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Sightseeing in Rome?

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kingnathski88
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PostPosted: 12:52 - 15 Nov 2017    Post subject: Sightseeing in Rome? Reply with quote

Hi All

I am off to Rome for a few days / nights next week and wondered if anyone had any recommendations on booking a fast track in advance for certain attractions?

Namely the colosseum and the leaning tower of Pisa.

I've read the queues can be pretty bad at the colosseum so would like to look at booking some form of fast track pass.

Has anyone here ever been and booked the same? If so, can you recommend a company? There are lots of various ones on Trip Advisor or Expedia but would like to go with one with some personal recommendations.

I will be in Rome next week from Wednesday morning through to late Saturday. We are spending the majority of Thursday in Pisa (already have the train tickets booked).

Any help or recommendations would be greatly received.

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barrkel
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PostPosted: 13:43 - 15 Nov 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

I have no suggestions for short-circuiting lines for the greatest hits, but for contextualizing your visit, I found this article interesting and informative:

https://www.exurbe.com/?p=2219
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asta1
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PostPosted: 17:01 - 15 Nov 2017    Post subject: Re: Sightseeing in Rome? Reply with quote

kingnathski88 wrote:

I've read the queues can be pretty bad at the colosseum so would like to look at booking some form of fast track pass.


One option for the colosseum is to take an evening tour. I went in summer so had a bit more light in the evening, but if you get there about 90mins before closing it's pretty quiet and you have time to take it all in regardless. Fast track is great, in principle, but I found that every other cunt in the city had bought a pass as well so you gain little.

Depends what you want to do really, but I enjoyed the sites much more just pootling around at my own pace. We did a few guided tours including the Vatican, but you just end up rushing around after some bloke with a silly flag catching every third word.

Buy a guide book and DIY it I reckon.

Also worth nipping to the other side of the river for food if you can. Much quieter, more 'authentic' and much cheaper. Again, I'm terrible with names so can't remeber what the district was called. They have a statue of some WW2 poet who was famous for (as far as I can tell) passively-aggressively bitching about Mussolini.

If you like beer then Open Baladin

Via degli Specchi, 6, 00186 Roma RM, Italy

is worth a visit as well, really good stuff. They do a guided beer and food tour starting there in the evening which is entirely worth the money. Can't remember the company though.
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hellkat
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PostPosted: 01:23 - 16 Nov 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

Do Italians even know the meaning of the word "fast-track"?
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chickenstrip
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PostPosted: 12:16 - 16 Nov 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

hellkat wrote:
Do Italians even know the meaning of the word "fast-track"?


Er, Rossi? Wink

I would so love to see Rome as part of a major Italian motorcycle tour. Oh well, maybe in the next life.
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Kris
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PostPosted: 14:14 - 16 Nov 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

I found Rome completely underwhelming. The Old Town was nice, sure, but it was another overcrowded city full of tourists and cheap Chinese-made gift shops. Plus the restaurants were crap.

I've gone through parts of Italy by bike before, and loved it.
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chickenstrip
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PostPosted: 14:25 - 16 Nov 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

Kris wrote:
I found Rome completely underwhelming. The Old Town was nice, sure, but it was another overcrowded city full of tourists and cheap Chinese-made gift shops. Plus the restaurants were crap.

I've gone through parts of Italy by bike before, and loved it.


I'd like to do Rome to capture some of the historic architecture on camera. I don't go into gift shops anyway, and tend to eat cheaply, maybe sit outside a cafe or two and watch the world go by for a bit.

Italy, such as I've seen of it so far, made the best impression on me out of the European countries I've visited thus far. There's still much of the country I'd like to see.
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stevo as b4
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PostPosted: 14:38 - 16 Nov 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

I'd like to do a major motorcycle tour of Italy too, but only if it's on an Italian 125 supermoto that's covered in after market go faster and hopefully more noisy parts.

I only want to ride round city centres, industrial estates, and by the beach or shops. I also want to park my bike next to all the other kids bikes, and Wear stupidly expensive sun glasses the moment I get off the bike, and film myself alot on my phone like the rest of them do.

I should have been a teenage biker in Milan or similar. Its not too late is it? Laughing
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Stalk
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PostPosted: 14:40 - 16 Nov 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

We went to the palatine Hill, about 2 min from the coliseum. No queue, interesting site, and the ticket also gets you in the coliseum. Still had to queue to get in but did not have to queue for a ticket first
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Kris
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PostPosted: 16:02 - 16 Nov 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

chickenstrip wrote:

I'd like to do Rome to capture some of the historic architecture on camera.


If you want to see a Roman amphitheatre up close and without mental crowds then head to El Djem in Tunisia. You can literally wander round and please yourself - and none of it was off-limits when I went. It's almost as big as the one in Rome too.

