Planning a Trip to Lazio Region

Rome rocks! You definitely have to go and see the Vatican, Colluseum, Forum, Pantheon and the Spanish Steps as well as that big fountain. Get to the Vatican early on one day as it will take you most of the day to go through St Peters and the Vatican galleries. Ladies, ensure you wear a long skirt/sarong or trousers as you won't be allowed in if you are wearing shorts or a mini skirt. It is massive. Often there are people (English speaking students) who are willing to give you a guided tour with explanations through St Peters for free! The statues as well as the architechure of St Peters will blow your mind while you will crack up at the strategically placed fig leaves on the statues of the males throughout the Vatican gallery corridors. When you have finished exploring St Peters Square head down to the Pantheon. I got the best cheeseburger I had in Italy at the McDonalds opposite the Pantheon. The next day get to the Colluseum early to get in line. Later in the day the lines are very long! The Colluseum is awesome and again you may be able to get a guide here, for free! Then you can go onto the Forum across the road. It has been quarried away over the hundreds of years since it lost favour as being the seat of Roman govt, but it is still impressive as your guide will tell you. Romans are crazy drivers, so watch out. Keep a sharp eye out for pickpockets and be very careful with cameras, money, passports, etc as well as your bag. Try not to be anywhere by yourself late at night or early in the morning as that is the best time for thieves to target you and more than one tourist has had a fatal swim in the Tigeres as a result. Public transport is a bit hit and miss (like the rest of the drivers), but the underground train system is good. Tourist buses are not allowed to enter the centre of Rome, so if you go on Bus About or Contiki etc it is likely you will be staying on the edge of Rome. Otherwise you will be paying extra taxi fares to get to your inner city hotel and back again to catch the bus.

Everywhere you look in Rome there is something historical and cool.  The best way to see that is by walking.  While Rome is a fairly walkable city, you feet will soon feel about 5 times bigger than they are.  So, best advice is to bring good walking shoes, with good support.  And if it is at all possible to make them cute good walking shoes all the better.  The locals are not ones to dress unfashionably.

Be careful in this city as far as pickpockets go. They are everywhere and quite good. Definitely spend some time in the city centre where most of ancient Rome is, but also take the time to travel to some suburbs and fun places off the beaten track. Go down into Trastevarre one night and simply explore that beautiful part of the city.

There are some great little restaurants around the Pantheon area, and if you go into some smaller back alleys, you can find some great restaurants.

The best and cheapest gelato in Rome can be found to the left side of the Trevi Fountain, as you're facing it.

It is advisable to get a bus pass, but they never check them. It would be to your advantage to take a little risk and not have a bus pass. The worse they can do is kick you off. Often the buses are so crowded that it doesn't matter.

Spring is the best time to be in Rome. We ate breakfast outside the bungalow but it wasn't too hot to walk around in the city...

My secret Tip for Roma is to go to Caracalla Therms. It is a great antique place and the best think is, there are almost no people, so you can enjoy the atmophere of long gone time. Leave Foro Romano to usual tourists ;-)

when looking for a clean, FREE bathroom, look out for signs marked W.C. this literally translates to water closet, but the toilets are very clean and you do not have to pay a gratuity.

Hello guys, few tips from a real roman... San Peter  and the Vatican are quite all right, but if you want a taste of true spirituality versus temporal power go look for the catacombs and the other reliquia from the paleochristian age, check the mosaics, in Santa Prassede, San Clemente, Santa Prudenziana e Santa Costanza. And did you know Rome is one of the cities with the biggest urban parks? stay away from Villa Borghese and instead explore Villa Ada, or Villa Pamphii where, if you are still not tired of art, you can visit the actual Villa Pamphili with wonderful paintings or just enjoy its wonderful architecture from outside. Also in the quartiere Salario, if you are partial to original architecture, don't miss the Quartiere Coppede' it's one of a kind. Have a safe trip and remember, though in general Rome is not a dangerous city, don't make the mistake to lower the guard and always watch for your bags on the bus! P.S. Public Restrooms are few and rarely clean, bring lot of hand sanitizer and toilet covers.

