How To See Rome In 4 Hours (And Buy 3 Pairs of Shoes)
Written by Jaillan Yehia
Rome’s iconic Colosseum needs no introduction
They said it couldn’t be done, but they hadn’t counted on my determination…or my love of Italian footwear. I had just 4 precious hours in Rome – enough time to swing by the Colosseum, snap the Spanish Steps, try out the Trevi fountain, and buy 3 pairs of shoes! Here’s how to tackle a short layover in Rome…
I’d googled 4,5 and 6 hour layovers in Rome and it wasn’t looking good. The advice was the same on every forum and site: “You don’t have enough time; get comfortable in the airport.”
But hey, I’m from London so I know how to handle a big metropolis, and I like to push the limits of what’s possible in a short space of time (read: I’m 10 minutes late for everything, that’s the charm of me!) so I rolled up my sleeves and decided to ‘do’ Rome in 4 hours. After all, 4 hours in Rome is better than no hours in Rome, right? Was it ideal? No. Was it leisurely? Absolutely not! But did I love it? YES! And did I come home with new shoes? You Bet I did!
I landed at 1pm and needed to be back in the airport at 7pm. With a long wait for luggage and a half hour train ride into the city and back again this allowed just 4 hours in the Eternal City. So if you have a few hours to kill in Rome and want to tick off a couple of sights and hit a few shops, here’s how I did it . I give my time frames and route, but you can easily transpose your own landing time on the itinerary and vary your time accordingly.
La Dolce Vita in Rome
What Does This Post Cover?
1pm
Land, get through passport control and wait for your bag. Allow 1 hour. No, really. It took a full hour for my bag to come through. Rome Fiumicino Airport (also known as Leonardo da Vinci Airport) apparently has a bad rep, and I could see why.
I walked to the opposite end of the arrivals hall to the left luggage office where there was no queue whatsoever, and I handed over 2 bags (at 6 Euros each, pay on collection) and was on my way.
2pm
Make your way to the Leonardo Express train and purchase a RETURN ticket to Roma Termini for 14 Euros each way. You can do this at the machine, although when I tried it just wouldn’t take my payment. I bought the ticket at the window from a real human instead and was charged a mysterious 2 Euro surcharge. I was in too much of a hurry to bother to ask why or complain, and let’s face it, it’s just 2 Euros.
2.08pm
Take the Leonardo Express Train which runs at 08 and 38 minutes past the hour from the airport to the city centre. The journey takes 31 minutes. Don’t forget that in Italy you have to validate your train ticket by stamping it in one of the machines you’ll see on the platform. Also be aware that on my trip to Rome the train left late in both directions! My advice here, which so isn’t my usual advice, is not to cut it too fine!
2.45pm
Exit Rome Termini mainline station, take a moment, look around and realise you are in Rome! Woop! Ok that’s enough dawdling, we’re on the clock here! Walk north-west towards Termini Metro station and to the top of Via Cavour. As this area isn’t the nicest (well it is the central station), you won’t want to linger – but if you want to use one of the hop-on hop-off bus services that can show you the city in a couple of stress-free hours, this is where you will find a selection of the buses. I opted to follow my nose towards a couple of sights, and the shopping area!
3.15pm
Walk down Via Cavour, stopping to admire the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore.
3.30pm
Continue walking South towards the Colosseum and the Palatine Hill to take in the city’s most celebrated views.
3.45pm
Hop on the Metro at Colosseo and take the B line back to Termini and change onto the A line to Barberini for the Trevi fountain or Spagna for the Spanish Steps (either way, 1 Euro). For the Trevi Fountain come out of the station walk down Via del Tritone then into Via della Stamperia to get to the fountain, alternatively you can go straight to the Spanish Steps where you can just follow the hoardes of tourists from Spagna Metro.
4pm
This seemed like a good enough area to grab a quick bite to eat. I opted for a panini, espresso and a cannoli on Piazza Barberini while trying to figure out what to do next.
4.30pm
With a few major sights and some Roman atmosphere ticked off it’s time to indulge in some shopping.
I head to the area around Via Condotti where I soon find a Havianas store on Via Belsiana (useful as I have forgotten to bring flip flops), an outlet shop where I grab a pair of baby-soft neutral leather ballet pumps, and an independent shoe store called Patrizia Shoes (at 72 Via Frattina) where I could have happily snapped up half the stock, but settle for a single pair of black flat sandals, vowing to come back for more armed with an empty suitcase.
Why is it that women like shoes so much?
I also discover a whole new mid-range clothing brand, founded in Rome – Brandy Melville is a sort of Americana meets hippy festival-wear label which I fall in love with on the spot, and reluctantly buy just one item, a slouchy cardi from their range of laid-back kints.
A fellow shopper in Brandy Melville
6pm
Time is closing in fast and I know that I’d like to be on the 6.22 pm train to guarantee that I’ll be at the airport in plenty of time to collect my suitcase and get to the pick up point for my transfer. So, I hop in a taxi and experience a bit of Rome traffic, and my first real panic of the day as I have to get out and walk the last block to make it onto the platform to see the train for the airport already waiting. I get on with moments to spare, then sit there for at least 5 minutes while the train goes nowhere!
7pm
I’m back at the airport, pizza slice in hand, luggage collected and ready to go!
Just enough time for a souvenir fridge magnet!