Anyway, Italy great. Rome.. hmmm not so great. IMO of course. Thumbs Up
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chickenstrip
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PostPosted: 16:50 - 16 Nov 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

For me, cities are a break from mountains and riding the good roads, and not really the main reason I tour. So any city visits tend to be whistle-stop for me. Nevertheless, I do enjoy a wander around sometimes, and the bustle just adds to the atmosphere for me. An empty city would seem very odd.
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hellkat
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PostPosted: 10:20 - 17 Nov 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

chickenstrip wrote:
hellkat wrote:
Do Italians even know the meaning of the word "fast-track"?

Er, Rossi? Wink
I would so love to see Rome as part of a major Italian motorcycle tour. Oh well, maybe in the next life.

Who? ( Laughing joke ) I don't watch roundy-roundies so I wouldn't know him if he bit me on the leg but yeah, alright. I'll give you that one Laughing

Motorcycle tours thru Italy would be nice: when I brought that GSX750 back from Milan I caned it up to Mont Blanc, kind of wished I'd taken my time now. Rolling Eyes

I kinda like Rome to mooch about in, as a city, but I've only really been to St Peters (not even the Sistine Chapel, although the staircase up to it is pretty amazing), I guess I should have by now but I'm not a fan of tourist queues.

Am just brushing up me Italian as we speak, I'm off to Pescara this arvo, bit of R&R for the weekend, sea, mountains, food, and not very much work, woot. Dance!
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Polarbear
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PostPosted: 10:41 - 17 Nov 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

I enjoyed exploring Rome, the historical part more than the religious. It's as much a pain in the arse as any other major tourist destination but the good thing is the majority is all in walking distance of each other. I went over for the 6 nations rugby and stayed a week to explore.

However if I was to recommend a Roman place to explore it would have to be Pompeii.

PB's profound observation about the Italians (in Rome) Litter is worse than UK and the women dress up to go to the shops.
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Rogerborg
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PostPosted: 11:43 - 17 Nov 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

Polarbear wrote:
the women dress up to go to the shops.

They do that in London too: everything except the eyes.

How Diversified is $CURRENT_YEAR Rome? Romans, or Roma?
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hellkat
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PostPosted: 23:08 - 17 Nov 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

When you say "diversified" ... Do you mean "how many Johnny foreigners?"
The Eyeties don't seem to put up with all that PC nonsense that "we" do, or certainly to a lesser extent. They are usually too busy complaining about taxes.
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hellkat
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PostPosted: 23:11 - 17 Nov 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

Rogerborg wrote:
Polarbear wrote:
the women dress up to go to the shops.

They do that in London too: everything except the eyes.

How Diversified is $CURRENT_YEAR Rome? Romans, or Roma?


No. In London they put a coat over their pyjamas, just as much as anyone else.
In many areas, some of them don't even bother to disguise it Rolling Eyes

Personally I can't leave the house without at least my lipstick and a brassiere.
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Last edited by hellkat on 01:13 - 18 Nov 2017; edited 1 time in total
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stevo as b4
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PostPosted: 23:52 - 17 Nov 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

You can't say Eyeties though cos I don't like it!

Its a soft half assed very derogatory word for us Italians. Call us Wops, greaseballs, fuckers, anything but please not fucking Eyeties. Raging. Laughing
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hellkat
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PostPosted: 01:10 - 18 Nov 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

My ex husband is full blood Eye-tie and that's what he calls them/himself .
Its what I'm used to hearing/saying for 30+ years now.
Unlikely to change, bloody moaning wops Rolling Eyes Laughing
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hellkat
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PostPosted: 01:19 - 18 Nov 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

How about "Dagoes", then.
More Spanish really, though innit.
Maybe I can go with "wops" but it's too easy to type WOGS by mistake when one is half-baked and not paying attention to the autocorrect, then we're in a whole other world of bitterness and misunderstanding
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stevo as b4
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PostPosted: 01:48 - 18 Nov 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hmmm! Best not get those two terms mixed up in haste me thinks! I'd hate even more to be called WOGS which I assume means Wives Of Ginger Scots? Laughing

How very insulting for anyone of a a decent human race!
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mudcow007
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PostPosted: 17:21 - 20 Nov 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

I loved Rome, spent a long weekend there a few years ago. but ran out of time trying to cram as many touristy things to do in the time we were there

We did see an old lady take a shit in the middle of a junction (big roundabout by the bus place) which was nice
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Polarbear
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PostPosted: 17:44 - 20 Nov 2017    Post subject: Reply with quote

mudcow007 wrote:
I loved Rome, spent a long weekend there a few years ago. but ran out of time trying to cram as many touristy things to do in the time we were there

We did see an old lady take a shit in the middle of a junction (big roundabout by the bus place) which was nice


Probably eastern European rather than Italian. They do that in London as well Rolling Eyes
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