What you need to know about Rome
The Vatican, the Colosseum, the Pantheon and streets that tell a thousand ancient stories, Rome is unlike any city in Europe, inspiring awe in all who visit. Throw in the art, sport, culture and cuisine, and it’s perhaps the most iconic, culturally-rich city to ever host a Ryder Cup – just don’t tell Paris. This is what you need to know about Rome...
Two millennia before its ruins began to crumble, Rome was dubbed ‘The Eternal City’. It doesn’t take ten minutes in Italy’s capital to see why. History tumbles about its tenement backstreets, squinting out from quiet alleyways and loudly claiming space on car-clogged boulevards. But there’s more to Rome than static relics; there’s thousands of years of culture, cuisine and sport to see, so it takes planning to pick the capital’s best.
The Colosseum’s great gold ring may be Rome’s must-see showpiece, but the Forum just a short walk up the Via dei Fori Imperiali was its impressive predecessor. Home to the games during Rome’s republic era, the forum was also Ancient Rome’s social and financial heart. Here one could wander markets and gold monuments, brush shoulders with priests and prostitutes, debate politics or drink in bars. Today, its ruins are an immersive marvel of ancient engineering, with grand arches, intricate bas-reliefs and cobbled streets. For an impressive panorama of the site, climb to the Campidoglio terrace on the Capitoline Hill.
As justifiably unavoidable as the Colosseum is the Pantheon; one of the most record-breaking monuments in the world. Built and rebuilt by multiple emperors, today’s Pantheon was finished by the dynamic and dramatic Hadrian. Its simple dark bricks seem to breathe reverence, while its immense interior and imposing dome were designed to inspire god-fearing awe in the general public. After all, the Pantheon represents a revolution: it was the first place of worship made for the common people. Near the Pantheon lies a fascinating site of more bloody revolt: Largo di Torre Argentina ruins may now be a stray cat sanctuary, but in 4BC this was where Julius Caesar was murdered on the steps of Pompey’s theatre.
Though the modern city has made way and matured around the ancient, there are plenty of spots that speak of a more recent Rome. In the northeast Trieste area, above Villa Borghese park, lays the little-known Quartiere Coppedè; the capital’s smallest and arguably prettiest district. Ideal for architecture lovers, this primarily art nouveau neighbourhood was designed by Gino Coppedè in the late 1910s, but its weird and wonderful buildings comprise Baroque, Medieval, Mannerist and Greek elements too. In the city’s south, beautiful Trastavere is a locally-loved neighbourhood of food markets, charming piazze, and some of Rome’s best food, from the Michelin recognised Antico Arco to local delicatessen Antica Norcineria Iacozzilli.
“If I’m in Rome for only 48 hours, I would consider it a sin against God to not eat cacio e pepe.” Said the legendary chef, Anthony Bourdain. Rome’s regional cuisine is often overlooked and underrated, yet it’s the city that gave us carbonara and Bourdain’s favourite. Cacio e pepe is one of its simplest dishes — pecorino, black pepper and pasta — yet it’s deceptively complicated. Getting it right is an art form, but Bourdain swore that eating it in “some crummy little joint” was the real Rome. The capital has never been one for over-complicating food: filled with ever-growing multitudes, food was cheap, fast and centred around flour, offal and hardy vegetables. Street food remains incredibly popular today: pick up Pizza al taglio, a rectangular street pizza sold by weight, some crispy mozzarella stuffed suffli rice balls, and carciofi all giudia, a flattened deep-fried artichoke from the city’s old Jewish ghetto.
Religion is one of Rome’s inescapables. Churches, basilicas, cathedrals — the Vatican itself — adorn its every corner, quarter and river-led curve and Catholicism remains strong. With more than 900 churches, it’s easy to get burned out by stained windows, solemn hymns and the waft of whispers and incense. The incomparable Vatican deservedly draws crowds, its Sistine Chapel still a jaw-dropping must-see, but there are plenty of fascinating alternatives.
The Basilica di Santo Stefano Rotondo al Cielo on Coelian Hill is a uniquely circular, colonnaded building from the 5th century featuring graphic frescoes of martyrdom. The macabre Capuchin crypt of Santa Maria della Concezione is an amazing ossuary, its six small chapels bedecked with the bones of 3700 monks, brought by their brothers when they moved churches in 1631. For awesome art, pop to the Jesuit Church of St Ignazio which, after running out of money for a dome, painted a trompe-l’oeil illusion of one instead, alongside a remarkably intricate, colourful ceiling.
Home to the Renaissance and some of the world’s most lauded artists, no visit to Rome is complete without dipping in to its galleries and museums. After exhausting the Vatican’s extensive collection, combine art, history and architecture at some of the city’s old palaces. The ornate Palazzo Colonna is one of Rome’s oldest and largest palaces and is home to an extraordinary Versailles-like gallery of gilt furniture, frescoes and paintings by Bronzino, Bernini, Tintoretto and more. Still inhabited by the family, it’s open on Saturday mornings to the public — who may recognise it from the film Roman Holiday.
In the city centre, Palazzo Doria Pamphilj is a lavish palace where incredible family-collected artworks by the likes of Velasquez, Raphael and Titian are housed among opulent, eye-opening architecture. Rome’s best-known, however, is the Villa Borghese: its gallery collection is exquisite and its 80 hectares of manicured grounds are a respite from Rome’s hustle. Here you’ll find the picnickers and the city’s fitter faction: cyclists, yogis, runners and skaters use the park prolifically, dipping in and out of its dappled sunshine.
Romans are as sport-mad now as they were when gladiators battled it out in the Circus Maximus. Today’s wars are waged in the Stadio Olimpico, used by Italy’s national rugby team and more famously by its two football teams: SS Lazio and AS Roma. They both have large and fiercely devoted local followings, making matches between them an electric time to be in the capital. Both are in Italy’s Serie A top division too, meaning a wealth of the world’s best teams like Juventus and AC Milan make their way to Rome for matches. If you can’t get a ticket from one of the team websites, hole up in a bar with local fans and a bottle of Peroni.
Marco Simone Golf Club
Golf’s popularity is increasing with courses blossoming across the country. Rome is home to Italy’s oldest course, the Circolo del Golf di Roma Acquasanta, founded in 1903. A 71-par, 18 natural hole course along the picturesque Appian way, the Circolo is crossed by the magnificent ancient Roman Claudio Aqueduct and its views reach all the way back to the grand, dove-grey dome of St Peter’s Basilica. And in the beautifully renovated Marco Simone, it has an assured future classic.