Rome Information

Rome Information

The city of Rome is justifiably famous throughout the world for its history and sense of style. Located in central western Italy Rome has an extraordinary history spanning two and a half thousand years and a rule that once extended across most of Europe. The influence of Rome on western civilisation has been immense, giving the city the nickname "Capital of the World". The most remarkable feature of Rome is that a considerable amount of this history has been preserved making Rome one of the most amazing cities on the planet.

Today Rome is a large modern city of almost three million people and is broken into several regions. The most famous region in Rome is the Vatican, the home of the Pope and the catholic church. In the 15th century the centre of influence of the renaissance shifted from Florence to Rome and the popes of the time wished to make Rome the most spectacular and sophisticated city in Italy. They commissioned the construction of many outstanding and ambitious structures including Saint Peters Basilica, the Sistine chapel and the Ponte Sisto. Saint Peters and the Vatican are both essential viewing in Rome, the Bassilica is breathtaking in its scale and grandeur and the Vatican contains one of the most impressive collections of art and history on display anywhere.

Next to the Vatican region lies "Old Rome" that is typified by beautiful cathedrals and plazas and features the Pantheon, an amazing massive structure that predates christianity and whose design has gone onto influence religious architecture and engineering for thousands of years. Old Rome is a great place to explore the ancients streets and alleyways and catch a fantastic Italian meal.

The "Colosseo" region is the heart of ancient Rome and features the Roman forum and the Colosseum. The Colosseum stadium was the centre of entertainment of ancient Rome and used to feature spectacular and often gruesome sporting events. Today visitors can easily walk amongst the ancient structure and marvel of the history of the place. The Roman Forum is a truly remarkable attraction. The spectacular ruins are spread over many acres of land and were once the seat of power for the entire western civilisation. This was where the Roman Senate convened, where the emperors met the people and where decisions were made that came to shape the western world as we know it today. The ruins are still remarkably well preserved and visitors can get a real feel for what it would have been like to walk amongst the many large buildings and meeting places.

The "Modern centre" region of Rome is where many of the hotels and restaurants are found. It is located centrally to the other important regions and is an ideal place to base yourself when visiting Rome. It also has many attractions of is own including the famous Trevi Fountain, Palazzo Barberini and the National Museum of Baths of Diocletian.

Rome is arguably one of the worlds greatest and most popular destinations. It is a city stepped in history so ancient it is at times bewildering and difficult to comprehend. The most amazing aspect of Rome is that the ancient history is completely interwound with modern Rome, visitors are just as likely to turn a corner and find a modern Italian restaurant next to a 2000 year old ruin!