Rome

A short history

The Colosseum was finished in 80 CE and could seat as many as eighty thousand. The Pantheon's dome, completed around 126 CE, is still the largest unreinforced concrete dome ever built — nineteen centuries later, nobody has needed to better it. Rome's second life came as the seat of the Catholic Church, which layered Renaissance and Baroque building on top of the ancient city rather than clearing it, and that refusal to start again is why the layers are all still visible.

Why travellers love it

The sights are globally famous and unusually concentrated, which means a short trip is not a compromise here the way it is in a sprawling capital. The food culture is deep and cheap at the level most people actually eat, and Rome works well as the first stop of a wider Italian trip.

Before you go

Italy is in the Schengen area; arrange a visa well ahead if you need one. April to May and September to October avoid both the August heat and the August closures. Book the Colosseum and the Vatican Museums online with a timed slot — the queues without one are measured in hours, not minutes — and cover your shoulders and knees for St Peter's, which is enforced at the door.

Highlights

• The Colosseum and the Roman Forum
• The Vatican Museums and St Peter's
• The Trevi Fountain
• An evening in Trastevere