Our ferry to Albania was leaving from Bari, Italy at 10 pm on the fifth day of our stop in Rome. It was only a five hour drive, so we had plenty of time to pack ourselves up and get ourselves over to the coast. Enough time that we could end our Roman holiday with a big bonus — a stop at the ruins of Emperor Hadrian’s villa in Tivoli along the way. We’d walked on Hadrian’s wall in the UK, and earlier, we’d stayed in Split, Croatia near the remains of Emperor Dioclentian’s retirement home; it was fitting that we’d end our Roman holiday with the remains of another Emperor’s home-away-from-Rome.

Once again, we saw that the Romans built BIG! The day was wet and dreary, but the villa (you could say it was more a village than a villa) was enormous and fully captivated our attention for several hours. Just like the Baths of Caracalla, the Roman Wall Museum, and the Via Appia, Hadrian’s Villa was largely devoid of tourists. If you want to see Roman ruins without the Roman crowds, it seems all you really need to do is venture slightly outside the city center. It is most definitely worth it! 

I’m so glad we had a chance to visit Rome and I’m also very thankful that we reorganized our initial plans so that we could spend as much time in the city as we did. As it was, I believe 4(ish) days covered the absolute minimal essentials for a trip to Rome, but even with jam-packed days we left an incredible amount of meat on the bone. We’ve put Rome on our list for a future long-term stay but I’m not sure we’ll even be able to fully unpack it over a month —  maybe not even over several months. As you’d expect of a city with 3,000 years of living under its belt, it is rich and multilayered, with something new, old, older, ancient, and amazing hiding behind every corner. I absolutely loved it! 

I also like the way that we planned the trip, and the order in which we explored the major sites (Classical, Christian, Renaissance, Classical). Next time, I’m looking forward to stepping into more churches — I feel I could spend days simply wandering the streets and walking through every unlocked church door. I want to re-visit the Vatican museum. I want to visit additional museums. I want to linger in the piazzas. I want to go to the zoo. I want to go to a show and experience some of the modern city. I want to go back to Rome!!   

4(ish) Days in Rome: Additional Days Linked Below

Arrival Day | Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Departure Day