The Forum is where Roman history begins, but when it begins is a question that has recently had to be asked again… According to the story, Rome was founded on 21 April 753 BC, which means this April it was… umm… very old. How do we know the date so precisely? Because it’s just a […]
There are many ways to see Rome and learn about its history, each offering a new perspective. Adrian Mourby takes us on a walk through the city, tracing its history through the development of Rome’s hotels over 600 years… In 1855, when Cavalier Rufini took his census of Roman hotels for Pope Pius IX, he found that […]
Though they are named for the Emperor Caracalla, it was probably his father, Severus, who laid the plans for these huge baths… Most tourists come here by public transport, though the walk from the Forum takes you past a number of sites. Or, if you really liked walking, you could combine the trip with a […]
Cardinal Scipione Borghese (1577-1633) was a patron of Bernini and Caravaggio. The Baroque legacy at his Villa is a wonder to behold… People are often surprised to learn that, at least as far as major European cities go, Rome actually has a very good green space to concrete ratio. It certainly doesn’t feel like that […]
The official name is the Scalinata di Trinità dei Monti but we know them as the Spanish Steps, for the embassy once located here… After our visit to the Vatican Museums last month, we thought it unlikely that you would want to go straight to the Galleria Borghese (where we will be going next month), […]
The Vatican Museums are by far the most visited art galleries in Italy. And so they should be. There are more than 20,000 items on display at any one time – and sometimes it feels as if there are just as many people seeing them. The Museums house the collections of five centuries’ worth of […]
Indeed, Rome was not built in a day… Work on St Peter’s began in 1506, but the church wasn’t ready to be consecrated until 1626… Like many other buildings in Rome, St Peter’s uses stone recycled from the Colosseum. As is usually the case when a building takes longer to finish that one might have […]
Rome wasn’t built in a day, and you won’t see it all in a lifetime, but our new series will guide you through what you mustn’t miss… Perhaps the most iconic of all the tourist destinations in Rome, the Colosseum looms large at the heart of what was once the city centre. There will be […]
Summer in Rome can be a sweltering affair, so here at Italia! we believe that ice cream is necessity. Lorenza Bacino and Michela Di Carlo seek out the best ice cream parlours in the city to ensure you enjoy the sights despite the heat. San Crispino Pasquale and Giuseppe Alongi and Paola Nesci have been […]
Marina Schultz divides her time between London and Rome, where she bought atwo-bedroom apartment in 2015. What drew her to the Eternal City, and what keeps her coming back? “I went to Rome on a business trip back in 2007”, Marina explains, “and was dazzled by the place – its energy, style, colour and history. […]