I love Rome. I also have a long and humiliating history of doing Rome wrong.
From getting fined on the metro to being turned away from a church in 95-degree heat, I’ve collected an impressive list of Rome failures over multiple trips. The kind of failures that make your travel partner quietly seethe while pretending everything is fine.
So here are 10 mistakes I’ve actually made in Rome, plus what you should do instead. Learn from my suffering. Please.
1. Not Booking Vatican and Colosseum Tickets Far Enough in Advance
I thought I was being responsible by buying Colosseum tickets a week before our trip. Cute. Every single time slot was sold out. All of them. For the entire week we were there.
Here’s the thing. Official Colosseum tickets (€18 for adults, which includes the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill) are released just 30 days before the visit date. That sounds like plenty of time, but popular slots sell out within hours of going live. The underground tour and arena floor access? Even faster.
The Vatican Museums are the same story. If you want a morning slot that doesn’t involve standing in a line that wraps around the Vatican walls, you need to be on it the moment tickets drop.
What to do instead. Set a calendar reminder for exactly 30 days before your visit date and buy Colosseum tickets on the official site (colosseo.it) the second they’re available. For the Vatican, book through museivaticani.va as early as you can. And if you want the Borghese Gallery (more on that later), those tickets open 90 days out and sell out weeks in advance. You cannot buy them at the door.
2. Eating at Restaurants Near Major Tourist Sites
We sat down at a restaurant roughly 40 feet from the Pantheon because we were starving and it was right there. The carbonara was €22, tasted like it came from a microwave, and the waiter was openly annoyed that we existed. A real triple threat.
This is the restaurant trap, and it gets basically every tourist at least once. Any place within direct eyeline of a major monument is almost guaranteed to be overpriced, mediocre, and staffed by people who know they’ll never see you again.
What to do instead. Walk at least 5 to 10 minutes away from any major site before eating. Better yet, plan your meals in neighborhoods like Trastevere, Testaccio, or Monti where locals actually eat. If the menu has photos and a guy standing outside trying to lure you in, keep walking. Every single time.
3. Not Validating Your Metro Ticket
Buying the ticket is only half the job. I learned this the expensive way.
On our first trip, we bought metro tickets, walked through the turnstiles, and figured we were good. We were not good. On the bus, inspectors boarded and asked to see validated tickets. Ours were pristine and unstamped. The fine is €54.90 if you pay within 5 days, or €104.90 if you drag your feet. That’s a lot of gelato money.
What to do instead. Validate your ticket every single time. On buses and trams, stick it into the little yellow machine when you board. On the metro, the turnstile validates it for you. Your standard BIT ticket is valid for 100 minutes of bus and tram rides plus one metro trip, so keep it on you the whole time. Or just use a contactless card with ATAC’s Tap&Go system and skip the whole validation drama entirely.
4. Wearing Shorts and Tank Tops to Churches
I know, I know. It’s a million degrees. You’ve been walking for six hours. You’re wearing shorts and a tank top like a normal person who doesn’t want to melt into the sidewalk. And then you get to St. Peter’s Basilica and the guard points at your bare shoulders and says no.
This happened to us. It also happened to the two women in front of us, and the couple behind us. The rule is firm and universal across Rome’s churches. Shoulders covered. Knees covered. For everyone, not just women. I watched a guy in board shorts get turned away from the Pantheon.
What to do instead. Keep a light scarf or shawl in your bag. It weighs nothing and saves you from the humiliation of being rejected from a building that’s been letting people in since the year 609. If you forget, some churches sell cheap scarves outside, but you’ll pay the tourist tax for that convenience.
5. Only Visiting the Obvious Neighborhoods
On our first trip, we basically ping-ponged between the Colosseum, the Vatican, and the Trevi Fountain. That’s like going to New York and only visiting Times Square. Technically you went, but you missed the whole point.
Rome’s best personality lives in its neighborhoods. Trastevere has the cobblestone, ivy-covered streets that you’re picturing when you think of Rome. Testaccio is where actual Romans eat and it has some of the best cacio e pepe in the city. Monti is the cool, slightly artsy quarter near the Colosseum that most tourists walk right past.
What to do instead. Dedicate at least half a day to wandering a neighborhood with no agenda. Get lost in Trastevere at golden hour. Eat your way through the Testaccio market. Browse the vintage shops in Monti. This is where you’ll actually feel like you’re in Rome, not just looking at it from behind a crowd of selfie sticks.
6. Trying to Do Too Much in One Day
Day one of our first Rome trip, we did the Colosseum, the Forum, the Palatine Hill, the Pantheon, the Trevi Fountain, the Spanish Steps, and Piazza Navona. By 4pm I was sitting on a bench near the river making sounds that weren’t words. Will was pretending he didn’t know me.
