Visiting Italy was incredible. From the scenery, the ancient artifacts, and the food, everything was amazing. Believe it or not, I was able to book two round trip tickets to Rome for €842.47 total= $960.34 US American Dollars. I flew with Norwegian Airlines, which reminded me of Spirit. Although the flight itself was cheap, you have to pay for the seating and if you want food you have to pay for that. Since it was only a 7-hour direct flight from Newark, NJ, I took my own snacks on board.

Where I Stayed:

I stayed at the Palazzo Catalini hotel which is an hour outside of Rome in a town called Soriano Nel Cimino. It was absolutely beautiful. This is a very hilly area and we had to walk up three hills to reach the hotel, cars were unable to reach the hotel. This was a 17th century hotel and they had daily activities for their visitors. The heat only came on at night time and started at 8 p.m. until early morning. I stayed two days in Rome and stayed at the Best Western President hotel which was in a great area.

(This view was from my hotel in Soriano Nel Cimino)

I actually rented a car. They drive on the same side of the street that we do in the U.S. and the drivers seat is also on the left side as well. There weren’t always lines on the road and motorist will drive between cars and around the cars as well, I always had to be on edge.

Things to do:

Vatican Museum (includes: countless art work, Sistine Chapel, St. Peter’s Basilica). This is a must see, everything was so surreal and beautiful. We booked this with the Green Line Tour and it costs €66,00pp.

While visiting The Vatican, we were able to see so many sculptures, paintings, statues, history, and more. Words can not describe how beautiful this place was. This is a must see!

We purchased the hop on hop off passes a different day with the Green Line Tour and was able to travel to many of the destinations which was €20,00pp.

Visit the Colosseum. They are rebuilding parts of the Colosseum. If you notice the left side is the original and the right side is rebuilt. It costs €12,00 to enter the monument. In this area you will see the Arch of Constantine, Arch of Titus, Temple of Venus and Rome, and Roman Forum.

(Check out the inside)

Some of the other stops for the Hop on Hop off tour included:
Maria Maggiore, Circus Maximum, Piazza Venezia, Trevi Fountain, Villa Borghese, Piazza Barberini, and the Vatican.

I also took a 4-hour train ride from Rome to Venice (I booked with Italo from Rome to Venezia S. Lucia [Venice]). We booked the Club seating which was more expensive but we got to sit in box seating. On the train they also had free food, snacks, and drinks.

When we arrived in Venice, we rode the gondola which was €80,00.

One of the best restaurants I ate at in Rome was Bistro 133, I ordered the lasagna.