I have been living here in Rome for 5 years and never once had I to stand in line at the Colosseum. The entrance fee into the Colosseum and the Roman Forum is 12 euro but few people know that it is the exact same ticket. If you go to the Roman Forum 1st around 9am there is never a line to buy tickets. Even if you have little interest in visiting the Forum you can still purchase your ticket there and when you see the long line to buy tickets in the Colosseum you can walk directly past it. You will feel like a V.I.P walking by what is usually a 1hour and 45 minute line. The ticket itself is valid for 24 hour.

If you would lke to learn more about Rome and avoiding lines into other tourist sites you should join us on a Colosseum and Forum tour. You can also see our 5 star reviews on tripadvisor.

Enjoy avoiding the line into the Colosseum.

Where are the Spanish Steps?

The Spanish Steps are located in the centro storico (historic center) of Rome, Italy. The steps lead up to the Church of the Holy Trinity, in Piazza di Spagna.

How to get to the Spanish Steps:

The easiest way to get to the Spanish Steps is to take Metro A.  Get off at Spagna.  When you exit the metro station, take your first left. You can’t miss them!

There is also a taxi stand Spanish Steps if you would prefer to travel by car. There’s no need to take a taxi, though. The steps are within easy walking distance of the Trevi Fountain and many other Rome landmarks.

The Spanish Steps are just one stop on our Rome City Tour. Come take an evening stroll through the eternal city with us!

Spanish Steps Map:

For a full Rome Map, click here.

No doubt summer is a great time to go, if you can handle hot weather. The weather in Rome can be overbearing on certain days and nights, but it was never as bad as people made it out to be. So, if you hear people talk about how crowded Rome is and how hot it is, that is because they are not prepared for it. If you are smart in Rome during the summer your stay will be wonderful as any other time of the year. Here are my tips for your trip.

1: Don’t get a taxi from the airport – they will try and rip you off. Get the bus or train in, it is much cheaper.

2: Make sure your room has air conditioning. Most hotels have this but make sure, you need to sleep well after your long days of touring, drinking and dining.

3: Do your Vatican tour in the afternoon. Everyone thinks the morning is the best time, but they are wrong. The Vatican is a much more pleasant place in the afternoon and your guide will be able to show you so much more than in the morning. We do our tours in the afternoon and we skip the line so if you are interested in finding out more about our tours, you can find out here.

4: Never have lunch in a restaurant on a main square or a busy tourist street. The prices will be twice what you would pay around the corner and the food will be the same quality.

5: If you want to eat the finest pizza in Rome, you need to visit the family run Da Francesca. Great value for all the family and staff extremely friendly.

6: If you want to see how the well to do Romans enjoy their evenings, enjoy a nice cold beer or gin and tonic in Cafe Della Pace. Also great for a drink during the day and doing that very popular Italian past time – people watching. See below.

How enticing does this look?

7: This last tip is derived directly from my experience. If you are traveling on metro and it is very busy, do not have bumbags showing. The metro in Rome is safe 90% of the time safe but you need to not stick out like a tourist and have all your things in bumbags. Be smart and keep it closer. You do not want to be trekking up to the American Embassy (beautiful as it is) to explain how you got your passports stolen.

Dos:

1: Underground tour of the Colloseum is brilliant for kids. The Colloseum can be underwhelming for kids as they expect it to be in much better condition but bring down down under the arena and they really feel the ambience of the place

2: It is possible for kids to make ice cream in the most famous ice cream parlour, Giolitti but you need to ask the owners very nicely. Don’t expect them to eat their dinner as they will scoff down what they have made.

3: The zoo in Rome is not the best in the world and some of the animals look a bit depressed, however the monkeys are always chirpy and the kids enjoy getting up and close to them. Look out for the horny rhino!

4: The Swiss Guards, for some reason kids have a real fascination for them and always want to get a picture with them. We know a lot of the guards from the pub (no joke) so if you come on a Roman Empire Tour of the Vatican you will get to speak to the guards.

4: The Maritime prison has a great interactive experience that kids love and they love the spooky ambiance.

