How long should I stay in Rome? I'm planning a trip for next yr but I'm on a student budget. 1 week too less?

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Princess Buttercup

I spent 5 nights there and it wasn't enough. However, we also had some serious jet lag and missed a few mornings of sightseeing, so you may be able to cram it in in 4 days.

I strongly urge you to get a Fodor's gold guide and a city guide. This way you can make the most of your time and plan your days to the fullest. There is NO point in just doing one thing a day when the city is small enough to walk from end to end. The Colosseum is right next to the Imperial Forum which is right next to the "Wedding Cake" (Il Vittoriano). The Pantheon is near Piazza Navona and some great food & shopping. The Fodor's gold guide gives FANTASTIC walking tours that you can do in a few hours (or more). The only 'most of the day' sight that I found was St. Peter's and the Vatican Museum. If you love art & archetecture, spend as much time here as possible.

The Fodor's guide also give tips for churches that you might have missed. We never would have gone to what ended up being our favourite church, Sant'Ignazio or to San Pietro in Vincoli to see the STUNNING "Moses" sculpture.

But, we also aren't "drive by tourists" - we like to really admire what we visit; not just say we saw it.

Have fun!

roritr2005

Whatever you can stretch out, do it!! A week will NOT be enough to get all the history and beauty of the city or the surrounding areas. Whatever you can swing, do it, just do it cheaply. Good luck and have fun!!!

barbdlan30

I spent 5 days in Rome and it was plenty of time. There is a Holiday Inn Express just outside the city that is very nice and reasonably priced. Only thing is, you have to jump on a bus to take you into town. It stops just outside the hotel.

Webmaster_2.0

I spent two weeks, and it was too little. Honestly, more is pretty good!

PS. Because you're on a student budget, there is a Ukranian parish that "rents" rooms to people, for very little, you may want to look into it.

cestbourgogne

Four nights is not enough but it will give you a good start. I have been to Rome four times totaling 20 days and I still want to go back. There is something to see at every inch of the city. $1200 seems expensive, does that include hotel? What about youth hostels? When in Rome, you don't need a tour guide. You can get a Roma pass which will get you into most of the big places for a cheaper price. Walk everywhere, save on transportation. Again, there is something to see at every inch and you miss most of it if you take public transportation. We hike at least 40 miles a day when in Rome. Fill your water bottles at the hotel, the water is very clean. Check out some European travel sites. I have always found better prices for travel in Italy. Venere.com is great (also promo codes out there for 8% off) and otel.com. If you're spending that much on a plane ticket, it's a better bet to stay longer to make the most of your experience. You may find that four days is not enough and plan another trip the next year and end up spending more. I'm on the two year plan and the trip gets longer every time I go back.

paia423

My rule of thumb is 1 day for every hour spent in the airplane, but the longer the better. I did a similar trip to Paris for 5 days, and it wasn't enough time. Book a hostel at www.hostelworld.com for a good, cheap place to stay, but make sure to read about others experiences where you want to stay at. And if you're looking for a cheap flight, book roughly before Memorial Day or after Labor day. And don't worry, the weather will be perfect in May or September.

tha_g_child_2000

There is not time in one year to see all of Rome. I lived there for four months and feel I just scratched the surface of history. But for the average vacation, you want at least these many days:
1. Full day for the Vatican museum / St. Peters. (get to the vatican museum first at around noon, otherwise youll be standing in line for hours)
2. Full day for the colosseum, circus maximus, Roman forumn, and Palatine hill.
3. Full day for Piazza Navona, Spanish steps region, and trevi fountain.
4. One day to relax, eat gelato, drink wine and eat cheese, and relax before you have to deal with Roman transportation again.
Dont forget to eat good food at night and take long walks. If your looking to party in Rome with other students like yourself, go to Campo dei fuori, there are many american bars there. Drunken ship and Sloppy Sams are the most popular, and every one in Rome knows where they are.
If you are looking for a taste of the heavy Roman nightlife, make your way to the region called "Testaccio." Its about 15 nightclubs on one street pumping hip hop, techno, and italo dance till 5 in the morning. Beware of the local population in this area though, things can get messy.
But 4 days is enough to see all the "big" attractions.

Richone

even staying one day in Rome is a great experience. It's a small city and if you really wanted, you could do the whole thing in a day and I'm speaking from experience. As with anywhere, the longer you stay the more time you have to explore those less touristy areas and see the real Rome. Personally I would book a separate flight and accommodation as you can get some really good deals this way. I've tried this company before http://www.holiday-velvet.com/rome who have some very good and inexpensive apartments. Otherwise there are B&B's and cheap hostels all over the city but the main area for cheap accommodation is Termini station.

Tara C

First thing, consider what time of year you will be travelling. It's a lot cheaper if you go during the early spring or fall. I went in March and used Gate1 travel agency online. Right now they have what they call a 7 day trip to Rome for $600. But let me preface this by saying that you really get 5 nights hotel., and that you probably will be flying Alitalia which is not the best airline. But, for the money it was worth it. Sign up for their email specials. I just recieved one the other day for 6 days in Paris for $500 r/t air from JFK and hotel included.

Is a limited time enough time to see anywhere? No, but you will get a good idea of what Rome is like in 4 days.

amanda

If you want to see Rome completely you should live there for a long time. A week it's not way too less, it's okay for visiting it and be satisfied. if you're a student and don't mind to change a place every two or three days, try hospitality exchange websites for most of the week, and treat yourself with a night or two in a nice central b&b.

TheSandMan

i spent 4 in Rome and go to see everything

the vatican one day, the colloseum another, the spanish steps another, and the last day was a shopping day so we got to wander around the business district

bibbitybobbyboo22

To really see Rome you need about a week however to see the ruins, the colluseum,, the vatican, a museum or two and the spanish steps, the chariot track, and the mouth of truth you could do it in 2 days. Just hope the trains are not on strike because that happened when we went and we wlaked everywhere. Actually we walked all the way to the Vatican (which took about 3.5 hours) to find that it was closed becausue of a minor terrorist threat.

Frihah anti milanist 4 lyf

DONT STAY IN ROME!
JUST GO ON A BEACH!

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