Rome rewards the prepared traveller. The Eternal City draws millions of visitors each year, and like any great global capital, it demands a measure of awareness. Pickpockets work the crowded metro and the queues outside the Colosseum. Selfie sticks and backpacks can become weapons in packed piazzas where space is at a premium. The sun […]
Categories: Cities, Italy, Rome, Sights, Travelling Tips
The Colosseum is 1,935 years old and it is still the largest amphitheatre ever built. The outer wall originally rose 48 metres, the height of a modern 16-storey building, and the arena floor covered 3,357 square metres. It held 50,000 spectators who entered through 80 numbered arches. The building was completed in 80 AD under […]
Categories: Cities, Italy, Rome, Sights, Sights, Virtual Travel
Twenty minutes from the Colosseum lies a Roman city frozen in its final day. Ostia Antica was the harbour of ancient Rome, a bustling port where grain from Egypt and wine from Gaul entered the empire. Today you can walk its streets and step inside taverns, apartments, baths, and temples that still stand with their […]
The Spanish Steps cascade down the Pincian Hill in a waterfall of travertine and blooming azaleas, each landing filled with Romans and travellers alike sitting shoulder to shoulder in the late afternoon sun. At the foot, the Fontana della Barca sinks into the piazza, a boat half submerged in clear water, a reminder that the […]
Categories: Cities, Italy, Rome, Sights, Sights, Virtual Travel, Wellness, Relax & Sports
Walk where Caesar walked. The Roman Forum was the beating heart of an empire, a crowded valley of temples, courthouses, and market stalls where senators plotted and citizens argued. Today its broken columns and shattered arches lie open to the sky, scattered among weeds and wildflowers. The Via Sacra still runs its ancient course, worn […]
Few churches in Rome hide their masterpiece quite so unassumingly. San Pietro in Vincoli sits on the Esquiline Hill, its simple brick facade giving no hint of the artistic treasure waiting inside. Visitors come for one thing: Michelangelo’s Moses, carved from a single block of Carrara marble. The prophet sits with horns on his head, […]
Categories: Cities, Italy, Religious Monuments, Rome, Sights, Sights, Virtual Travel
Pastel coloured houses climb the hillside, their facades reflected in the calm waters of the harbour. Portofino is the jewel of the Italian Riviera, a fishing village turned glamorous resort that has attracted the world’s elite since the 1950s. The Piazzetta, a tiny square at the water’s edge, buzzes with conversation as diners sip wine […]
Rome does not merely tolerate children; it welcomes them with a warmth that surprises many parents. The city becomes an open-air classroom where history lives in three dimensions: gladiators in the Colosseum, chariot races in the Circus Maximus, and catapults at the Museo della Civiltà Romana. Children run freely through the Borghese Gardens and press […]
Tivoli has served as a playground for the powerful since ancient Roman times, and its legacy of pleasure still captivates visitors today. Perched on a hillside east of Rome, this historic town contains two UNESCO World heritage sites. Hadrian’s Villa spreads across an enormous estate of pools, libraries, temples, and palaces built by Emperor Hadrian […]
Vatican City is the smallest country in the world and yet its influence stretches across the globe. You cross the border simply by stepping into St Peter Square where Bernini colonnades embrace visitors like open arms. The basilica rises before you in a triumph of Renaissance architecture and the marble floors inside reflect centuries of […]