Rome in less than 2 days

If you mean your flight arrives at 11:30 it’s highly doubtful.
Flights are often late, then there is passport control and just getting in to Rome

Where are you coming from?

I arrived at FCO at 11:15 on 10/31 - the flight from LAX was 1 hour early. There wasn't a line at the automated passport kiosks - barely stopped moving. However, what takes time there is the almost endless walk from the international E gates to immigration.

Maybe if you took a cab directly to Vatican City and found a place to store your bags you could make it, if the gods are smiling. It took almost an hour for the cab ride from the airport to Pantheon area.

Colosseum, Roman Forum, Capitoline Hill and Pantheon in one day sounds impractical unless you just intend to walk through to check the box.

Keep in mind the short days and early closing hours. Rome is relatively easy to navigate on foot, but walking is time consuming. Maybe save the Pantheon for the morning of departure, and consider dropping Capitoline Hill.

You might make a 2pm tour, but it would probably require heading straight there via taxi. If you got there fast you could at least have a coffee or something before. It feels very tight and a bit of a stretch. Is this coming off a long international flight? A long guided tour under these circumstances might be rough. Also you have a little time in the morning, but dealing with Rome’s airport is no joke. Squeezing in any true sightseeing that morning would require some real mental discipline.

The reality is, you have a matter of hours. With timeframes like this, I believe the last thing you should do is get tied up in big sights. Take it easy. Use this as an excuse to just get a taste of Rome, because a taste of Rome can be pretty amazing. Walk through the old center. Stop into some smaller churches, just as grand in terms of beauty as the Vatican. Enjoy some food. You’ll probably enjoy your time much more if you’re not running around, bags on your shoulders, watching the clock. And, as the saying goes: assume you will return.

How are you arriving into Rome? If by plane, you may be rushed to make that tour, and you need to consider flight delays. You're not clear if you're leaving Rome the next day or the day after and have the full day on the 15th to fit in the Forum/Colosseum. We spent 6 hours on a tour of the Forum/Colosseum.

It is possible to do both Colosseum and Vatican on same day-it will be a brutal day but if both are important that's what I would do. (TBH I would skip Vatican and go to Borghese instead or just pop in to a lot of churches for an "art fix")

Use your arrival day to see Pantheon, do RS Heart of Rome walk, etc,
Next day Colosseum in am, Vatican in pm-or vice versa- both with booked tours

Here is Rick's advice for Rome in a day
https://www.ricksteves.com/europe/italy/rome-itinerary

Some people actually "do" Rome in a day. Crazy as that sounds, if all you have is a day, it's one of the most exciting days Europe has to offer.
Start at 9:00 at the Colosseum. Then explore the Forum (skip the Palatine Hill), hike over Capitoline Hill, and cap your "Caesar Shuffle" with a Pantheon visit. After a quick lunch, taxi to the Vatican Museums, then head to St. Peter's Basilica (open until 19:00 April–Sept). Taxi back to Campo de' Fiori for dinner, then finish your day lacing together all the famous floodlit spots (following my guidebooks' Heart of Rome Walk — also available as a free audio tour).
Note: This busy plan is possible only if you reserve entry times for the Vatican Museums and the Colosseum in advance.

Hi Laura,

I agree that it would be a very tight squeeze to tour the Vatican, especially if your flight is delayed. For the first day, you might want to do the RS Walk, visit the Pantheon, and if you are up to it take an early evening food tour—Twilight Trastevere from Eating Europe is Excellent.

You can do the Vatican complex and the Colosseum, Roman Forum in the same day. We did this in our trip in 2018. It was a very rushed experience, but if this is your only chance to see Rome, you can do it. If you decide to do the tour, I would recommend starting with the early entry Vatican tour (Walks of Italy has an excellent one). You get to see the Vatican before it is too crowded and you will be done by noon. You can then eat near the Vatican or take a taxi, head over to the Colosseum area for lunch and an afternoon tour. I like the Capitoline Hill and Museum, especially the view of the Forum, but it is something you can skip if you don’t have the time.

