Brett and I went on a bucketlist trip to Rome in October. I had been dreaming of this trip since I first saw the Lizzie McGuire Movie and it felt like a dream to be able to go with my husband. We started off our trip in Paris which you can read about here. I love visiting Europe because everywhere you go you are surrounded by so much history.

Since we ended up spending a day in Paris our time in Rome was shortened. I had read a ton of travel blogs and books before our trip so I knew that three days in Rome to do touristy things should be plenty.

We ended up buying the OMNIA Vatican and Rome Pass which allowed us into the tourist places for free. We were also able to take a hop on hop off bus around the city as many times as we want. Rome has a great transportation system but we preferred to take the bus because we could sit on the top deck and see many of the sites from there.

On our first full day we picked up our OMNIA Pass and hopped on the bus. We took one full lap around the city to see everything. I think the whole loop took about an hour which we didn’t mind because we were so jet lagged.

We eventually got off the bus near the Pantheon and had gelato at a cute cafe that we had found while on the bus. We then walked to the Pantheon which was pretty packed. The Pantheon is a former Roman Temple that was built in 113-125 AD. It is known for the huge pillars that stand out front and the dome in the center. It is one of the best preserved ancient Roman sites. Brett and I walked around inside the Pantheon for a while just looking at everything.

One thing to watch for when you are visiting Rome is the pickpockets. They are all over the place and like to try to engage you in conversation or will throw you an item like a bracelet and try to get you to pay for it. I knew that pickpockets would be bad in Rome so I invested in this bag from Amazon that if RFID blocking and has little clasps on all the zippers that make it harder to break into. The crowded streets around the Pantheon were packed with pickpockets.

After the Pantheon we walked to Trevi Fountain which was PACKED! I would recommend trying to visit either early in the morning or later at night if you are hoping to get a good picture. We decided we would just come back later to get close to the fountain.

We were pretty exhausted by this point and I was pretty sure I was catching a cold so we headed back to a restaurant near our hotel for pizza. We went to the same restaurant the night before and Brett had a 5 course Italian meal including tripe. He was so full!

The next morning we got up bright and early and walked to the Colosseum. Our OMNIA Passes covered our entry but we did pay extra to have a guided tour. One of the best things about the OMNIA Pass was that we were able to skip the line and enter right away. The line that day wrapped around the Colosseum and the wait was already up to four hours by the time we arrived!

Our tour guide was great! We had headphones so that we could hear what he was saying while we walked around. I don’t think it would have been as great if we wouldn’t have had the guide. After our guided tour was done we had the option to keep walking around and exploring. A tour for the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill was leaving in about 30 minutes so we decided to hang around for a bit and then join that group.

The Roman Forum and Palatine Hill ended up being my favorite places we went in Rome. Every tour of the Colosseum also comes with a pass to go to the Roman Forum but apparently very few people actually go. I have no idea why because it’s full of history and breathtaking views of the Colosseum and ancient Rome.

The Roman Forum is basically the center of ancient Rome where you can see the ruins of government buildings, temples, houses, and tombs. You can go down on the streets where Romans used to walk and can kind of picture how life in ancient Rome was. I can vividly remember talking about the Roman Forum in a college history class so it was amazing to see it in real life!

This was my favorite day in Rome even thought I was super sick by this point. I really just wanted to crawl into bed but being in Rome was a once in a lifetime opportunity so I tried to forget about my sickness and keep plugging. After our visit at the Roman Forum we had amazing pasta for a late lunch and then walked back to our hotel for a pre-dinner nap. We ended up having dinner at a cute pizza place near our hotel.

The next day Brett told me to go back to sleep after breakfast because I really wasn’t feeling well. I slept in until noon and then we headed out for a busy day! We first went back to Trevi Fountain and made our way to the front. I had dreamed of visiting Rome for so long and standing by the fountain’s edge made it finally feel real.

We then made our way to the Spanish Steps but it was so busy that we weren’t able to walk up them. We probably could have but I didn’t feel like fighting the crowd. They were really beautiful though!

The most exciting part of our day was the after hours Vatican tour that we had booked through our OMNIA Pass. We took the Metro to the Vatican but ended up getting off at the wrong stop and having to walk really far to get to St. Peter’s Basilica. We were so grateful to have the OMNIA Pass by this point because we were able to skip the crazy long line and head right into the Basilica.

St. Peter’s was breathtaking the say the least. Brett and I love to visit places of worship on our trips but this one takes the cake! I would 110% recommend booking a tour so you don’t have to wait in the hours long lines to get in. We walked around for a couple of hours and emerged ourselves in the history and elaborate artwork.

We had an after hours tour of the Vatican Museum booked for 7 pm so we ate dinner near the square. I was so excited to go to the Museum that I barely paid attention to my pasta and gelato. We met our tour group near St. Peter’s and all walked our to the Museum together.

Touring the Vatican Museum at night was so peaceful. There were many other tour groups there but no one had to wait in line and it was very relaxed. We signed up for this tour when we picked up our OMNIA Pass on day one.

I still can’t believe that I saw the Sistine Chapel in person. It doesn’t even feel real! You are not allowed to take pictures but I can still picture the room in my head. It was so much bigger than I thought it would be!

The rest of the Museum was full of amazing works of art. My favorite was this hallway of old maps. Each room that we walked through had high ceilings with detailed paintings and tons of gold.

We went back to our hotel that night and packed for our trip home in the next morning. I couldn’t believe that our time in Rome was coming to an end!

Our trip back to Michigan didn’t go exactly as planned. Brett works for an airline so we fly for basically free but are never guaranteed a flight. We spent most of the day trying to get on an airplane with no luck. Eventually we found a flight to Boston and ended up running through the airport and boarding just in time! It was truly a miracle. However, once we got to Boston to spend the night we realized that Red Sox game was that night and hotels were crazy expensive. It was fine though and we ended up flying back to Michigan the next morning.

This trip to Paris and Rome was such a crazy adventure. When Brett and I got married he put in his vows that we would have a lifetime of adventures together and he was right. I can’t imagine going through life without him by my side. I can’t wait to tell our kids about this trip one day!

Have you ever been to Rome? What’s the #1 destination on your travel bucketlist?