As the sun rises on Sunday, vendors from all over the local area set up stall in Porta Portese Flea Market, which is in the Trastevere area of Rome. It is a place where bargains can be found and when visiting Rome this is an excellent way to sample the local culture first hand. This flea market sells everything you can possibly imagine. It has a beautiful antique section, selling brash brass and noisy clocks. You can find 18th century paintings, capturing local imagery from times that have long gone by. There is something distinctly Italian about the whole experience. You can see the passion and determination in the eyes of the vendors. Clothes are for sale everywhere. The smell of Italian leather washes over you as you make your way through alleys of colourful bargains. This is an ideal place to buy gifts for loved ones whilst staying in Rome. A word of warning here. Whilst the The Porta Portese Flea Market is generally a safe place to be, pick pockets work on Sunday’s too, so it is our recommendation that you keep your valuable possessions in a safe place at all times. So hold on tightly to your ...

The Piazza Navona is a very popular area for families to visit, especially if you are travelling with children as there are several toy stores in this area. You will be able to find all sorts of toys from stuffed animals to miniature Italian sports cars and unique wind up toys. The kids will surely appreciate coming home to your Rome holiday rental and playing with their new toys! 1. Al Sogno (Piazza Navona, 53) – The name Al Sogno literally means “In a Dream” and this cosy little store definitely lives up to its name. Although the store is a bit small, people seldom notice this because of the large number of interesting toys that line its shelves. 2. Città del Sole (Via Della Scrofa, 65) – This shop is one of the most popular toy stores in all of Rome and is known to sell both toys and children’s books. Città del Sole’s extensive selection of European toys is sure to be particularly appealing to young children; the store is also popular with older children and even adults, as it has a good collection of puzzles, gadgets, games and educational toys. 3. Bertè (Piazza Navona 108) – ...

Should I could return to Rome tomorrow, I hope I would do all the things I glimpsed the first time round but was to busy being a ‘tourist’ to appreciate, or experience. Sure, I can say I’ve marvelled at the Coliseum. I’ve stared up into the oculus of the Pantheon, posed on the Spanish Steps and got sunburnt standing in a queue for the Vatican. I’ve got the pictures. But I haven’t really got Rome. For starters, I would have to slow myself down by a margin of about 50%. For all the hustle and bustle of Roman streets, no one is really hurrying. The Italians are adept at a certain type of contained energy that looks like a lot’s happening when really all that’s being discussed is where the next ristretto is coming from. If I am to learn to enjoy laid back Rome, I’m going to have to go native. To which end, after an early start wondering at the sights and smells of the Campo Fiori, buying string bags heavy with luscious lemons and oranges, their skin still dusty with that morning’s bloom, I would have coffee at Sant’Eustachio and fight my way to the counter to stand among ...

People say that Paris in spring time is for lovers. Well, that may be the case, but in my mind Italy is the place where you go when your love is wishing to express itself all year round and in any season with the partner you love. Rome is the ideal setting for couples who are wishing to enjoy the radiance of a city that is packed with interesting sights to see, beautiful food to awaken the senses and the sound of Italians enjoying life. Ancient moments and wondrous churches lead you past street cafes and Italian Piazza’s where the invite to break now and again for a gelato or a Cappuccino is irresistible. All is set against the back drop of a blue sky with bright sunshine that filters though through the roof tops. It is no wonder the love that was once ignited in those early days of romance is re-kindled and brought back to life once more. At the Trevi fountain, you throw three coins in the fountain and wish again. The cobbled lanes lead you from there to the Spanish steps, taking you up in the heat, like a stairway to heaven. ...

Two years ago and again during summer last year, my boyfriend Dominic and I travelled to Rome. It was my first holiday in about 10 years but for Dominic, he regularly goes as his uncle and aunt - Eugiene and Katia - live there. For as long as I have loved art, I have wished to see the Sistine Chapel and in Rome I had the chance! What a holiday! That was made all the more affordable (thank goodness) by the fact that we have family there. Saying that though, renting an apartment for a week or so is a good way of staying in Rome. As there is so much to see, I think having a base where you can completely relax is preferable. You can make packed lunches and your own meals, which saves some money. Not that the food is expensive or anything. It is reasonable and delicious in most restaurants. As the flight took over two 2 hours to reach Rome we caught one at about 6am – which gave us a whole day at our disposal as soon as we arrived. So an early night and plenty of sleep was on the cards, especially as Dominic ...

