If your only Italy related experiences revolve around Chianti, pasta noodles and pizza, you'll want to play catch up before you head to Rome. Your decision to take a self drive holiday is a wise one: Save money and enjoy more attractions, using your vehicle as home base. When you pick up your home away from home, ask for camping site recommendations for each city, or use these links as reference points before you set off.
Familiarize yourself with Euro exchange rates since camping facilities charge modest fees. You can expect to pay from 12 to 24 euros a day to set up camp. Ready to have at it once you park and sort out hookups? Our mini list of popular sites in both cities gives you a great starting point once you arrive in this enchanting part of the world!
Even if you have no religious affiliations, you must see Vatican City, just so you can tell friends that you stood in St. Peter's Square. Vatican City is located on the Tiber River and you can spend an entire day wandering around, taking in the sights and sounds and, of course, memorializing your trip with lots of selfies.
Lungotevere Prati 12, Rome. No snickers, please. The Museum of Purgatory is located on the same side of the Tibor River as the Vatican, within the Church of the Sacred Heart. Show up at the 100 year-old museum between 07:00 and 11:00 a.m. or between 17:00 and 19:00 p.m. This museum is hard to find, but it's free and 4,000 visitors come every year, so if you're lost, ask to be directed to il museo and you'll go straight to purgatory.
If you have a guide book with maps of Rome, figure out the best way to walk between the Coliseum and the Pantheon so you can tell friends and relatives that you saw these iconic ruins. Don't leave the ubiquitous Fountain of Trevi off your list of sites. Happily, these popular international attractions are in close proximity, so you won't require a taxi to take all of them in.
This quirky museum devotes 11 rooms to the humble noodle! Learn about pasta's Chinese roots, but don't make a big deal of it since Italians are protective of their culinary heritage. Located at Via Flaminia 141 (corner of Piazzale delle Belle Arti), this site is open daily from 9:30 a.m. to 17:30 p.m. but it's closed on holidays. If you visit the gift shop, don't be shocked to find shelves stocked with pasta rather than memorabilia.
Despite being a city rich in religious lore, Rome was home to Pagans before Christianity arrived, which is why the Baths of Diocletian, at Terme di Diocleziano, Viale E. di Nicola 79 in Rome, was converted to a church. Roman bath relics are incorporated into the church design but a highlight of the visit is seeing the way sunlight filters through stained class windows to illuminate zodiac signs imbedded in the floor. Open from 09:00 a.m. to 19:45 p.m. each day, you can expect to pay a 7 euro admission fee per adult, but it's worth the price!