Upcoming Rome Trip

Many will say it's not a major attraction and that it can be saved for another trip. But do consider a trip out to Ostia Antica. It's very easy to get to using public transit and the ruins are completely different from the ones in Rome itself. In March it should not be crowded at all and will provide a break from the hustle and bustle of the city of Rome. With an early start you should be able to be back in Rome by mid afternoon. Google it and see if it holds any appeal.

Thanks for the suggestion. My wife would definitely be interested in this!

Second vote for a visit to the amazing ruins of Ostia Antica. This was my 'get out of town' adventure but now it is a regular part of my planning. I have also become a regular visitor to Trastevere for the food, the bohemian lifestyle, the beauty of the churches. I always spend time enjoying a drink on the Piazza Santa Maria in Trastevere. Wonderful people watching. Wander around and find a crowded, and loud trattoria for dinner. Trevi, Spanish Steps (still not sure what the attraction is), Pantheon (inside and out) and Piazza Navona work both day and night but, honestly, I plan my day to end at the Piazza Navona where I sit by the 4 Rivers Fountain (in the middle) with a big gelato (so many flavors, so little time). It's a great way to share your impressions of the day with each other and look forward to tomorrow. The Vatican Museum can fill a very large part of your day - it's what, 2 miles of hallways? The Sistine Chapel is at the very end and going through the Museum is the only way to get to see it. The Scavi tour was new to me last time but you can bet I'll be doing it again this year. It's chilly and could be a problem if you suffer from clausterphobia. The Foro and the Capitoline museums are very special. OMG, there is so much that is 'very special' about Rome! Make sure you take time to sit and enjoy the views. Your feet will be glad!

Borghese museum if you like art -- advance reservations are required since admission is limited. Lots of the churches are just walk-ins, no reservations needed (and usually no long lines)

The Scavi tour can be done (and booked) entirely separately from the rest of the Vatican. If the Sistine Chapel is towards the top of your list of "must sees" then I'd recommend splurging on a tour that gets you into the chapel prior to opening. There are several tour companies that do this - and honestly I don't think one is better than another - but it was very worthwhile to be in the Sistine Chapel without hundreds of other people!
We did both the Scavi tour and the early morning Sistine tour (which includes parts of the Vatican museum) on different days which worked out well - after the Sistine tour visited St. Peters and the crowds weren't too bad - we were able to walk right in.
We also toured the Domus Romane di Valentini in Rome and found it very interesting -http://www.palazzovalentini.it/domus-romane/index-en.html

Thanks for all the replies so far. It is reassuring I can do the scavi tour one day and return another for the remainder of the vatican. If we're not super into art, is the villa borghese still worth it?

The Sistine Chapel is amazing, my favorite work of art in the World.

Also, consider Trajan's Forum and the catacombs. March should be better on crowds than Summer. Of course, Easter is always crowded, but I think Easter is two weeks after your trip.

If we're not super into art, is the villa borghese still worth it?

John, IMHO the Borghese is a great museum for people both into and not-so-much into art. It's a much more enjoyable experience than the Vatican Museums because of it's excellent crowd control, and the building itself is fascinating; many rooms lavishly decorated to reflect a specific theme of artwork placed in them. As far as collection, the Berninis alone are worth the ticket price. As visitors are limited to 2-hour time slots (the gallery is completely cleared at the end of each slot) there's little time for becoming overwhelmed or overly tired. It's also a good opportunity for a stroll through Villa Borghese (the park the museum is located in).

There's no right or wrong to it but you might google up some pictures to see if it appeals?

http://galleriaborghese.beniculturali.it/en/visita/visit-the-galleria-borghese

Six days (5 nights?) in Rome is perfect, actually not enough if it gets in your bones.

And it did to me, at exactly that time of year in 2017--simply a wonderful trip renting an apartment over the Campo de' Fiori fruit & vegetable market. Early March, weather in the 50's mostly, little rain, not overrun with tourists at all, but maybe Rome just absorbs tourists better than places like Florence and Venice--at least that's what I think.

We did a 'Skip the Line' for St. Peter's, paid 15 Euro apiece for the privilege of bypassing an hour wait and getting right in, so it was worth it to us.

But I would recommend, upon arrival, going either to Termini station or most any tabacchi shop, and buying a weekly bus/Metro pass for the length of your stay--24 Euro apiece allows you the run of the place. Yes, Rome's a walking town as so many on this forum have said, but you can get a laminated map of the labyrinthine Rome transit system at Termini, and say stuff like...'OK, we're here but to get to Borghese (for example), we have to take this bus to Termini, then hop on the Metro B and get off at this stop. And we did, boom, boom, boom. Yeah, the buses were crowded, but not objectionably so that time of year. What fun it was--a blank canvas virtually every day.

Enjoy your planning!