Being located in front of Saint Peter's Basilica and the Vatican Museums, the cobble stone square…read morein front of this massive structure matches its grandeur of scale. 140 saints from the Catholic tradition, sculpted from travertine ranging from 10 to 11 feet in height, encircle the piazza as part of Bernini's Colonnade. The red granite obelisk jutting out in the center is much older than all the structures surrounding it, originating around 1900 BCE in Egypt, traveling to Italy and then to Rome in 37 CE, finally moving most recently to its present position in 1586. This massive feat to move the 330-ton tower of stone 260 meters to the center of the square required 900 men, 75 horses and complex, engineered crane systems. Two granite fountains--one north of the obelisk, one south--were signatures left by the master architects of St Peter's. The north one by Carlo Maderno, who designed the monumental facade and nave and the other by Gian Lorenzo Bernini who designed the Piazza San Pietro with its colonnade of saints. On any given day prior or during a mass, there are 20,000 chairs set up in a space that holds 60,000 people comfortably standing though history has known crowds of up to 100-130K. Tickets are free for papal audiences though need to be booked in advance for seated sections. There's not much "to do" per se, though walking here (and in many places in Rome), once you look past the hoards of visitors it's awe-inspiring to contemplate the history that's taken place here, and take a break from your Vatican exploration. From the piazza, a pleasant, less crowded stroll east down Via della Conciliazione (which has obelisk-shaped street lampposts) brings you to Castel Sant'Angelo, a 2nd century fortress with a museum inside and beautiful panoramic views of the city.

When we were in Vatican City in the afternoon, we skipped the plaza. We came back in the early…read moreevening and it was much less crowded. The square is directly in front of St. Peter's Basilica. Both are named after Saint Peter, an apostle of Jesus whom Catholics consider the first Pope. There is an obelisk in the center and 284 columns that create the elliptical shape of the square.

I went to Rome for the first time last week and spent three nights at a hotel right by the Piazza…read moredel Popolo. I loved Rome even more than I'd imagined, and was tremendously impressed by the giant piazzas, these vibrant public spaces that you could never build into a newer city, designed for people driving cars. The Piazza del Popolo was a particularly grand one, with its twin churches and its ancient Egyptian obelisk, already over a thousand years old when it was stolen and brought to Rome in the year 1 BC. We walked through the piazza several times during our stay, and it was striking both for its legitimate strikingness and for its natural incorporation into the day-to-day life of the city. The square was always lively without being crowded in mid-November, just people hanging out or walking through, enjoying a moment of leisure. The obelisk was set on a foundation with a fountain, of course, and plentiful seating. What a special thing, to sit at the base of something so extraordinary, to check email or eat a sandwich. We didn't notice many street entertainers, but we did watch a man in colorful clothing dipping a long wand in a vat of soapy water and releasing enormous bubbles to the delight of both adults and children passing by. It made me miss my kids, who would have flipped for that display, and who I hope to bring to Piazza del Popolo one day, to see a public square unlike any they'll ever see at home.

Cool Piazza at the Northern City Wall and also a gateway to Villa Borghese. This piazza has an…read moreobelisk, two churches, two fountains and also restaurants. There is a huge shopping area with parallel streets of shops, one that goes to Piazza di Spagna, at the base of the Spanish Steps. Five Stars!

Super touristy, but also a wonderful place to sit in a cafe with an Aperol Spritz and watch the…read moreworld go by. The waiters don't seem to mind how long you sit there and don't push you to order food. They probably get paid the same no matter what you order, unlike the U.S.

One of Rome's famous plaza's to visit and explore. Beautiful fountains and architecture. Plenty of…read morerestaurants around the edge. While we didn't dine at any of them, it sounds like a wonderful place to grab a drink and people watch. Worth a stop.

This is another one of these spots in Rome that is a must see! This is a truly historic building…read moreand there is so much history here. If you don't have time to stop in and do everything they have inside, it is still great to walk around and take if the beautiful building with the incredible horse statues at the top. Be careful when walking around though. There is a large street with multiple crossings but cars fly by. So double check when crossing the street and don't get too distracted that you put yourself in danger.

