Susy & Brady
Rome Recommendations
Vatican City
Famously the world’s smallest sovereign state, with a population of fewer than one thousand, ruled by the Pope. St. Peter’s Basilica is the spiritual heart of the Vatican and of the Catholic Church itself. Its lavish interior is full of beautiful works of art including Michelangelo’s moving Pietà, and the extraordinary Sistine Chapel (Cappella Sistina). The Sistine Chapel, where popes are selected and crowned, is perhaps the Vatican’s most famous treasure, renowned for Michelangelo’s exquisite ceilings, which he spent four years painting. It is covered with frescoes painted by some of the world’s best-known artists including Botticelli, Perugino and Luca. Just outside St. Peter’s Basilica lies Piazza San Pietro (St. Peter’s Square). The enormous square can accommodate over 300,000 people. It is surrounded by more than 284 impressive columns, topped by statues of saints. At its centre are two beautiful fountains and a 25 metre high obelisk, transported from Egypt in 1586.
Vatican Museums
Surely top of anyone’s list of places to visit in Rome are the Vatican Museums. Perhaps foremost of their treasures is Michelangelo’s famous masterpiece, the Sistine Chapel, but they are also home to a treasure trove of painting, sculpture and other works of art dating back to the 1500s, which have been collected by the popes throughout the ages. There are hundreds of rooms packed full of masterpieces by famous names such as Giotto, Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, il Perugino and Caravaggio.
Trevi Fountain
The Trevi Fountain is a magnificently ornate structure completed in 1762 and made from travertine stone. Thanks to a tradition which came from the 1954 film ‘Three Coins in the Fountain’, visitors throw coins into the fountain hoping to find love and return to Rome. As a result, the equivalent of nearly one million Euros in coins is tossed into the fountain each year, which is all donated to charity.
Pantheon
The Pantheon was built in 126AD and is the most significant building remaining from ancient Rome. It was built as a temple to the gods, and retains a deeply spiritual atmosphere. Intriguingly, it is exactly as wide as it is tall – 43.5 metres. Its most unusual feature is the hole in its impressive dome, which provides light into the building. Its portico is supported by 16 huge Corinthian columns, transported all the way from Egypt. Today, it houses the tombs of many of Italy’s kings.
Colosseum
The Colosseum is one of Rome’s most famous landmarks. This iconic site is visited by more than 6 million tourists each year. Its huge gladiatorial arena is encircled by outer walls, which have three levels of columns and arches. It dates back to 80AD and had room for more than 50,000 spectators who would watch displays of exotic animals, gladiator fights, public executions, recreations of battles and other spectacles. It was the Roman Empire’s centre of entertainment for over 500 years. It is no surprise that it was named as one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World in 2007.
Roman Forum
The Roman Forum is the historic heart of ancient Rome. It is a unique and awe-inspiring experience to walk through history as you wander along its main street, the Via Sacra, and take in its well-preserved temples and squares. It is hard to believe that this fascinating site lay buried and forgotten for so many years, until it was excavated in the 20th century.
Palatine Hill
Relative to the seven hills of Rome, Palatine Hill is the centremost. One of the most ancient parts of the city; it has been called "the first nucleus of the Roman Empire". The site is now mainly a large open-air museum whilst the Palatine Museum houses many finds from the excavations here and from other ancient Italian sites.
Piazza Navona
This Baroque piazza is one of Rome’s largest and most beautiful squares. The Piazza Navona is a popular meeting place for locals and visitors alike, who enjoy wandering amongst its street artists and dining at the many restaurants which surround the square. At its heart is the Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi, with its unusual focal point of a large obelisk.
Spanish Steps
Built in Rococo style between 1723 and 1726, the Spanish steps lead from the Piazza di Spagna square to the French monastery church Trinita dei Monti (built between 1502–1587). There are 135 steps and three different terraces, referring to the Holy Trinity (the Trinità). The top of the stairs near the Egyptian obelisk offers a beautiful view, albeit one shared with throngs of other tourists. The Spanish steps represent figuratively and metaphorically the close relationship between the Sacred and the Eternal city, shown through the elevation and vastness of the monument. The longest and widest steps in Europe are also an important landmark in Rome as they host events and are home to Italian traditions.