Four Days in Rome
This duck knows where to find the best views in Rome
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While I’ve been lucky to visit Italy a handful of times in my life, the only time I'd stepped foot in Rome until this spring was connecting through the Fiumicino airport on my family’s way to Tuscany in the 1990s. Needless to say, our Roman holiday this April was highly anticipated.
While Eric and I feel that after four days there, we barely hit the tip of the iceberg in terms of of all the city has to offer, we also came away with a great feel for Rome, having fit in *almost* all the major (and off-the-beaten-path) activities we’d hoped to.
If you’re headed to Rome, read on to learn about our itinerary while we were there, along with some suggested ways to spend your time in and out of the city.
An Italian Wedding
Our trip to Rome couldn’t have come at a better time. I’d been dealing with heightened work stress for nearly a year, and spent the first few months of 2019 healing my gut, balancing my hormones and getting my stress levels down, along with an elimination diet and new celery juice habit. By the time April rolled around, the month of my little sister Avery’s wedding in Tuscany, I was readier than ever for a break from reality - a chance to step back from the precipice of burnout and gain some perspective with family and friends.
Getting There & Accommodations
My mom (internet researcher extraordinaire) discovered that Alitalia had great deals on direct flights from LAX to Rome, so we flew down to Los Angeles to meet up with Avery and her fiancé (now husband!) Mark; the next day, we all hopped on the plane to Rome together. Alitalia is a bare-bones airline but for the price, we had a good experience. On our way home, we entered into Alitalia’s “lottery” to upgrade our seats for a fee. The upgrade to the premium economy seats for a fairly nominal price on the return flight home was one of the best ways I’ve ever spent my money, no exaggeration. We’ll definitely look at Alitalia’s flight options next time we go to Italy, and I highly recommend their lottery option as a “hack” to upgrade your travel experience without breaking the bank.
Our hotel was one of the highlights of our trip. On our honeymoon, we’d discovered J.K. Place Firenze, a lovely boutique hotel with luxe finishes, an opulent feel, but intimate and incredibly personalized service. We felt like a king and queen on our honeymoon, so we decided to book a room at the JK Place in Rome. It did not disappoint, and was worth every penny - and since we booked for four nights, we were lucky to be given an upgraded room.
While JK Place is not a budget hotel, the value in the rates cannot be understated - the location is central and excellent, out of the bustle of the tourists but within close walking distance to all the sights. Breakfast (which was included) each morning was a beautiful spread of exotic fruits, delicious European yogurts and pastries, fresh pressed juices and smoothies, and numerous to-order breakfast dishes. The staff greets you upon arrival to check in with aperitifs and snacks, and the room is constantly stocked with fantastic drinks and food (all included). Every night on our pillow we’d find a different local treat, and on Easter, they gave us a beautiful Colomba Pasquale (a dove-shaped Easter sweet bread). JK Place feels like home to us now, and I’ll stay there any chance I have (I’m hoping to one day really splurge and try their almost-opened Paris location).
Settling In
My favorite thing to do after a 12 hour long flight is to freshen up, get dressed, then walk for as long as possible to fight jet lag and get my bearings. (I also make sure to constantly pop these homeopathic jet lag pastilles - they work wonders.) What made arriving to Rome around noon on a Saturday particularly fun was that when we ventured out after dropping our suitcases off, we got to wander the city with family. We met up with Avery and Mark for our first (of many) gelatos of the trip and explored the center of the city. Of particular note were two places we visited that day, before we all went our separate ways for evening activities, dinner, and some much needed sleep:
Largo de Torre Argentina
While at first glance, Largo de Torre Argentina is comprised simply of Roman ruins, in fact, this ancient square has a far greater significance (I’m showing my bias here). It’s the home of hundreds of Rome’s stray cats, cared for by the Cat Sanctuary housed in the ruins. The cats are up for adoption and while they wait for a new life, spend their days lounging and living their best Roman lives. We spent a long time admiring the happy fur babies lounging peacefully (and Eric and I went back again to visit later in the trip… I guess we were missing our own kitties at home).
Piazza Venezia & Altare della Patria
Something I learned on our trip is that Italy only became a unified country in 1861. To mark the occasion, the Altare della Patria monument was built to celebrate Italy’s primary unifier - Vittorio Emanuele II. There’s an absolutely enormous bronze statute of Emanuele riding a horse triumphantly in the front of the monument, which we spent a solid 15 minutes staring at, just trying to guess how big it was (answer = 40 feet).
