Rome with kids

[Kewqueue]

We are off to Rome for 3 days with 8 and 14 year old (latter has been before). Please give me your best kid-friendly Rome trips! Thanks.

Ooo fab. We went last year with 7 and 10 yos and loved it.

Coliseum is a must.

Gladiator School is £££ but excellent.

Ostia Antica, about 20 mins out of town by train, is the original roman port town. Its basically still there minus the roofs, so you can walk round the streets and go into the buildings and amphitheatre. Also no one seems to have heard of it so you'll prob have it nearly to yourselves.

Ooh, I would really like to see Ostia Antica - DH isn't keen but good to hear a positive opinion!

Ostia was the best place we went to - get the children to read the Roman Mysteries books first as set there. Second Gladiator School. We did a Family walking tour with a guide from WithLocals - she was amazing. That got us around main sites - Pantheon etc - and meant that the girls were asking questions of someone other than me!

The Vatican Museum had a good children's audio guide. Great Egyptian stuff, oddly.

Also went out to Pompeii and Herculaneum - also amazing - again with a family guide. Have fun!

Pantheon (at least once, ideally include being there as it closes)
Castel Sant'Angelo (Hadrians Mausoleum with a castle on top)
Colloseum (because, well, because)
Ostia (more impressive than you'll expect)

I am SO pleased to meet fellow Ostia fans - I tell bloody everybody I know who's going to Rome to go and none of them ever bloody do. Was starting to wonder if I'd made it up 😉

Pantheon (at least once, ideally include being there as it closes) What happenswhen it closes? Last time I got there after it had closed!

Cappuchin Church! it’s made out of human bones!! DS loved it!

get the children to read the Roman Mysteries books first as set there.
I'd never heard of these, thanks! We won't have time to read before we go though. Do you think The Gladiator (film) is unsuitable for nearly 9 year olds?

Parliament hill just below the colliseum is interesting lots of stuff to explore

We went with kids a fair bit younger - 7 and 3. I think older DC would be really easy to entertain there.
We liked the Colosseum and Palatine Hill - go to the latter first and get your tickets there, as the queues are small and the tickets get you in the Colosseum as well.
YY to Ostia Antica - bit like a small-scale Pompeii. Nice cheap restaurants nearby. You can also get the train out to Lido di Ostia in about 40mins for the seaside if the weather's decent.
My DC also really enjoyed climbing the cupola at St Peter's, but couldn't be tempted with the Vatican museums.

The Pantheon

• they stop letting people in and it gradually empties as it gets dark and then they close one of the HUUUUGE doors and then they get everybody out and close the other

as the busker in the square plays Comfortably Numb

its utterly magical and awe inspiring
the best building there is

Ditto the Capuchin Church! DD was creeped out by it- DS loved it.

We are just back from Rome. The dc enjoyed the Colosseum we were staying not far from Ostia definitely visit and if you are as lucky with the weather as we were go to the beach. There are free beaches at Ostia or there is an amazing beach club open all year. Goes from affordable to pricey for renting sun beds and parasols but it is lovely. The Italian season is over so a lot of the beach places are closed but it is well worth a play in the sea if you get the weather.
Dc enjoyed seeing the Trevi fountain and throwing in coins and 8 year old daughter loved the Gelato. Pantheon is actually quite breath taking any pictures you have seen don’t do it justice.

Oh and go to the Gelateria Valentino just round the corner from the Trevi Fountain. The owner is absolutely fabulous and will make a real fuss over your DC (our DD is very shy and wanted us to order for her but he absolutely charmed her and refused to speak to us because he “only speaks to the customers and this young lady is my customer” . She loved it). Great ice cream too and not too expensive.

My advice is just to be bloody careful crossing the roads! So far it’s a toss up as to whether it’s more deadly there or in Amsterdam but I remember finding it stressful crossing roads there

Ooh yes Ostia! My Latin teacher always said we should go, and it was fab but iirc have to go on train/metro totally unsung. We enjoyed and would like to take kids esp 12 year old who loves Roman Mysteries.
We stopped in Rome for one day and did coliseum which was awesome but it was very hot. If you are going in winter I would say it's a must see.

Another big yup for
Ostia was fantastic. My DD was 8 at the time and loved it. Pantheon is one of the most incredible buildings I have ever been in. I love Roma.

Getting to Ostia is really easy on public transport metro from Termini to EUR Ferme and the bus from there. Was so easy getting about in Rome one ticket for everything.
Yeah crossing the roads was an experience and I though Paris was bad. At least in oaris everybody stops when you step in to the road in Rome nobody stops ever you are hopping in and out of traffic, kept a tight hold of 8 year old ds so I could yank him quickly if need be, and I will drive in Rome but won’t get in a road vehicle at all regardless of driver in Paris.

Photo op at the Bocca della Verita.

I also love Piazza Navona and all the fountains there - I much prefer it to the Trevi fountain tbh.

Have a brilliant time!

Haven't rtft but Hadrians castle is great and has a head that looks just like voldemort if I remember correctly

Thanks for all the tips! The weather forecast is looking really bad. Can I ask which museums/indoor attractions you recommend?

The Pantheon - even in the pouring rain its amazing

The capitoline museum

The Castel st angelo

St Peters and the Vatican

But actually, take good waterproofs and go with it - Rome is astounding