No. of days required to see Rome...
Hi,
I'll be travelling to Rome in mid December for about a week....
Is this time enough for Rome..?
Also, is December a bad time for Rome..?
Reply to this I first arrived in Rome in November, and now while it is seriously colder and possibly less enjoyable than the spring or fall months, it will always be beautiful. The city whilst rich in culture and people focuses mainly on sights, meaning in my opinion that weather isn't as important as it might be in some other cities. A week should be fine, it all really depends on how interested in churches and museums you are. I lived and worked in Rome for over 9 months and found that 4 days seemed to be enough for most. Depends pretty strongly on you as a person, but i'm pretty sure a week will be plenty.
Reply to this If you're a classics lover, one week is adequate. If you're not, I would suggest taking a side day trip - Florence even if you havn't been.
I found winter is an awesome time to check out Rome as there's less tourists and less wait time at the bigger museums. You might have to eat your pizza on the street a bit quicker so your fingers don't get cold!
Reply to this I made a January visit to Rome a few years ago, and it was absolutely magical. We were blessed by clear, surprisingly mild weather - though I'm not sure that's something you'd want to count on when you go. As Dustin points out, there's really no "bad" time to visit Rome - just as there's no bad time to visit New York, London, Paris or any other great city. Obviously, certain times of the year have their allure (spring and fall are almost universally ideal, since the weather - and crowds - won't be as oppressive as the summer), but at the end of the day, it's all those rich historical sights that make it worth the visit. And they're splendid anytime of year. It might even be a rare treat to visit Rome around the holidays. (Think the Vatican puts on a good Christmas mass?)
As far as the time you spend there, I'd slightly disagree with Dustin: four days might be enough, but really as a bare minimum. That will give you enough time to cover most of the major sights, but it would make for a pretty hectic Roman holiday. Of course, you can argue that running yourself ragged is the best way to experience a mad-cap city like Rome, but I usually try to tack on a few extra days of idle walking about, sitting in piazzas, etc. It all depends on what you want to get out of the city, but you can easily spend the full week there and not feel like you're missing out.
Chris
Travel better. Travel Gator.
www.TravelGator.com Reply to this I've been to Rome a few times in winter and it's just lovely. Far fewer tourists than in the summer obviously and the weather is usually great - cold but sunny. Wrap up warm and sit at a cafe with a cappucino while you watch the world (ie real Romans, not tourists) go by. Tazza d'Oro in via degli orfani is just five minutes from the Pantheon and serves great coffee.
You could spend a month in Rome and still not everything but a week will still be great. Like anywhere it's probably best to pace yourself - if you've done St Peters and the Vatican then walk across the Ponte St Angelo and wander down the Via Giuilia which is always peaceful and quiet. Then cross the bridge to the island in the Tiber and walk on to Trastevere. You could always take a day trip to Viterbo or Frascati if you think you're going to run out of things to do. Enjoy!
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