Inside the city walls
The Colosseum and the Roman Forum and Palatine are the heart of ancient Rome and share a single timed ticket, so plan them together. Metro line B to Colosseo puts you opposite the amphitheatre, and the Forum gate on Via Sacra is five minutes away. Take the first Colosseum slot at 8.30 am, walk into the Forum before late morning and finish on the Palatine, whose gardens are the shadiest part of the park. Allow half a day in all, longer if you have booked the underground.
Within walking distance are quieter sites for a second day. The Baths of Caracalla, closed on Mondays, are a 20-minute walk south past the Circus Maximus, whose excavated area and virtual reality show need their own ticket. Trajan's Market, entered from Via Quattro Novembre near Piazza Venezia, is a Roman shopping complex on several floors. The Baths of Diocletian stand three minutes from Termini, and the Domus Aurea opens only for booked guided groups on selected days.
The Appian Way and aqueducts
The Appian Way starts at Porta San Sebastiano and runs south between tombs, catacombs and umbrella pines. Bus 118 from the Colosseum or Circo Massimo reaches the catacombs in about 20 minutes, though it is not frequent; a taxi takes 15 to 20 minutes. Go on a Sunday morning, when the main stretch is closed to traffic, and hire a bike near Domine Quo Vadis to reach the Tomb of Caecilia Metella and beyond. Most bike tours also loop east to the Park of the Aqueducts, where the arches of the Aqua Claudia stand in open grassland, free to enter and a short walk from Giulio Agricola on metro line A.
Ostia Antica by train
Ostia Antica is the best half-day trip from Rome and the cheapest to reach. Take metro line B to Piramide, change to the Roma-Lido train at Porta San Paolo and get off at Ostia Antica after about 25 minutes; an ordinary city ticket covers the ride. Cross the footbridge and walk ten minutes to the gate. The port town has streets, baths, a theatre, apartment blocks and mosaic floors under umbrella pines, and three to four hours pass quickly. The site is closed on Mondays, and it is close enough to Fiumicino airport, 15 minutes by taxi, to fit on an arrival or departure day.
Hadrian's Villa at Tivoli
Hadrian's Villa lies on the plain below Tivoli, about 30 km east of the centre. Take metro line B to Ponte Mammolo and a blue COTRAL bus towards Tivoli via Villa Adriana, about 50 minutes, then walk ten minutes from the turn-off; a regional train from Roma Tiburtina to Tivoli and a local bus is the alternative. The villa is huge and exposed, so arrive at opening or after 4 pm in summer and allow three hours. Villa d'Este, with its Renaissance fountains, is 15 minutes away in the town, and many tours sell the pair as one full day.
Etruscan tombs and Tusculum
For an older world, two Etruscan cemeteries north-west of Rome are UNESCO-listed and far quieter than any Roman site. The Banditaccia Necropolis at Cerveteri, about an hour by COTRAL bus from Cornelia metro, has streets of mound tombs you can walk into. The Necropolis of Tarquinia, about 1.5 hours by regional train, has painted burial chambers seen through glass. South-east of the city, Tusculum is a free hilltop park above Frascati, 30 minutes by train from Termini and then a taxi up the hill.
Pompeii as a long day
Pompeii is far from Rome, but the fast train to Naples takes little more than an hour, so it works as a long day. From Napoli Centrale go down to the Garibaldi station for the Circumvesuviana towards Sorrento, about 35 minutes to Pompei Scavi, opposite the Porta Marina gate. Allow three to four hours inside and leave by mid-afternoon for an evening train back. If you would rather not manage the changes, a coach day tour from Rome handles the transport, usually with a guided walk of the main streets.
Tickets and passes
Under-18s enter free at the Colosseum, the Forum, Ostia Antica, Hadrian's Villa and the Baths of Caracalla, which matters for families. All the state sites are free on the first Sunday of the month, but queues make that a poor day for a first visit. Summer hours run to about 7 or 7.30 pm and winter hours end around 4.30 pm, with last entry an hour or more earlier. Colosseum tickets are named, timed and released 30 days ahead; elsewhere you can usually pay at the gate. In July and August, start every site at opening.
Where to book
Colosseum: book the combined ticket with the Roman Forum and Palatine 30 days ahead, ideally the 8.30 am slot, and allow half a day; metro line B to Colosseo. Appian Way: go on a Sunday morning with a guided bike tour, booked ahead for weekends, and allow half a day with one catacomb.
Ostia Antica: no booking needed; take the Roma-Lido train from Piramide on any day but Monday and allow half a day with the journey. Hadrian's Villa: buy at the gate or online, or take a Tivoli tour that adds Villa d'Este; arrive at opening. Pompeii: buy a named ticket online and catch an early fast train to Naples, or book a day tour from Rome that handles the transport.
