1. Home
2. Blog
3. Rome in 3 days

Rome in 3 days: a complete day-by-day itinerary

Three days is the minimum you need to see Rome without sprinting from one monument to the next: one day for ancient Rome, one for the Vatican and the Renaissance centre, one for the Baroque heart of the city and a neighbourhood where Romans actually live. This 3 day Rome itinerary tells you what to see each day, in what order, and above all how to get around starting from North Rome, where our B&B is located. These are the tips we give our guests every week: practical, and built for people who like to walk at a relaxed pace.

How to plan 3 days in Rome when you stay in North Rome

B&B Beni Benius Roma sits in the La Storta area, along the Via Cassia, in a quiet residential neighbourhood with free parking. The easiest way into the centre is the FL3 regional train from La Storta station: it stops at Valle Aurelia (interchange with Metro line A), Roma San Pietro, Roma Trastevere and Roma Ostiense (connected to Metro line B at Piramide). A single train takes you to the doorstep of the Vatican and Trastevere and, with one change onto the metro, to the Colosseum and the Trevi Fountain. Every day of this itinerary starts and ends at an FL3 stop. If you have a car, our advice is to leave it at the B&B: the historic centre is a restricted traffic zone (ZTL) and parking is hard to find. For more detail on connections, read our guide on how to reach Rome city centre.

Day 1: ancient Rome, from the Colosseum to Trastevere

The first day belongs to the archaeological heart of the city. Take the FL3 to Roma Ostiense, then Metro B from Piramide to Colosseo: two stops and you are standing in front of the most famous amphitheatre in the world. Visit it in the morning with a ticket booked online, then use the same ticket for the Roman Forum and the Palatine Hill, where legend says Rome was founded. After lunch in Monti, climb up to the Capitoline Hill: the square designed by Michelangelo, the Capitoline Museums and the terrace behind the Senatorial Palace with an unforgettable view over the Forum. Then cross the Tiber via Tiber Island into Trastevere: evening is the perfect time for dinner in a trattoria around Piazza Santa Maria and the lanes nearby. To get home, Roma Trastevere station is on the FL3 and takes you straight back to La Storta.

Day 2: the Vatican, Castel Sant'Angelo, Piazza Navona and the Pantheon

On day two the FL3 drops you at Roma San Pietro station, a few minutes' walk from Bernini's colonnade. Start with the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel: book well in advance and pick the earliest time slot available, when the galleries are quietest. Then move on to St Peter's Basilica and, if you have the energy, the climb to the top of the dome. Remember the dress code required in all sacred sites: shoulders and knees covered. In the afternoon walk along Via della Conciliazione to Castel Sant'Angelo, cross the bridge lined with angel statues and in about ten minutes on foot you are in Piazza Navona, home to the Fountain of the Four Rivers. A few steps away is the Pantheon, the best-preserved Roman temple in the world with its oculus open to the sky. End the day at Campo de' Fiori or in the Jewish Ghetto and head back from San Pietro station.

Day 3: Baroque Rome and an afternoon off the beaten track

On the third day get off the FL3 at Valle Aurelia and take Metro A to Barberini: a five-minute walk brings you to the Trevi Fountain. Arrive early, before the crowds, and toss your coin. From here walk to the Spanish Steps, climb up to Trinità dei Monti and carry on to the Pincio terrace, one of the finest views in Rome. You are already inside Villa Borghese: stroll along its avenues, rent a bike or visit the Borghese Gallery, which always requires a timed reservation. For the afternoon you have two options. The first is Testaccio, the most Roman of Rome's neighbourhoods: the covered market, the Pyramid of Cestius and the Non-Catholic Cemetery; from Piramide you pick up the FL3 again at Ostiense. The second is the Appian Way: a park with the original Roman road, catacombs and mausoleums, ideal by bike or on foot, especially on Sundays when the historic stretch is closed to traffic.

Tickets, breaks and pacing: practical tips for 3 days in Rome

• Book the Colosseum, the Vatican Museums and the Borghese Gallery online well ahead: these are the three entries that sell out first. Always check opening hours and prices on each monument's official website.
• Buy tickets only through official channels and ignore the sellers hanging around outside the monuments.
• Plan no more than two major visits per day and leave the rest to walks and piazzas: you cover a lot of ground in Rome, often on cobblestones.
• Carry a refillable bottle: the cast-iron street fountains known as "nasoni" provide free drinking water all over the city.
• Consider a daily or multi-day public transport pass: it covers the FL3 within the urban zone, the metro and buses.
• Have lunch a street or two away from the main squares: better food and fairer prices.
• Check the calendar: on the first Sunday of the month many state museums are free but very crowded, and on Wednesday mornings access to St Peter's Basilica may be limited because of the papal audience.

What to do in Rome when it rains

A rainy day in Rome is no disaster: the city is full of extraordinary indoor places. Reshuffle the itinerary so that the wet day goes to the Vatican Museums, the Capitoline Museums or the Borghese Gallery, and add the National Roman Museum at Palazzo Massimo, near Termini. The churches of the centre are free museums: San Luigi dei Francesi with its Caravaggio paintings, Santa Maria del Popolo, Santa Maria Maggiore. The Pantheon is even more atmospheric with rain falling through the oculus.

Shorter or longer: Rome in 2 days or 4 days

If you only have 2 days, merge day 1 and day 3: Colosseum and Forum in the morning, Capitoline Hill and Pantheon in the early afternoon, Trevi Fountain and Spanish Steps towards evening; the second day stays with the Vatican, Castel Sant'Angelo and Piazza Navona, with dinner in Trastevere. If you have 4 days, keep the three-day plan and use the fourth for a day trip: Ostia Antica, reached by train from Piramide, or Villa d'Este and Hadrian's Villa in Tivoli. Staying with us gives you one more option: we are already in North Rome, so Lake Bracciano, with Anguillara and Trevignano, is within easy reach by car or on the same FL3 line. We cover it in our article on what to do in North Rome.

Why stay at B&B Beni Benius Roma

A three-day itinerary this full is only enjoyable if you have somewhere peaceful to come back to in the evening. B&B Beni Benius Roma is set in a tree-lined garden in La Storta, with free parking, breakfast included and the FL3 station close by for stress-free trips into the centre. Our rooms start from 65€ per night; for a family or a group of friends the Love Room sleeps up to 4, while the whole apartment hosts up to 8 guests. Before you arrive, feel free to ask us about train times and bookings: we are happy to help you shape your own Rome in 3 days itinerary.