The Roman Baths in Bath, England, is the city’s foremost must-see attraction.
If you only have time to visit one historic site in the city of Bath, make it the Roman Baths.
It’s small enough to enjoy in about an hour, includes an excellent audio guide, and is enlivened by numerous projections of Roman-clad people going about their bathing business.
I’ve visited the Roman baths three times over the past ten years and each time, I discover something new.
Roman Baths at a Glance
Enjoy views of Bath Abbey from the museum terrace
Discover the ancient history of the sacred spring
Explore fascinating displays and costumed recreations that bring ancient Aquae Sulis to life
Consider a guided tour to get the most out of your visit
The Roman Baths are located next to the Pump Room in the center of Bath. It’s a short walk from the train station.
When you arrive, you may find quite a crowd gathered and signs indicating which time slot is currently being accommodated.
If you didn’t get tickets in advance, ask the person marshaling the crowd if you can still get in. I did this on a recent visit and the attendant promptly stood aside and motioned for me to walk right in, bypassing the long line. I didn’t stop to question my good fortune.
That said, I wouldn’t count on getting in without buying your ticket in advance. You can purchase tickets online from the official website or choose a tour.
Audio Guide
The price includes an audio guide with two tracks in twelve languages. The regular track provides the usual historical context in short and interesting installments.
The children’s track includes first-person accounts by the many characters that wander across screens projected throughout the museum. I alternate between the adult and children’s tracks. Both are excellent.
Touring the Baths
The clearly signposted route starts on the terrace, which consists of a walkway surrounding the baths.
This structure and the statues of various Roman bigwigs are Victorian additions that were built atop the Roman ruins to house the museum when it opened in the late 19th century.
The terrace is a delightful space surrounded by warm Bath stone and with the façade of Bath Abbey looming in the background. Below are the deep green waters of the main pool. Bath has been a mecca for health-seekers for two millennia.
View of the main pool from the top walkwayView of Bath Abbey from the top walkway
Hot Springs History
While touring the museum, you’ll learn that Bath is the only place in the entire country that has hot springs—three of them. No wonder people have been coming here for millennia.
Before the Romans arrived, the local Dobunni tribe worshipped the goddess Sulis at the sacred spring. In those days, the heated natural spring was a bubbling, steaming pool surrounded by a thick swamp.
When the Romans arrived, they incorporated worship of Sulis into their own pantheon and so transformed her into Sulis Minerva and called the settlement Aquae Sulis.
The Romans were generally “equal opportunity” when it came to accommodating other religions, so long as the people practicing them rendered unto Caesar the necessary taxes.
In Roman Britain, the legionnaires who first conquered the area must have been very happy to have found a place where they could soak their weary bones in warm water in the midst of a Great Britain winter.
In the 17th and 18th centuries, Bath developed into one of the world’s most fashionable watering holes. Everyone who was anyone came here to take the waters. Jane Austen herself bathed here.
Museum Exhibits
The tour leads back indoors and descends through several rooms full of artfully displayed exhibits about the Romans.
Enlivening the experience are screens projecting a selection of Roman bathers who would have frequented the baths back in the day. It’s a clever way to bring history to life and makes you feel like you’re witnessing it firsthand.
You can listen to a blacksmith on the audio guide while watching a screen showing him hard at work making armor.
Projection of a Roman blacksmith
The Baths
The exhibits give way to a series of walkways leading across the archaeological remains of the various rooms in the Roman Baths.
The Romans took their health seriously. There are rooms for getting massaged and plucked (apparently, the Romans weren’t keen on body hair), rooms for bathing in various water temperatures, and even a gymnasium where Romans got good and sweaty in humid air that still smells of sulfur.
Projection of Roman woman preparing to bathe
The ruins themselves don’t photograph particularly well. Here’s one room showing the bricks that would have been under the floor to supply the heating.
The audio commentary provides details about the impressive heating and cooling mechanisms. The Romans certainly knew how to engineer.
Ruins of the heating system
Minerva Sulis
One of the most striking artifacts on display is the gilt bronze head of the goddess Sulis Minerva. It’s a rare and beautiful example of ancient craftsmanship.
Bust of the goddess Sulis Minerva
Outside next to the large pool sits a Roman-clad guide. She acknowledges me with a regal nod when I take her picture. I’m unsure if she’s meant to speak or if her job is to sit by the pool all day and have her picture taken.
A Roman watches the crowds go by
Bath Tours
Bath is unique in that it has two inscriptions as a UNESCO World Heritage site. In the 1980s, the town was inscribed for its Hot Springs, Roman archaeology, Georgian buildings and natural landscape setting.
And then just a few years ago in 2021, it was awarded a second inscription as one of the Great Spa Towns of Europe.
The best way to explore Bath is through a walking tour. GuruWalk lists pay-what-you-please walking tours that connect tourists with tour guides.
Tours and Tickets
If you’re a Bridgerton fan, you may find this tour fun:
Ruins can be challenging to enjoy because they are, well, ruins. The Roman Baths manages to bring the stony vestiges of a once great Roman hangout to life with its thoughtful use of projections and audio commentary.
As you exit the museum, you can enjoy a cupful of the medicinal waters to give you energy for more Bath sightseeing.
The Roman Baths are open from 9 am to 10 pm from July 20 to August 31, and from 9 am to 6 pm from September 1 to December 31. Buy your tickets online from the museum’s website.
Have you visited the Roman Baths? Share your comments and suggestions in the comments below.
This must-see museum of thoughtfully curated exhibits showcases the history of life in rural England.
Eight galleries and an impressive open storage area present artifacts and commentary related to the traditions and challenges related to food production in the English countryside.
I spent a wonderful afternoon at this museum in Reading with associate director Isabel Hughes, who graciously answered my many questions about the museum and then took me on a guided tour.
This place is a real Artsy Traveler find! And fair warning: this is a LONG post because there is just so much to write about.
Some Background
I lived in Reading for three years a few decades ago. During that time, I attended the University of Reading where I earned my BA in English Language and Literature.
I hadn’t returned to Reading since I graduated, so on a recent trip to England from my home near Vancouver, BC, I decided to make Reading my first stop after flying to Heathrow from Vancouver.
I wasn’t sure what I planned to do during my one afternoon in Reading. I googled museums and discovered the Museum of English Rural Life (MERL) run by my alma mater, the University of Reading.
I had never heard of MERL, although Isabel told me the museum was established in 1951 and did indeed exist when I attended the university in the 1970s.
In 2004, the museum moved to its spacious new digs in the former St. Andrew’s Hall, one of the student residences that was around during my time at the university.
Since its expansion, MERL has established itself as one of the United Kingdom’s premier destinations at which to learn about English rural life.
Why I Wanted to Visit the Museum of English Rural Life
I decided to visit MERL for two reasons.
First, it’s a niche museum and as such is a perfect candidate for featuring on Artsy Traveler.
Although I often write about blockbuster museums such as the Rijksmuseum, National Gallery of London, and the Uffizi, my heart beats particularly fast when I discover an off-the-beaten-track museum that my readers may not know about, and that fits with my interests.
The second reason I wanted to visit is because one of my novels titled Hidden Voices is partially set in Devon in the 1880s.
Eliza, my main character, must move with her family from a bucolic rural life in Devon to the “dark, satanic mills” of northern England where most of the novel takes place. In the scenes set in Devon, I wanted to sprinkle in a few more details about rural life that I hoped to find at MERL.
And I wasn’t disappointed! This extensive museum dedicated to farming practices and rural life is a hidden gem—and admission is free or by donation.
Arrival at the Museum of English Rural Life
A few hours prior to visiting MERL, I land at Heathrow after a smooth eight-hour flight from Vancouver. Twenty minutes after deplaning, I’m standing, phone in hand, searching for my Uber.
Most of that time has been taken up with long, long walks through long, long corridors, many rides up and down long escalators and a two-minute wait to go through the electronic customs kiosk.
Since my flight has arrived an hour early, I take the Uber to my hotel before heading to the museum. I’m staying at the Hotel Malmaison (#1 on the map) in downtown Reading, which I highly recommend. After freshening up, I decide to walk the 22 minutes from the hotel to MERL (#2). Here’s a map of Reading:
Along the way, I expect to take a few jaunts down memory lane, but alas, it isn’t to be. Nothing looks the same as I remember from the 1970s—not even close. The Reading skyline bristles with new buildings designed by architects who likely hadn’t been born when I was studying at the university.
When I lived in Reading, there was hardly anywhere to get coffee, much less enjoy a meal. We existed on copious amounts of strong tea; coffee bars were unheard of. And as for eating out, it just wasn’t done, or at least very rarely. Now, every other establishment in Reading serves food, or so it seems as I stroll past the cafes and restaurants in the downtown area.
Along the way, I cross over the Kennet-Avon canal which looks serene and well-groomed in the late August sunshine.
Kennet-Avon canal in Reading
When I arrive at MERL, associate director Isabel Hughes meets me and, over a very welcome cup of tea, we start our chat.
The Interview
Here’s a summary of my interview with Isabel Hughes, associate director of the Museum of English Rural Life (MERL) at the University of Reading in England.
