{"id":40914,"date":"2015-08-13T16:05:11","date_gmt":"2015-08-13T06:05:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/vc\/blog\/?p=40914"},"modified":"2015-08-13T16:05:11","modified_gmt":"2015-08-13T06:05:11","slug":"when-in-rome-top-tips-for-a-roman-holiday-to-remember","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/vc\/blog\/when-in-rome-top-tips-for-a-roman-holiday-to-remember\/","title":{"rendered":"When in Rome: top tips for a Roman holiday to remember"},"content":{"rendered":"<blockquote><p>It\u2019s hard not to have an amazing experience in Rome. The history! The food! The people! But to give you a little helping hand, here are my top tips for making the most of a short stay in the Eternal City.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<h3><strong>Eat<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/Destinations-In-Italy.d86.Flight-Destinations?brandcid=wotif-nz.display.Blog.WhenInRome-.generic\">Italy <\/a>is a food lover\u2019s paradise and when <a href=\"http:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/Rome-Hotels.d179899.Travel-Guide-Hotels?brandcid=lastminute-nz.display.Blog.WhenInRome-.generic\">Rome <\/a>is the last stop of an epic four week European summer vacay (and you\u2019ve held back ever so slightly in <a href=\"http:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/Flights-To-London.d178279.Travel-Guide-Flights?brandcid=lastminute-nz.display.Blog.WhenInRome-.generic\">London<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/Flights-To-Paris.d179898.Travel-Guide-Flights?brandcid=lastminute-nz.display.blog.wheninrome-.generic\">Paris<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/Cinque-Terre-La-Spezia-Hotels.0-n180063-0.Travel-Guide-Filter-Hotels?brandcid=lastminute-nz.display.blog.wheninrome-.generic\">Cinque Terre<\/a> and <a href=\"http:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/Destinations-In-Tuscany.d601686.Hotel-Destinations?brandcid=lastminute-nz.display.blog.wheninrome-.generic\">Tuscany <\/a>in anticipation), it\u2019s *ahem* fair to say nothing is off limits. Pastries for breakfast, pizza for lunch, pasta for dinner and gelato in between? Yes, yes, yes and definitely yes.<\/p>\n<p>Here are some of my favourite finds:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Pizzarium, Via della Meloria 43, 00136 Rome<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>It might look like a little hole in the wall but what awaits inside is an array of doughy goodness with amazing toppings that you order by slice to the size of your choosing \u2013 dangerous! &#8211; and pay for by weight. Go and go early. The fig with caramelised onion gets my vote.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" style=\"background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 658px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);\" data-instgrm-captioned=\"\" data-instgrm-version=\"4\">\n<div style=\"padding: 8px;\">\n<div style=\"background: #F8F8F8; line-height: 0; margin-top: 40px; padding: 50% 0; text-align: center; width: 100%;\"><\/div>\n<p style=\"margin: 8px 0 0 0; padding: 0 4px;\"><a style=\"color: #000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;\" href=\"https:\/\/instagram.com\/p\/q2gaYZEfu4\/\" target=\"_top\">When in Rome&#8230; <\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;\">A photo posted by Nicole Gentle (@nicgentle) on <time style=\"font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;\" datetime=\"2014-07-24T23:07:47+00:00\">Jul 24, 2014 at 4:07pm PDT<\/time><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script src=\"\/\/platform.instagram.com\/en_US\/embeds.js\" async=\"\" defer=\"defer\"><\/script><\/p>\n<h4><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.osteriabarberini.com\/index.php?lang=it\">Osteria Barberini <\/a>Via Della Purificazione 21, 00187 Rome<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p>Mr LML is a truffle lover from way back and much to his delight I finally start to enjoy the distinctive taste on our trip, making Osteria Barberini a must-visit. Nabbing a lastminute booking thanks to our trusty concierge at <a href=\"http:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/Rome-Hotels-Regina-Hotel-Baglioni.h445130.Hotel-Information?brandcid=wotif-nz.display.Blog.WhenInRome-.generic\">Hotel Regina Balgioni<\/a>, the cosy restaurant delivers on our truffle craving with brushetta and pasta dishes covered in lashings of this gourmet delicacy we could only dream of having at home.<\/p>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/images.trvl-media.com\/media\/content\/expaus\/lm\/blog\/8_2015\/osteria-barberini-1048.jpg\" alt=\"Rome Osteria Barberini\" width=\"1048\" height=\"1397\" \/>\n<p><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.pinsereroma.com\/\">Pinsere Roma<\/a>, Via Flavia, 98, 00187 Rome<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Another little pizza joint that actually lived up to its high TripAdvisor rating (number nine restaurant in Rome at time of writing). Think individual pizzas with the freshest of toppings and friendliest of staff. Mr LML may have gone back for seconds.