When you arrive in Rome for your city break, you’ll no doubt be excited to start exploring straight away. This Rome walking itinerary takes you to some of the top sights in Rome whilst allowing you to settle into the city. It is a great introduction to the city, particularly if you set your alarm to get going early.
The timings suggested are just a guide – so pace yourself, stop for photographs, refreshments and soak up the atmosphere whenever the mood takes you. Let’s go!
Table of Contents
Start your day early at the Trevi Fountain, 7.30am
Start your short walk of the top sights in Rome early – heading straight to the Trevi Fountain from your accommodation before the crowds build up. The closest metro to the Trevi Fountain is the Barberini.
TICKET UPDATE 2026 – A ticket system has now been introduced for visitors to access the lower section of the fountain, the section from where you can throw your coins in the fountain. Tickets currently cost 2 Euros to access this area between 9.00am and 22.00pm each day. Tickets can be bought from the official website: www.vivaticket.com
Alternatively if you visit before 9.00am then you can access the lower section without the need for a ticket. Therefore aim to visit the Trevi Fountain before breakfast if you can. It is possible to book an early morning tour via Get Your Guide if you want to visit with a guide:
On the approach to the Trevi Fountain, you will hear the water thundering from around the side streets, before you reach the fountain.
When it comes into view, you’ll be treated to a stunning wall of carved travertine stone, measuring 20 meters wide by 26 metres high. The Baroque features carved figures of Oceanus (God of water), Abundance, and Salubrity (Health). The water in front of the carvings looks very blue.
Even though people have thrown coins in fountains and wishing wells for centuries as offers to the spirits or Gods, the film Three Coins in the Fountain popularised the ritual in Rome of standing with your back to the Trevi Fountain and throwing a coin(s) over your shoulder. The folklore being:
- one coin and you will return to Rome.
- two coins and you will fall in love with an attractive Italian.
- three coins and you’ll return, fall in love, and get married….
Breakfast at Antico Forno Trevi, 8.30am/9.00am
After admiring the Trevi Fountain, one of the top sights in Rome, see if you can grab a table at Antico Forno Trevi next to the Trevi Fountain for breakfast. They serve amazing croissants, including a delicious pistachio croissant and Shakerato coffee – iced coffee where the expresso is shaken with sugar and ice, creating frothy, chilled coffee.
If it’s too busy, then there are plenty of other cafes in the streets around the Trevi Fountain to pick up pastries and coffee.
Note – if you are passing by at any point later in the day then make a compulsory gelato stop at Il Gelato di San Crispino.
Walk 10 minutes north to the Spanish Steps, 9.30am/10.00am
After refuelling with coffee and breakfast, next on the top sights in Rome itinerary is a gentle stroll to the Spanish Steps, built in 1723-26 to represent the close relationship between the Sacred and the Eternal city.
Walk to the top of the Spanish Steps and pop into the Church of the Santissima Trinità dei Moni (Trinità dei Moni for short) for a quick look – it’s one of 5 French speaking Catholic churches in Rome. Then, admire the views from the top of the steps before heading back down to ground level.
If you’re visiting between mid-April and mid-May the steps have the bonus of being filled with coloured white and lilac azaleas.
As well as being one of the top sights in Rome, the Spanish Steps are a key meeting place for the locals, but don’t sit on the steps or you might face a hefty fine!
Visit Keats-Shelley House, 10.30am
Pop into the Keats-Shelley House located next to the bottom of the Spanish Steps. The house is a memorial to poet John Keats who died there in 1821 but is also devoted more broadly to the Romantic Poets including Percy Shelley and Lord Byron who lived nearby.
As well as exhibits such as Keat’s bedroom, manuscripts and portraits, the museum has a terrace on the first floor and a terrace on the second floor with stunning views of the Piazza di Spagna.
Explore the Tridente (Trident), 11.00am
The area around the Spanish Steps is known as the Tridente because of the three streets that branch out from Piazza del Popolo (which is where we are heading next) towards the Spanish Steps. These 3 roads are:
- Via del Babuino.
- Via del Corso.
- Via di Ripetta.
Via del Babuino
On this Rome walking itinerary, head up via del Babuino, then turn right on Vicol dell’Orto di Napoli and left onto via Margutta. This is the street on which Gregory Peck had his apartment in the movie Roman Holiday. It is one of the quietest shopping streets near the Spanish Steps and one of the prettiest, with galleries, antique shops, and boutiques. A hidden gem, rather than one of the top sights in Rome.
At the end of via Margutta turn left, and right, to get back onto via del Babuino towards Piazza del Popolo.