Walking the smooth granite steps leading up to the monument is truly spectacular, and was an almost overwhelming introduction to the grandness of Rome. The views from the top of the monument are striking, and with the monument’s location being so central, they give the visitor a great lay of the land.
An Easter Sunday Walking Tour of the City Center
Our second day in Rome was Easter Sunday. Admittedly, when first planning this leg of the trip I hadn’t considered the effect, if any, Easter would have on crowds and sight-seeing. We were pleased to discover that pre-Easter, the crowds were fairly calm - nothing like the photos I’ve seen of human throngs all along the Spanish Steps. That being said, many places were closed or booked, two of which I’m noting below as places we’d wanted to visit in Rome, and recommend if you should have the opportunity to go.
Spanish Steps and the Borghese Park & Gardens
We started off the day walking down the lively Via dei Condotti and toward the Spanish steps, which were just as huge as we’d imagined, and luckily not too crowded. You could actually still see the steps under all the people! At the top of the staircase, we veered left past the Chiesa di Trinita dei Monti and up to Pincio Hill, a portion of the large park and gardens surrounding Villa Medici and the Borghese Villa. The views of the city were sweeping, and it was so relaxing to wander the green space. Lots of families were biking and scooting or on tours, and there were wild parrots squawking in the trees. Visiting the park was a lovely experience.
Villa Medici is located in the gardens and park where we wandered, and we had hoped to be able to visit on a tour. By the time I looked about a week before the trip, everything was unfortunately booked. But I’ve heard from others that it’s a wonderful place to visit and that the views from the private gardens are particularly beautiful. Note that you must book a tour to visit.
The Crypt of the Capuchin Monks is in close proximity to the Borghese gardens, and we walked to the church that houses this unique space hoping to take a tour of the incredible art and designs made with Capuchin monks’ skeletal remains. Very sadly, as it was Easter, the Crypt was closed. However, we will definitely make this a first stop on our next trip to Rome.
We finished our afternoon by having a delicious lunch and then walking and walking some more - we passed the Pantheon (I am incapable of dealing with extremely long lines and on Easter, this place of worship had a line longer than a brand new NYC dessert shop) and meandered through Piazza Navona (a huge square with three beautiful, ornate fountains). In the evening, we shared an excellent Easter dinner with Avery, Mark and my parents (more on that below!) and finished the night with gelato at the Trevi Fountain. It’s hard to put into words what it felt like to see all these places I've dreamt of my whole life, in the flesh and more grand than I’d even imagined.
A Day Trip to Tivoli
The day following Easter we decided to take a day trip outside of the city to the place where Avery and Mark got engaged (i.e., the origin of this entire vacation) - Tivoli. Located in Tivoli is the absolutely stunning Villa d’Este, which was constructed beginning in the mid 1500s. Today it is a prime example of beautiful Italian renaissance art and architecture. The rooms are ornately painted and well preserved, but the real show-stealer is the garden. It boasts more fountains than I’ve ever seen in one place, all featuring very impressive hydroponics.
We had a perfect day, despite some light rain and wet wind. We took a leisurely walk in the morning to the train station in Rome, seeing another side of Rome we hadn’t yet, and catching a brief, hour-long train to Tivoli. The short walk to the Villa from the Tivoli train station meandered through the center of the village, which is a charming example of a small Italian town. We highly recommend this trip if you’re visiting Rome and want to take a detour to a literal greener pasture.
Walks of Italy - Vatican Tour and Colosseum Tour
It was very important to us that we see both the Vatican and Colosseum while we were in Rome - because of our trip falling on a major holiday, it just so happened that we had to schedule tours at both locations on the same day. While I wouldn’t necessarily recommend visiting both in one day (it was about 7 hours of hardcore educational experience and crowds), we had exceptionally good tour guides who made it all go by too quickly. And, we earned our pasta that day.
Walks of Italy had come highly recommended by my parents, who had once gone on the early morning Vatican tour through the group. We signed up and met up with my cousin Danielle, another wedding guest, at seven in the morning to join our tour. If you ever tour the Vatican, I’d recommend (in addition to booking with Walks of Italy) booking an early morning entry. You avoid the crowds this way, at least in the early part of your visit, which is invaluable. Toward the end of the tour (and this was during the “off” season), my claustrophobia was ramping up. It’s incredible how many millions of people tour the Vatican every year. (One of the photos in the Vatican gallery below shows just how crowded it was!)
