I was going to do one big blog post until I realized I had a million photos of Rome (in addition to the other places we visited as well) so I decided to do Italy Part I and Part II.
I’m writing these blog posts in response to a ton of DM’s (legitimately) I received on Instagram with fellow brides (and more!) traveling to Italy this summer (wahoo)!! I could not be more excited for you — and if that’s not you, just keep this in your back pocket because if you haven’t been, I recommend adding it to your bucket list of places to visit!
We flew in/out of Rome and we ended up spending the most time in Rome as a whole compared to all of the other places we visited. I was really excited about the entire trip in general but I have to be honest, Rome took my by surprise. I knew Rome was going to be beautiful but I’m so glad we had time there to explore, see all of the beauty, and see things more than once with a couple of afternoon naps in between because #JETLAG.
My top recommendations in Rome include: all of the “BIG” things; Trevi Fountain, Pantheon, Spanish Steps (were a little underwhelming for me because tourists covered the steps), Vatican City, Colosseum (at sunrise is a HUGE bonus and a friend of mine told me night is pretty too!). Be prepared to be swarmed by TONS of tourists in these locations but still worth seeing. Rome has uber which was a bonus when we were racing to the Colosseum at sunrise, but other than that we walked everywhere which was super easy and really fun!
One of my all time favorite things to do in Rome was to just get lost in the side streets (you’ll see below!), walk into cute little shops, and eat gelato as much as possible. My friend told me the best advice ever; the more brown the pistachio looks, the better (less green)!
My favorite neighborhood was Trastevere. The streets are so so cute and the vibe is so lively. We stumbled upon Trattoria Il Ponentino with hungry bellies and enjoyed the pear pizza among many things which were all incredible. We capped off each meal with espresso like true Italians.
Other food recommendations include Pierluigi and Giulia (nothing fancy but felt like the best homemade Italian meal and service). I swear we didn’t have one bad meal in Rome but my biggest piece of advice for eating is not eating in the touristy areas where there are tons of restaurants! You’ll get more authentic food outside of those areas!
On our last day, we stopped at the Pittsburgh Steelers Bar and felt right at home. The owner knows so much about PIttsburgh which made conversation easy and was a cool place to meet fellow travelers from home!
We stayed at Little Queen Navona and Little Queen Pantheon and would highly recommend both places and would rate 10/10 for safety, location, comfort, cleanliness and service and would easily stay there again!
Fair warning — there are about 100 pics (99 to be exact). The last photo was the VERY last photo left on my last film roll of the trip at St. Peter’s Basilica and one of my favs!
