Rome in one day trip

Are you visiting Rome, in one day trip, and wondering what you can see in such a short time? In this article we will give you an itinerary to see the top 10 attractions of Rome in one single day! 

At the end of the article we will give a bonus tip that will make your visit even better.

A few of you asked us on social media: “What can we see in Rome in only one day?” Well, we designed an itinerary that will allow you to see the top 10 attractions in Rome in one day. 

Now, You won’t have much time to spend on each one, but at least you will be able to take a look and snap that photo for instagram! 

Also in order to be able to see them all, you will have to start your day bright and early. The itinerary will be mostly walking and a couple of subway rides, but mostly walking.

We have created a downloadable map for you, you can just follow this link.

So let’s begin in:

Piazza Navona

In order to see all the 10 roman attractions in one day, you’ll have to start early. So we suggest you arrive at Piazza Navona first thing in the morning like at 8:30. 

This way you will be able to enjoy the piazza with fewer tourists. In the Piazza, don’t miss the amazing Fountain of the Four Rivers by Bernini that is right in the center. By the way, if you are a Dan Brown fan you will remember this fountain from the movie Angels and Demons. 

You can also admire the shape of the Piazza and the beautiful baroque buildings that surround what in Roman times used to be the Stadium of the Emperor Domitian

From Piazza Navona, you can walk less than 5 minutes to our next stop on our Rome in one day, trip.

The Pantheon

The Pantheon is an amazing monument. It opens at 8:30 am and arriving here nice and early will allow you to beat the crowd. In fact, during the day the line to get inside the Pantheon can be really really long.

Inside the Pantheon, you will be able to admire the amazing marble floor and the superb dome built by the ancient romans. 

Be sure to take a photo in front of the tomb of Raphael, one of the most famous painters of the Italian renaissance. 

By the way did you notice that the Pantheon is completely free of charge? If you would like to know what else you can visit in Rome completely free check out the following article.

From the Pantheon you can stroll through some amazing little streets in downtown Rome, walk in front of the Temple of Adrian and finally arrive at our next attraction of our Rome in one day trip.

Trevi Fountain

The Trevi Fountain is probably one of the most iconic landmarks of Rome! Don’t forget to throw a coin in the fountain over your shoulder. According to the superstition if you do this you will come back to Rome.

From the Trevi fountain, you will be able to reach our next stop of our Rome in one day trip in about ten minutes – by walking. But First, you might want to stop in one of the many coffee shops for a nice espresso to pick you up!

Spanish steps

The Spanish Steps are probably one of the most picture perfect places in Rome. They are called the Spanish Steps because the piazza where you find the steps is the place where you can find the Spanish Embassy to the Vatican. 

We strongly recommend you climb the steps because the view from the tops is quite remarkable. However, nowadays it is forbidden to sit on the steps. 

At the base of the Spanish Steps, you can admire the Fountain of the Barcaccia designed by Bernini, the father of the other Bernini, the one that sculpted the fountain of the 4 rivers. 

Here is a curiosity for you: the water in this fountain, and in most of the fountains in Rome is totally safe to drink and most of it comes from aqueducts built by the ancient Romans and restored through the centuries.

To reach our next stop of our Rome in one day trip you’ll require to take the Metro for three stops to reach the Ottaviano Metro Station. (By the way, if you want to know more about taking the subway in Rome here is a great video for you.)

Alternatively you can grab a Taxi, but sometimes traffic in downtown Rome can be really bad and a taxi might take much longer than the subway.

Vatican

The Vatican is probably the attraction that will require the most amount of time of our Rome in one day trip. In fact before entering the Basilica it is mandatory to go through the metal detector and the lines here can be quite long. 

As we mentioned before in previous articles, it is mandatory to wear clothes that cover the shoulders and knees in order to be able to enter the basilica. 

Inside Saint Peter’s Basilica you can admire the magnificent church. You can stop in front of Michelangelo Pietà and finally you will be able to see the stunning Altar designed by Bernini himself.

From Saint Peter’s square  you can walk in Via Della Conciliazione toward Castel sant’Angelo and take a quick glimpse at this magnificent castle that was built on the remainder of the  mausoleum of the emperor Adrian.

By now you might have worked out an appetite, so it would be a good time to stop for a quick lunch. There are plenty of nice little places in the Castel San’Angelo area that are perfect to grab a bite to eat.

From the castle it is a short ten minutes walk to the Lepanto metro station. From Lepanto station you’ll take the A line to Termini station where you can change for the B line and get off at Colosseum station, our next stop of Rome in one day trip. 

The Colosseum

Well the colosseum is probably one of the most famous monuments in the world. This majestic arena is just outside the subway station. In our opinion the view outside is better than the inside but in case you want to visit the inside you have to buy your tickets in advance and be sure to buy the skip the line tickets. 

On the side of the colosseum you will be able to admire the huge arch of Constantine. Also around the arch of Constantine you’ll be able to walk on an actual ancient roman road. 

From the Colosseum you can start walking on Via Dei Fori Imperiali and this is our next attraction of the Rome in one day trip.

The Forum

Walking on the Via dei Fori Imperiali will allow you to admire the Roman forum on both sides of the street. With the colosseum on your back you will have the Roman Forum on your left side and the Trajan’s forum on the right. Every step is the perfect spot to take photos of this huge archeological site. 

At the end of Via dei Fori Imperiali you will find the big white monument of the Fatherland and Piazza Venezia in front of it.

The Campidoglio

Once you reach the top of the stairs you will see the amazing Piazza del Campidoglio designed by Michelangelo. In the middle of the piazza there is the Statue of the Emperor Marcus Aurelius. The Campidoglio used to be the place where the Temple of Jupiter used to be, nowadays it is Rome City Hall.

From the Campidoglio, you are only a few steps away from our next Rome landmark of our Rome in one day trip.  

Teatro Marcello

The teatro Marcello are the remains of an ancient roman theater. Here you will be able to walk around and admire this magnificent site. You will also be able to walk among the ruins of the Portico D’Ottavia toward our last stop of our Rome in a day trip.

Jewish ghetto

This area of Rome was the area where the Jewish people used to live during the Pope’s reign until 1870 when Rome became part of Italy. Nowadays it is a great area to walk and explore. Also it is the perfect place to have dinner in one of the many Roman Juwish restaurants. 

Do you remember the bonus tip we told you about in the beginning of the article? Well here it is! 

If you want to speed up your Rome in one day and spend more time at the actual sites rather than walking around you should consider renting a scooter. 

You can find these pretty much everywhere downtown. You just need to download the app (there are several available), unlock the scooter with your phone, ride it to the attraction and end the ride. 

Once you are ready to go to the next monument you just repeat the process. Some companies also have a 24 hours pass that is valid for the all day! Word of caution if you decide to do this, watch out for traffic, drivers in Rome are pretty aggressive.

Well folks this concludes our Rome in one day trip article, if you have any questions please leave it in the comments below we will be more than happy to reply. 

Happy Travel

Andrea Spallanzani

Andrea was born and raised in Northern Italy. At the age of 30, he moved to Vancouver Canada. Over the years he traveled extensively in North America, Europe, Central America, and Asia. He is passionate about traveling, cruising, and travel photography. He likes to write about his traveling and shows his travel photos.

www.spalla67.com