For another time – High-end shopping area
In the middle of a self-guided walking tour, it might not feel like the right time for shopping and accumulating bags to carry, so note where the shops are and come back another time if you want to shop.
Check out via Condotti (the Champs-Elysée in Paris, or Bond Street in London), via Borgognona, via della Carrozze and via Frattina. Don’t miss the Vertecchi paper shop – classic go-to for elegant writing supplies.
Also worth noting for another time is Rinascente, Italy’s premier department store located in-between the Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps. It has a 6th Floor food market and restaurants, plus a rooftop bar for food and drinks throughout the day.
You could also include Piazza San Lorenzo in Lucino on your shopping trip, a quiet little square at the foot of via Frattina, across via del Corso. It has several 3 cafes, a small church, and the Louis Vuitton flagship store.
Piazza del Popolo (the People’s Square), 12.00noon
Back on our walking route, you will reach the large piazza called Piazza del Popolo with the Egyptian obelisk of Ramesses II at its centre. The Piazza lies inside the northern gate in the old walls of ancient Rome, Porta del Popolo. It was once the starting point of the via Flaminia, the most important route to the north.
Before you leave the square, turn around and look back at where you’ve just come from – note that the entrance to the Tridente from Piazza del Popolo is defined by two churches, Santa Maria in Montesanto and Santa Maria dei Miracoli, situated between the three roads of the Trident area.
Head straight across Piazza del Popolo to pick up via Flaminia, where within minutes you should find lots of places to pick up a slice of pizza or other supplies for a picnic lunch in the park. The park is large and so good to eat before you start exploring or take your lunch with you.
Picnic in Villa Borghese, 12.30pm
Villa Borghese is a large and popular urban park offering one of the top sights in Rome It is built on an old vineyard and covers 80 hectares.
After the busy streets around the Trevi Fountain and Spanish Steps, then Villa Borghese offers an oasis of tranquillity in the heart of this bustling city. It also houses Galleria Borghese, one of the worlds’ finest art galleries.
As you enter the Villa Borghese from Piazza del Popolo, head to your right to the panoramic Terrazza del Pincio for a fabulous view over the piazza and beyond.
From here, you are heading in the direction of the Borghese Gallery, a 20-minute walk if you go straight there. However, take your time and meander through this beautiful park admiring the sculptures and fountains throughout the park. Find a spot you like for your picnic in the shade of the trees and enjoy.
Alternative – if you prefer a sit-down lunch to a picnic, you could book a table at Terrazza Borghese, the rooftop restaurant at the Hyatt Hotel overlooking Villa Borghese. It’s a 20-minute walk through the bottom corner of the park.
Explore the Borghese Gallery, 2.30pm
After lunch, your Rome itinerary continues to the Borghese Gallery to view some world class art in a beautiful setting. Admire works of art by Bernini, Caravaggio, Canova and Raffaello.
To Skip the Line we booked tickets for Villa Borghese with a small group tour through Get Your Guide so that you can skip the line and learn about the artworks on display.
Alternative – as an alternative to visiting the art gallery, you could hire bikes from one of the outlets inside the park. This is one of the top experiences, as opposed to being one of the top sights in Rome.
There is a Bici Pincio outlet near the Terrazza del Pincio, and another outlet near Porta Pinciana (closer to the Terrazza Borghese restaurant), plus an Ascol Bike further north into the park. We rented a 4-person bike with a blue sunshade which was fun for the kids. For other ideas, read my blog about visiting Rome with teenagers.
Time out, 4.30/5.00pm
You might be ready for a rest now, so depending on where your hotel is based, you could decamp to your accommodation to relax and refresh for an couple of hours before going out in search of dinner or pre-dinner drinks.
Dinner and drinks, 7.00/7.30pm
There are lots of reasonably priced eateries in the Tridente area. We dropped into a random restaurant on Via della Croce and had a lovely Italian meal. The area is bustling and so there was a great atmosphere.
A friend recommended Hotel Locarno for pre-dinner drinks near Piazza del Popolo, which has a gorgeous courtyard garden with wisteria (in season) and a fountain. Quite pricey, but then it’s capital city prices in Rome for something smarter.
If you want to go even smarter, then you could drop into the Stravinksy Bar at the luxury Hotel Russie for cocktails and book a table for dinner at the Le Jardin de Russie.
Final thoughts...
So, that’s it – your walking tour of some of the top sights of Rome completed. Hopefully your feet aren’t aching too much, and you feel well fed?
Actually, the walk is only 1.9km but then you need to account for the steps walking around the Borghese Gallery and also searching for food and drinks, or window shopping.
Get an early night, ready for another day of sightseeing tomorrow on another itinerary for your Rome City break.
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