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Rome on a Sunday Holiday

My husband and I will be in Rome on the Friday, Saturday, and Sunday of a holiday weekend - All Saints and All Souls days. As soon as I figured out this could be a bit of a problem, I scheduled tours of Vatican museums (only open Friday) and Colosseum etc. (Saturday). Nothing appears to be open on Sunday. Does anyone have recommendations for activities for Sunday, November 2? I imagine the city will be full of others in a similar situation.

We would enjoy attending mass (always a good activity for Sunday ; ) - any recommendations there?

Thank you!

Posted by
140 posts

I would spend Sunday walking around the Trastevere area. Pretty much everything is open and it is a beautiful area to explore. Check out the Botanical Gardens, Basilica of Santa Maria, go to the top of the hill to Belvedere del Gianicolo - great views of Rome - also the city streets are fun to shop and enjoy an aperitivo.

Posted by
765 posts

You could tour some of the breathtaking churches in Rome's center. They'll be open on Sunday. I saw the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore, San Giovanni in Laterano (the first Vatican), Santa Maria in Trastevere, Santa Prassede & San Zeno Chapel, the Basilica of San Clemente and San Pietro in Vincoli (with its famed statue of Moses by Micheangelo).

Santa Prassede & San Zeno Chapel deserves a bit more notice because it for me was the most amazing church. On the outside, it's nothing special and, in fact, a bit bland. Inside is where the show is. The mosaics are the best in Rome. It's a late Roman church. The Romans had seemingly lost the ability to mosaic grand churches and "imported" artisans from Constantinople. Artists there had learned from the Romans and gone beyond them. So when Rome called to mosaic a new church, it was like a returning faith.

San Clemente is renowned for its "lasagna" of history, with at least three distinct layers of architecture and activity built one on top of the other, spanning nearly two millennia. Visitors can descend from the 12th-century church into a 4th-century Christian basilica, and further down into a Roman building complex that includes a 1st-century house and a 2nd-century temple to the god Mithras. It's underground complex offers a rare, physical journey through Rome's evolving history, including a mint.

The Appian Way is an excellent walk or bicycle ride. It's like walking through history with the monuments, ancient structures and aqueducts. I walked the Appian to Aqueduct Park (https://www.romesightseeing.net/aqueduct-park/). If you bicycle the Appian, be extra careful: I saw a woman who had tumbled from her bicycle. You would be bicycling over 2,000-year-old pavement.

Also, the Christian catacombs of Rome (https://www.catacombesancallisto.it/en/index.php) will likely be open on Sunday. And they're near the Appian Way. You will see the tombs of nine early popes in these catacombs.

Posted by
17479 posts

Hi and Welcome to the RS Forum!
The Vatican museums are always closed on Sundays except for a few hours the last Sunday of a month. All Saint's Day - which is on a Saturday this year - doesn't have anything to do with these museums being closed on Sunday 11/2 but probably is the cause of them being closed on Saturday 11/1.

The good news is that I don't know if you explored other attractions in Rome but practically none of them which are usually open on Sundays are closed on Nov. 1st. The bad news? What LOOKS like closures for some of the attractions you're checking isn't because of a holiday; it's because Italian State Museums are free on the first Sundays of a month - Nov, 2 is a first Sunday so no advance ticketing for those days.

It's great that you booked Colosseum tickets for Saturday as you do not want to go near the place on a Free Sunday!

Here's an option or two
Galleria Borghese: Excellent museum! It is free on First Sundays BUT requires a timed-entry reservation/tickets for crowd control purposes. Make your reservations as soon they become available for that date.

Capitoline Museums: These are not state museums - so are not free - and are open every day except May 1 and Dec. 25th
https://www.museicapitolini.org/en/informazioni_pratiche/biglietti_e_videoguide

Baths of Caracalla: Interesting, free on 1st Sundays and shouldn't be mobbed on Nov. 2

Ostia Antica: also free on First Sundays and shouldn't be overrun. It's a little outside of central Rome but not difficult to get to via public transit. Ask for info if interested in this option.

Lots of other things to do depending on interests. Churches? There are over 900 or so in Rome so oodles to choose from!!! I'd just avoid St Peter's and maybe look at 2 of the major basilicas: San Giovanni in Laterano & Santa Maria Maggiore. As I said, tons of others but these are both high on the importance scale, and SM Maggiore in particular due to Pope Francis being recently entombed there. Sundays can be a challenging days to sightsee churches around their mass schedules - they generally don't welcome visitors there only to have a look during these times - but you'd be welcome to attend a service at any of them.

Posted by
4980 posts

I think San Clemente is a must see.

Posted by
765 posts

Addendum: You could attend a service in St. Peter's Cathedral at the Vatican, the capital of Christianity. In 2022, I attended a service. It was Italian and Latin, but that didn't matter.