With its many museums, squares and historical buildings, The Eternal City of Rome is so full of history, beauty and art that it can be hard to lay down a list of things to see when you only have a few days in town. Fear not though, we’re here to help! Here are our top 5 places to visit in Rome!
If you are interested experiencing Rome like a local we suggest you to take a look at our Rome Tours with local guides.
1. Colosseum
With over 6 million visitors a year, the Flavian Amphitheatre, commonly known as the Colosseum, is one of the most exceptional monuments and a symbol of the city of Rome.
Its construction began in the year 72 with Emperor Vespasian but it was only finished in the year 80 with Emperor Titus.
During the Roman Empire, the Colosseum used to be a gathering place where over 50.000 people could watch all kinds of spectacles. The most common shows were recreations of gladiator battles, executions of prisoners, or exhibitions of exotic animals. It may come as a surprise that the Colosseum was sometimes filled with water to host staged naval battles, called Naumachie. It was a great form of entertainment… kind of like going to watch an action movie at the cinema nowadays!
The last recorded show took place in the 6th century. Since then, the Colosseum has survived many hardships: two World Wars, earthquakes and plunders but luckily the majority of it managed to remain intact!
The Colosseum is the biggest Roman Amphitheatre and one of the most visited sites in Rome. Since the lines are quite long we suggest you book a skip-the-line tour with us!
2. Trevi Fountain
The Trevi Fountain is the largest and most beautiful fountain in the city of Rome. The fountain was originally built in the year 19 B.C. but was only finalized in 1762 by Giuseppe Pannini.
Its name comes from its setting; the Trevi Fountain is, in fact, located at a point where “tre vie” – meaning “three streets” – meet, hence the derivation of the name “Trevi”.
Nowadays throwing a couple of cents into the fountain is a symbol of good luck and a chance to make a wish, but this is not the only tradition surrounding the Trevi Fountain. Back in the day, a tradition that is no longer in use called “La tradizione del bicchiere“, was dedicated to couples. As a promise of loyalty, if a man was about to leave for work, his girlfriend would have him drink a glass of water from the fountain and then break it. Today this tradition has been replaced by the “Fontanina degli innamorati”, another small fountain located at the right of the Trevi Fountain. If you and your significant other drink water from this fountain, it means that you are going to stay together!
3. Roman Forum
The Roman Forum, along with the Colosseum, is another amazing site that shows the beauty of the Roman Empire. It used to be the center of political activities and public life.
An interesting fact about the forum we see today is that, with the fall of the Roman Empire, the Forum ended up slowly getting covered by dirt and it was carried out only in the 20th century with excavations.
4. St. Peter’s Square
Located in Vatican City, right next to St. Peter’s Basilica, St. Peter’s Square is one of the largest squares in the world, being over 320 meters long and 240 meters wide.
This square took 11 years to build and it was constructed by Bernini, starting in 1656 and ending in 1667.
One of the most interesting aspects of St. Peter’s Square is that it’s surrounded by four rows of columns that create an optical illusion; the 284 columns were placed by Bernini so that if you were to stand at the center of the square, you would only see one row of columns.
5. Piazza di Spagna
Piazza di Spagna is one of the most remarkable squares in Rome. Its name comes from the fact that Palazzo di Spagna, the seat of the Spanish Embassy, is located in this square.
Being strictly connected to Via dei Condotti, Via del Babuino and Via Frattina, Piazza di Spagna is one of the most popular neighborhoods in the Eternal City.
Another very interesting aspect of this square is its 135 steps. Built at the beginning of the 18th century, the Spanish Steps have become a tourist-favorite spot to sit and relax after a long walk through the streets of Rome.
