2 days in Rome

Day by day

1. Day 1: Colosseum and Roman Forum and Palatine Hill

   Colosseum, Roman Forum and Palatine Hill, Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel and St Peter's Basilica, then Trevi Fountain in the evening.

   1. Morning

      Colosseum

      Standard tickets cover the public levels and are combined with the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill; separate tours visit the underground passages (hypogeum) and the arena floor.

   2. Late morning

      Roman Forum and Palatine Hill

      Above it, the Palatine Hill holds the ruins of imperial palaces and gardens with views over the Circus Maximus.

   3. Lunch

      Lunch: Spaghetti alla carbonara

      Trattorias across the city, particularly in Testaccio, Monti and around Campo de' Fiori.

   4. Afternoon

      Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel

      Photography is not allowed in the chapel.

   5. Late afternoon

      St Peter's Basilica

      Entry to the basilica is free; a paid climb of the dome ends on an outdoor walkway above St Peter's Square.

   6. Evening

      Trevi Fountain

      Come early in the morning or late at night to see it without a wall of people, and keep a hand on your bag in the crowd.

2. Day 2: Pantheon and Piazza Navona

   Pantheon, Piazza Navona, Campo de' Fiori and Spanish Steps, then Trastevere and Santa Maria in Trastevere in the evening.

   1. Morning

      Pantheon

      It has been a church since the 7th century and holds the tomb of Raphael. Sightseeing requires a low-cost ticket.

   2. Late morning

      Piazza Navona

      Bernini's Fountain of the Four Rivers stands in the middle, facing Borromini's church of Sant'Agnese in Agone, and in December the square fills with a Christmas market.

   3. Lunch

      Lunch: Cacio e pepe

      Traditional Roman trattorias; it is on almost every menu in Trastevere and Testaccio.

   4. Afternoon

      Campo de' Fiori

      In the evening it becomes a busy meeting point for drinks, and the lanes towards Palazzo Farnese hide good bakeries and delis.

   5. Late afternoon

      Spanish Steps

      Sitting on the steps is banned and fined, but the view from the top down Via dei Condotti is free.

   6. Evening

      Trastevere and Santa Maria in Trastevere

      Wander in the late afternoon, climb the Janiculum for sunset, then come back down for dinner.

Before you go

• Colosseum: Timed tickets are required and sell out days or weeks ahead in high season; buy from the official Colosseum site or authorised resellers.
• Roman Forum and Palatine Hill: Entry is included in the combined Colosseum ticket; reserve in advance.
• Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel: Timed tickets bought on the official Vatican Museums site avoid queues that can last hours.
• Pantheon: Buying tickets online skips the ticket queue on busy days.

If it rains

• Swap in Borghese Gallery (Villa Borghese): Start upstairs in the picture gallery while most visitors crowd round the Berninis on the ground floor, then come back down.
• Swap in Capitoline Museums (Capitoline Hill): Do not miss the Tabularium windows over the Forum, and stop at the museum's terrace café for the view.
• Swap in Basilica of San Clemente (Celio): The upper basilica is free; pay for the excavations below, which are the real reason to come.

Where to stay for this itinerary

Pace and daylight

The sights in this plan add up to roughly 14–18 hours of visiting over 2 days, before meals and getting between them. Daylight runs from about 9.1 hours in December to 15.2 hours in June, so in winter start early and keep museums for the afternoon.

Getting between stops: Walking. Walking is the best way to see Rome: the Colosseum to the Pantheon is about 25 minutes, and the Pantheon to St Peter's about 25 minutes more across the Tiber.

More or fewer days

• One day in Rome
• 3 days in Rome
• 4 days in Rome
• 5 days in Rome
• 7 days in Rome

Questions travellers ask