5: Tivoli – they love playing in the waterfalls in the garden in the Villa d’este. Hadrian’s villa was also popular but not for too long in the heat.

Don’ts

1: This is a hard one in Rome but don’t over do the churches, kids think they have seen one and have seen them all. They love churches with relics inside, St. Peter in Chains is an interesting one.

2: If you want to do the scavy tour, kids are not allowed in who are less than 13 so be warned.

3: Shopping – the crowds on Rome’s bustling shopping streets are a nightmare for kids and they quickly tire.

1. Vatican Museums.

Technically the Vatican Museums are not in Rome(the Vatican has been a separate state since 1929). The Vatican Museum is one of the largest and most important museums in the world. If you covered all of the Vatican Museums you will have walked over 8 miles in total. There is over 2,200 years worth of art work in the Vatican Museums.

2. Galleria Borghese

Galleria Borghese really is a hidden gem in Rome. It houses some of the worlds most important paintings and sculptures by giants such as Caravaggio, Raphael, Peter Paul Rubens and Bernini among others. It really is a must see as far as museums go in Rome. You must book your tickets in advance which can be done by going onto their website.

3. Capitoline Museum

The Capitoline Museum has some of the most important works of art from the ancient Roman times and like the Vatican Museums it has over 2,200 years worth of art. It also holds the famous statue of Romulus and Remus(the founders of Rome) being fed by the “She Wolf”. Again some of Caravaggio’s most famous paintings are on display in the Capitoline Museum.

4. Galleria Doria Pamphilj

The Galleria Doria Pamphilj is a museum that is not overly well known in Rome which is a pity but the Museum never gets overly crowded. The paintings on display are incredible, the most famous being Diego Velasquez’s “Pope Innocent X” which ended up being a huge inspiration to the Irish painter, Francis Bacon. Again this museum holds a number of Bernini sculptures and Caravaggio paintings.

5. Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna

The Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna is one of the most important modern art museums in Europe. It has 2 incredible Vincent Van Gogh paintings on display along with paintings by Renoir, Degas, Monet, Goya, Klimt, De Chirico and sculptings by Rodin.

Thank you for reading about the top 5 museums in Rome. Each of these Museums are world class. Also if you are interested you can also join Roman Empire Tours on a Vatican Museums tour which takes place a 2pm, Monday to Saturday. You can also see our 5 star reviews on tripadvisor.

Here is a list of the top 5 Caravaggio paintings.

1. Caravaggio’s Bacchus

2. Caravaggio’s The Crucifixion of St Peter

3.Caravaggio’s The Supper at Emmaus

4.Caravaggio’s The taking of Christ

5.Caravaggio’s Boy with a basket of fruit.

To learn more about Renaissance and Baroque art join us on a Vatican tour with Roman Empire Tours in Rome. You can also see our 5 star reviews on tripadvisor.

]]> http://romanempiretours.com/top-5-caravaggio-paintings/feed/ 0 http://romanempiretours.com/have-you-heard-about-vatileaks/ http://romanempiretours.com/have-you-heard-about-vatileaks/#comments Thu, 15 Mar 2012 12:34:56 +0000 admin http://romanempiretours.com/?p=164 Continue reading →]]> There are rumblings taking place in the Vatican. In the middle ages it was common for intrigue and behind the scenes politics to dominate the Vatican as cardinals jostled to strengthen their position to be the next pope. It looks like things don’t change too much in the world’s smallest state. Currently this is happening again. Pope Benedict is looking considerably more frail than usual and the college of cardinals sense the time for a  new Pope is approaching. The most powerful cardinals are sussing out where their support lies and who is in line for the thrown of St. Peter and to become God’s voice on earth.  Will it be an Italian for the first time in three Popes?

While we are aware that the consensus is that a new conclave will take place in the Sistine Chapel sooner rather than later, it was quite remarkable the the Archbishop of Palermo predicted that the current Pope will die within next year. If you were Pope Benedict, it is not exactly something you would like to hear from one of your trusted servants.