Carol
What is the purpose of the Museum of English Rural Life?
Isabel
The purpose of the museum is to present exhibits and objects that help visitors understand the human side of English rural life: the production of food, farming practices since the 19th century, and the changing countryside. We like to present the human side of rural life and really celebrate working people since the vast majority of people in the 19th century and into the 20th century either worked on the land or in mills, or were servants.
Farming practices began to change in the late 19th century because of the agricultural depression caused by wheat production in Canada.
Carol
That’s very interesting because in my novel Mill Song, my main character’s family moves from Devon because there is no more farm labor work for the men. I thought it was because of mechanization that jobs became scarce, but there was also an agricultural depression. It’s interesting that Canada was to blame! A lot of people, including many of my ancestors, emigrated from a rural life in the West Country to Canada during the 19th century.
Isabel
MERL was started by the Agriculture Department at the University of Reading in 1951. World War II had ended and there was a push to make agriculture more self-sufficient and productive with the use of insecticides and the development of large farms. But as a result, traditional farming practices were being lost.
The founders of the museum realized this and decided to collect items such as old wagons and hand tools. They went to agricultural shows and talked to farmers, and acquired examples of traditional crafts such as basketry, woodworking, and bodging (making things such as brooms and chairs out of unseasoned green wood).
In 2004, the museum moved to its present location in the former St. Andrew’s Hall of residence, helped in part by funding from Alfred Palmer, a well-known Reading businessperson.
Carol
I well remember taking my exams at Reading University in the Palmer Building! He was quite the benefactor.
What is your number one recommendation for touring the museum?
Isabel
We like people to have a wander and see it all. The huge collection of wagons is particularly impressive. We have wagons from almost every county in England.
One of the many wagons at MERL, this one from Dorset
People can explore the eight galleries and then go upstairs to view our open storage of the thousands of items the museum has collected over the years.
Attached to each artifact is a luggage label; these were the original labels affixed when the artifact was acquired by the museum.
A large collection of farm implements in the open storage area of the museum
Another thing that we want people to notice is the textile wall hanging created for the Countryside Pavilion at the Festival of Britain in 1951. It was one of several we acquired. The one on display depicts Cheshire and cheese production.
An enormous wall hanging featuring Cheshire and cheese production
Carol
What is your favorite exhibit and why?
Isabel
I think my favorite is a pitchfork that was grown in a hedgerow. A branch growing off the shrub was nurtured until it was just the right size and shape for a pitchfork.
It’s made by nature but guided by hand.
Isabel’s favorite, a pitchfork grown from a hedgerow
Carol
What are some of the hidden gems that visitors should check out at MERL?
Isabel
The display of friendly society pole heads is intriguing. A friendly society was a cooperative that workers bought into. If they had a rough time, then the cooperative could help to support them. The pole heads were elaborately carved and resembled pub signs. They were carried in processions such as church parades.
Some of the silver pole heads in the MERL collection
Carol
Is this place the only rural museum in England?
Isabel
It is one of the earliest museums but not the only one. There is a rural museum network that includes small community museums. Other large museums like MERL are the National Museum of Rural Life in Scotland and the St. Fagan’s National Museum of History in Wales. There is also the Weald and Downland Living Museum near Chichester, which is where Repair Shop is filmed. We like to think of MERL as the national rural museum for England, but it is not, officially.
Carol
What is the most popular gift shop item?
Isabel
We’ve had images from the wall hangings turned into merchandise such as mugs, pencil cases, notebooks, tea towels and bags. We also have tea towels depicting engineering drawings of farm machinery, which are very popular with enthusiasts who are interested in recreating rural farm machinery.
Carol
Are any new exhibits planned?
Isabel
We have quite a few artifacts related to the Roma people that are often not labeled as such. These include photographs of people working the land, and a gypsy wagon. We are starting to re-label these artifacts to feature the history of the Roma people in the English countryside.
A gypsy wagon
Carol
Anything else you’d like to share?
Isabel
At MERL, we have an extensive library and archives containing a wealth of stories. Of particular note is our archive of letters that children evacuees during World War II sent to their parents when they were evacuated from the cities to the countryside. Reading was one of the hubs for evacuee children. Some of the letters were positive, depicting the experience as active and fun, while others were from children who were upset and even mistreated.
The labels affixed to the children when they were put on the train to go into the countryside inspired Michael Bond to write the Paddington Bear books in the 1950s.
A group of children being evacuated from the city during World War II
Touring the Museum Galleries
After our chat, Isabel takes me around the museum. Seeing it after talking with her really brings it to life. Throughout the galleries are interactive activities for children. MERL has an active school program and welcomes over 50,000 visitors a year, likely a good proportion of them families.
I love the sheep clad in an Aran sweater in the first main gallery.
A large stuffed sheep wearing an Aran sweater greets visitors to the first large gallery
The size of MERL surprises me. The galleries go on forever, each one more chock-a-block with artifacts than the last. You can spend a lot of time here!
One of the very large galleries at the Museum of English Rural Life
Land Girls
I’m particularly taken by the collection of objects and photographs related to the Land Girls—young women who worked on the farms during World War II. Here are photographs of several Land Girls and the uniform they wore.
Land Girls in World War IILand Girls uniform in World War II
The Land Girls experience inspired Land Girls, a British TV series available on Netflix.
Traps
A sobering exhibit features various traps—both for animals and people. The two human traps are particularly horrifying. Anyone caught in one would likely die a very slow and painful death. These traps were placed to prevent poaching.
Human traps, fortunately outlawed in 1827.
We spend almost an hour roaming through the galleries and viewing the open storage collections on the first floor. I’m very impressed with both the size and the quality of the exhibits and am reminded how, in another life, I would have loved to have been a museum curator.
But being a novelist and travel blogger is also good—and MERL ticks the boxes on both fronts. I’m finding plenty of inspiration for the country scenes in Mill Song. The open storage collection of smocks, many beautifully embellished with traditional smocking, reminds me of what some of my characters may have worn. I can also imagine my main character wearing a bonnet, such as the ones displayed, while she helped with the harvest.
These smocks were likely worn for special occasionsBonnets in open storage
New Inspiration
To my delight, MERL sparks inspiration for a new novel based around the story of two evacuees in World War II. After my meeting with Isabel, I scribble several pages of notes about possible characters and plots. It looks like I’m going to have to return to MERL to comb through their extensive archive of letters written by evacuees during World War II.
I can only imagine what treasures await.
As the museum gets set to close, Isabel and I pose for a photo, I purchase a notebook that shows a detail from the Cheshire wall hanging, and say my good-byes.
Carol Cram with Isabel Hughes, associate director of the Museum of English Rural Life
I walk back to my hotel, enjoy an excellent dinner, and then, finally, turn the lights out at 9. My first day in the UK has been a success.
Exploring the Area
Here are some GetYourGuide tours in southern England. Most depart from London.
The Museum of English Rural Life is a specialty museum with broad appeal. Touring a museum dedicated to how food was produced back in the day reminds us of our rural roots–and everyone eats food! No matter where you come from, chances are good that at least a few of your ancestors had something to do with agriculture.
The opening times of Museum of English Rural Life are from 10am to 5pm daily and entrance is free. It is located at 6 Redlands Road in Reading, Berkshire. The museum’s extensive website showcases its many exhibits.
Have you visited this museum or another like it? Share your comments and suggestions in the comments below.
Madrid has many rewards for the artsy traveler looking to spend a Perfect Artsy Traveler Day.
Your day should include a visit to at least one of the three major art museums, an hour or two strolling through a park and the evocative and virtually traffic-free centro, a cooking class, a concert, and a yummy selection of tapas and raciones for a late dinner (the only kind in Madrid).
Here’s my take on how to spend a Perfect Artsy Traveler Day in Madrid.
Map of Madrid: Perfect Artsy Traveler Day
The map below shows the locations of the artsy sightseeing favorites mentioned in this post. Click a number to read more about the location.
A few days or even weeks before embarking upon my Perfect Artsy Traveler Day in Madrid, I go online to secure tickets to my chosen art museum(s). I’ve decided to visit the Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza on my Perfect Day, and so I buy tickets for a mid-morning time slot. I also get tickets to a flamenco performance; you’ll find plenty of venues to choose from in Madrid.
Thus prepared, I’m ready to go.
Early Morning on My Perfect Artsy Traveler Day in Madrid
When I travel, I love to get up early and spend an hour or two wandering around my neighborhood before stopping at a café for coffee.
On my recent trip to Madrid, I stayed across the street from the Jardines Sabatini, the lush gardens surrounding the opulent Royal Palace, so that’s where I’ll start.
Early Morning Walk through the Jardines Sabatini
The Jardines Sabatini (#1) are magical. In the early morning, I enter through an iron gate that is locked at night and immediately have the twisty paths and gorgeous foliage all to myself.
The peaceful, beautifully landscaped Jardines Sabatini in Madrid
After a brisk walk, I cross back over the busy road separating the gardens from my highly recommended aparthotel (the ApartoSuites Jardines de Sabatini) and stop in at a stylish café for a breakfast of a freshly made smoothie, a pastry, and of course, coffee.
