Visiting Rome in a Day

By DELMAR WORLD in Gresford

With regular and reasonably priced flights going from Manchester or Liverpool to Rome, I decided to reacquaint myself with this magnificent city on a quick break of two nights, giving me only one full day to catch the highlights.

The best, and cheapest option, was the Big Bus Hop-on, Hop-off tour www.bigbus.com which circles the city and stops at the most popular landmarks, such as the Colosseum, Basilica, Vatican, Trevi Fountain, and you can wander around these sights to enjoy a good overview before re-joining the bus again. A prerecorded narrative gives an interesting insight to each place visited and some entertaining anecdotes about the historic characters who formed Rome’s history

The buses get busy, however, and my advice would be to spend a little more and purchase the 48-hour tour ticket which will give you the chance to do the whole circle on the day you arrive to get your whereabouts. Then start early the following day to beat the crowds, getting off at the stops you are most interested in.

The ticket is around £28 per person for a day, and £35 for two days.

If you are lucky to get them, the upstairs front seats have an amazing view and particularly good for taking photographs.

Another top tip is to decide which of the attractions you want to see in detail.

I chose the Vatican, Cistine Chapel and Basilica and used the Big Bus to get there. By pre-booking a guided tour, not only did I get to see everything with an interesting and entertaining guide, but I did not have to queue for two hours to get into the Vatican and then another two hours for the Basilica. This guided tour was around £80 but worth every penny.

We stayed in a boutique hotel called the Fifteen Keys, situated in the Monti neighbourhood in central Rome. We were just a short walk from the Big Bus stop and surrounded by several independent friendly restaurants which was a welcome end to a busy, but invigorating day.

Many cruise ships either start or end their itineraries in Civitavecchia near to Rome, so you may want to consider this, as a pre or post city stay.

Let’s face it, if you are passing by, it would be a shame not to see this amazing city even if you only have a day to spare!

Delmar World are leading travel experts in Worldwide tailor-made holidays & cruises.

Tel: 01978 853 886, www.delmarworld.com

54-56 Chester Road, Gresford, Wrexham LL12 8NE