<\/p>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/images.trvl-media.com\/media\/content\/expaus\/lm\/blog\/8_2015\/pinsere-roma-1048.jpg\" alt=\"Pinsere Roma\" width=\"1048\" height=\"590\" \/>\n<p><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.gelateriaromana.com\/\">Gelateria La Romana Roma Ventisettembre<\/a>, via Venti Settembre 60, 00187 Rome<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>If you\u2019re craving a cooling gelato after your pizza hit at Pinsere Rome, this popular pick is just around the corner. The lines are long, the choices are many and you\u2019ll probably find yourself lining up again for another scoop or three.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/images.trvl-media.com\/media\/content\/expaus\/lm\/blog\/8_2015\/gelateria-la-romana-1048.jpg\" alt=\"Gelateria La Romana\" width=\"1048\" height=\"786\" \/> <strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.venchi.com\/it\/\">Venchi <\/a>(various locations)<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>They have stores all over Italy but I totally fell in love with Venchi in Rome, even having \u2018just one last scoop\u2019 at the airport at 10am en route back to Sydney. Their chocolates are the goods too.<\/p>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/images.trvl-media.com\/media\/content\/expaus\/lm\/blog\/8_2015\/venchi-1048.jpg\" alt=\"Gelato Rome\" width=\"1048\" height=\"1397\" \/>\n<h3><strong>See<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>There\u2019s no doubt <a href=\"http:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/Rome-Hotels.d179899.Travel-Guide-Hotels?brandcid=lastminute-nz.display.Blog.WhenInRome-.generic\">Rome <\/a>has a lot of iconic must-visits. Tick them all off but between playing tourist, make sure you take the time to stroll the streets, pop into that cute boutique or wine bar and soak it all in.<\/p>\n<p><strong>The Trevi Fountain<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I\u2019ve always wanted to visit this icon and toss my coin into the water but unfortunately on our visit it was not looking its best\u2026<\/p>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/images.trvl-media.com\/media\/content\/expaus\/lm\/blog\/8_2015\/trevi-fountain-1048.jpg\" alt=\"Trevi Fountain\" width=\"1048\" height=\"590\" \/>\n<p>\u00a0Key learning: double check for construction work before you go. It didn\u2019t even have water in it! On the plus side, it\u2019s a good excuse to go back \ud83d\ude09<\/p>\n<p><strong>The Vatican <\/strong><\/p>\n<p>You can\u2019t come to Rome without visiting the Vatican.\u00a0<\/p>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/images.trvl-media.com\/media\/content\/expaus\/lm\/blog\/8_2015\/vatican-1048.jpg\" alt=\"Vatican Rome\" width=\"1048\" height=\"1397\" \/>\n<p>The star attraction of the Vatican Museums is of course the Sistine Chapel and for me it was one of those rare occasions when an icon lives up to the hype.<\/p>\n<p><strong>The Colosseum<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Channel the Ancient Romans with a visit to this nearly 2000 year old landmark. It\u2019s still one of the biggest buildings in Rome \u2013 and has plenty of wow factor at a distance taking in all its glory \u2013 but seeing it up close and stepping inside is a special experience.\u00a0<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" style=\"background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 658px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);\" data-instgrm-captioned=\"\" data-instgrm-version=\"4\">\n<div style=\"padding: 8px;\">\n<div style=\"background: #F8F8F8; line-height: 0; margin-top: 40px; padding: 50% 0; text-align: center; width: 100%;\"><\/div>\n<p><a style=\"color: #000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;\" href=\"https:\/\/instagram.com\/p\/q5Tzf7Efqm\/\" target=\"_top\">Another day, another iconic landmark. Pretty damn impressive. #colosseum #rome #europeansummervacay<\/a> A photo posted by Nicole Gentle (@nicgentle) on <time style=\"font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;\" datetime=\"2014-07-26T01:15:20+00:00\">Jul 25, 2014 at 6:15pm PDT<\/time>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script src=\"\/\/platform.instagram.com\/en_US\/embeds.js\" async=\"\" defer=\"defer\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><strong>The Spanish Steps<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Maybe it was the scaffolding (yep again!) in the background but this one left me pretty underwhelmed. Tick them off on your way to exploring other parts of the city.<\/p>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/images.trvl-media.com\/media\/content\/expaus\/lm\/blog\/8_2015\/spanish-steps-1048.jpg\" alt=\"Spanish steps Rome\" width=\"1048\" height=\"1862\" \/>\n<h3><strong>Stay<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>While Rome has a lot of accommodation options, I couldn\u2019t go past the regal <a href=\"http:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/Rome-Hotels-Regina-Hotel-Baglioni.h445130.Hotel-Information?brandcid=lastminute-nz.display.Blog.WhenInRome-.generic\">Regina Hotel Baglioni<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Built between 1892 and 1894 and refurbished in 2009, the five-star property has a touch of the old and the new in a classic luxury way.