Taxi to the Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza
I discover that taxis in Madrid are very affordable, and Ubers even cheaper. The closest metro station to where I’m staying is a good fifteen-minute walk, and so I ask the very helpful staff at the ApartoSuites Jardines de Sabatini to call me a taxi.
Five minutes later, I’m being whisked into the crazy Madrid traffic for the 10-euro trip. It’s money well spent.
Mid-Morning on My Perfect Artsy Traveler Day in Madrid
Visit to the Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza in Madrid
Although not as well known as the Museo Prado (another excellent pick for an artsy day in Madrid), the Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza (#2) has a wonderful collection and is not quite so overwhelming as the Museo Prado.
I start on the main floor with a visit to the stunning collection of 19th-century art—mostly Impressionists. While the Thyssen doesn’t contain many super-famous pieces like the Musée d’Orsay does, it features a lot of variety and some truly stunning paintings.
Here are two of my favorites.
Reclining Nude Shepherdess, 1891, Berthe MorisotThe Cliffs at Le Pouldu, 1884, Émile Bernard
The Thyssen also houses a comprehensive collection of works from the 15th century right up to the mid-20th century. Here’s an interesting piece by the American painter Edward Hopper.
Hotel Room, Edward Hopper, 1931
TIP: Before traveling to Madrid, check what’s on and be sure to get your tickets for the major museums such as the Prado, the Thyssen-Bornemisza, and the Museo Reina Sofía (home of Picasso’s Guernica) well ahead of your visit.
Midday Break on My Perfect Artsy Traveler Day in Madrid
After leaving the Thyssen, I catch another taxi into the heart of Madrid—the Plaza Mayor (#3)— for a snack and some people-watching. I usually advise fellow travelers to avoid high-rent areas like the Plaza Mayor when looking for places to eat, but today I break my own rule and settle in at one of the many outdoor cafés. Why? Because the view of the surrounding buildings is just too spectacular to miss, and the ambiance can’t be beat. The Plaza Mayor truly is a must-see public space. It was begun in the 17th century by King Philip III. His bronze equestrian statue stands in the middle of the enormous square.
The enormous Plaza Major in the center of Madrid is perfect for people watching
I order a light lunch because in a few hours I’ll be attending a cooking class.
I pledge to return to the Plaza Major in the evening on another day to enjoy a drink in the shadow of the floodlit buildings.
Afternoon on My Perfect Artsy Traveler Day in Madrid
After my plaza break, I browse the souvenir shops in the area, and then head for a tapas cooking class.
A Tapas Cooking Class
The 2.5-hour cooking class promises to teach me how to make ten tapas. I tie on my apron and join an international group of fellow travelers to listen to the chef. She’s a dynamic presenter who is obviously passionate about food and cooking.
She assigns a dish to each person. My job is to make a cold tomato soup. I cut up garlic and a lot of fresh tomatoes, then throw them in the blender and turn it on. I then add several pieces of bread which help the soup thicken and finally, I drizzle in about a quarter of a bottle of olive oil.
After much blending, the result is smooth, fresh, and very red. And the taste! Wowza!
Making fresh tomato soup at a tapas cooking class in Madrid
I also help to make a Spanish omelet, which is made with potatoes and a little heavy for my taste. Other tasty treats included flat-breads spread with various sauces, skewers of quince (a kind of solidified jam) and melon, and Parmesan cheese lollipops. The food is hearty and there’s plenty of it. The group barely makes a dent. I hope they had someone to give the leftovers to.
Selection of tapas made at the cooking class in Madrid
Evening
In Madrid, dinner isn’t served until about 9 pm (and even that’s considered a tad early) so after my cooking class I return to my hotel for a short rest before joining the throngs of strolling Madrileñoson my way to a concert.
The people of Madrid love to stroll throughout the evening. Whole families, with babies in strollers and toddlers rushing about, are on the move. People are smiling and laughing. As I join them, I feel like I’m a part of the community despite being a visitor.
Flamenco Concert
As any Spaniard will tell you, Madrid is not the historic home of flamenco. That honor goes to Seville. However, several venues offer flamenco performances that are well worth the money. The one I choose includes a plate of olives and other snacks and a glass of wine or a soft drink.
A flamenco performance is a highlight of any trip to Spain
As is the case with every flamenco performance I’ve seen, the dancers are incredible and the music exhilarating. I truly never tire of going to flamenco shows when I’m traveling in Spain!
And finally, it’s time for a late Madrid dinner. I confess that I find the Spanish cuisine a little on the heavy side. Potatoes, ham, and beef dominate and you won’t find a great many fresh vegetables. Salads do not appear to be a thing in Spain, at least in my experience.
The food is, however, tasty and there’s a lot of it.
TIP: Order fewer dishes than you think you’ll want. Portions in Spain are generally very large. Two dishes are usually enough for two people.
Here’s an article that describes the various options on a Spanish menu.
Stroll Home
I end my Perfect Artsy Traveler Day in Madrid with a stroll through the medieval streets of the centro to the wide plaza in front of the floodlit Royal Palace. It’s a gorgeous building that is reminiscent of Buckingham Palace in London, probably because it dates from a similar era.
If you enjoy taking tours while traveling (and I recommend them as a great way to see more in less time), then check out tours from GetYourGuide and Tiqets.com and the free walking tours offered through GuruWalk.
A Perfect Artsy Traveler Day in Paris must include three essentials: museums, parks, and great food.
In this post, I offer my recommendations for how to spend a Perfect Artsy Traveler Day in Paris. You may wish to substitute different museums or sites, but make sue you leave lots of time for wandering!
See what you think, and if it gives you ideas for planning your perfect Artsy Traveler day.
Highlights of a Perfect Day in Paris
Make an early morning or late afternoon visit to enjoy one of the world’s best collection of French Impressionists at the Musée d’Orsay
A few days or even weeks before embarking upon my Perfect Paris Day, go online to secure tickets to your chosen art museum(s).
On the perfect day described in this post, I include a visit to the Musée d’Orsay. You definitely want to get your tickets as far in advance as possible. I suggest buying tickets for the earliest time slot you can get, preferably at opening time.
My perfect day also includes a visit to the Musée de Cluny. While the Cluny is not usually as crowded as the Musée d’Orsay, hedge your bets by snagging tickets for an afternoon visit.
Thus equipped, you’re ready to go.
Early Morning on A Perfect Artsy Traveler Day in Paris
When I travel, I love to get up early and spend an hour or two wandering around my neighborhood before stopping in a café for a light breakfast. In Paris, I generally stay somewhere close to the Seine on the Left Bank and so that’s where I’ll start.
How about you? Do you enjoy early morning walks in the places you travel?
Early Morning Walk along the Seine
In the early morning, Paris is quiet. A few locals walk briskly to jobs, a street cleaner trundles past, the book stalls overlooking the Seine are shuttered, the cafes are just opening, and the heavenly scent of coffee and fresh croissants competes with the evocative smells of the river and old stone.
If you’re staying at Hotel de L’Universite or Citadines Saint-Germain-des-Prés Paris, two of my recommended places near the Seine on the Left Bank, walk east toward the Île de la Cité to see the morning sun shining on the façade of Notre-Dame Cathedral.
Later in the day, the area in front of the cathedral will be mobbed with tourists, but for an hour or so in the early morning, you’ll have the view to yourself.
Walkway along the Seine heading towards Notre Dame Cathedral
Cross back over to the Left Bank and find a café to order breakfast. My favorite is a café au lait with a length of baguette accompanied by pots of French butter and jam. At home, I never eat jam, but in France? Mais oui.
While enjoying my breakfast, I divide my time between people-watching and writing. In the early morning, few tourists are about so most of the people nearby are locals scrolling on their phones.
The atmosphere is peaceful and unhurried—a marked contrast from the busy-ness to come.
Bus to the Musée d’Orsay
Refreshed and ready for some serious artsy sightseeing, hop on a bus that takes your along the Quai Anatole France to the Musée d’Orsay.
While the metro is great for getting from A to B quickly, the bus is a more leisurely and visitor-friendly option. Instead of taking an expensive Hop On, Hop Off Bus tour, take local busses and see the same monuments of Paris for a fraction of the price and get in some seriously interesting people-watching.
Mid-Morning on A Perfect Artsy Traveler Day in Paris
Visit to the Musée d’Orsay
Few artsy traveler experiences are more rewarding than walking into the Musée d’Orsay ahead of the crowds.
Of all the grand museums in Paris, the Musée d’Orsay is my favorite, and I drop in every time I visit. In addition to its stunning permanent collection, the museum hosts excellent special exhibitions.
TIP: Before traveling to Paris, check what’s on and be sure to get your tickets well ahead of your visit.
Go to the Top Floor
Start your visit by taking the escalators straight up to the fifth floor so you can tour them while they are still relatively empty. Later in the day, you’ll be hard-pressed to see any of your favorites through the crowds.
A Break in the Museum Café
After touring the top floor, take a break and enjoy a coffee and pastry in the elegant café behind the giant clock. Usually, it’s not too crowded in the morning before the lunchtime rush. Sip your coffee, contemplate the glorious art you’ve seen, and plan which galleries to visit next.
