Rome, Italy: 3-Day Itinerary
Only have a few days in Rome? Here's your guide. Be prepared to get your steps in.
Map
Day 1: Centro Storico
Get to know Rome by exploring the city center.
Go early! It's your best chance at avoiding the crowds. Even at 10AM you'll start finding this area getting busy. Throw a coin into the water with your right hand over your left shoulder if you wish to come back to Rome.
One of the best-preserved monuments of ancient Rome. It's free to enter, so make sure to get there early and beat the line.
A beautiful square with fountains from well-known artists like Bernini.
A bustling square to make a stop at and rest
Make sure you climb all the way to the top! It offers one of my favorite views of Rome overlooking the Piazza del Popolo
Busy area for shopping & of course the Spanish steps. Walk up the steps to the top where you'll get a view overlooking the bustling plaza.
A public square at the top of Capitoline Hill. My favorite view though is going behind this square where you'll get a stunning view of the Roman Forum
Massive monument worth going up the stairs and getting a panoramic view of the streets of Rome. This free view up the stairs is already great, but you can go up further by getting tickets to access the elevator lift.
A bridge with a nice view of Vatican City. Nice area to also walk along the river.
Bustling marketplace to buy produce or souvenirs.
Day 2: Ancient Rome
Time to step back in time.
You have to book tickets far in advance for the Colosseum, Roman Forum & Palatine Hill. I wasn't able to get tickets, so I did a guided tour that gave access to all 3 places. The guide was informative in teaching us about the history of each plac...
The Colosseum is the one place you absolutely have to visit in Rome. It's unreal being there in person and seeing the largest ancient amphitheater ever built.
Really cool forum to walk through and get a feel of what Rome once was like.
You'll get to see the Farnese gardens when touring Palatine Hill, where my favorite panoramic view of Rome is at the top of the Farnese gardens
Visit the old sites of aristocrats and emperors. Make sure you visit the Farnese Gardens when you're here and get one of the best panoramic views of Rome.
Day 3: Vatican City
Your day for visiting museums, art & churches.
Beautiful interior. Free to enter and walk around inside where you can get tickets to visit the Dome. Get there early, you'll start seeing a line wrap around Vatican City even before the church opens!
If you love art, you'll love visiting the Vatican museums. Make sure to grab tickets in advance to skip the line. There are so many different types of exhibits, where this is where you'll also find the famous painted ceiling.
Additional Day
Have a few extra days? There's still so much to see.
Beautifully creepy crypt. It contains the skeletal remains of Capuchin friars, but assembled where the bones created artwork. Creepy, but also beautiful.
Known to be the food neighborhood in Rome. Tons of restaurants and bars here to try.
A tiny island in Rome. Seriously, it's tiny. You can walk the island in probably 5 minutes.
Nice park to stroll through and relax at
It's a little bit of a hike up, but a nice hilltop offering panoramic views of Rome.
Known to be the mausoleum of the Roman emperor Hadrian. Even if you don't get tickets to go inside, it's a lovely area to walk around right by the water.
Beautiful bridge right by the Castel Sant’Angelo
If you love sculptures, this is where to go. Here you'll find famous collections from Bernini.
Pretty cool marble mask sculpture said to bite the hand of those who lied. Many people take pictures here to reenact the scene from Roman Holiday.
Places to Eat
Need a quick bite while exploring Rome? Here's where to go.
One of my favorite gelato shops. Get the pistachio flavor!
Delicious pasta, greeted by the nicest owner. Highly recommend!
Great place to grab a sandwich. Super kind staff and if you sit outside you'll get a view of a Roman temple Il Tempio di Adriano
Great place for quick pizza. Try a variety of flavors since each one is priced by weight.
Try a fried pizza here! It was delicious, especially the dough.
Casual place for grabbing pizza priced by the weight.
First time trying a triangle-shaped pizza pocket and it was delicious!
Came here for pasta after crossing the Isola Tiberina
Great place for grabbing cannolis.
Tasty spot for tiramisu in a variety of flavors. Best of it, there are 2 sizes - small and large - so you can try more than one flavor
Great place for gelato - especially if you want a chocolate drizzle on top
Over 100 flavors of gelato. Cool to check out and see all the flavors, but there are tons of other gelato places that are much better.
Nice bakery with cannolis and also quick bites like sandwiches and pizzas
Came here a few times to grab cookies & pastries.
Grabbed a cappuccino and cornetto here on my first day in Rome
Came here after visiting the Vatican museums for some quick pasta. Great flavor, where you can watch them freshly make the pasta in-stores
Great pasta
Came here when I really needed a salad. A variety of options available, enjoyed my salad.
Came here for breakfast before visiting the Colosseum. Just a 5 min. walk away with a hearty American breakfast option available. You can also see the Colosseum when sitting outside.