Where to get the best coffees in Rome

Espresso lovers can never go wrong in Rome. Your coffee will probably be excellent in most of the bars you find.   Yet, according to locals, if you want to drink the best in the city you have to head to the Pantheon: two ‘temples’ to the coffee bean are there, situated within walking distance […]

Fast Culture: Gods amongst the machines

What, you may well ask, are 400 or so classical sculptures, as well as mosaic panels, stone funerary monuments and sarcophagi, doing in a power plant? Just off Via Ostiense, in Rome, about halfway between the Pyramid of Cestius and the Basilica of St Paul Outside the Walls, you can visit the first public electrical […]

Ara Pacis Augustas – the altar of absolute peace

The marble sculptures on Rome’s altar of absolute peace attract visitors because of their beauty, but their origins lie in celebrating the victories of Emperor Augustus… The Ara Pacis Augustae, or altar to the absolute peace, was commissioned by the Roman Senate in 13BC, and in 9BC was dedicated to the peace established by Emperor […]

Hidden Rome – Part 2

The second part in the series, click here for part 1 of Hidden Rome Previously, we visited one of the earliest surviving Christian ruins in Rome and Nero’s summer residence, Domus Aurea. This week we relax in the open spaces at the Diocletian baths and investigate the the mysterious and tragic stories behind the tombstones at Campo Cestio, the […]

Hidden Rome – Part 1

Don’t let traffic fumes and tourists get you down in Rome… there’s so much to enjoy in Italy’s vibrant, bustling capital, without bypassing its history and beauty. If you’ve been elbowed out of the way once too often at the main attractions, Lorenza Bacino has some ideas of where to go and what to do […]

From Pisa to Palermo – Italia Moments Week 7

It’s that time of year when holidays seem like a distant memory yet some of our readers have been whisking themselves away to a land where summer never seems to end.. Castello Aragonese in Taranto, Puglia. The photographer, Jarno Liimatainen, explained “Italian army runs the castle as it has been their base, so a tour is free […]

Top Picks this month

Discover what lies under the streets of Rome, get a book with enough recipes to host an al fresco Italian tea party and be beautiful while you do it, with the best of Italy this July…    Back to Cool When the time comes for the kids to go back to school, you can be sure […]

Rome by Train

Sick of flight delays, luggage allowances and departure lounges? The Italian capital is easily accessible by train from the UK – Gemma Hall took to the tracks to try it out The 7pm sleeper from Paris to Rome was running an hour late. In normal circumstances – and by that I mean on a crowded […]

Top Ten Italian Holiday Destinations

Mario Matassa reveals his choice of the top ten holiday resorts in Italy. From the mountains to the sea, for food fans or culture vultures, there’s a destination for everyone… In a country synonymous with history, art, architecture, style, fashion, gastronomy – not to mention seemingly endless golden sands, striking and rugged landscapes, grand historical cities […]