In a nutshell, I’d say chuck this itinerary and start over. I hate to be Debbie Downer here, but your plan is very unlikely to be achievable. We’re here now. At the Vatican, we stood in line 1.5 hours, much of during the rain, and we had timed entry tickets. A 2 pm tour doesn’t mean you walk up at 1:45 and stroll in. I don’t think that even with a quick walk through the airport and out and catching a cab or the Leonardo express train within minutes, then dropping your stuff at the hotel (don’t know if luggage check at the Vatican is available or not) that you would make it there much before they closed (don’t forget winter hours). If you go to the Capitoline Museums, there is a Forum overlook. So if there’s not enough time to actually walk though the Forum, you could at least see a fraction of it. If you have Pantheon tickets for a specific timed entry, that would be helpful. But, even with, I don’t know how much of wait it would be. I gave up trying to get tickets before we arrived and on several occasions that we were nearby, the line snaked through and around the piazza. Honestly, from what I’ve seen here in the past two weeks, one site a day, maybe two, would work comfortably. (Maybe trying to combine the Colosseum and Forum would work, for example, but I wouldn’t expect to do more. Another option might be the Capitoline and Pantheon.) Public transit is good, but it takes time. Using taxis would essentially be your only choice, but then factor in time to find a taxi stand. No hailing cabs on the street here. Morning of departure, maybe a nice breakfast and walk around your neighborhood would be best. Sites open around nine. Best case scenario gives you three hours before heading to the airport. If you want to squeeze something in, would you try to check your bag at coat checkpoints before you sightsee? Not all sites do that, so confirm ahead. And be prepared for a line there, too. Just so you know, I waited in line 30+ minutes to use the ladies room at St. Peter’s. Nothing happens quickly here. Nothing.

No hailing cabs on the street here.

I used the FreeNow app yesterday to summon a cab to where we were standing a block from Giolitti - worked just as Lyft works for me in the States - took us to Termini.

I agree that nothing happens quickly. For bag storage, look at the services such as Stasher that offer left luggage storage all over town - we saw an automated storage facility in Monti the other night on our way to Fatamorgana for Gelato.

Well, yes it's possible to do most of what you're suggesting on the day after you arrive, maybe even 'see Rome in a day' by tour. You should plan on a dreadfully long day, exhausted feet & little food! Bur not on the day you arrive. I really like what @SandyO suggested for arrival day, more manageable and actually incorporated some food & wandering Trastevere, which will keep you awake & might be the highlight of your stay. I would skip the Capitoline Hill, except to gaze down upon the Roman Forum. I've been to every sight you mentioned, some many times, but that's not what makes Rome one of my favorite cities - It's those amazing churches, fountains, gelatos, wandering, Piazza Navona, Trevi Fountain (do THAT the morning of departure when fewer people are out) and the FOOD!

Thanks everyone for the comments and suggestions! This quick visit will not be our last so we are going to scale back and have time to wander! Please give me any restaurant suggestions!!

Keep in mind that jetlag may make it difficult for you to drag yourselves out of bed on your first full day in Rome if you're coming in off a transatlantic flight. I'd tend to put my top priority sight in the afternoon instead of the morning unless your #1 is the Vatican Museums. The Vatican Museums really are best with an early entry--if you can force yourself to get there in time.

The Vatican Museums and the Colosseum (and the Borghese) sell out in advance, sometimes more than a month in advance. If you schedule one of those tough sights on your arrival day and miss it because of a flight snafu, it will not be a matter of ponying up more money to buy replacement tickets, because there will be no replacement tickets to be had without standing in line, quite likely for a very long time.

What the others have said about spending time walking around the streets of Rome is very smart. I promise you that will be memorable. The Colosseum from the outside is a "wow" even though it probably will have some construction going on around it.

Let us know where you're staying and we can suggest some beautiful nearby churches you could pop into. (A lot of the churches open early, so they could be an option on your departure day.)

Hey Laura, Suggest you create your own bespoke Google Maps to look at your Rome locations (just click save after you pick something, then you can create "Rome Dec 23" title & save as a separate trip.) We do this before picking restaurants, there are SO many places & very few I would reserve ahead. Did you decide to do the Eating Europe Trastevere evening food walk? You can ask your guide for suggestions of where to eat near wherever you're staying. Hope that's helpful! How're your plans coming & did you get hotel booked? PS, Many people, myself included, consider the outside of the Colosseum to be the highlight, not the interior. You could easily take an evening stroll on Day 2 down the Roman Forum after nightfall, which comes early in mid December, savor the views out over the Forum from Capitoline Hill (up & around to the right I seem to recall), walk down to the Colosseum & maybe eat in Monti, nearby.

Reverse you itinerary and do the Vatican the second day in the morning.

In 2005 we only had a day in Rome, on our way to a wedding in Tuscany. Granted, this was before the crowds and lines and having to get tickets/reservations for everything that people are experiencing today. We got up early, walked past the Coliseum, sat on the Spanish Steps (totally alone!), visited Trevi Fountain (only about 20 people there), went into the Pantheon (mind you, no line and no reservations), sat in a square and had a nice coffee break, visited Trajan's Column, then a stop for gelato, and then went to the train station. I can only imagine that this morning stroll in Rome would not be as care free today.