Rome - other than the usual sights!

The view from the top of Castel Sant'Angelo. Trastevere. The mosaics in Basilica of Santa Prassede. The cloisters at San Giovanni in Laterano. The view of the forum from the Farnese Gardens. The unintentionally campy over-the-top daily unveiling (at 5:30 pm) of the silver statue of Ignatius in the Gesu' Church. The correct way to drink from one of the "nasone" water fountains (you plug the bottom hole, and water arcs out the top). The church of Santo Stefano Rotondo, with its beautiful modern ceiling and floor and 360 degrees of Renaissance-era frescoes showing martyrs as they're being martyred - grotesquely fascinating. The ancient Roman frescoed rooms recreated in the top floor of the Palazzo Massimo museum. Any painting by Caravaggio (try the Church of the Francesi, near Piazza Navona or Santa Maria del Popolo, north of the Spanish Steps) That's just a few. Have a great time in Rome.

What do you consider "the usual"? Some people include the Pantheon in the usual and others do not have any idea what that is, I've seen some interesting lists of "the usual" from some friends. What types of things interest them? Art? History? Churches? I'd gear suggestions towards those types of interests. We loved Basilica di San Clemente, Castel Sant' Angelo, so many churches just on our wandering from one to another major sites. Many will only go to the Colosseum and skip either the Forum or Palatine Hill sites, we think all three are worth some time, we also like to visit Trajan's Forum and Circus Maximus. Borghese Park is a nice break for those museumed-out, Borghese Gallery for a shorter art fix. We also enjoy the Capitoline Museum. Next trip we're planning on some time on the Appian Way area as well. For other day trips, Tivoli Gardens and Hadrian's Villa and even some of the lakes nearby. There's the keyhole view of St. Peter's for photo fiends. Other things that may or may not be part of your usual list are the mouth of truth, Trastavere and some of its churches, the Jewish Ghetto, just wandering and enjoying whatever you come across....

Malta Keyhole. Ara Pacis.

Parco degli Acquedotti is pretty cool, but you'd want to go on a "nice" day. The ancient aqueducts are amazing. Walk up the Gianicolo (Janiculum Hill) for great views, Piazza Garibaldi, and the marvelous fountain in front of the American University in Rome. Also liked the view over Rome from the top of the Vittoriano, "Rome from the Sky." You take an elevator up. Pricey but fantastic views.

Oh, yeah, I forgot about San Clemente. Amazing. Be sure to go all the way to the bottom level to see ancient Roman dwellings. It's also so dimly lit that it has a really spooky feel to it. Rick has a pretty good self-guided tour of it in his Rome book, although I got a little turned around.

Can you give us a little hint of what you guys like? There's a ton of the unusual to see in Rome. I've seen anything from restaurants built over tombs to drag shows near Testaccio :) . This is THE city to go to if you have ADHD. If you have time and want to mix it up a bit I like to add some local flavor in as well. Rome has become Paris Lite recently with all the protests, etc. When I was there a couple of months back, it was fun to go watch the demonstrations. You also can't go wrong by getting in a little work-out by jogging the Circus Maximus. It's a lot of fun especially if you are into the history. There's a food/beverage vendor on the hill nearest the Tiber where we always grab a Peroni and watch the sun set over the Palatine. That's my mental happy place. Cheers!

How about the Cappucin Crypts? Those are unusual to say the least! We had some free time after lunch one day and decided to visit. I don't think any of us will be able to forget the crypts.

Not all that unusual but different, how about the Scavi tour at St. Peter's? It was a highlight of our time in Rome.

French National Cathedral near the Pantheon. Sopra Maria Minerva church, also near the Pantheon. and, of course.....the Pantheon.

Piazza Santa Maria in Trastevere, for the outdoor nightlife. (And I second the Scavi Tour under St. Peter's - it's the hottest ticket in Rome, since they let in only about 200 people a day.)

We were in Rome last November, our third trip to Italy and found the Baths of Diocletian and the National Museum of Rome to be very interesting. They are close to the Rome termini and neither had many tourists. The National Museum takes you back into pre-Roman days.

Thanks for all the replies. To me the "usual" has to include the Pantheon, Forum, Palatine. The first time we saw the Cappuchin Crypt I was fascinated and my sister-in-law was totally creeped out! So now it's on my "usual" list for first timers just to see the reactions. I'll start researching your suggestions and hope to add several to our agenda.

Check out the Catacombs of Priscilla. We had to plan our first trip to Italy quickly and were disappointed that we weren't able to get tickets to the Scavi. But through RS's book we learned of these catacombs and it was one of our most memorable experiences in Rome.

Check out the Catacombs of Priscilla. We had to plan our first trip to Italy quickly and were disappointed that we weren't able to get tickets to the Scavi. But through RS's book we learned of these catacombs and it was one of our most memorable experiences in Rome.

There's a fairly new attraction called the Domus Romane at the Palazzo Valentini. They found a huge roman villa underneath a renaissance palace and covered it in glass. it's right near the forum and Trajan's forum. the tour is different than anything I've seen. A guide takes you under, they turn off the lights, and the whole thing is multimedia, with lights and computer recreation. You are standing on TOP of the ruins instead of walking through them and the multimedia aspect real.y really helps you envision what the villa may have looked like. It was my favorite thing of my trip to Rome last month. you can reserve ahead by calling the number on the website www.palazzovalentini.it - IMO it's a must-see!

I agree with taking the elevator to the top of the Vittorio Emmanuel Monument; the views are wonderful. I also suggest visiting Trajan's Forum. We found it to be interesting to walk around. Also, the views of the Forum from the top of Palatine Hill are worthwhile.