Itinerary
3 days in Rome with kids
Three days, one booked sight each morning and somewhere green each afternoon. Days two and three can be swapped, but check closing days first: the Vatican Museums shut on most Sundays, Castel Sant'Angelo and Explora on Mondays.
Day 1
Gladiators, then the park
- Morning
- Take the first Colosseum slot at 8:30, before the heat and the crowds. Spend an hour inside, then choose between the Palatine and the Forum depending on how the legs are holding up. Be out by 11:30.
- Afternoon
- After lunch and a rest, walk into the Pantheon for twenty minutes and get ice cream nearby. Then head up to Villa Borghese for a rowing boat on the lake or a pedal cart until dinner.
- Break
- Go back to your room between 13:00 and 15:30. The Pantheon is open until 19:00, so there is no rush.
Day 2
Vatican and the castle
- Morning
- Book the 8:00 entry to the Vatican Museums and walk a short route: Egyptian rooms, Gallery of Maps, Sistine Chapel, out. Two hours is the limit for most children. With under-6s, skip the museums and go to St Peter's Square instead.
- Afternoon
- Castel Sant'Angelo is about twenty minutes on foot from the museum exit. Climb to the ramparts and the roof terrace, which takes about an hour and a half, then cross the bridge with the angels back toward the centre.
- Break
- Have a long lunch in Prati between the two, and let a small child nap in the stroller before the castle climb.
Day 3
Animals and play
- Morning
- Be at the Bioparco for the 9:30 opening, when the animals are active and the paths are quiet. Three hours covers the main loop with a ride on the little train.
- Afternoon
- Walk or take tram 19 down to Explora for the 15:00 session. It lasts 1 hour 45 minutes, it is indoors, and it needs booking at weekends. With children over ten, swap Explora for the catacombs.
- Break
- Eat lunch at the zoo or in the park, and use the gap before 15:00 for a stroller nap under the trees in Villa Borghese.