The elegant café on the fifth floor of the Musée d’Orsay
The Lower Floors
Once refreshed, begin your descent through the next few floors, taking time to check out the art nouveau exhibits on the second floor. This floor is almost always deserted, and yet the art is stunning.
Display of art nouveau furniture at the Musée d’Orsay in Paris
On the main floor, make sure to see Manet’s Le Déjeuner sur l’herbe and Courbet’s evocative L’Origine du Monde.
The Gift Shop
Always leave some time to browse the gift shop at the Musée d’Orsay where there are shelves full of beautiful art books along with plenty of art-encrusted swag.
An umbrella emblazoned with van Gogh’s Sunflowers? A Manet fridge magnet? A Gauguin mug? They’re all here, and a great deal more.
Late Morning on A Perfect Artsy Traveler Day in Paris
After a few hours enjoying the delights of the Musée d’Orsay, re-emerge into the light and head east again. You could take a bus back to the Saint-Michel area, but consider walking.
Browsing Left Bank Shops
Although the walk is fairly long, it takes you past so many interesting shops. The area of the Left Bank between the Musée d’Orsay and the Boulevard Saint-Michel teems with boutiques offering antiques, objets d’art, and paintings.
The variety of artsy stuff on display is truly astonishing. You really could spend an entire day peering into the shop windows.
Elegant shop window on the Left Bank
I’m not sure who buys a life-size antique sculpture of a Roman gladiator or an ornate armoire that probably graced a room in Louis XIV’s Versailles, but obviously someone does. Many of these shops have probably been in business for centuries.
Lunch on A Perfect Artsy Traveler Day in Paris
As you stroll, you’ll notice the crowds swelling. By the time you get to the area around the Boulevard Saint-Michel, the solitary hours of your early morning walk will feel like a dream.
Finding a good place to have lunch can be a challenge in this busy area. There are plenty of choices, but not all are great. Use your smartphone to help you find an eatery that has at least a 4.5-star rating. You’ll need to veer off the main thoroughfares and search along small side streets.
After settling on a café for lunch, I suggest you treat yourself to one of the grande salades. These never disappoint.
My favorite is the Salade Norge. Usually, it consists of a massive helping of smoked salmon and shrimps with salad greens, hard-boiled eggs, capers, olives, and plenty of lemon slices. If I’m in the mood, I may even order a glass of white wine to accompany my salad.
Generous helpings of seafood in a Grande Salade in Paris
Afternoon on A Perfect Artsy Traveler Day in Paris
After lunch, wander up the Boulevard Saint-Michel to the Musée national du Moyen Âge, also known as the Musée de Cluny.
Visit the Musée de Cluny
If I had to choose my favorite small museum in Paris, the Musée de Cluny would win hands down. I love it because two of my novels—The Towers of Tuscany (Lake Union Publishing 2014) and The Merchant of Siena (coming in 2026) are set in the fourteenth century.
The Musée de Cluny is the 14th and 15th centuries on steroids.
The exhibits feature exquisite items in a wonderful variety of mediums—from woodworking to enameling to metalworking to sculpture to miniatures to, well, you name a medium and you’ll find a medieval example of it at the Musée de Cluny.
Exquisite wood sculpture at the Musée national du Moyen Âge
A highlight of your visit will likely be the room containing the Lady and the Unicorn tapestries. These stunning tapestries warrant a good chunk of your touring time. Take a seat in the middle of the room and enjoy the details in each of the six tapestries.
If you’re still full of energy after your Cluny visit, stroll up Boulevard Saint-Michel to the Luxembourg Gardens.
The Luxembourg Gardens is the quintessential Parisian garden—full of gorgeous flower beds, cool activities and Parisians at play.
Linger by the round pool in the middle and watch children sail remote control boats, wander the beautiful pathways and enjoy the wealth of sculptures, stop for a coffee or a drink at one of the small cafes, and just chill out.
If the weather cooperates, snag a chair near the pool and bask in the sunshine.
Large pool at the Luxembourg Gardens in Paris
TIP: If you’re traveling with children, don’t miss the Luxembourg Gardens playground. Even after thirty years, my daughter still speaks fondly of playing on the varied apparatus at the Luxembourg Gardens when she was eight. During that trip back in 1995, our family spent a LOT of time at that playground!
Evening
Ready for a rest? Head back to your hotel room to enjoy some quiet time and also to make dinner reservations, if you haven’t already.
Early Concert
A perfect artsy day in Paris definitely includes taking in a classical music concert. And you’ll have plenty of options to choose from.
A reliable option is to get tickets for a concert at the stunning Philharmonie de Paris in the Cité de la musique located in the Parc de la Villette in northeast Paris. I’ve gone a few times, and each time I’ve been blown away both by the venue and the performance.
Interior of the stunning Philharmonie de Paris concert hall
Or perhaps go to a concert at Sainte-Chapelle on the Île de la Cité or at Saint-Julien-le- Pauvre on the Left Bank. I highly recommend both options. Check the classictic website to purchase concert tickets.
Late Dinner
And finally, the pièce de résistance of a Perfect Artsy Traveler Paris Day—dinner! After all, one of the many reasons to visit Paris is to sample great food. With so many options, always make sure to check reviews.
I’ve had some of the best meals of my life in Paris—as well as some of the worst. Bad food in Paris can be really, really bad.
Avoid the super-touristy joints on the Champs- Élysées and search for places tucked away on side streets, favoring places with menus printed only in French. Chances are very good that your server will speak English and cheerfully translate.
The myth of the snooty French server is, at least in my experience, a myth. Almost without exception, every French server I’ve encountered in the fifty-odd years in which I’ve been traveling to Paris has been helpful, friendly, and fun, often cracking jokes and anxious to ensure I enjoy my meal.
I find that the key to getting good service in Paris is to start off in French, even if it’s only Bonjour or Bonsoir. Showing your willingness to at least try speaking French means you’re almost always rewarded with excellent service.
You will pay more for an excellent meal in Paris than you will in other parts of the country, but you don’t need to spend a fortune. You can spend a fortune if you want to, but in my experience, you can get a top-rate meal for two that includes three courses and wine for about a hundred euros.
So no, not cheap, but excellent value.
Stroll Home
End your Perfect Artsy Traveler day in Paris with a stroll past its many floodlit monuments. Paris is called the City of Light for good reason. Linger in the middle of a bridge spanning the Seine and admire the Eiffel Tower in one direction and Notre-Dame Cathedral in the other. It feels wonderful to slow down and relax.
Floodlit buildings make Paris magical at night.
Where to Stay in Paris
I favor hotels and apartments on the Left Bank in Paris. Here are some of my favorites:
Hotel de L’Universite: in the heart of Saint-Germain, this boutique hotels is a bit removed from the crowds
Here are more posts about Paris, including one about the Parisian sites featured in my novel Love Among the Recipes, a contemporary romance inspired by my enduring love for Paris.
If you enjoy taking tours while traveling (and I recommend them as a great way to see more in less time), then check out tours from GetYourGuide and the free walking tours offered through Guru Walks.
In the aftermath of the pandemic, everyone and their cousin who wants to travel and can travel is heading for Europe. Recently, Italy was named the number one tourist destination in the world, with France close behind. Many destinations are full to bursting with visitors, which means sold-out accommodations, packed beaches, and museums filled to the rafters.
Some communities, such as Barcelona and Malaga in Spain, and Santorini in Greece, have even launched campaigns to limit the number of tourists permitted to invade their hometowns at any one time.
Introduction
I’ve experienced my share of crowds all flocking to experience the same iconic sites—the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, the Uffizi in Florence, the Colosseum in Rome, the Eiffel Tower in Paris. Thousands surge into spaces meant for hundreds, each holding aloft a smartphone to capture the moment.
The joys of travel—discovering new places, meeting new people, learning new things, enjoying great art—quickly dwindle in the face of relentless crowds, inflated prices, and grumpy locals.
Interacting with Locals
When you travel to a new place, consider looking for opportunities to interact with locals instead of lining up for the big-ticket sites. Sample local food, check out off-the-beaten path museums and galleries, meet local artists and artisans, go to local concerts, ride public transit, and wander around back streets where local people live.
You can do all these things in even the most heavily-touristed destinations if you’re willing to zig away from the crowds rather than zag towards them. Doing so may require you to skip the most famous—and crowded—sites. But the rewards more than make up for any lingering feelings of FOMO (Fear of Missing Out).
Here are my top ten ways to joyously enjoy your European travels.
1. Check Restaurant Reviews
Chances are you’re traveling with a smartphone. Use it to find restaurants that fellow travelers and especially locals have rated highly. Ever since I started checking reviews and purposely choosing restaurants instead of wandering the streets in hopes of finding a place, I’ve enjoyed numerous awesome dining experiences.
In fact, I can safely say that almost every highly rated restaurant I’ve eaten at in Europe in the last few years was a winner.
A Parisian café is a great place to people watch while enjoying a trip to Europe
Search Criteria
I search for restaurants that have at least a 4.5-star average review and then read what people say about the quality of the food and the service. If most of the best reviews are in the local language, that’s a plus because it means the restaurant is well frequented by locals.
