Places to sit and rest in Rome

I did not notice that many benches on the street. Any one else?

Seems like I found a place to sit when needed. Edge of a fountain or steps to a church or whatever.

If a quarter mile is the 'range', perhaps a folding camp stool ( the sort you get at walmart for ~$15) may be helpful

Not many benches, no. You might find an occasional low wall that you can sit upon, or steps. Cafes with tables and chairs, but they will expect you to buy something. Best idea, save the walking for the actual sites you visit, and use the bus or taxi to get around town. Nothing ruins a vacation quicker for me than sore feet.

There may be a few stone walls but bench are few and far between. Some of the plazas may have a bench or two but I would not count on it. What lead you to believe that benches were common? A quarter mile is not very far. You may need a plan B.

PS - If you plan to sit on steps be sure to wear appropriate clothing -- dark pants since steps are not particularly clean.

As someone who is always on the lookout for sitting places -- all over Italy there are sittable steps, fountain ledges but very few actual benches. So you just have to be creative.

Do you really mean 1/4 mile? That's only 5 minutes walking followed by a stop (you may really have to think about how to execute this trip in a way that works for the group while accommodating the one person). I don't recall benches in Rome either, people sat "wherever", including ledges of fountains, steps, etc. But there is a church literally everywhere (they are cool, largely empty, and they have pews).

Remember you can use Google Maps Streetview to take a look for yourself pretty much anywhere in Rome.

Thanks for the feedback. I saw so many people sitting around places like the Spanish Steps that I assumed they were sitting on benches. We can sit anywhere. I like the idea of resting in an open church - great idea. Thanks for the advice.

Piazza Navona is great place to sit near a water fountain. The many churches around Rome have pew benches. You can pop into any church and sit for as long as you like. For folks with walking issues, I recommend the Pantheon area. Start at Sopra Di Minerva church - then, Pantheon - San Luigi Church - Piazza Navona - Sant'Agnese church on Piazza Navona. Carry a little money for gelato/food/coffee breaks.
If you are only able to see this part of Rome - you can still have a lovely time and pat yourself on the back for seeing some of the best Rome has to offer.

Keep in mind that guards may shoo you away from sitting some places that aren't actual benches, such as the Spanish Steps. But it's a Sisyphean battle for them, so might not affect you.

Should be fine if you don’t require an actual bench - a low wall, step, church pew or bench or similar will be easy enough. In a pinch you can sit at a cafe or fast food shop with a table for the price of a coffee or bottle of water.

If this person who needs to sit down tires easily, then would they be able to get back up for a low step or wall each time?
I can walk a long way, but I have real trouble struggling upward after sitting on a step or wall.
The portable fold up stool may be a lifesaver for this person!

This is why god created cafes. You could stop every block if you wanted to.

We always travel with a folding tripod stool from REI. It packs up quite small. (We strap it to the outside of our suitcase.) it is great ti have a place to sit wherever we are, especially in lines.

We are back from our trip to Rome and I thought I would update you how it all worked out. Our person who could not walk long distances did okay but there were some problems that we had not foreseen. The good news is that there were a lot of places to sit and rest even though there were few benches. There were lots of low stone walls, bollards, or steps to sit on. Moreover, we were never far from a church that had pews and cool air inside.

Cobblestones were much harder for her to walk on than expected. We slowed down to handle them.

We took the elevator to the top of the Victor Emmanuel monument but we did not realize that there are at least four flights of stairs from the street to the elevator. She said the view was worth it. On the way down we found an elevator "reserved for people who need it." Wish we knew to look for it on the way up.

The Borghese Gallery also has an elevator but they told us it was broken. However, we saw a lady in a wheelchair get out on the top floor. Oh well.

Our best result: Taxis! Our party of four gave up on the crowded buses after the second day. With the exception of the Vatican to Rione Monti, Taxis were only a little more than four bus tickets.

In our five days, we cut out some of the walking and rested instead of the planned day trip to Pompeii. Also, the Rick Steves counselor suggested I spend two days at the Vatican with one day for St. Peter's Basilla and the Scavi tour and another day for a Papal Audience and the Museum. It worked out well and we all had a great time.

Thanks for being so gracious to return with an updated posting. The one rant that many long time posters have is that we never heard how our recommendations worked out. This will be very helpful to a future similar question. Thanks, again

If one of your party has to sit at intervals I would recommend one of those walking stick / folding stool combinations. Even if you find a place to sit for a moment there’s no guarantee it will be in the shade. Better to have your own seating on hand when and where it is required.