maybe it's a bit funny tip, but actually very useful! there is a very nice, clean, fee-free toilet on the Roman Forum that is usually not occupied by hordes of tourists. you can find it when go down from the Capitol hill, turn right heading to the temple of Castor and Pollux and when you'll think 'there's nothing more', just go a bit further and... bingo! :)

Be sure you have a telephone card before going to Fiumicino Airport. Once there you can only buy cards for 12 euros or more. Public phones don't accept coins, only telephone or credit cards. I made a 3-minutes-call from there to Rome with my credit card and spent 6 euros.

Roma is the city for walks. It is so full of history it flabbergasts you. The Vatican is a state within a city and for anyone who knows Tosca it is a treat. Palazzo Farnese. Check your history to see what happened there and while you're at it look into the Chapel of Sancta Birgitta. It has the most wonderful atmosphere. The tourist buses are noisy as hell and you have to look a while for an internet café. Extra fun was seeing the stand selling lollipops with the pope's picture on it. Check out the catacombs of St. Peter's Cathedral for Christina's and Peter's graves. Great.

You can't miss the Vaticans Museum. In order to avoid ques, you can reserve yr ticket using internet. The Vatican Museums is one of the most important Museum complexes in the world housing very important masterpieces from the Egyptian Age to late Renaissance.

Around the city (especially the main tourist venues) you will see men dressed as Roman soldiers offering to take a photo with you. Before you take a photo with them they are very friendly and personable, however after taking the photo they become very demanding and charge you up to 20 euro for each person! Avoid the Romans at all costs!

In Lenola you will find the Sanctuary of Madonna del Colle. Next to the church you can also check out the Peace Steps. You can see photos of the church and steps at: http://www.inspirationalthoughts.org/Overseas/first/5032001.htm

Church of St. Mary della Libera in located in Aquino. Also you will be able to see the cobblestones of Via Appia. This old section of the road paralleled the main road for about 3/4 of a mile. You can see some photos here: http://www.inspirationalthoughts.org/Overseas/first/5032001.htm

---Justees---   the better place where you can express yourself ...  bring your idea with you and let them print it for you... Stefano and Simone are waiting for you... lots of  t-shirts are ready to be customized by you!!! I loved this shop!

An extraordinary country! Good to visit, always!

Do the Archeo bus tour. €20 for 2 day pass on open top tour bus the archeo bus. Well worth it. Check opening times of Catacombs first as are closed from 12:30-15:30 or something like that it takes almost an hour to get there

You gotta try the fried olives !!  

When visiting Rome, I recommend staying at the Hotel San Carlo. The price is fairly cheap and it's located in the center of the city. The Spanish Steps are just a couple of steps away and the shopping is fabulous around there. The hotel is basically the center of all the attractions. Local restaurants are located along the small alleys and any will be fit for your satisfaction.
Rome is a place of beauty and history and when there you want to absorb it all before you leave. I would definitely recommend visiting the Colosseum and buying a ticket to go inside. However, I must warn you the line for the ticket will be very long around 1hr to 4 hrs. While at the site of the Colosseum, you should visit the Roman Forum, which is a great way to experience the way the Romans lived during their era. I would recommend you try to reserve the ticket before hand. The Vatican is also a great place to visit. The entrance into the chapel is free, however the museum will cost 16 euros. I would recommend visiting the Vatican City first, when done exploring the city you can enter the museum, which entrance is located in the back of the city. When done with the museum you will exit back to the front of the Vatican entrance where you can go into the Church. Another great place to visit would be the Pantheon. Entrance to the Pantheon is free and its a great place to experience the wonders of the Catholic religion during the Roman period. If you just want to relax and hang out with a couple of friends visit the Spanish Step, where you will find locals and tourist in the area just lounging around at night.

Wow factor on every corner. There is nothing not to like, except rude taxi drivers.