Make Reservations
Once I’ve made my choice, I visit the restaurant’s website and call to reserve a table or use the online booking system if it’s available. I’ve found in recent years that reservations are essential in many popular places. Without one, you may well be wandering for quite some time before finding a well-reviewed restaurant with available tables.
Note that during busy periods, you may have better luck choosing a reservation time when the restaurant opens (usually 7 or 8 pm, depending on the location). Europeans tend to eat dinner later than North Americans. If you make a reservation for 7 pm, you may well have the restaurant to yourself.
A good rule of thumb in any big European city is to steer clear of restaurants that are full of tour groups reading multi-lingual plasticated menus in high-rent locations such as the Piazza Navona in Rome.
Walk a few blocks away from the busy areas to quiet side streets and you’ll find favorite local restaurants with superb food.
Ask a Local for Recommendations
Another good strategy is to ask your hotel to recommend a local restaurant and then make a reservation for you. Every time we’ve gone to a restaurant recommended by our hotel, we’ve had a great meal.
For a giggle, check out what happened to me when I did not follow my own advice in Bella Roma Rip-off, one of the pieces inPastel & Pen: Two Ways of Seeing, a collaboration of my writing with Gregg Simpson’s artwork. Gregg is an artist and my husband and usual travel companion.
2. Seek Out Lesser-Known Museums
Your sightseeing time is precious. Instead of spending it waiting in long lines, seek out museums and other sites that may be less well known but are just as interesting (sometimes more so) and considerably less crowded. These days, you’ll stand in line to tour the big sites even if you book ahead. On a recent trip to Pompeii, I lined up for forty minutes to get my skip-the-line ticket that I’d purchased online days earlier, and then lined up for another twenty minutes in the skip-the-line line to get into Pompeii.
Instead of sweating in the queue outside the Louvre in Paris, visit the lovely Rodin Museum.
In Amsterdam, skip the Van Gogh Museum (or go very early in the day) and visit the charming and informative Rembrandt Huis.
In Rome, forget the Vatican Museum and head instead to the marvelous Etruscan Museum that houses an incredible collection of treasures. Both times I’ve visited, the museum was virtually empty, which is in no way a reflection on the quality of the displays. The museum just happens to be so far off the beaten track of Rome’s iconic sites that few tourists find it.
The Etruscan Museum is one of Rome’s most interesting museums
Lesser-Known Museums to Visit
Here are posts about some of my favorite lesser-known and fabulous museums:
If you’ve checked out other posts on Artsy Traveler, you’ll know that a lot of my European travel centers around my husband’s art exhibitions. Most exhibitions include an opening (a vernissage in France; an inaugurazione in Italy). These events often include food and wine, and a short talk by the artist and the curator. They are also free to anyone who wants to drop in.
We’ve frequently met fellow travelers at Gregg’s openings, in addition to local art lovers, and have attended the openings of exhibitions by other artists—some we knew, some we didn’t. We always have a memorable time!
Art openings at private galleries in Europe are usually free and open to everyone
Finding Art Openings
To find art openings, check online listings. Also, stroll areas that have a lot of art galleries, such as the Left Bank and Marais districts in Paris. You’ll have the most luck finding an opening in the early evening on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays.
If you pass an art gallery hosting an opening, don’t be shy! Walk in and say hello, check out some artwork, and maybe even have a glass of wine and an appetizer. You’re bound to meet a few locals who speak English, or you can practice your language skills.
4. Attend Local Concerts and Events
One of my favorite things to do when traveling in Europe is going to classical music concerts. Sometimes, I book tickets ahead of time to see a particular concert, but at other times, I look for posters and flyers.
On a recent trip to Siena, I picked up a flyer in our hotel advertising an intimate concert with a singer and pianist held in a local church. It was magical!
While in Rome, we saw a poster advertising concerts at the stylish Auditorium Parco della Musica well off the tourist beat north of the city. We bought tickets, and enjoyed two fantastic concerts with other music lovers, the vast majority of whom were locals.
Classical music concerts are top quality and reasonably priced
Tourist Concerts
I find that attending concerts in Europe really enhances my appreciation of the local culture. Even if the concert is advertised for tourists—such as a flamenco performance in Seville—it’s going to be good.
Trust me on this. We’ve enjoyed fado in Lisbon, flamenco in Spain, medieval music in southern France, opera in Paris, folk music in Bacharach on the Rhine, Vivaldi in Venice, Stravinsky in Berlin, Chopin in Leipzig, Shostakovich in Hamburg…I could go on and on.
And best of all, prices for classical music concerts in some of the world’s best concert venues are shockingly reasonable compared to what we pay to attend a concert in Canada.
Local performances are generally authentic and well worth the price
5. Ride Public Transit
Few travel experiences bring you closer to locals than riding busses, trains, and metros. These days, you can pay for most transit options with a tap of your credit card. I love hopping on a bus and following my progress on Google Maps, so I know exactly where to get off.
I also enjoy people-watching on public transit. On very crowded busses and metros, just be sure to keep a good grip on your valuables. While violent crime in Europe is rare, pickpockets do flourish in crowded cities.
Take a city bus in Europe and enjoy great people watching
A Cautionary Tale
A word of caution about bus travel. If you happen to have a paper ticket, ALWAYS remember to validate it when you get on the bus. I learned this lesson the hard way. On a recent stay in Turin, I got on the bus, paper ticket in hand, and noticed that no one else was validating their tickets at the machine. I wrongly presumed that validation wasn’t required. Maybe it was a special holiday?
Ten minutes later, an inspector got on the bus and started checking tickets. Everyone on the bus held up their smartphones. As tourists, we had only the paper tickets we’d purchased from the local tobacconist. When the inspector came to Gregg and me and tried to scan our tickets—nada. My protestations of being a dumb tourist fell on deaf ears. That mistake cost us 40 euros—each.
So, just because no one else is validating their ticket doesn’t mean you shouldn’t validate your ticket!
6. Shop for Food in Local Markets
Shopping for snacks, lunches and the occasional dinner in your hotel room or apartment not only lets you experience life as a temporary local, but it also saves you money. In general, food prices are lower in Europe (although starting to rise). The quality of the fresh produce is also far superior to what is found in the average North American grocery store.
I love prowling the aisles of a European supermarket and ordering pre-made food at the in-store delis. I’ve typically found the staff to be friendly and tolerant of my attempts to at least say hello, good-bye and thank you in their language.
Outdoor Markets
Be on the lookout for open-air markets where you’ll find a dizzying array of foods along with clothing and knick-knacks. Some cities also have large indoor markets, such as the Mercado de Triana in Seville.
Interact with locals while browsing outdoor markets in Europe
7. Take a Cooking Class
When you take a cooking class in Europe, you’ll meet travelers from around the world and learn from a local chef. I’m a firm fan of cooking classes and take one every chance I get.
In a tapas class I took in Madrid, I met fellow travelers from Australia, Holland, the UK, France, and Korea.
8. Go on a Walking Tour
I’ve also become a big fan of walking tours, particularly specialty tours that cater to a specific interest. In Rome, I went on a walking tour of the old Jewish ghetto. In London, I explored the back alleys and colorful history of the Covent Garden theater district. In Stratford-upon-Avon, I joined three other people for a small walking tour with a guide pretending to be William Shakespeare.
Walking tours usually take you behind the scenes and to places where regular bus tours can’t go. The guides are often locals who are very enthusiastic about their subject and love showing off hidden gems.
A great source for walking tours is GuruWalk. All the tours listed are pay-what-you-can and run by locals. Here are some of the free walks available from GuruWalk in Paris.
9. Skip the Iconic Sites
Yes, this recommendation is blasphemy but heeding it could make the difference between reveling in a relaxing and memorable European vacation and enduring one that leaves you hot, bothered, and blistered. When you’re planning what you want to see, consider not visiting super popular sites such as the Colosseum in Rome, the ruins in Pompeii, and the Eiffel Tower in Paris. Instead, choose smaller, lesser-known museums and sites, and leave more time for wandering.
By all means, stroll past the Colosseum and view the Eiffel Tower from one of the bridges. Snap some photos and drink in the view. Then, veer off into a shady side street and enjoy an hour or tour wandering around a quiet neighborhood, sitting in a park, and enjoying a drink at an outdoor café surrounded by locals.
See the Colosseum from the outside only
Travel isn’t all about ticking off the big sites. Instead, think of travel as your opportunity to surround yourself with a kaleidoscope of interesting sights, sounds, and smells.
Slow down and savor the displays in a small museum, make time for a concert or an art opening, be on the lookout for a local festival, and just be.
10. Walk Away from the Crowds
Even in Venice, one of Europe’s busiest tourist cities, you can find solitude. Leave the busy piazzas and thoroughfares and within seconds, you’ll be wandering down narrow alleyways and crossing tiny bridges spanning sleepy canals that look like they haven’t been disturbed for centuries.
Even in crowded Venice, you can easily find quiet corners
I skirt the main tourist drags in busy towns by going left or right down the first narrow street I see. I may get a bit lost, but I’ll also find glorious solitude and the chance to commune with the past.
Siena’s Campo bustles with tourists but walk a few meters down a side street and you’re alone and surrounded by buildings that haven’t changed much in 700 years. And at night, you’ll even have the Campo all to yourself.