The Vatican has been shook to its core recently with what has been called Vatileaks. Secret documents have been leaked in what has been understood to be an attempt to undermine Cardinal Bertone who is favourite to succeed Benedict. He has clashed with many behind the scenes and others feel his lack of linguistic skills mean he is ill-equipped for the job. These are interesting times. If you are interested in a fascinating tour of the Vatican this summer please join us at Roman Empire Tours.

http://youtu.be/xZGVQB2I5WI

Michelangelo Bounarroti was born in Florence in 1475. Michelangelo’s mother died when he was only 5 years old leaving him with a father and four brothers. When he was 13 he was sent to work for the artist, Ghirlandaio. When Michelangelo was 14 he started working under Lorenzo De’ Medici.

Michelangelo moved to Rome in 1496 where a French Cardinal commissioned him to do his 1st masterpice, The Pieta. Michelanglo completed the Pieta in under a year aged just 23.

Michelangelo returned to Florence in 1499 where he was given the task to do the Statue Of David. He completed the giant statue in 1504 aged 28. Pope Julius II invited Michelangelo back to Rome to design and create his tomb but changed his mind and got Michelangelo to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. Michelangelo complained he was a sculptor, not a painter but at the age of 32 Michelangelo bagan work in the chapel. He completed the Sistine ceiling in 4 years.

The following year in 1513 Pope Julius ll died and Michelangelo began work once again on the Popes tomb. Michelangelo continued to work on the Popes tomb for the rest of his life inspite of the fact he lived to be 89 years old.

At the age of 60 Michelangelo was summoned back to the Sistine Chapel to paint the big wall at the front of the chapel. This project was to be called the Last Judgement which took Michelangelo 6 years to complete.

Michelangelo was also the archetect for Saint Peters Basilica where he designed the dome of the church. The dome of St Peters Basilica was completed in 1590, 26 years after Michelangelos death. For centuries it was one of the largest domes in the world. Michelangelo died in 1564 aged 89. He left a number of unfinished works including another incomplete version of the Pieta.

Here is a video we made on a brief biography of Michelangelos life.

http://youtu.be/xZGVQB2I5WI

To learn more join Roman Empire Tours on a tour of The Vatican to see the Sistine Chapel and The Pieta. Also see our 5 star reviews on tripadvisor.

April 8th is Easter Sunday, once in your life it is well worth spending Easter in Rome. There are lots of crowds but to see the Pope giving Easter Mass in front of a couple of hundred thousand people below in St. Peter’s Square is an experience to be behold and it is certainly a highlight for things to do in Rome in April. Also Pope Benedict is starting to show signs of frailty which indicate that he might not have too many left in him.

The middle week of April is culture week in Rome and all the State Owned Museums are free. The Vatican is not included in this but it is free on the last Sunday of the month. This is a great opportunity to see some of the most famous pieces of art for nothing….

April 21st is the celebration of the birth of Rome nearly 3,000 years ago. To celebrate its birthday Rome has gladiatorial fights in the Colosseum, plays in the squares and many mini-events all around the city. This is a great opportunitly to take an Ancient Rome Tour and Roman Empire Tours offer a fantastic tour starting in the Roman Forum and ending in the Colosseum. The 21st of April is the supposed date Romulus and Remus decided to build their own city.

Of course April sees the coming of Spring so there is also a mini-festival of Spring. The Spanish Steps look their most beautiful at this time of year when the azeleas in their magnificent purple shades spring up. This in itself is worth the journey and once again it is a beautiful thing to do in Rome in April.

Last but not least, the celebration of Italy’s independence after the end of the second world war is celebrated at the very end of April. There are public holidays and Italians travel from all over the country with their families to join in their celebrations of their wonderful country. As you can see there are just so many great things to do in Rome in April, we suggest you come and join us on a tour. See Roman Empire Tours for more details and also see our 5 star reviews on tripadvisor.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fmo4Ef9TtS0

We do three tours of Rome in total.

• The Colosseum and the Roman Forum at 9am. This is a two hour walking tour.
• The Vatican museums, The Sistine Chapel and St Peters Basilica at 2pm. This is a 3 hour walking tour.
• Rome City Center tour at 6pm. This is a 2 hour walking tour.

You can see all our tours of Rome by clicking Roman Empire Tours and you can also see our 5 star reviews on tripadvisor.