We were able to see the Sistine Chapel and by chance, something magical happened when we were there - a college choir group happened to come in and start singing while we were looking at Michelangelo’s beautiful work (obviously planned, but for what reason, we’ll never know). It was hard not to feel inspired. While the Chapel was much smaller than I expected, the entire experience was larger than life, and the highlight of the Vatican, for me. The rest of the tour was loaded with endless art and history lessons - we barely touched but one small section of the Vatican, and that alone was overwhelming. I was also taken aback (and a little disturbed) by the immense power the Catholic Church, and Vatican, has wielded over the centuries. It’s a fact we mostly know, but to see the opulence and power in person is another story. Of particular interest to me during the tour was our guide’s take on the locals’ feelings toward the current Pope, Pope Francis. Many Roman Catholics find him to be “too political” (read: too liberal). I found that notable because I’d always perceived him as popular for his more empathetic and relatively modern beliefs.
After the Vatican, we had time for a quick and delicious lunch, and then we met up with our tour guide for our tour of the Colosseum. It must be noted that his name was Tiberius, adding even more to the ambiance than one could imagine possible. We learned all about the history and construction of the Colosseum, the ways it was used and the culture of the time. It was interesting to go backwards in history, just after visiting the Vatican, for further context into the history of Rome and how the city changed over time. Palatine Hill, and Caesar’s tomb, were particularly cool to see in person. People bring flowers to Caesar’s tomb, to this day.
I want to reiterate that Walks of Italy provided two of the best guided tours I’ve ever been on. If you’re visiting Italy, check out their offerings , because they have so many options all across the country. I’ve never been a huge proponent of guided tours, but in certain cases it’s really worth it because you have a much fuller picture of the historical context of what you’re seeing.
The Food
I was pleasantly surprised by our ability to easily find good food in Rome , as I’d always heard cautionary tales of tourist traps (and I’ll admit, we did fall into one while we were there - if only they’d used half the salt that they did in that cacio e pepe!). While I’m partial to Tuscan cuisine, we had incredible experiences dining in Rome. And, I was so happy to be able to partake in some of the Roman pasta specialties - there are gluten free pasta options all across the city, which was a literal dream come true for me!
L’Orso 80 - After getting back to Rome from Tivoli, it was wet and windy and we didn’t want to venture too far from our hotel for dinner. On recommendation of a work colleague, we tried L’Orso 80, on Via dell’Orso. It was the perfect cozy and casual spot to warm up with a big plate of Italian cured meats, Italian wine and beer, osso bucco and local prawns. There were locals and Europeans alike dining at the restaurant, although we seemed to be the only Americans there. I always find that to be a plus, because you can lose yourself in the moment and not be reminded of home by American voices.
Ristorante Crispi 19 - If you ever need a restaurant recommendation while traveling, get in touch with my mom (but seriously). She found Ristorante Crispi 19 and made a reservation for Easter - and it was an incredible experience. Primarily a seafood restaurant, there were local, fresh, creative options for everyone. They even had gluten free pasta. And, they feature an excellent wine list. We ate in a pretty room decorated with hand painted murals, and had a wonderful time. An added plus, for the experience and quality of service (Crispi is definitely ‘fine dining’), the prices are quite reasonable.
Pizzeria La Montecarlo - Walking through the picturesque streets on our first night, I took a photo of the front of this pizzeria (see in the photo gallery below) and posted it to Instagram, just because I thought it was so cute. Sadly, we didn’t have a chance to eat there, but an Italian friend of mine responded that this is where the Prime Minister eats whenever he’s in town! And, they apparently have a to-die-for cacio e pepe.
Trastavere - In terms of neighborhoods, this will be your safest bet to stumble across somewhere amazing and authentic to eat. The Monti district is also full of little shops and restaurants that came highly recommended by the same Italian friend of mine. Monti is where we had our pre-Colosseum lunch (which for me, included a decadent gluten free piece of lasagna).
Thank you so much for reading, and let me know if you have any questions about Rome - while this post is a whopper, there’s so much I couldn’t cover. And I’d love to hear your travel tips, because I already can’t wait to go back and visit.
There will be more posts to follow from the rest of our trip, to Tuscany/Florence and Venice. I can’t wait to share more about what we did and saw, the food we ate, and my reflections on the good a vacation does for the soul.
