No. of Recommendations: 3
DW and I are heading to Italy in 10 days: 5 nights in Bologna, 5 in Florence, and 4 in Rome. We got our latest Covid and flu shots in late September, and we still mask up on flights. We'll be taking express trains between cities and have already purchased our tickets online to get the best fares.
We're looking forward to this trip very much. It'll be our second time in Bologna, staying in the same apartment we rented last November, and our fourth time in Florence, staying in the same apartment we've rented the past three Novembers. There's still plenty to see and do for us in both cities, as well as simply hanging out and enjoying la dolce vita. In past years the weather has been pleasant enough to walk comfortably outdoors all day long and even dine al fresco (sometimes). The Christmas markets and lights will also be up.
Bologna is not among the top Italian cities visited by tourists, which is fine by us. It's absolutely wonderful: packed with history, totally walkable, the premier university town of Italy, with consonant culture and vibe, and unbeatable food.
DW was in Rome for a few days right after high school but I've never been, and so this promises to be a special treat. Some of the big tourist sites will be undergoing a bit of sprucing up in preparation for the 2025 Jubilee, but there will still be more than enough for us to see and do. We've rented what looks to be a lovely little apartment on a quiet street just northwest of Campo de' Fiori.
One thing that will help us get around Rome conveniently is the recently implemented "Tap and Go" system for public trams, buses, and the metro. You don't need tickets anymore. Just tap with your credit card every time you get on a bus or tram or enter a metro station. The system will automatically check whether you're within the no-charge transfer window and will also charge you the lowest cost for multi-day use. Yay!
No. of Recommendations: 4
Assuming they still have the same system, you can get a Forum/Coliseum all-in-one pass. Don't go to the Coliseum to purchase it. The line will be HUGE. We bought it at the Forum entrance, and there were three people ahead of us. You still have to queue up for the actual entry, but that is a lot faster than the ticket queue. Or it was several years ago when we were there.
No. of Recommendations: 3
<<We bought it at the Forum entrance, and there were three people ahead of us.>>
We've purchased our tickets to the Coliseum/Forum online, through the official website,
https://ticketing.colosseo.it/en/You select a date/time for entry into the Coliseum, and the ticket is also good for entry into the Forum within 24 hours. Online info recommends entering the Forum through one of the entrances other than the one nearest the Coliseum that most individuals and tour groups use. We'll be going to the Coliseum first thing in the morning (8:30), so the line for folks with tickets should be modest, esp. in early December.
We've also purchased in advance our tickets to the Vatican Museums. This also requires selecting a date/time. We've opted for a late Tuesday afternoon (4:30 PM). A pro-tip I've heard is to head straight for the Sistine Chapel, which is at the end of the Vatican Museums, and then backtrack to the entry/exit to visit the other galleries. We may try that, if needed.
https://www.museivaticani.va/content/museivaticani...We may visit St. Peter's Basilica (which does not require a ticket) that same day or else go another day, as it's only a 20-minute walk from where we'll be staying. We prefer to visit on our own rather than with a tour.
Probably the only other popular "sightsee" thing we'll visit while in Rome is the Pantheon, also a short walk from our rental apartment. Their official website appears to offer tickets only for the current month. If so, we'll have to wait until we're already in Rome to buy tickets:
https://www.museiitaliani.it/en/museums/33f77159-0...I'm sure we'll wander through numerous churches, galleries, landmarks, and such. But we purposely don't over-plan and prefer to take our days as the spirit moves us.
No. of Recommendations: 1
I don't think online was available when we were there (wow...10 years ago!). Yes, the "side" entrance was where we bought the tickets and entered. I don't know how many entrances there are, but we were at the one that had the Coliseum to the left of us, about midway in the Forum.
We walked around other places like the Trevi Fountain, but never made it to the Circus Maximus. If we return, that will be on my list of things to do first.
No. of Recommendations: 5
DW and I are back from our 16-day trip to Bologna, Florence, and Rome. It was wonderful: good weather, relatively uncrowded, lots of inspiring and enjoyable things to see, experience ... and eat!
