4 Days in Rome: The Colosseum, the Vatican & Trastevere
The Colosseum and the Forum, the Vatican and the Pantheon, then pasta in Trastevere: four days in Rome with timed tickets booked ahead and one calm day trip to Ostia Antica.
The Colosseum and the Forum, the Vatican and the Pantheon, then pasta in Trastevere: four days in Rome with timed tickets booked ahead and one calm day trip to Ostia Antica.
Fiumicino airport (FCO) is about 30 km from the centre. The Leonardo Express is the non-stop train from the airport station to Roma Termini: it takes roughly 32 minutes, costs about €14 one way and leaves every 15 to 30 minutes. Regional FL1 trains cost about €8 and stop at Trastevere, Ostiense and Tiburtina, which suits a hotel on that side of the city. Buy tickets at the station machines, in the Trenitalia app or at the ticket desk, and validate a paper regional ticket at the platform machine before boarding. Check the timetable on the day, since services and fares change. Drop your bags at the hotel, then head out on foot.
🚆 ~32 min by Leonardo Express to Termini 💵 ~€14 Leonardo Express, ~€8 regional FL1 (check current) 🕐 Plan around your landing time, then drop your bagsThe Pantheon was rebuilt under Hadrian around AD 126 and has been a church since 609. Its concrete dome, open to the sky through an oculus about 9 m wide, is still the largest unreinforced concrete dome in the world, and the sun makes a moving disc of light on the floor. Visitors now pay an entry fee of about €5 (check the current price), and it remains a working church, so sightseeing pauses during Mass. From there Piazza Navona is about 5 minutes on foot. The long oval follows the outline of Domitian's stadium, and Bernini's Fountain of the Four Rivers dates from 1651. Skip the sit-down cafés on the square, where a coffee costs far more than at a bar around the corner.
🚶 ~5 min on foot between the two 💵 Pantheon ~€5 (check current), Piazza Navona free 🕐 Mid-afternoon, or first thing in the morning to avoid the queueThe Trevi Fountain was completed in 1762, and coins thrown in are collected for charity. It is one of the most crowded spots in Rome, and the rules for getting close have been changing, so check the city's current notice and go early or after dark for a calmer look. The Spanish Steps are about 10 minutes away on foot: 135 steps up from Piazza di Spagna to the church of Trinità dei Monti, built in the 1720s. Sitting on them is not allowed and can be fined. For dinner, walk a few streets away from both piazzas, because menus right on the squares are priced for passing visitors. Order the Roman classics: carbonara, cacio e pepe or amatriciana.
🚶 ~10 min on foot from the Pantheon to Trevi, then ~10 to the Spanish Steps 💵 Sights free, ~€25-35 for dinner 🕐 After dark, away from peak tour hoursThe Colosseum was begun under Vespasian around AD 70 and opened in AD 80 under Titus. A combined ticket covers the Colosseum, the Roman Forum and the Palatine Hill, is valid for 24 hours with one entry to each, and costs about €18 online (check the current price). Tickets are named, so bring ID, and they sell out days ahead in busy months, so book the first slot of the day on the official site of the archaeological park rather than from a reseller. The arena floor and underground tours are separate paid extras. Expect a security check at the gate and bring a water bottle: the visit takes about 1.5 to 2 hours.
🚇 Metro B to Colosseo, two stops from Termini 💵 ~€18 combined ticket, booked online (check current) 🕐 First slot of the day, usually around 8:30 to 9:00 depending on seasonYour combined ticket also covers the Forum and the Palatine, so walk up past the Arch of Titus and wander the Via Sacra, the civic heart of ancient Rome. Look for the Curia, where the Senate met, the columns of the Temple of Saturn and the Arch of Septimius Severus. Then climb the Palatine, where the emperors built their palaces: the ruins of the Domus Augustana sit above the Circus Maximus, with long views over the city. There is very little shade, so bring water, a hat and sunscreen in warm months, and refill at one of the free drinking fountains. Allow about 3 hours for both.
🚶 On foot from the Colosseum via the Arch of Titus 💵 Included in the combined ticket 🕐 Midday, but bring water and a hat: there is little shadeMichelangelo designed Piazza del Campidoglio in the 1530s and 1540s, with the Capitoline Museums and the Palazzo Senatorio around it. The museums are an optional paid visit. For a free view, take the passage on the right side of the Palazzo Senatorio to the terrace above the Forum, which looks especially good at golden hour. Then walk about 15 minutes to Monti, a lively neighbourhood of small trattorie and wine bars. Reserve a table for dinner, and ask for the daily specials, which are usually better value than the long menus out front.
🚶 ~10 min up from the Forum, then ~15 min on foot to Monti 💵 Piazza and terrace free, ~€25-35 for dinner 🕐 Late afternoon for the Forum view, dinner from 8 PMEntry to the Vatican Museums is about €20, plus an online reservation fee of about €5 (check the current price), and visits are timed, so book the earliest slot on the official site. The museums are closed on Sundays except the last Sunday of the month, when entry is free but the queues are very long, and on some church holidays. The route ends in the Sistine Chapel, with Michelangelo's ceiling (1508 to 1512) and the Last Judgment (1536 to 1541). Photography and talking are not allowed in the chapel, and shoulders and knees must be covered. Allow about 3 hours, and keep bags small, because large ones go to the cloakroom.