An important festival on the Rome events calendar, the Festa di Noantri in Trastevere, is a religious celebration that dates back to the beginning of the 16th century. It is held in celebration of the Lady of Mount Carmel and takes place on the first Saturday after July 16th every year. On the day of the festival, a richly dressed statue of the Virgin Mary is taken in a procession through the streets around the Church of Saint Agatha and on towards the Basilica of San Crisogono. The statue is an ancient one, supposedly discovered in the Tiber in 1535. She was donated to the Carmelites at Crisogono, where she became the patron saint of Trastevere. In 1890 she was moved to another local church, Saint Agatha. The return procession includes a journey across the Tiber, to commemorate the site of discovery of the image. The statue is taken in a boat from near Villa Giulia to Ponte San Angelo, where more people join the procession; to move towards the Ponte Sisto, Isola Tiberina and from thereon to Trastevere’s most important church, Santa Maria. The statue is then brought back to its home in the Church of Saint Agatha, on ...

I would return to Rome, the city of romance, because there just isn’t enough time to see and do everything in one long weekend. I see Rome as a giant pizza that you keep taking a bite out of now and again. It is so diverse that you could visit a dozen times and do and see something different every time. Rome is not the ‘sit on a bus’ type of sight seeing city – you have to like walking. It is also best if you buy a good Rome guidebook and plan your journey each day. All you need to know

The Pentecost (which in 2010 falls on May 23rd) is a celebration in remembrance of the Holy Spirit’s descent upon the Virgin Mary and the Apostles of Jesus and this tends to be one of the most spectacular and culturally fascinating times to be in Rome. And the most lovely of all Pentecostal rituals takes place at one of the eternal city’s most awe-inspiring buildings: the Pantheon. After a celebration of the Mass on Pentecost Sunday, a shower of rose petals falls through the oculus, or the opening at the top of the dome of the Pantheon. This beautiful spectacle is made possible by a group of firemen who scale the exterior wall of the Pantheon armed with sacks of rose petals—a sight almost as wonderful as what is to take place inside. The petals are meant to represent the Holy Spirit’s descent to earth, and watching them flutter through the haze-like light that filters through the oculus is an incredibly uplifting experience. Visitors are welcome to this event but would be wise to turn up early and seating is generally only available to those attending the mass first (even then many of these are pre-booked). At the end of mass, ...

It's Halloween and we're out and about in Rome, dodging scooters and miniscule cars as we try to find somewhere to celebrate one of the stranger holidays of the year. There's a distinct lack of the costumed tom-foolery or gaudy orange decorations that would currently be adorning the pubs at home, making a valiant effort at spreading the party spirit in the cold, dark season preceding Christmas. I guess that's because costumed tomfoolery and gaudy decorations would be far too unfashionable for the people around me, the most fashionable human beings on the planet. I'm guided by the most-fashionable Aldo, a label-wearing Roman whom I'd known for an hour, and Ksenia, a very pretty Ukrainian girl who'd invited me out for an impossible to refuse Halloween beverage after we met at my hostel. The night had started with a drive in search of aperitivo, which ended at Campo Del Fiori, a great little square nearly halfway between the Coliseum and the Vatican. Aldo skillfully piloted his diminutive vehicle through the bustling back streets off Corso Vittorio Emanuele II, trying to squeeze into spaces, which I would have struggled to park my bike in. Eventually he found one to his satisfaction ...

If the award for Best Market in Europe was dished out by name alone, Rome’s Campo de’ Fiori (or ‘field of flowers’) would win hands down. (Well, it’s certainly better than Barcelona’s Boqueria, which translates as ‘slaughterhouse’). Campo de’ Fiori is primarily one of Rome’s most beloved squares, even though it lacks the formal architectural arrangements of the city’s other great piazzi such as the Piazza Navona or del Popolo. However this one-time meadow has always been a hub of the city’s commercial activity and the nomenclature of the surrounding streets reflect this. In the Middle Ages, you could have picked up a bespoke cape in Via dei Giubbonari (Tailor’s street) and a bow and arrow in Via dei Balestrari (Crossbow makers street) before heading off to one of the many inns in the square for a night of bawdy revelry. This still happens once the sun sets on the Campo de’ Fiori, when hoards of young people, mainly tourists, pack out the outdoor cafes that line the piazza. But every morning (except Sunday) the Campo de’ Fiori comes alive with a genuine local experience; Rome’s biggest (and possibly Europe’s prettiest) open air market. This being Italy the stalls of ...