If you've not been to Italy or haven't been in a long time, I offer two recommendations. 1. Go! Find a way or make a way, but go. 2. If you possibly can, go in late November/early December. The weather is comfortably cool, the crowds are far less bothersome (or even nonexistent), and prices for flights, lodging, and even some attractions are reduced. Plus, the holiday lights and Christmas markets!
We bought train tickets online in advance for our trips between cities, using Rome2Rio. This not only reduces travel anxiety but can also save up to 50% on fares and lets you bypass queues at the ticket booths. We also bought advance tickets online to the Roman Colosseum and to the Vatican Museums.
We'd visited Bologna last year, and we've spent nearly a month altogether in Florence in recent years, so we didn't do much in the way of research for those legs of our trip, other than to see if there were any events we wanted to see (or potentially avoid). But I'd never been to Rome, and DW had been there for only a couple of days a half-century ago, and so we did a good deal of research ahead our five days there, including watching an informative Great Courses lecture series by a professor at the University of Toronto. All in all, we had a good idea of what we wanted to do in Italy, but other than the two big-name Roman attractions for which we got time/day-specific tickets, we left the rest to improvisation as the spirit and weather moved us. It worked out wonderfully.
Some highlights
Bologna. Piazza Maggiore; the Christmas Market; the walk beneath the 2.3-mile-long portico leading to the hilltop Sanctuary of the Madonna of San Luca; the Basilica of Santo Stefano, a conglomeration of seven churches dating back from as early as the 400s up through the 1100s; a day trip by train to Modena to visit that city’s Cathedral, Bell Tower, and City Hall on Piazza Grande, which comprise a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Florence. We stayed in the Santo Spirito neighborhood near the Pitti Palace, and hung out and dined on the lively piazza there. We walked directly into the Duomo, Pitti Palace, Boboli Garden, and the Bargello Museum: no lines, very light crowds. We sat in the sun and had coffee and cornetti at a cafe in Piazza di S. Pier Maggiore, wandered over to Sant' Ambrogio Market, along Borgo La Croce, filled with fascinating little shops and cafes, and visited the Christmas Market in Piazza di Santa Croce.
Rome. What a fascinating city! We’d rented a rooftop apartment on a tiny street off Campo de’ Fiori. After unpacking and doing a quick shop at a nearby grocery, we strolled down to the area of the former Roman Ghetto, where we stumbled upon the ancient Portico of Octavia and visited the 8th-century Church of Sant’Angelo in Pescheria, where an evening mass was in progress. On our first morning in Rome, we wandered through the lively market in Campo dei Fiori and continued on to Piazza Navona. From there we caught a city bus and went for a walk along the Appian Way. Later that day, we visited the Pantheon, waiting no more than 5 minutes in the "cash only" line to buy tickets (5 Euros). We strolled along Via del Corso with the evening passeggiata crowd.
Wednesday, our last full day in Rome, began with a visit to the Colosseum on a brilliantly sunny morning. From there we walked to the nearby entrance to the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill, which are included on the admission ticket. Although the Colosseum typically gets top billing, the Forum is at least as awe inspiring. We wandered amongst the ruins for a good two hours. Next, we hopped a tram to the Trastevere neighborhood, across the Tiber, where we ate lunch al fresco at a cafe facing the Basilica di Santa Maria. After lunch, we visited the Basilica, had gelato at the excellent Otaleg (“gelato” spelled backwards) gelateria nearby, and strolled back to our apartment via the 16th-century Ponte Sisto pedestrian bridge.
Vatican City. We visited St. Peter’s Basilica on a Tuesday morning and returned at 4:30 PM to visit the Vatican Museums, which include the Sistine Chapel. Other than a brief security check, there was virtually no queue to enter the Basilica and it was quite uncrowded. We gaped in awe for at least an hour. The entrance to the Museums is at the opposite end of Vatican City from St. Peter's Square. Once again, we experienced no delay in entering other than a brief security check. Using a tip we'd seen on YouTube, we headed directly to the Sistine Chapel and then backtracked to enjoy the other galleries at leisure. By that time (around 6 PM), we had the galleries virtually to ourselves and even made a second visit to the uncrowded Chapel. We finished the day with dinner at a pleasant Greek restaurant in the nearby Prati neighborhood.