Have the Campo in Siena to yourself at night
Such opportunities for quiet encounters with history make European travel endlessly appealing.
If you’re a fan of English Romantic poets, then you must make a pilgrimage to the Keats-Shelley House in Rome.
This lovely little literary museum is nestled right next to the world famous Spanish Steps in Rome. Thousands of visitors mill around the piazza in front of the steps, climb the steps, and take pictures of the steps.
Yes, the steps really are very attractive–lots of flowers and a striking two-tower church at the top.
But in the end, the steps are, well, steps. If you go to the Spanish Steps, take a quick pic and then veer right to visit the Keats-Shelley House. You’re in for a first-rate Artsy Traveler experience.
Literary Leanings
If you’ve been reading the Artsy Traveler blog for awhile, you probably know that I write mostly arts-inspired historical novels. My first three novels feature a painter (The Towers of Tuscany), a composer (A Woman of Note), and an actress (The Muse of Fire).
So, as a novelist, I’m a lover of literature, and what could be more literary than two of the greatest Romantic poets?
Also, back in the day when I went to university in England, I took my degree in English Literature. As a result, I studied a lot of poetry, particularly by Shelley.
So to enter rooms where Keats and Shelley hung out, really is a pilgrimage.
Touring the Keats-Shelley House
The Keats-Shelley House is extremely easy to find thanks to its location next to the Spanish Steps. You’ll also see the banner hanging outside.
The Keats-Shelley House is open from 10 to 1 and 2 to 6, and includes a special rate for seniors.
The ticket person got on my good side by telling us we didn’t qualify for the senior’s rate because it’s only for people over 65. Awww. That was kind of her.
But needless to say, I corrected her and got the reduced rate.
You enter the museum and climb to the first floor where you’ll find the tiny gift shop (more on that later) and the ticket taker.
After paying the entrance fee, turn right to tour a series of beautiful rooms containing a great many treasures and curiosities associated with the lives and works of several of the Romantic poets and their associates.
You’ll see letters written by Keats, Shelley, Bryon, Mary Shelley, Wordsworth, and other luminaries from the time. The evenness of their penmanship puts most modern folks to shame!
Also on display are drawings, snippets of poetry, paintings, and other memorabilia. The explanations are clear and informative.
Why The Poets Loved Italy
Back in the 18th and 19th centuries, with a decade or two off during the beginning of the 19th century for the Napoleonic Wars, Italy was a mecca for poets and writers from northern climes, including the Romantic poets from England, and Goethe from Germany.
These writers loved Italy’s warm weather, easy-going life, and the inspiration to be found in so many centuries of history. What attracted them to Italy back then isn’t so very different from what attracts me to Italy today.
It’s a very special country with so much to offer. No wonder I keep coming back year after year!
Rooms in the Keats-Shelley House
The rooms in the Keats-Shelley House include a library of more than 8,000 volumes. It’s considered one of the finest libraries of Romantic literature in the world.
Thoughtfully presented displays provide you with a lot to read as you prowl around the rooms. You could spend a great deal of time here!
The tour through the rooms ends at the tiny bedroom where John Keats died on February 23, 1821 at the age of just 25. It’s astonishing how he was able to compose so much sublime poetry in so few years. The museum includes plenty of information in English and Italian about Keats, his life, his tragic death, and of course his poetry.
Was it a vision, or a waking dream? Fled is that music:—Do I wake or sleep?
From Ode to a Nightingale
Here is the bed on which Keats died.
Byron’s Bicentenary
At first, I was mystified by the several banners related to Byron on display in the main library. After all, it’s the Keats-Shelley House. The very friendly and knowledgeable attendant told us that the House is celebrating the Bicentenary of Byron’s death in 1824.
His poetry is figured prominently on red banners. I haven’t read Byron for many years, so it was a real treat to reacquaint myself with some of his poetry.
We had a great chat with the attendant about the poets, Mary Shelley and her mum Mary Wollstonecraft, and the arts in general.
I mentioned that I’d interviewed Samantha Silva, author of Love and Fury about Mary Wollstonecraft on The Art In Fiction Podcast. Since the attendant was obviously interested in the era, I figured she may want to read the novel (highly recommended, by the way). She was delighted to learn about it and promised to look up the podcast.
I also told her about my novels and gave her one of my bookmarks because, well, marketing.
The Terrace
A highlight of a visit to the Keats-Shelley House is walking out on to the sweet little terrace overlooking the Spanish Steps. Imagine Keats and the gang sitting out there on a warm May afternoon sipping tea and talking poetry!
It’s pretty cool to think that the view Keats saw wasn’t all that dissimilar to the view we see today.
The house included drawings of the Piazza Spagna and the steps in the early 19th century, and indeed, not much has changed if you look above the ground floor shops.
The Gift Shop
After thoroughly enjoying touring the rooms, we exited via the gift shop. I couldn’t resist buying myself a cloth bag with a Grecian Urn on it, homage to Keats’s Ode to a Grecian Urn.
I also studied the collection of fridge magnets. We’ve taken to buying them most places we visit. Back home, our fridge door is getting pretty full up, but there’s always room for one more, or in this case, three.
I couldn’t decide which magnet to buy–Keats, Shelley, or Bryon–and so I bought all three.
Here they are–Keats on the left, Shelley in the middle, and Byron on the right. These guys were all in the twenties and early thirties when they were hanging out together, and all three died young.
They’re a bit like the rock stars of their time–living with unbridled passion and energy that burned out quickly, but wow, what a legacy they each left in their wake!
Conclusion
Have you visited the Keats-Shelley House in Rome? What did you think Share your impressions in the comments below for other Artsy Travelers.
Artsy Tours in Rome
I couldn’t find any literary-themed tours in Rome on GetYourGuide, so here’s a selection of tours related to music and also a tour of locations mentioned in Dan Brown’s Da Vinci Code series.
Note that I include tours listed on the GetYourGuide website because I’ve taken and enjoyed many of their tours.
You’ve arrived in Rome! Maybe, you’ve been lucky enough to have your taxi whisk you past the Colosseum on your way to your accommodations.
There it is! It’s huge! OMG!
We’re in the Eternal City!
This is SO cool!
Yes, the Colosseum in Rome is impressive and iconic. It’s the symbol of Rome and one of the seven wonders of the world. Millions of visitors come from all over the globe to see it. They snap selfies in front of it, gaze out over its ruined amphitheater, and stand in line-ups for hours.
My question is–should you bother? My answer? It depends!
Since my first visit to Rome in 1974, I’ve popped into the Colosseum four times. Three of those visits were great.
The most recent one was a nightmare.
The Colosseum itself hasn’t changed much apart from some restoration work over the decades. It’s still a massive ruin that, while impressive, bears little similarity to the magnificent original built over two thousand years ago.
Earthquakes, looting, and the general wear and tear of two millennia, not to mention the shuffling feet of millions and millions of visitors have taken their toll.
What has changed for visitors in recent years is just how incredibly crowded the Colosseum has become. The Colosseum ranks as the number one tourist attraction in Rome. Even St. Peter’s and the Vatican aren’t that crowded (although they are pretty much overrun).
Although I have no way of knowing for sure, I get the feeling during my most recent visit to the Colosseum that many people are ticking it off their must-see list, whether they are enjoying it or not. What a shame! Rome is so much more fabulous than the Colosseum.
The Colosseum is amazing, for sure. But is it worth your time to go inside when you can snap a photo like the one below with zero effort?
Should You Visit Rome and Not Go to the Colosseum?
Gasp! Should you do it? If you want to enjoy this marvelous city and you’re visiting between April to October, then I say yes, give the Colosseum a miss. Also forget the Vatican and the Sistine Chapel. You might consider visiting St. Peter’s since in my experience, the line moves fairly briskly and at least you’re outdoors for most of the wait.
But back to the Colosseum. In this post, I’ll describe my latest visit. You can then decide for yourself if it’s worth several hours of your precious sightseeing time. Or, would you be better off skipping the crowds and heading for some of the city’s quieter and infinitely more lovely sights such as the cosy Keats-Shelley House near the Spanish Steps?
Signing Up for a Colosseum Tour: Smart Idea or ?
As a savvy traveler (or at least so I like to think!), I know that the early visitor beats the crowds. The two-hour guided tour of the Colosseum I sign up for starts at 8 am and guarantees first entry into the site.
I imagine wandering through deserted passageways, the morning sun slanting pleasingly across the ancient ruins. The only sounds are the murmurs of the guide, a few tweeting birds, and perhaps the whispers of long-gone gladiators wafting up from the cells beneath the arena.
I mean, who starts sightseeing so early in the morning? For sure, I’ll have the place to myself along with a handful of other intrepid travelers willing to sign up for an early morning tour.
Finding the Tour
Promptly at 7:50 am, I arrive at the meeting point across the street from one of the entrances to the Colosseum and the Roman Forum. A small crowd of at least fifty people all proffering cell phones is my clue that I’m in the right place. I wait patiently for the beleaguered guide to check my phone, declare me valid, and press a small white sticker onto my chest. It’s now about 8:10 am, so obviously the tour doesn’t actually start at 8 am.
