Day 1. Friday 25th September.
Our 2 hour flight from Ibiza to Rome went fast, one minute we were on a spanish island then in a flash we were in an ancient city full of history.
The 10 minute taxi to The Mercure Roma Centro Colosseo hotel cost approximately $60 Eur/ $88.56 Aud. We were ripped off and did not notice the set price on the taxi doors til later so please always make sure you ask first. Set price is $48 Eur / $70.85 Aud. One is always in a rush to leave the airport to get to their hotel that it is so easy to miss the fine details.
The Mercure hotel has a rooftop bar with a pool and an amazing view of the Colosseum, it was nice to start our afternoon with a superb view.
Our dinner reservation at Aroma restaurant was a 10 minute walk down the road. The restaurant was quite an extravagant dinner with a view of the Colosseum all light up.
http://www.aromarestaurant.it/en/
The food was nice but not filling enough so we ordered a pizza around the corner from Aroma restaurant called Made in Sud. When you are in the area visiting the Colosseum, I would suggest you order a pizza from here. This area is quite the hang out for the youth on Via di S. Giovanni in Laterano. It was great to see.
Day 2. Saturday 26th September.
We started the day with our Viator online pre-paid skip the line $188.76 tickets for 2 Adults to the Vatican including the Sistine Chapel, Raphael’s Rooms and St Peter’s. Make sure you wear appropriate clothes for entering the Vatican, somehow I forgot and I turned up in shorts and had to buy a scarf to conceal behind. Most embarrassing.
If you have not been to the Vatican I suggest you do even if you are not religious, the Vatican is amazing with Michael Angelo, Leonardo da Vinci and Raphael’s artistry and more. The Vatican is open from 9am to 4pm and there are major crowds queuing at 9am.
http://w2.vatican.va/content/vatican/en.html
After several hours of touring the Vatican, we went to the Universal Bar on Via della Concialazione with the view of the Vatican on this main road. The food was okay but service was lacking. Not a place I would recommend.
About a 20 minute walk away from the Vatican is Castel Sant Angelo. The Castel Sant Angelo is a 2nd century castle. The view of Rome is great from the terrace and the castle is quite interesting to see with a small restaurant. The opening hours are from 9am – 7.30pm and cost $10 Eur / $14.76 per adult. This circular castle also has a superb view of the Tiber river.
The Piazza Navona was our next visit, it is a fun and pretty square with many artists painting and was formerly the Dominian Stadium. The Piazza has 3 beautiful fountains built-in the 16th and 17th century:-
- Fountain of the 4 rivers
- Moor
- Neptune
Good luck trying to decide where to eat in the Piazza Navona as there are so many amazing restaurants to choose. We continued our walk to the Trevi fountain approxiametely 13 minutes away unfortnately this amazing fountain was covered with scaffolding. I was devastated. From the Trevi fountain we walked to Via del Corso through the shopping district then admired the Piazza del Popolo (a large square) then headed over to the famous Spanish Steps for sunset. The stairs were full of people hanging out, it is always a delight to see so many people enjoying this magnificent staircase and the sunsets. All walks of life from locals to tourist sharing a beautiful moment.
A Sydney friend of mine recommended L’Archetto for dinner. L’Archetto is just 5 minutes walking distance from the Spanish steps tucked in a tiny street shared with diners eating on the street and vehicles passing by. It was pretty crazy but at the same time awesome. Dinner was fantastic and I highly recommend everyone dine here. The appetizers were amazing and the pasta to die for.
After dinner we explored the back streets of Rome and saw the Pantheon and Lant Eushachia Il caffe, a coffee supplier / stand up cafe. Very unique and so disappointed I do not have pictures to show you the inside of the cafe. On our way home we passed the Palazzo Venezia.
Day 3. Sunday 27th September.
The Colosseum is in the centre of the city of Rome and is the largest Ampitheatre ever built. We started our morning bright and early and purchased our tickets at the Colesseum for $12 Eur / $17.71 Aud per ticket. The tickets included entrance to the Roman Forum and Palantine Hill. The queues can be long but they seemed to go pretty fast.
The Roman Forum and Palantine Hill are truly worth visiting and exploring the grounds within. The Romans Forum is huge so make sure you have some great walking shoes on. The excavated area are Roman temples, squares & government buildings, some dating back 2,000 years.
We wandered around the Trastevere district full of cafes, restaurants, bars, pubs and shops. This area is definitely worth exploring. Walking into what seems the middle of the Trastevere district we came across Dar Poeta Pizzeria, another awesome pizza place. Dar Poeta is quite big with indoor and outdoor seating.
Our evening finished with a gorgeous sunset swim on the Mercure rooftop then dinner on a beautiful terrace with a breathtaking rooftop view of Rome at the Skyline Lounge restaurant. The Skyline Lounge rooftop restaurant where you can see the view of the Vatican is located at the Royal Palace Luxury Hotel.
http://www.royalpalaceroma.com/restaurant-and-spa/
Rome was an amazing experience and I was pleasantly surprised to come across the Arch Angel Michael again but this time at the Castelo D’Angelo. France and Italy are truly the most captivating cities in the world to me with so much history, art and just their way of enjoying life.
Early the next morning we continued our journey to Venice. I hope you loved my experience in Rome.
christinetravels 