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Rome — travel, stays & events guide
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Rome, ItalyOpen-Meteo forecast.
Rome city overview
Rome works best as a base in Italy when you anchor days around Colosseum, Roman Forum and Pantheon. Use those sights to understand the city's history, street life and visitor rhythm. Rome Fiumicino handles the main arrival flow, so hotel choice should balance the centre, transfer time and day-trip plans.
City facts
Airport baseRome Fiumicino (FCO)
Known forColosseum, Roman Forum, Pantheon, Trevi Fountain
RegionItalyItaly
Time zoneEurope/Romelocal time
Founded192historical origin
City history
In 192, emperor Commodus renamed the city Colonia Lucia Annia Commodiana after himself.
Strabo also writes that Lucius Coelius Antipater believed that Rome was founded by Greeks. Monarchy and republic After the foundation by Romulus (according to a legend), Rome was ruled for a period of 244.
In 330, he transformed Byzantium into Constantinople, which became his new capital.
Christianity in the form of the Nicene Creed became the official religion of the empire in 380, via the Edict of Thessalonica issued in the name of three emperors – Gratian, Valentinian II, and.
After the fall of the Western Roman Empire in AD 476, Rome was first under the control of Odoacer and then became part of the Ostrogothic Kingdom before returning to East Roman control after.
In 509 BC, the Romans expelled the last king from their city and established an oligarchic republic led by two annually elected consuls.
Rome then became the focus of hopes of Italian reunification after the rest of Italy was united as the Kingdom of Italy in 1861 with the temporary capital in Florence.
In 1871 the capital of Italy was moved from Florence to Rome.
Dionysius of Halicarnassus states that the lagobolon was a symbol of the settlement of the city of Rome, and recounts that following the destruction by fire of a sacred hut of Mars on the.
Several excavations support the view that Rome grew from pastoral settlements on the Palatine Hill built above the area of the future Roman Forum.
Despite recent excavations at the Palatine hill, the view that Rome was founded deliberately in the middle of the eighth century BC, as the legend of Romulus suggests, remains a fringe hypothesis. Legend of.
In this period the city was also shattered by continuous fights between the aristocratic families: Annibaldi, Caetani, Colonna, Orsini, Conti, nested in their fortresses built above ancient Roman edifices, fought each other to control.
Majestic works, as the new Saint Peter's Basilica, the Sistine Chapel and Ponte Sisto (the first bridge to be built across the Tiber since antiquity, although on Roman foundations) were created.
Raphael, who in Rome became one of the most famous painters of Italy, created frescoes in the Villa Farnesina, the Raphael's Rooms, plus many other famous paintings.
Worth seeing
Colosseum
Colosseum is a named stop in Rome worth keeping on the route when it fits the day's transport, timing and neighborhood plan.
Roman Forum
Roman Forum is a named stop in Rome worth keeping on the route when it fits the day's transport, timing and neighborhood plan.
Pantheon
Pantheon is a named stop in Rome worth keeping on the route when it fits the day's transport, timing and neighborhood plan.
Trevi Fountain
Trevi Fountain is a named stop in Rome worth keeping on the route when it fits the day's transport, timing and neighborhood plan.
Piazza Navona
Piazza Navona is a named stop in Rome worth keeping on the route when it fits the day's transport, timing and neighborhood plan.
Spanish Steps
Spanish Steps is a named stop in Rome worth keeping on the route when it fits the day's transport, timing and neighborhood plan.
Stay overview
Start with Centro Storico for the easiest first Rome stay, then compare Monti and Trastevere when price, nightlife, quieter evenings or transfer timing matter more than being beside every major sight.
Hotels & areas
Rome hotel choice is mostly about repeat journeys: use Centro Storico for sightseeing, Monti for a different local base, and Trastevere or Prati when views, parking, airport timing or longer stays matter.
Centro Storico
Centro Storico is the most practical first base in Rome, keeping main sights, restaurants and short local transfers close.
Best for: first visits, sightseeing, restaurantsCompare staysMonti
Monti is useful when a Rome stay needs more local restaurants, apartment options or quieter nights outside the busiest core.
Best for: local stays, restaurants, quieter nightsCompare staysTrastevere
Trastevere is useful when a Rome stay needs more local restaurants, apartment options or quieter nights outside the busiest core.
Best for: local stays, restaurants, quieter nightsCompare staysPrati
Prati is useful when a Rome stay needs more local restaurants, apartment options or quieter nights outside the busiest core.
Best for: local stays, restaurants, quieter nightsCompare staysFlights & airports
Rome Fiumicino (FCO) arrival plan
- Rome Fiumicino (FCO)Rome Fiumicino (FCO), Rome, Italy
Rome Fiumicino (FCO) is the main air gateway for Rome; compare transfer time with your hotel base before locking the first night.
Rental cars
Rome day-trip car use
Do not rent a car for central Rome unless parking and traffic are part of the plan; use one mainly for regional day trips.
Compare rental carsTravel tips
Best base
Choose Centro Storico for a first stay because it keeps main sights, restaurants and practical local movement close.
Airport timing
Leave extra time for Rome Fiumicino, especially for early flights, late arrivals, traffic or unfamiliar transfer routes.
Local movement
Plan each day in clusters around Colosseum and Roman Forum so transfers do not consume the best sightseeing hours.
Day trips
Keep one flexible slot for nearby routes from Rome, checking weather, transport and opening hours before committing.
Nearby ideas
Heritage
Tivoli
Tivoli is a heritage-focused side trip from Rome; check the route and opening hours before setting aside the day.
Heritage
Ostia Antica
Ostia Antica is a heritage-focused side trip from Rome; check the route and opening hours before setting aside the day.
Heritage
Frascati
Frascati is a heritage-focused side trip from Rome; check the route and opening hours before setting aside the day.