While waiting, I snap a photo of the Roman Forum across the street. It looks splendid in the early morning sun of one of the first really warm days I’ve experienced in Rome on my current trip in early May.
Waiting to Enter the Colosseum
Several minutes later, we are ushered across the road to the entrance gate and told that the ticket takers open at 8:30 and that we will be first! (said with enthusiasm, like it is a rare treat and not what we’ve signed up for).
Ticket takers? I’d neglected to read the fine print of the tour. The cost does not include the cost of entry into the archaeological site which includes the Forum and Palatine Hill in addition to the Colosseum.
A word of warning: Check what’s included in your tour and opt for a tour that includes the entry cost so the guide already has your tickets.
Lesson learned, I prepare to wait in line (at least I am close to the front) until the ticket booths open at 8:30–another fifteen minutes. After all, the guide has assured us that we’ll be first into the Colosseum. Isn’t that worth waiting a few extra minutes for?
Remember the tweeting birds, the silence of the ancient stones, the gladiator ghosts reminiscing about gladiator fights, the glorious isolation!
Buying a Ticket to the Colosseum
At precisely 8:40 am, the ticket takers open the two wickets and the first people in line eagerly step forward to buy their tickets. Yahoo! The line will surely go quickly and I’ll be inside the Colosseum communing with history and getting tons of inspiration for my next novel in no time flat.
8:50 am: The first people in line are still at the ticket booth.
9:00 am: The first people in line are still at the ticket booth. Oh wait! One of the groups has left and another couple has stepped forward. But at the other booth, the same four people are still talking with the attendant. What can they be talking about? What’s the holdup? Are they sharing recipes? Have they found a long-lost cousin? What gives?
The guide comes by and tells us to have our passports out and ready to show the ticket takers. What? I don’t have my passport with me although fortunately I do have my driver’s license. I ask the guide if that will do. Yes. Phew.
Another five minutes goes by and the first group of four finally leaves the booth. They are looking weary but relieved. I’d love to ask them what went down, but of course I don’t dare risk losing my place in line.
The next group steps forward. I take to counting to gauge how long they stay at the booth. Sixty seconds, another sixty, another sixty…five minutes and they’re done. Another ten minutes goes by during which time a few more groups get to the booth and then several minutes later step away, tickets in hand. Their per wait time is marginally decreasing.
Progress is being made.
My Turn Getting Tickets for the Colosseum
Finally, it’s my turn. I’m about to find out why it takes almost five minutes to process each person in a line that is now stretching back to the road and a considerable way along it. Did all these people book a group tour that required them to buy tickets?
I find out later that yes, they are all group tour people. The “regular” people who just want a ticket to the Colosseum without a tour buy their tickets at another booth. I’ll soon discover that many, many hundreds of them get inside the Colosseum long before we arrive.
So much for us being first!
Anyway, I’m at the booth.
“One for the Colosseum, per favore.”
“One?”
“Si.”
The attendant shakes her head as if to say what kind of a loser visits the Colosseum all by themselves first thing in the morning? I don’t share that my husband has elected to do the smart thing and spend a leisurely morning enjoying cappuccino and a walk about the chic ‘hood we’re staying in up near the Piazza del Popolo.
Instead, I push my driver’s license under the glass barrier and she places it in front of her keyboard. Then, with two stiff fingers, she laboriously starts to type. No wonder this whole process is taking forever! She has to physically enter the ID for every single person in line and she can’t touch type.
Oh dear.
After about two minutes (possibly a record), she hands me back my driver’s license, I pay with my credit card, and then I go stand with my fellow line waiters for the tour to begin.
It’s now 9:30 am.
Starting the Tour of the Colosseum–Almost
Promptly at 9:45 am, only 1 hour and 45 minutes past the tour start time, our guide leads those of us who have Colosseum tickets marked 9:15 am to another loooooong line. This is the line for all the Skip-the-Line group tours. As I said, it’s long.
Security Line at the Colosseum
We wait for another twenty minutes while the guide finally explains why progress that morning has been unusually slow. I’m at least heartened to find out that the current process is not normal. Apparently, there was a security incident (bomb scare?) a few days earlier, and since May 1 (it’s May 3rd), new procedures using a new security firm are being instituted.
Unfortunately, thorough testing is lacking so chaos reigns as the Colosseum ticket takers are obliged to enter everyone’s ID information into the computer and new security personnel are stationed at the entrances to the actual Colosseum to again check IDs and tickets.
Entering the Colosseum
We finally reach the front of the Skip-the-Line group tour line and enter the outer perimeter of the Colosseum.
It’s big. Really big—much bigger than it looks from the road with massive columns that soar way up into the blue Roman sky. Inside, the arches are truly impressive. Roman engineering is a marvel.
The guide starts her spiel while leading us to yet another line. She tells us that construction of the Colosseum began between 70 and 72 CE during the reign of the Emperor Vespasian. Before then, the area had been a lake on the grounds of Nero’s Domus Aurea (golden house).
Nero was not popular, to say the least, and so the decision to replace his private lake with a public amphitheater hosting thousands of locals was a great way to erase him from recent history.
The next line moves a little quicker. The security people check IDs and then we line up for the security screening. As usual, people walk through the scanner with their pockets bulging with Euros so back they must go while everyone waits. Sigh.
Not Everyone Loves Rome
The guide takes a break from her history lesson and cheerfully asks two people in the group where they are from. They reply that they are from Austria and that never again will they come to Rome because it is horrible and dirty. I am offended on behalf of both myself and the guide who smiles gamely but I can see is a trifle nonplussed. I mean, rude much? Apparently, the Austrians booked into a hotel that is less than stellar and that has colored their whole opinion of one of my favorite cities in the world.
I want to tell them that the place we’re staying in is absolutely wonderful—clean, spacious and in an excellent location. Here’s the link to our serviced apartment called Viam 6B. It truly is one of the best places we’ve stayed in Rome, ever.
Perhaps the Austrians decided to cheap out. Rome is a fabulous place to visit, but accommodations are not budget friendly. But then you can say that about just about every destination in Europe in recent years. The days of Europe on $5 a day (or even $100 or $200 a day) belong to the middle of the last century.
The guide decides not to ask the rest of the group about their experience. The mood is already a bit iffy considering we’ve all stood in lines for more than two hours for our first-into-the-Colosseum tour and haven’t actually started touring the Colosseum. We are in it, but only just.
The next line moves a little quicker. The security people check IDs and then we line up for the security screening. As usual, people walk through the scanner with their pockets bulging with coins so back they must go while everyone waits. Sigh.
Climbing to the Top of the Colosseum
And then, finally, we’re in and the tour officially begins. The guide talks to us for quite a while about the history of the Colosseum and then invites us to trudge up three flights of very steep steps to look out over the arena.
We emerge into a surging Sargasso Sea of visitors all packed cheek by jowl along the railing much like the spectators must have done during the Colosseum’s heyday. Everyone’s snapping selfies (something that wasn’t done during the days of the Roman empire) and I suppose communing with their inner gladiator.
We walk and walk and walk some more around the perimeter to a slightly less crowded stretch of railing, and get our one minute of time to snap pics of the ancient amphitheater.
Yes, it’s an impressive place for sure. In its day, up to 70,000 screaming Romans watched gladiatorial combat, executions, triumphal celebrations, and other spectacles. Today, approximately 16,000 people visit the Colosseum every single day. So although the place feels very crowded to me, it is positively empty compared to what it would have been back when the arena floor was covered in sand to better absorb the blood.
The guide talks about how wild beasts were starved for days before being let loose to gnaw on convicts, Christian martyrs, and anyone else the Emperor didn’t like. It’s the odd interesting fact such as this that you get from a guided tour.
Is A Guided Tour of the Rome Colosseum Worth the Wait?
So, should you opt for a guided tour of Rome’s most famous monument, check it out on your own, or forget about it and do something that doesn’t involve rubbing shoulders (literally) with thousands of strangers?
You may have guessed my opinion, which is Door #3. The entire tour/ordeal lasted about three hours, with the smallest number of minutes devoted to the tour and the largest to waiting for the tour.
Now, to be fair, the extra security measures ate up a goodly chunk of that three hours. I don’t know if these measures will become the norm going forward, in which case be prepared for waits, or if it’s temporary. You’ll have to check that out before you book.
I don’t blame the tour guide for all the waiting. She was doing her best in difficult circumstances and to her credit remained cheerful and upbeat throughout. I gave her a 5 Euro tip which appeared to surprise her, but hey, I figure she’d earned it.
Most people either didn’t tip or gave her 5 euros for their entire party which I thought was a bit cheap of them. Tips are not required, but I think it’s a good idea to give the guide a little extra considering they probably don’t get paid all that much, and it’s a challenging job at the best of times.
Touring the Colosseum On Your Own
What about the second option—see the Colosseum on your own? I think it may be marginally the better option because you don’t need to arrive at a location two hours ahead of when you get in. Instead, you can go straight to the ticket line and take your chances. The wait could be 10 minutes or two hours.