3 is for the piazza in its current state--as of April 2026 construction was very much still…read moreunderway so a large section of what is usually a very open cobblestone piazza, was cordoned off, leaving the remaining roadways along the perimeter narrow and congested. Located at the intersection of major thoroughfares Via del Corso and Via dei Fori Imperiali, without the construction, the view across the square towards the massive complex of the Monumento a Vittorio Emanuele II is awe-inspiring, you need to stand fairly far back towards the middle of the square to get a full look at the building. The piazza so named due to the Palazzo Venezia built here as ordered by Cardinal Pietro Barbo (later Pope Paul II) in early Renaissance times, and also because this place became the embassy of the Republic of Venice back in 1560. In 1797 this area came under jurisdiction of the Habsburg Empire and served Austro-Hungarian diplomats until Italy reclaimed it in 1916. Dedicated to King Victor Emmanuel II, credited with unifying Italy, the Vittoriano Monument was built between 1885-1911 and is also known as the Altare della Pàtria (Altar of the Fatherland). Later a shrine was added honoring soldiers who died in WWI without identified names.

Should have posted previously…read more.. A darling neighborhood to stroll and should be added to any Tiberina itinerary since it's so close. Wonderful history to explore.

Jews have lived in Rome for over two thousand years. Their presence in Rome predates Christianity…read more It is probably the oldest continuous Jewish community outside of the Israel and the Middle East. Written records trace the Jewish community as early as 161 BC when Judah Maccabee sent envoys to Rome. For hundreds of years, Jewish families coexisted with their neighbors. They worked as bakers, butchers, physicians, money lenders and craftsmen. As the friction between the papacy and the Jewish community in the 1500s escalated, walled off Jewish ghettos were created following the model in Venice. The Roman Ghetto was established as a result of Papal bull Cum nimis absurdum mandated by Pope Paul IV on 14 July 1555. The bull required that the 2,000 Jews who lived in Rome at the time to live in the ghetto, which was not only walled off, but the gates were also locked from the outside at night to keep them in. The Jewish community was also forced to pay 300 Roman scudi for the construction of the wall and gate. The location was prone to flooding and quite undesirable. By the late 1580s, roughly 3,500 inhabitants were living in inhuman conditions. During the plague of 1656, 800 of the ghetto's 4,000 inhabitants died. The bull revoked almost all the rights of the Jewish community. It placed many restrictions on Jews including prohibition on property ownership (even within the ghetto), not being allowed to provide medical care to Christians and compulsory Catholic sermons on the Jewish Shabbat. Life in the ghetto was harsh filled with poverty, epidemics, such as plague, cholera and malaria, diseases due to lack of fresh water and overcrowding. Roman Jews were limited to unskilled jobs such as pawn brokers, fish mongers or ragmen. Many Christians hated the Jews because they were allowed to "lend" money throughout Rome and Europe. Jews had to wear a yellow cloth if they left the ghetto. The yellow veil worn by Jewish women matched the color worn by Roman prostitutes. During Christian feasts they were forced to run naked or be ridden by the Romans as a way to entertain the Romans. They had to petition for the privilege annually to live in their homes and swear loyalty to the Pope at the Arch of Titus which celebrated the Roman sack of Jerusalem in 70 AD. As in most of Rome, there was no fresh water in the ghetto. When the Pope decided to use the old aqueduct system to provide fresh water via a series of fountains designed by Giacomo della Porta, a fountain was due to be placed at Piazza Giudea, the site of a market, inside the ghetto. However, Muzio Mattei used his influence to have the fountain, the Fontana delle Tartarughe (Turtle Fountain), located in the Piazza Mattei instead in front of his residence. Outraged, della Porta changed the design of the fountain so that it provided a small trickle of water to the Mattei family. In 1888, the ghetto walls were torn down. In 1904, the Great Synagogue of Rome and a number of apartment buildings were erected on the site. The Roman Ghetto was the last remaining ghetto in Western Europe until ghettos were reintroduced by Nazi Germany in the 1930s. Today, the Jewish Quarter is a thriving community filled with delicious Kosher restaurants, street musicians and shops. The Great Synagogue in Rome has a very visible square dome and a Jewish Museum. Look for the stumbling stones scattered along the cobblestone streets that remember Roman Jews who were murdered during the Holocaust and a tribute to Stefano Tache Gay who was murdered at the age of two as the synagogue was attacked on Shabbat in 1982. Sit at a sidewalk cafe for lunch or dinner. Try the Jerusalem artichokes and pistachio crusted sea bass at Renato al Ghetto and the pizza and pasta at Ba'Ghetto Milky. Delicious! Thank you to Mircea from GURU Tours who shared the rich history and secret sites of the Jewish Quarter during an amazing, and free, night tour. Highly recommended if you like history and cultural insights.