🚇 Metro A to Ottaviano or Cipro, then a short walk 💵 ~€25 including the online booking fee (check current) 🕐 Earliest timed slot, closed Sundays except the last of the monthSt. Peter's Basilica is free to enter, but a security queue builds up in the morning, so early afternoon is often quicker. The same dress code applies: shoulders and knees covered. The church was consecrated in 1626, and the dome follows Michelangelo's design. Look for the Pietà in the first chapel on the right. The dome climb is about 551 steps on foot, or a lift that saves roughly the first 230 steps for a couple of euros more (about €8 on foot or €10 with the lift, check current). The general audience on Wednesday mornings can limit access to the square and the church, so check the schedule if you visit that day. Afterwards, walk back across Ponte Sant'Angelo.
🚶 ~15 min on foot around the walls from the museums 💵 Basilica free, dome ~€8 on foot or ~€10 with the lift (check current) 🕐 Early afternoon, when the queue is usually shorterTrastevere sits across the Tiber and has cobbled lanes, ivy-covered walls and busy evenings. Start at the church of Santa Maria in Trastevere, one of the oldest churches in Rome, with a golden apse mosaic from the 12th century. It is free to enter. For dinner, wander the side lanes instead of the main piazza, and avoid places with a tout outside or a menu with photos. Try cacio e pepe, carbonara or supplì, and book ahead on Friday and Saturday. Most Roman restaurants add a small cover charge (coperto) per person, usually €1 to €3, so check the menu.
🚶 ~35 min on foot from the Vatican, or take a bus or taxi 💵 Church free, ~€25-35 for dinner plus cover charge 🕐 Dinner from 8 PM, book ahead at weekendsOstia Antica was the port of ancient Rome, and its well-preserved streets, shops, baths and theatre make a quieter alternative to the Forum. Take Metro B to Piramide and change to the Roma-Lido line at Porta San Paolo, which runs to Ostia Antica in about 30 minutes on a regular city ticket. Entry is about €18 at last check (confirm the current price), and the site is closed on Mondays. Walk the Decumanus, the main street, then see the theatre, the Forum Baths and the mosaics of the Baths of Neptune. There is little shade, so bring water. Allow 2.5 to 3 hours in total.
🚆 ~30 min on the Roma-Lido line from Porta San Paolo 💵 ~€1.50 city ticket + ~€18 entry (check current) 🕐 Arrive soon after opening, closed on MondaysTake the train back to Piramide and walk up the Aventine Hill. The Orange Garden (Giardino degli Aranci) is a free terrace with orange trees and a wide view over Rome, open until dusk. A few minutes along, the Priory of the Knights of Malta stands on its own small piazza, and its bronze door has a keyhole that frames the dome of St. Peter's perfectly at the end of a clipped hedge. Queues are usually short, but they grow at sunset. The priory itself is not open to visitors. Santa Sabina, a quiet early Christian church, is nearby.
🚶 ~15 min uphill on foot from Piramide, then ~5 min to the keyhole 💵 Free 🕐 Late afternoon light, the garden closes at duskReturn to Termini for the Leonardo Express to Fiumicino, which takes about 32 minutes and costs about €14. Plan to leave Termini at least 3 hours before your flight, since security and check-in queues can be long, and check the last train of the evening on the Trenitalia timetable. Regional FL1 trains from Trastevere or Ostiense are a cheaper option if your hotel is on that side. A taxi from the centre to Fiumicino has a fixed fare, which is a good fallback for a very early or late flight. Most international flights use Terminal 3.
🚆 ~32 min by Leonardo Express 💵 ~€14 (check current) 🕐 Leave Termini at least 3 hours before your flightRome has thousands of free public drinking fountains, called nasoni (big noses), with cold, safe tap water. Carry a refillable bottle, which saves a few euros a day on bottled water.
An espresso or cappuccino at the counter costs a fraction of the same drink at a table, and tables in the busiest piazzas add a surcharge. Pay at the till first, then show the receipt at the bar.
A single metro, bus or tram ticket costs about €1.50 and is valid for 100 minutes, and a 24-hour ticket is about €7 (check current fares). Most of this itinerary is walkable, so a few single tickets often cost less than a pass.
The Pantheon, the Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps are far calmer before 8 AM or after 9 PM. Lighting at night also changes the whole feeling of the fountains.
The Pincio terrace above Piazza del Popolo and the Janiculum Hill both give free sweeping views of the city at sunset. The Janiculum also fires a ceremonial cannon every day at noon.
If you have a spare day, the Appian Way is closed to traffic on Sundays and holidays, which makes it pleasant to walk or cycle past ancient tombs and the catacombs.
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