The quickest way to plan a trip to Rome...
- Sightseekr
- 4 days ago
- 6 min read
Whether you want to do the planning yourself, or pass it on to an expert, we have all the advice for you!
Just so you know, some of the links in this post are affiliate links. If you book something through our link, it won't cost you any more, but we might get a small commission.
Planning a trip to the capital city of Rome is no easy feat. There are hundreds upon hundreds of incredible sights to see, things to do, places to eat and drink, and it feels overwhelming to try and figure out where on earth to start.
Always begin by booking your flights and accommodation, then you can consider how you want to spend your time in the city. If you haven’t booked yet, make sure to use a reputable platform like booking.com for hotels or apartments and trip.com for flights.
We know what we’re doing when it comes to travel planning - we travel monthly and plan itineraries for others for a living! So, to share the expertise and experience we’ve gained, we’ve put together some tips and tricks to help you plan your trip to Rome in the most efficient way.
1. Know your facts
If you’re sitting down to plan your trip, have all of your facts and information ready and with you. Know your flight times, where you’re staying, and any other excursions, experiences or day trips that you have planned.
Then, make a list of all your non-negotiable places to visit. This is going to help you later on when you’re trying to plan an itinerary for each day, you can see which ones make geographical sense to visit on the same day, and make sure you’re ticking off all the places you're most excited about.
2. Invest in a good guide or a Rome Travel Toolkit (the absolute quickest way to plan your trip)
Not to brag, but we think we’ve created the best and quickest way to plan your trip to Rome. From our own personal experience, through making amazing memories (and also making some pretty stupid mistakes), we’ve put together a Rome Travel Toolkit which compiles absolutely everything you need to know about the city, all in one easy to navigate document that you can keep saved to your phone, laptop or tablet.
It even comes with an Ultimate Map of Rome for you to use at your destination. Your map will be interactive, and has all of our recommendations saved to it, separated into categories, so you can easily find the closest recommended spot to you, wherever you are and whatever you’re looking for.
We know the feeling of spending hours on end scrolling through google and social media, finding all the best tips and recommendations, then getting to your destination and not knowing where to find them. This is our solution, and they’re currently on HALF PRICE sale at only £5!!
3. Be flexible
When you’re away from home, especially in a busy city like Rome, things are definitely going to change last minute. You might see a bar that looks like your dream spot for an Aperol spritz, and miss the time you set aside to walk around a certain park. Or you might have to cancel your dinner reservation because you ate too much at lunch and can’t face another plate of carbonara! Or even more practical things like issues with transport, tours being cancelled, weather disrupting your plans.
Essentially, don’t expect to have your itinerary planned to the minute and have absolutely nothing change - it’s just not realistic. The way that we find is best in terms of planning is just to have a list of things we’d like to see that day, in the order that it makes sense to see them so you’re not walking around in circles. Then, if you seem to get through your plan faster or slower than expected, you can just skip a stop, or add a break at a cafe.
Of course, some things have to be timed - some attractions have time slots for entry tickets or you may have to book at busier restaurants. But try to be as flexible as possible - or you’ll end up stressed and flustered in a busy, foreign city, and no one wants that.
4. Group your sightseeing spots by their neighbourhood
Rome is walkable - but it’s vast. To save your feet (and money on public transport or taxis), first start with a list of all the places you want to visit, and find out which area of Rome they are in. We highly recommend you dedicate a day to each area if that's possible, or group two neighbouring areas together for a day if you're short on time.
This will make your trip planning, and your time in Rome, so much simpler and easier.
5. Think ahead
Especially if you’re visiting Rome in peak season (this city is busy all year round, but especially around major holidays and in the Summer months), you need to book your accommodation, tickets to major tourist attractions, and any excursions, well in advance. Tickets can sell out, and accommodation drastically increases in price the closer to the date of travel you get.
If you’re planning on getting trains or coaches to any other cities around Italy, these should be booked as far in advance as you possibly can. The high-speed routes often completely sell out, and if not, they can double or triple in price if they’re booked closer to the time.
Not only do you save money by booking online and in advance, it’s also so much less stressful knowing that once you arrive, everything is booked and planned. Then you can just relax, take in the sights and the incredible atmosphere of the city.
6. Make sure to do a bit of research about the culture in Rome
No matter how short of time you are, and how quickly you want to plan this trip, you need to look into the culture.
One major thing to be aware of is dress codes at religious sites like basilicas and cathedrals. No matter how hot of a day it is, you shouldn’t enter wearing shorts, with shoulders uncovered, wearing caps, etc. They do sell cover-ups outside most major sites. It’s respectful to follow this dress code even if it isn’t enforced.
Another thing to think about is the culture around food and drink. It’s easy to fall into tourist traps and miss out on the real high-quality food that you should be experiencing in Italy, so it’s good to be aware of local meal times, customs, and the most popular dishes in the region.
Don’t want to spend time yourself researching and compiling information? Not to boast, but we've done it for you, and put all of that information and more in our Rome Travel Toolkit.
7. Plan how you’ll get around the city
Consider who is on the trip, and what everyone’s preferred method of transport will be.
Rome is walkable, but the public transportation system is also really useful and goes all over the city for low prices if you feel like you don’t want to spend as much time on foot.
Or, you could book guided walking tours, use taxi apps like Bolt or Uber, or even a hop-on-hop-off bus, like Big Bus Tours.
8. If it’s a really special trip to you, why not consider a personalised travel planning service?
If you prefer to be in control and book tickets and accommodation for your trip yourself, but find the appeal of having your trip planned, research done, and the stress of researching and planning removed, why not leave it to the experts?
We can plan your full trip for you, creating a customised itinerary with all your preferences catered to. Check out our makethemost service page for more information.
We know that this can all seem overwhelming, and it can feel like there's a lot to do before a trip to such a memorable city. It can be touch to plan a trip to Rome quickly, especially if you're trying to make it a once-in-a-lifetime trip.
A final thought - remember that anything you research, it’s a good idea to save it to a note or document on your mobile phone, or even put some very key points into a message to the others on your trip. That way, you'll always have the information you need, right at your fingertips, and you won't spend time repeating research over and over again.
Overall, just remember our key points: Plan ahead, make sure to think about the locations of all points you want to see, and use planning resources that are already out there for you. We just know you'll have an incredible time in Rome.
Now go and get planning, the quickest way is to stop procrastinating, and get booking!
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