<\/p>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/images.trvl-media.com\/media\/content\/expaus\/lm\/blog\/8_2015\/hotel-foyer-1048.jpg\" alt=\"Hotel foyer Regina Hotel Baglioni\" width=\"1048\" height=\"590\" \/>\n<p>With its Art Nouveau styling, even the staircases are glamorous!<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" style=\"background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 658px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);\" data-instgrm-captioned=\"\" data-instgrm-version=\"4\">\n<div style=\"padding: 8px;\">\n<div style=\"background: #F8F8F8; line-height: 0; margin-top: 40px; padding: 50% 0; text-align: center; width: 100%;\"><\/div>\n<p style=\"margin: 8px 0 0 0; padding: 0 4px;\"><a style=\"color: #000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;\" href=\"https:\/\/instagram.com\/p\/q0vGOuEfjF\/\" target=\"_top\">Don&#8217;t think I&#8217;ve ever looked up as often as I have on this holiday. Even the hotel staircases are stunning.<\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;\">A photo posted by Nicole Gentle (@nicgentle) on <time style=\"font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;\" datetime=\"2014-07-24T06:37:37+00:00\">Jul 23, 2014 at 11:37pm PDT<\/time><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script src=\"\/\/platform.instagram.com\/en_US\/embeds.js\" async=\"\" defer=\"defer\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>\u00a0It truly is fit for royalty (Queen Margherita of Savoy chose it as her residence while she awaited the completion of her own residence) and our room is the perfect sanctuary from the hustle and bustle of site seeing in Rome. In the name of research we sample the in-house restaurant and enjoy delicious cocktails, impressive service and food so rich I can\u2019t even contemplate the petit fours for dessert (a very rare feat, as those who know me will attest to).\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/images.trvl-media.com\/media\/content\/expaus\/lm\/blog\/8_2015\/hotel-restaurant-1048.jpg\" alt=\"Hotel restaurant Rome \" width=\"1048\" height=\"786\" \/> The breakfast buffet has plenty of options and a slightly formal feel in the air for the first meal of the day. If you\u2019re lucky enough to have a room with a balcony, I suggest opting for room service instead. It doesn\u2019t get much better than this\u2026\u00a0<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" style=\"background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 658px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);\" data-instgrm-captioned=\"\" data-instgrm-version=\"4\">\n<div style=\"padding: 8px;\">\n<div style=\"background: #F8F8F8; line-height: 0; margin-top: 40px; padding: 50% 0; text-align: center; width: 100%;\"><\/div>\n<p><a style=\"color: #000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;\" href=\"https:\/\/instagram.com\/p\/q54thrkfqI\/\" target=\"_top\">Who needs to go downstairs to the breakfast buffet when you can have the breakfast buffet delivered to you. #somuchfood #needtowalkhometosydney<\/a> A photo posted by Nicole Gentle (@nicgentle) on <time style=\"font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;\" datetime=\"2014-07-26T06:37:50+00:00\">Jul 25, 2014 at 11:37pm PDT<\/time>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script src=\"\/\/platform.instagram.com\/en_US\/embeds.js\" async=\"\" defer=\"defer\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>After all, as they say, \u2018When in Rome!\u2019<\/p>\n<h2><em>Have you been to Rome? What are your eat, see or stay tips? Share with us in the comments!<\/em><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Book a stay at\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/Rome-Hotels-Regina-Hotel-Baglioni.h445130.Hotel-Information?brandcid=lastminute-nz.display.Blog.WhenInRome-.generic\">Regina Hotel Baglioni<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/Rome-Hotels.d179899.Travel-Guide-Hotels?brandcid=lastminute-nz.display.Blog.WhenInRome-.generic\">Hotels in Rome<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/Flights-To-Rome.d179899.Travel-Guide-Flights\">Flights to Rome<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>It\u2019s hard not to have an amazing experience in Rome. The history! The food! The people! But to give you..<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":40915,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[777,41,2650,4455,4505],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40914"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=40914"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40914\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":40917,"href":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40914\/revisions\/40917"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/40915"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=40914"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=40914"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lastminute.co.nz\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=40914"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}