Mrs Malc and I will be in Rome soon for a week, and she’s already arranged most of the obvious stuff. But that still leaves us with a few days spare, so does anyone have any tips for lesser-known sights, nice little cafes and restaurants etc?
ATM: things to see and do in Rome
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Not exactly “lesser known” but my favourite place in Rome is Piazza Navona. The restaurants are a tad touristy and overpriced, but nonetheless for just sitting back and people-watching I think it’s one of the best spots in the world, and the Fountain of Four Rivers is superb.
If you go to the Pantheon – and you should, if only to marvel at the doors – there’s a great little place just round the corner from the piazza: Armanda al Pantheon. It’s a delightful old-school trat, and booking is essential.* Stanley Tucci went there for the Rome episode of his Italian food journey.
https://www.bestofrome.fr/en/armando-al-pantheon/
*weeks in advance, apparently!
also round the corner is the Pantheon is a cafe, god knows the name, which served me the best espresso I’ve ever had. Possibly the tassa d’oro.
I had the best Carbonara in this place. Booking advised at the time and maybe still is…
https://www.trattoriavecchiaroma.it/
Tazza d’Oro. Worth going to for some Dolce Vita vibe.
Watch out for pickpockets
We saw yesterday that the Pantheon now charges 5 Euros for entry, so where you used to be able to wander in at will there are now huge queues. Rome is very good at finding new ways of making queues.
We found that rooftop bars give a welcome relief from the maddening throng. A sanctuary with a view. Expensive but worth it for the chance to switch off. A lemoncello spritz goes down well. We went to Jim’s Bar but there are others. Take the lift up to luxurious furnishings and style.
I hate to be pedantic*, but it’s “limoncello”. Even in English.
*by “hate” I really mean “like”. You’re the 57th person I’ve pointed this out to.
I knew that. I woke up sucking on a limon.
It may already be on your intinery, but we found Ostia Antica interesting. It was very quiet the day we were there – almost had it to ourselves.
@Gatz is there as we type, hopefully he sees this and adds to it.
See also: Charles.
That’s why we couldn’t get into St Peter’s this morning, and we’re warned we wouldn’t get in to the Sistine Chapel this afternoon (in the event we did). We’ve just done obvious tourist stuff, but these days Rome doesn’t seem to have an off-season. Everywhere is rammed, even those which were quiet on previous autum visits. Pre-book what you can, which will at least reduce queuing time, put your wallet, phone and so on in a secure inside pocket, never pass a church without looking inside, and if you can’t get in somewhere so at a cafe for a coffee or a spritz instead. Or an ice cream – we went to Giolitti yesterday, and even though I’m sure the gelato was a good as ever it was a disappointment as the newer places have upped the game. My previous favourite secret spot, the Cappucin Cemetery has been tuned, something which still makes me angry more than a decade later.
* has been ruined
They may be on the itinerary already as they’re not exactly obscure, but the catacombs are worth a visit. A little tricky to get to, as they’re outside the city, but there should be a regular bus. They really are impressive; I think I went to the San Sebastiano ones.
As regards lesser known sights, the Scala Santa is worth seeing. This is reputedly the staircase that Jesus stepped on his way to his trial and you will see pilgrims and tourists ascending them on their knees. The same building, which is close to the Basilica San Giovanni Laterano, also houses a painting that is said to be have been painted by an angel. Rome is good for stuff like this.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scala_Sancta
On the subject of Basilicas, my favourite is Santa Maria in Trastevere, which is smaller than the main ones and is embedded in its neighbourhood, giving it a very different vibe. That neighbourhood, Trastevere, is one of the best for having a wander through in the evening (it’s the one at the end of Fellini’s Roma where he bumps into Gore Vidal and Anna Magnani).
We were in Rome for 2 nights in May (as part of a tour on our way to Puglia) and loved it – it’s surprisingly walkable, except that the Vatican is away from the main Roman bits. It was surprisingly reasonable price-wise for a major European city.
There are some nice little trattorias off the Piazza Navona, which is well worth a visit anyway, and I had the best pizza ever there, and a seafood pasta at a little place around the corner from our hotel was superb, so just go and explore a little off the beaten track and you can’t go far wrong.
The Museo Nazionale Romano is great for old Roman stuff, and the nearby Basilica of St Mary of The Angels is a must.
The ice cream is seriously addictive, so avoid.
You went to Puglia? My home for 40 years! I had to leave cos it just got so touristy. It’s bizarre how popular it’s become. Just ten years ago there were very few tourists. Now they’ve taken over. I find it funny when people talk about how beautiful the towns in Puglia are. They’re not! The “historic centres” are extremely beautiful, well worth visiting, but they’re only a tiny part of each town. The modern parts of each town, where most people live, are actually pretty ugly. But I am convinced Puglia has the best food in Italy.
Are the tourists Italian or foreign? One thing I noticed when I was in Italy was that where the Italian tourists would visit and the foreign tourists would visit would rarely overlap. I met so many Italians who had only been to Rome or Florence as part of a school or business trip. I had a great cycling holiday in Puglia in the Valle d’Itria. Alberobello, Locorotondo and another one I can’t remember. Lovely part of the country. I really liked Lecce too.
Puglia is orecchiette isn’t it? And onions on pizza.
The tourists in Puglia, since the boom started about 5 years ago, are mostly American, German and British. Enormous cruise ships dock in the ports and the beaches and the historic centres have become way too overcrowded in the summer months (much nicer out of season). I live in Sardinia now and it seems here is where a lot of Italian tourists come in the summer to escape the mainland tourist hotspots. But the beaches here stay very uncrowded.
There are lots of cycling tourist packages in Puglia, which I find surprising given the amount of litter everywhere (the litter situation is no better in Sardinia).
Lecce is definitely the nicest city in Puglia.
‘Orecchiette con rape’, (with turnip tops) ‘fave e cicorie’ (fava bean purée with chicory) and ‘riso, patate e cozze’ (rice, potatoes and mussels) are the three most common, traditional Puglia dishes. People here in Sardinia have never even heard of them!
It amused me that Puglia was described as ‘undiscovered’…there were quite a number of other people who had discovered it when we were there. Having said that, we had a lovely time (we went with Great Rail Journeys, which included outings to Matera and so on).
We went to Lecce, and had 4 nights in Santa Maria al Bagno, which is a delightful little coastal village with a few bars and restaurants, but you can see the investment going on to attract more visitors.
Go to Cinecitta – the film studio where Federico Fellini, among others, shot some classic Italian movies
Easy to get to – it’s on a train line, and the tours are informative
Tourist warning – it’s pronounced cheen -ay – cheet – AH (emphasis on last syllable). You’re welcome