villa/Villa d'Este, Appian Way (on Sunday).