Rome has been a city that was at the top of my bucket list for most of my adult life; the history, the beauty, the architecture, the religion, and all the things this city has to offer now. Everyone has their opinions about Rome. I’ve heard it is the most dangerous, pick-pocketey city, the food is not good and it is overrated. I disagree with all of those things!!

I had a place to stay in Rome for the first three days and a couple tours booked but other than that we winged it and had a blast!

First though before I get into the goods, I want to put a plug in for traveling in the off season in Europe. If you don’t love long lines, large crowds and tourists everywhere you look, I HIGHLY recommend traveling during the off season (typically November-March). The weather is not ideal, may be rainy and/or cold but if you dress appropriately, it can be totally worth it. We find that we meet many more locals and get more a genuine experience of wherever we are visiting if there are less tourists; we do the things and go to the places where the locals go themselves!

Additionally, so you’re not disappointed like we were, “BAR”s are all over Italy but they are actually just convenience stores or small cafes. In America, the word BAR means something entirely different; just a heads up. 🙂

Day 1:

Moving on to our regularly scheduled blog…We stayed in a guesthouse called HQH Colosseo, in the Monti neighborhood of Rome. This was a fantastic and fun neighborhood to stay in. The Monti neighborhood houses the Colosseum and the Roman Forum but the restaurants/bars are not filled with tourists so everywhere you go (besides the Colosseum) is mainly locals. Most tourists stay near the Trevi Fountain, Spanish Steps or The Pantheon. Our place was near the train station, in walking distance to the Colosseum (literally could see it from our window!) and near a bunch of delicious restaurants.

The host of this place provided us a map with restaurant and tour recommendations which was incredibly nice and helpful. Fun fact: Pasta Carbonara was invented in Rome, so get it in Rome, you will NOT regret it. My husband usually regretted not getting it when I did.

Our first restaurant adventure was to Pasta Chef Monti, which was a recommendation from our hotel host. This is a lowkey spot, recommended as a quick lunch spot or grab and go pasta. We had some wine and the pasta carbonara…best pasta carbonara I had the entire trip. It was so amazing, this was the only restaurant we went to twice on our 2 week Italy trip. They also randomly have a wide assortment of hot sauces to put with your pasta.

Then we wandered in the rain to find the Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon and the Basilica Parrocchiale Santa Maria del Popolo.  They were all must-see spots but we were glad that we booked a place far away from them as they were very crowded, even in the off season!

                               

Day 2:

Colosseum day! You can buy a tour ahead of time or when you get there. Next time I go there, I will book FAR in advance the tour for the Underground tours, which I didn’t get to this time. 🙁 We intended to just go there and walk around ourselves for a nominal fee of $12 I believe but then were luckily convinced to take an official tour of it and the Roman Forum which ended up being totally worth it! Our guide was knowledgeable and a tour is the only way you get to stand on the ground floor (rebuilt) where the gladiators stood! 

         

The tour guides switched between the Colosseum and Roman Forum and the Roman Forum guide was fantastic also! He was knowledgeable and funny and let us in on another tour he was hosting later that day. Apparently it is legal to drink in all of the streets in Italy (!!!) but frowned upon to be intoxicated in public (which is why this policy wouldn’t work in America).

SO, our tour guide was an American and created a Roman Drinking Tour! It was a walking tour that included some drinks, food and a lot of really interesting information. Where my husband and I wandered around the day before by ourselves, the tour went to most of those places on this tour and actually found out the history of them.

Day 3:

This was Vatican tour day!! But before we toured, we wandered around the Campo de Fiori and got yummy breakfast and espresso.

I booked this tour in advance because I know nothing about art and wanted all of the things explained to me. The tour we booked was great and informative! However be warned that the Pope has the authority to close/use any part of the Vatican whenever he wants so your tour may not be able to reach all the parts even if you paid for it. In our case, the Pope decided to use St. Peter’s Basilica the day of our tour so it was closed to the public. However the Sistine Chapel and Vatican museums were worth it alone and now we have yet another reason to go back!

After the tour, we made our way to the Piazza Navona which was truly amazing and beautiful. 

We then found dinner at another restaurant our hotel host recommended, Taverna Romana. There was a random outdoor party about a block from this restaurant with a DJ; always things to do in Roma!

Then, we had an extra day at the end of our two plus week adventure in Italy and decided to head back to Rome for our last night before we flew out of Rome.

Day “4”:

We stayed at a different hotel, closer to the train station further from the Monti neighborhood. The place itself was fine but the location was not ideal for our purposes. We personally like to walk most places versus bus/UBER/taxi and this not easily walk-able to many places.

We ventured to the Trastevere neighborhood for dinner and stopped at the Aventine Hill on the way.

The Aventine Keyhole on the top of this hill and allows you to see three different countries in one glance (Italy, Malta and Vatican). This was cool but I would have been good with pictures online.

                          

On the way to the Trastevere neighborhood, you must cross the Ponte Palatino bridge; it is breathtaking. We enjoyed it during the day and at night. 🙂

 

We explored many fun bars and restaurants in the Trastevere neighborhood but ultimately I felt safer and found more things to do  in the Monti neighborhood. I recommend you stay in this neighborhood or Monti on your next trip to Rome!

ALSO, make sure you see the Colosseum at night; there are no words to describe this beauty in person.

Rome is my favorite big city so far and I cannot wait to go back again and again and again!

If you have been there, what was your favorite part?!