Rome 4 days

Rick' Rome guide has a section for traveling with children.

When are you going? Time of year can make a big difference in terms of crowds and weather.

Thank you I will search for the Rick Rome Guide travel with children! We are going this month, February.

Especially with a kid, I would consider taking one of the guided tours (either private or small group) of the Colosseum and the Forum. A guide will bring to life what may otherwise look like a pile of bricks or stone.

I would not book anything for the first day because you don't know how you're going to feel (if this is your first city after a transatlantic flight). Rick has self-guided walking tours. Maybe there are walking tours that you can join on the spot (other cities have them). The good news is that in February sunset's around 5.30, so you'll have lots of evening time to see Rome after dark. Rick lists several tour operators that give small-group tours (need to book in advance, they sell out). Take a look and see what interests you.

How many nights do you have in Rome, 3 or 4? Another thought - I would not try to plan an itinerary. Instead make a list of the sights you most want to see and group them by location. Then see how each day goes. The important thing to remember is that there's a lot more than you can possibly see, so relax and enjoy everything you can do.

The last day I am assuming will be spent preparing to go to Barcelona.

My goodness, don't waste a day in Rome doing that!
Sightsee all day; do most of your packing just before going to bed. :O)

The "Ricks Rome guide" that has a section on traveling with children is his Rick Steves Rome book. It will also help answer many of your other questions, as well as ones you haven't even thought to ask yet: https://store.ricksteves.com/shop/p/rome-guidebook

Lonely Planet guidebooks also have sections on what to do when traveling with children.

We leave for Italy in 64 days and will be traveling with three boys (8th, 7th and 6th grade) over Spring Break. It's my boys' first trip out of the country and we decided early on that although we were totally overwhelmed with all there is to do, that we wanted to live more like citizens than tourists if possible. We picked out the highlights and we hired a private tour that works specifically with children. I felt like even though my kids are older, the tour person would have some tried and true info to share with them. So, we got a tour person for the Vatican (didn't RS say that the museum alone stretches about 4 miles?), the Colosseum (we are first doing the 'Gladiator School' and will be spending the day at Pompeii/Mt. Vesuvius. These three items captured the interest of our three kids...so that is what we are doing.

Then, we plan to fill in around the tours. We know we will wander in to a few churches, hit Trevi and such, but because our goal is for our boys to understand that their country is not the center of the world (!!!), we plan also to visit markets to shop for some meals, dig up a soccer ball to play with and people watch.

It's easy to get overwhelmed so boil down what your goal is and the rest will kind of work itself out. There is no way to see all the things Rome has to offer, but you can totally tailor the approach you take to fit your family.