There's enough Forum you and enough Forum me, this archaeological site is deceptively massive and…read morespread out, and one of the most renowned throughout Rome and the world. Layers upon layers of history are built on top of itselves here, to the east close to the Colosseum is the Tempio di Venere e Roma (Temple of Venus and Rome), built on top of two former residences of Emperor Nero, beneath the bare mound surface is an elaborate domed rotunda. Under the Farnesian Gardens on the risen Palantine Hill belies the ancient remains of the first imperial palace (Domus Tiberiana), with soaring vaulted ceilings and deep chambers. In more than one pagan temple, churches and basilicas have been erected, Basilica di Santa Francesca Romana, Basilica dei Santi, and Tempio di Antonino e Faustina, a tribute by the emperor Antoninius Pius to his wife Faustina after her passing, later modified in the Middle Ages into Chiesa di San Lorenzo de' Speziali in Miranda. Entry for most starts at the Arco di Tito on the eastern edge of the park, where individual and group ticket holders alike go thru security and stream in to traverse the grounds that emperors and plebes alike strode over for two to three millennia. From there you walk west, and perhaps south then west--up the stairs to the gardens and remains of former residential quarters of antiquity. Most in-person and audio tours will take you this direction too, and I'd recommend this as a good way to learn more about the site. There are some metal info placards posted around the ruins that are helpful as well. Plan at least one hour to walk thru just the ground level of the Forum, if you want to take your time and get to the entire Palantine Hill then three hours is more realistic. The archaeological site has minimal shade in open areas, so bring water and maybe a hat in the warmer months; you can walk into a few of the churches or museums, including the Museo del Foro Romano, and the recently restored Domus Tiberiana (mentioned above). On top of Palantine Hill there are more trees. My first time here I completely missed Palantine Hill and that was a mistake! This time around after an hour and a half, the park was closing and I still didn't see about half of it in as much detail as I would've liked...I guess that means there needs to be a next time!

Any student of history will appreciate the Roman forum which was the center for the majority of all…read morethe official and major activities that incurred in ancient Rome to include speeches, debate, gladiator fights in some instances, and even the return of victorious armies and new Caesars that you see in so many movies. When I saw the ruins and what was left of the forum I had assumed that this magnificent epicenter of old Rome had been ransacked and destroyed when the Roman empire fell. In fact and unfortunately, it's slowly fell into disrepair and ruins the direct result of lack of maintenance and care by the Roman people and government over time. In addition to the remaining structural ruins and statues that currently reside here you will find placards scattered about these ruins that explain the history of the forum and what each significant ruin stood for and was used for. Very educational and not to be missed as this clearly was one of the most significant ancient centers of the old world.

I first saw the Pantheon 25 years ago and it was one of the few things I remembered on our recent…read moretrip. This building is amazing, inside and out. The columns, the hole in the ceiling, Raphael's tomb, it's all spectacular! If you don't book a tour, get here early - 8:30 (the open at 9) was more than enough time but by the time it was true opening time, the line was dramatic! It's only something like €7 to get in and it can take 10-30 minutes depending on how long you spend at the exhibits. Go really early, 6:30-7:00 for spectacular pictures with no crowds, or middle afternoon for huge crowds! Either way, it's a must!

Realizing I may have left my review for the Pantheon in the wrong spot, and now I feel a bit more…read moreconfident I have found the right Yelp business... I am re-posting it here while we figure it out! Would take a lot for me to not give one of the oldest standing structures (still in use by the way) in the entire world a 5 star review right? Quite frankly, walking in and looking up is just enough to bring you to a state of awe at the massive freestanding dome, still completely open in the middle, where the sun moves about the room throughout the day. Over the years it has taken on both a secular and religious bent. There are several people buried there with large monuments, the most recent was the man who brought Italy out of monarchial rule. It appears Catholic services are still held here on occasion, and there are pews for prayer and places to light a candle for blessings. It's no longer free to get in, you can wait in a first come first serve line, or try your luck at buying tickets online... though we tried several times and the online payment system would not work for us. All in all, it's a 30 minutes stop to see one of the oldest intact structures in the world, and that is always worth it to me.

24 hours in Rome!…read more Super crowded! You can pay to enter a route closer to the fountain The fountain was amazing! Spectacular architecture!

How can you come to Rome and not see the iconic Trevi Fountain?…read more I highly recommend paying the two euros so that you can get front and center. It was more magnificent than I expected and the water was so blue! It was a very quick stop, but one we won't ever forget!