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Vicolo Dell'Orso 55, Rome, 00186, Italy
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of people enjoy staying here
5 Opinions
Circus Maximus
My tickets
Santa Maria Maggiore - Nave.
no, I didn't buy them...
What is the chance that the line to see the Vatican and St. Peter's Square won't be wrapped around the block in early October. We are arriving on a cruise ship and are very limited in our time. We are trying to decide if we should book a tour of the Vatican to avoid the line or do you think that time of year is less of a problem?
If the tour is the answer -- What tour company is good. Angel tours?? Viator?? This one has an admission to skip the line only with no additional tour included.
Thank You For Your Answers
I had no problems in early November getting into the Vatican or the square however the Sistine Chapel was another story. Very long line and we had no time to wait so missed seeing that. St. Peters is magnificent to wander about viewing the art and architecture (and ambience). Try to make time to go to the roof - great views!
Hi - we went in late April and had the opposite experience as LilyWinters. We walked right into the Vatican Musuems (Sistine Chapel) but waited on line forever to get into St. Peter's. Seems kind of hit and miss. Since you're on a cruise and time is tight I would recommend going with a tour. The one with admission only sounds good, but you might get more (information) out of a full tour - depends how you like to see museums,etc. Another consideration is that probably many of your shipmates will be heading to the Vatican so there may be a lot of people in line. (There is a security check at both entrances so that also slows things up a little.) Enjoy!
Just a quick tip: it costs more to "sit" and drink coffee, so you'll see people standing about drinking coffee, and if you order a coffee and pay the "standing" price, don't sit at a table! This hasn't happened to me, but to some friends of mine that were mightily embarrassed. Also, you pay first, then hand your receipt to the barista, who then prepares your coffee or beverage at LIGHTENING speed.
The Ponte Sant’ Angelo is one of Rome’s most beautiful bridges. It spans the Tiber in front of the Castel Sant’ Angelo and is decorated with graceful angels designed by Giovanni Lorenzo Bernini (1598-1680).
The bus network is extensive and will cover most tourist needs. As a resident, you'll find buses poorly documented, often crowded, schedules unreadable/not adheared to. Indications at bus stops are not decent, with strange gothic signs to signal anomalies.
I refuse to board an overcrowded bus & find the next one not far behind.
That said, you will be able to use the ATAC English website below to calculate a specific route with assurance. I use their site regularly.*
All tickets ("biglietto") must be pre-purchased and are available for sale at ATAC counters, tabacchi (tobacco stores) newsagents, and at automatic ticket dispensers. You must be able to tell the cashier WHICH ticket you want to purchase. Tickets must then be validated (stamped) on board the bus at the beginning of the journey to avoid a hefty fine - inspectors are now on board checking as of November 1, 2009. The cheapest ticket, the Biglietto Integrato a Tempo - BIT costs EUR0 1.00 and is valid for up to 75 minutes of travel on ATAC buses, or for one trip on the metro or suburban train lines.
Day (BIG) and week (CIS) passes - valid on all transport in the municipality - costs EURO 4 and EURO 16.00 respectively. Monthly passes are also available. The BIRG pass covers a day's worth of transport within the Lazio region, and costs between EURO 2.50 and EURO 10.50 (depending on the number of zones covered).*
If you are in Rome for 3 days or more and visiting museums, see my tip re the ROME PASS - it will save you time & money.%*
I've noticed this place because of a great selection of cheese you can see in a window, and this is what attracted us to choose this place for my last birthday dinner. WOW!!! It's great evening. After entering the first thing which I've noticed or rather smelled was a beautiful aroma of cheese and later on I've seen the great selection of wine. The list of wine is enormous, looks like a big, old book in leather cover. Al Bric offers you not only good food, but also very good service. It's not one of this fancy restaurant, with a snobby waiter. This place looks very casual, but the waiter is a master of his work. He knows all about wine and he will tell you the order you should taste different cheese. Favorite Dish: The menu is Italian, only a bit more sophisticated. So, you will be able to choose a nice aperitif as "polenta with some chilly sauce" or bruschetta, for the first dish you can take pasta(very small portion), but we skipped it and we ordered the second directly. I have chosen " salciccie con i broccoli" - sausage con broccoli and Giovanni ordered "tagliata" - steak. At the end we tryed a plate with different cheese which were the best ever together with a wine.
The prices are regular about 12Euro per dish, what makes a bill higher is a bottle of wine - 45E (pricey but definitely worth it:)
I'd loved the fact that the menu they gave to me didn't have prices. First I was surprised but after I discovered that only menus for boys had prices. It's really nice idea.
We had very nice evening, we left the osteria Al Bric happy and full, but not overeaten.
The Piazza San Pietro is the open cobbled entrance to the 'Basilica di San Peitro', but still deserves a tip all to itself!
It can be found around 5 minutes walk South of the Ottaviano Metro station (on metro line A).
When we visited the Piazza San Pietro, the Christmas tree was still up, and they had a full-scale nativity setup.
The Piazza is lovely. It is surrounded by a wall of pillars. The roof on top of the pillars is lined with stunning statutes. I didn't count them, but I can confidently guess that there were around 60 - 70. The Piazza San Pietro also contains 2 fountains.....one to the left and one to the right.
It was reasonably quiet on the Saturday when we actually went to visit the Vatican, but on the Sunday, as we were walking past it again, there were quite literally thousands of people in the Piazza blowing whistles, chanting and waving banners. It actually took our breathe away.
Our only guess was that we had just missed a Sunday services.
The Piazza San Pietro is free to enter, however if you want to go any further you have to go through security.....which i guess makes sense.
Oh, and do not turn up with shorts and a vest on! They are very strict with what you can wear. You generally cannot enter if your shoulders or knees are showing. I think women wearing skirts will be ok, but shorts are a no no!
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