Rome is punishing on your feet. The cobblestones are uneven, the distances between sites are deceptive on a map, and the summer heat turns every walk into an endurance event. If you pack your day like you’re speedrunning a video game, you will be miserable by dinner.
What to do instead. Plan two to three major things per day, max. Build in a long lunch. Go back to your hotel for an hour in the afternoon like the Italians do. If you have three or four days (check out our 3 day and 4 day Rome itineraries), you have plenty of time. Rome rewards you for slowing down.
7. Engaging with the Bracelet Guys and Rose Sellers
A very friendly man near the Spanish Steps started chatting with us, asked where we were from, and before I could say “Pennsylvania” he had tied a braided bracelet onto my wrist. Then he wanted €20 for it. When I said no, he wanted €10. Then €5. It was like a sad, aggressive auction in reverse.
The friendship bracelet scam has been running in Rome for years and it’s not going anywhere. The rose sellers work the same way, especially at restaurants. They’ll place a flower on your table, walk away, and come back demanding payment. These are organized operations, not random encounters.
What to do instead. Don’t make eye contact, don’t stop walking, and absolutely do not let anyone tie anything onto your body. A firm “no, grazie” without slowing down is all you need. If someone puts a rose on your table, pick it up and hand it back immediately. It feels rude, but it’s not. They’re counting on you being too polite to say no.
8. Sitting Down for Your Coffee
We ordered two espressos at a cafe near Piazza Navona, sat at a lovely outdoor table, watched the world go by, and paid €10. For two tiny espressos. Meanwhile, a local was drinking the same exact coffee at the bar inside for €1.
In Italy, bars post two different prices. “Al banco” (at the bar, standing) and “al tavolo” (at the table, sitting). Standing gets you an espresso for about €1 to €1.50. Sitting, especially at a table with a view, can cost €4 to €8 for the same drink. At famous piazzas, you’re essentially paying rent for the view.
What to do instead. Do what the Romans do. Walk into the bar, order your caffè at the counter, drink it in three sips, and leave. It’s faster, cheaper, and honestly more fun. You’ll feel very Italian. Save the sit-down coffee for one special afternoon when you actually want to pay for the view, and consider that your treat for the trip.
9. Choosing a Gelato Shop by the Size of Its Mountains
You know the shops I’m talking about. The gelato is piled into gravity-defying peaks of electric blue, neon green, and traffic-cone orange. They look amazing. They are lies.
Those towering mounds mean the gelato has been pumped full of air and stabilizers. Real gelato is dense. It sits flat in metal tins, often with lids. The colors are muted because actual pistachio is a dull greenish-brown, not the color of a Nickelodeon slime pit. Real mint gelato is white. Real banana is grayish. If it looks like a paint store exploded, walk away.
What to do instead. Look for flat metal containers, subdued colors, and a short-ish menu focused on classics like fior di latte, hazelnut, and crema. Ignore any “artigianale” signs, because every shop in Rome claims that. Instead, check the ingredients list, which they’re legally required to display. If it’s full of E-numbers and artificial additives, move on. We have a full guide to Rome’s best gelato shops if you want specific names.
10. Skipping the Less Famous Museums
We almost made this mistake. Everyone goes to the Vatican Museums because that’s the thing you do. And look, the Sistine Chapel is the Sistine Chapel. But you’ll also be shuffling through it shoulder-to-shoulder with hundreds of other people while guards yell “NO PHOTO” into a microphone. It’s… an experience.
Meanwhile, the Borghese Gallery exists. It’s small, intimate, and jaw-droppingly beautiful. They only let in 360 people every two hours, so you can actually see the art instead of photographing it over someone’s head. Bernini’s sculptures alone are worth the trip to Rome. And then there are the smaller museums that most tourists skip entirely.
What to do instead. Book the Borghese Gallery (tickets open 90 days in advance, and you will need to plan ahead because they sell out). Visit Rome’s other museums that don’t require an hour in a security line. Palazzo Doria Pamphilj is absurdly underrated. The Capitoline Museums are right above the Forum and half as crowded. You can still do the Vatican, but maybe don’t make it your only museum day.
The Bottom Line on Rome Mistakes
Rome is one of those cities that’s amazing despite how easy it is to mess up. Even on the trip where I got fined, scammed, and turned away from a church, I still had one of the best weeks of my life. The food alone is worth every wrong turn.
But a little preparation goes a long way. Book tickets early, eat away from the monuments, cover your shoulders, and for the love of all things holy, drink your coffee standing up at least once. You’ll save money, skip the worst tourist traps, and have way more fun.
And if you do get a friendship bracelet tied to your wrist by an overly enthusiastic stranger, well. Welcome to the club.
For more Rome trip planning, check out our 30 things to do in Rome, our favorite Rome restaurants, and our guide to where to stay in Rome.