They say a lifetime is not enough for Rome, and I can well believe this is the case. I didn’t have a chance to see the Vatican or go inside any of Rome’s endless supply of stunning buildings or breathtaking galleries, but I feel that despite the dashing and rushing, my 4 hours in Rome gave me a taste of the city that was well worth the effort. And I’ll always have my shoes as reminders of my all-too-brief Roman holiday.
Tags: City, City Break, Italy, Rome, shoes, shopping
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[…] shopping on my travels (for a long time my most popular post was this basic itinerary guide to seeing Rome on a 4 hour layover – while managing to buy 3 pairs of shoes in the process) and buying jewellery while […]
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Marina Zinkevich
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Do not go to Patrizia Shoe Shop on Via Frattina 72! The shop owner is a nasty rude old man, who was watching me trying shoes at first, then he told me that I cannot touch the shoes without asking for his permission. I was really shocked, because I have never been treated like this in my entire life. If I cannot touch the shoes, why he did not tell me in the beginning? He shouted at me and said he will call the police!!! Because I was trying shoes that cost 60 euro??? I felt really upset and disrespected. It really ruined my mood. I wonder how he is still in business if he treats his customers like this???
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Jaillan Yehia
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Thanks for letting us know! When I visited there was a pleasant saleswoman and I tired a ton of pairs of shoes as I was seriously considering buying two colours (wouldn’t be the first time!) and I was gutted when after a couple of years of solid wear I myself ruined the shoes by wearing them in the pouring rain so all in all a positive experience with the workmanship and the buying experience, so I’m very sad to hear you had this experience, perhaps ownership has now changed!
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Al Cappella
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Sounds great – can’t wait to try this out myself and I don’t even need to buy shoes. Thanks!
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Jaillan Yehia
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You’re very welcome 🙂
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Jules
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THANK YOU!! Just wanted to say how grateful I was to find your blog, I had a 6 hour stop over and not wanting to miss the chance to see Rome, your blog became my bible. Felt confident I could fit in all the ‘sights’ thanks to your honest and easy explanations – feel like I had the best mini Roman holiday
Thank you ever so much!
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Jaillan Yehia
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Thank YOU Jules for the comment! I am so so pleased to know that the blog helped you, and that you had a wonderful few hours in Rome 🙂
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Celine Low
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I’m glad that I found a very good site! Very interesting and useful tips as I will be having a few hours of transit to roam in Rome.
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Jaillan Yehia
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Thanks for the compliments Celine, I’m so glad you’ve found my site useful 🙂
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[…] the international profile of Florence, Rome or Milan, Genoa is often overlooked, thought too gritty and too noisy for tourists to embrace it; a […]
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dara__355
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I found this post really interesting, as I am going to Orvieto at the end of this month for a week, but we will be going to Rome for a day trip. I wonder if you could tell me the street that Brady Melville is on? I was there a few years ago and absolutely loved it, I would love to go back!
Thanks,
Dara 🙂 xx
http://musingsandreviews.blogspot.co.uk/
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savoirthere
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Hi Dara, I’m really glad the post was useful for you. I also found a Brandy Melville in Perugia so you never know – they may have one in Orvieto!
Regarding the branch in Rome – I didn’t find their website at all helpful and in fact if you Google Brandy Melville Rome you get 3 branches which are all really far out of the city centre with no mention of the one I shopped at! I think it is quite new, but still, they make it so hard to find!
Don’t worry though, the branch was right in the middle of a pedestrianised shopping street – Via Frattina. I’ll explain where the branch was as best I can. Basically I was walking down Via Frattina from the Trevi Fountain side (so get off the Metro at Spagna or Barberini) and I think it was in the section of Via Frattina somewhere before you get to the cross-section with Via Belsiana.
I hope this helps, I’d love to know how you get on, and what goodies you end up with! 🙂
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Ellen Rabiner
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Clearly, having four hours before the TBU conference is more productive than having that time after it! I managed to get Billy to the Trevi fountain (to throw the coins to assure our return), we ate a pizza and that was it. We were planning to wake up early so he could see the Colosseum (i’ve been there) but we overslept. Congratulations on a job well done, and on the shoes!
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savoirthere
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You know what, I don’t blame you for oversleeping! I certainly needed the sleep when I got back! As amazing as Rome is I think it’s best to have bags of energy for any big city, and to try and tackle it all after a week-long conference was always going to be tricky! But you guys were very circumspect about getting your coins in that fountain so I have a feeling you’ll be back! 🙂
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Alexandra
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Hello fellow shopper! Still haven’t worn my scull bracelet, and still regretting not buying those blue studded ballerina flats 🙁 Reason to return to Italy soon, perhaps?
Great post! Very enjoyable + informative 🙂
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Jai
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Ah, the shoes that got away: I know them well! I still kick myself for a missed high-heeled black strappy sandal opportunity in Copenhagen nearly 2 years ago. Yes, when it comes to shoes I am that sad!
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Ellen Augustyns
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I ADORE the sandals Jai!
And thx for the BrandyMelville tip. Apparentely they have a store in Amsterdam and I am going there next weekend… x
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savoirthere
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Do report back on Brandy Melville! I rather liked their vest tops and skinny jeans! You would have LOVED the sandals in the other shop though! How I didn’t come home with more than 1 pair I don’t know. 🙂
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