You could also buy your ticket online. You’ll still need to stand in line-ups, but not for quite so long. It’s difficult to say. We bought our “skip-the-line” tickets to Pompeii online and still had to wait in line about 20 minutes to exchange the online tickets for real tickets.
When To Visit the Colosseum
I think the moral of the story is that whatever way you slice it, sites like the Colosseum are really, really popular. You can try to beat the crowds, but I don’t think in any universe you’ll get around waiting in long lines.
My advice? Either visit the Colosseum during the off-season (November to March) when crowds are thinner, or forget about it and go see some of the city’s other awesome sites.
Tours of the Colosseum
If you do opt for a tour (and I’m just saying, buyer beware), then GetYourGuide has plenty of tours to choose from. I suggest choosing a tour that includes a ticket to the Colosseum and the Forum so you won’t need to line up to buy your ticket separately.
Also, you may be better off booking a tour in the late afternoon or opt for one of the evening tours instead of the morning. I felt like everyone fueled up on their hotel breakfast as early as possible and made a beeline for the Colosseum as their first stop of the day. Possibly later in the day may be less frantic.
Rome is chock-a-block full of amazing things to see and do. Here are some of my favorite sites in Rome. You’ll note that I don’t include big ticket items like the Vatican Museum, St. Peter’s, the Pantheon, and the Trevi Fountain, all of which are over-run with visitors.
These are just a sampling. There are also a ton of fabulous churches, some with Roman foundations.
My Favorite Activity in Rome
For me, my favorite Rome activity is walking around the various neighborhoods and avoiding the bottleneck areas around the Pantheon, Piazza Navona, St. Peter’s Square, and especially the Trevi Fountain. If you want to experience any of those places crowd-free, either swing by late at night or go for a very early morning stroll.
Here’s a shot taken on our way home after a scrumptious dinner in a restaurant on an atmospheric side street just steps from where we stayed at Viam 6B, which was not far from the Spanish Steps.
Accommodation Options in Rome
On my latest trip to Rome, I stayed in two places in Rome because I broke up the 2-week stay with a 5-day trip south to Naples and Paestum (read about my visit to the incomparable Naples Archaeological Museum).
For the first week, I stayed at Sant’Angelo Apartments in the Jewish Ghetto area of Rome, very close to a lot of Roman ruins in addition to the Capitoline Museum and the Piazza Venezia, site of the Victor Emmanuel monument. The apartment was very atmospheric and in an excellent location for exploring ancient Rome.
After touring the Naples area, I returned to Rome and stayed at Viam 6B, located between the Spanish Steps and the Piazza Popolo–a very upscale and chi-chi part of Rome with lots of designer stores. I preferred the location of the first place because the area was much less touristy and very medieval-feeling. However, the apartment at Viam 6B, was very modern and comfortable and included a beautiful outdoor terrace. It was also staffed which is nice for getting directions and ordering taxis.
But both places were great and I’d cheerfully stay in either on my next trip to Rome.
More Tour Options for Rome
Touring major sites such as the Colosseum and Vatican in Rome can get tiring. Why not take a break and opt for a more relaxing experience, such as this food tour of the lively Trastevere District (one of my favorite areas of Rome).
If you enjoy walking tours, I can recommend the tours offered by GuruWalks. Here are a few of the tours available in Rome.
Conclusion
Have you visited the Colosseum in Rome recently and not found it crowded? Do you have any tips for how to have an enjoyable visit? Please share in the comments below.
Posts About Rome
Here are some more posts about Rome, one of my very favorite cities in the world. I’ve visited eight times, and I’m not done yet!
Naples-bound? Then put the Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli aka the National Archaeological Museum of Naples high on your list of must-sees.
I’ve visited Pompeii twice before my most recent trip in 2024 and both times, I never managed to visit the Naples National Archaeological Museum. I came close when visiting with my family in 1994. We took a taxi from our hotel to the museum on our way to Pompeii only to find it closed.
In those pre-Google days, I’d neglected to read the guide book.
So on my latest trip I was determined to finally see the museum because it houses the vast majority of the art excavated from ancient Pompeii and Herculaneum and is considered one of the best archeological museums in the world.
See the National Archaeological Museum of Naples First!
Now that I’ve toured the National Archaeological Museum, I can without hesitation recommend that you go there first and then tour the ruins of Pompeii and/or Herculaneum. Both cities were buried in the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 CE, with excavations starting at far back as the 16th century.
As you’ll discover, Pompeii and Herculaneum are pretty much all ruins (quel surprise!) with the vast majority of the frescoes, mosaics, and statues long ago removed to the National Archaeological Museum.
Also, to be honest, wandering around Pompeii in the heat (I visited in late April and it was 30 degrees) with thousands of other visitors is not as comfortable an experience as strolling through room after room in the thoughtfully air conditioned National Archaeological Museum of Naples.
Overview of the National Archaeological Museum in Naples
In this post, I’ll share some of my favorite parts of the National Archaeological Museum in Naples (MANN) with the proviso that the museum is chock-a-block with amazing objects from antiquity.
I’ve rarely seen such a beautifully appointed museum where just about every item in it is worth a stop and a good long look.
You can easily visit the National Archaeological Museum in about two to three hours, depending on your energy level. You’ll also find a good cafe so you can take a break for refueling after touring a floor or two.
I did, and it made all the difference to my enjoyment of the museum.
Exterior of the National Archaeological Museum of Naples
When I toured MANN in late April, the crowds were light (unlike the next day in Pompeii!) and I waited only a few minutes at the entrance to buy tickets.
In busier times of the year, you may want to skip the ticket line by buying your tickets online from the museum’s website or through resellers such as Get Your Guide. Here’s an option that includes a guided tour:
The museum is organized according to type of art, so you’ll find rooms full of artifacts from Pompeii, including sculptures, mosaics, everyday objects, frescoes, and coins.
I saw most of what was on display in the sculpture, mosaic, everyday objects, and fresco areas. The quality of the work is awe-inspiring.
I suggest starting with the sculptures on the ground floor and then going to the top floor and working your way down. Doing so minimizes stair climbs (there’s an elevator to whisk you to the second floor) and conserves energy.
Sculptures
Start with sculptures because they are the first things you see when you enter the museum.
Wowza! They are stunning. I didn’t expect to see so many really large sculptures that looked like they were chiseled yesterday when in fact they are almost 2000 years old.
Here’s a selection of my favorites.
Hercules at Rest
Even big guys like Hercules can use some time off now and again. This massive sculpture of old Herc shows him leaning on his club. The sculpture is a Roman copy from the end of the 2nd/beginning of the 3rd Century CE of a Greek statue from the second half of the 4th century BCE. The subject of Hercules at rest is a very popular one. It shows him exhausted and pensive after having undertaken yet another labor for his cousin Eurytheus.
While the top half of Hercules sags with fatigue, his legs and feet still look dynamic, as if he was ready to spring into action (yet again) at any moment. The sheer size of the statue took my breath away–and it’s just one of many dozens of sculptures in MANN.
Hercules is part of the Farnese Collection, which was one of the first collections of artistic items from Greco-Roman antiquity.
It was started by Cardinal Alessandro Farnese (he later became Pope Paul III) back in the 16th century when collecting antiquities started being all the rage. Many of the works in MANN are from his collection.
Dog Sculptures
Large sculptures dominate the rooms, but they are by no means the only sculptures worth admiring at MANN. Here are three incredibly charming sculptures of Roman pooches. They look like they could come to life at any minute and run toward you, tails wagging.
Athena
Athena is the Goddess of Wisdom, along with warfare and handicrafts. The next time you pick up a knitting project, call on Athena for some extra guidance!
This sculpture (bigger than can possibly be portrayed in a photo) really shows off Athena’s robes in all their pleated glory.
Bust of a Woman
I don’t know who this is but I love her hair! At least I think the bust is of a woman’s head.
She looks a bit careworn, perhaps from having to cope with all those corkscrew locks every day. I also loved the black stone–an interesting break from the predominantly cream-colored marble used to create most of the other sculptures in MANN.
It’s hard to believe this sculpture dates back two millennia. Like most of the sculptures in MANN, the bust is in near perfect shape.
Petite Figure
This small statuette of a child is one of several equally adorable pieces. You can understand how the artists descended from the ones who sculpted these pieces came up with cupids!
The pieces look incredibly lifelike.
Everyday Objects
For me, a highlight of the MANN collection is the vast array of household and everyday objects that were salvaged from Pompeii during excavations that began in the late 18th century. Many of the objects were remarkably preserved–pots, glassware, small statues of household gods, combs, jewelry, cooking utensils–you name it.
The ancient Roman versions of pretty much everything humans need to cook, clean, and live in houses is on display.
It turns out that Romans aren’t all that different from us when it comes to the stuff they had in their houses. Take away our electronics and indoor plumbing, and we’re left with similar objects to those used by the average Pompeii resident: wine bottles, cooking pots, jewelry, cups, combs, chairs, and the like.
Here are some particularly fine examples of the household objects salvaged from the ruins of both Herculaneum and Pompeii.
Glass Cup
Can you believe this cup is 2000 years old? I was astonished to see it in the display, but yup, according to the description. the object is a “so-called millefiori ribbon small cup” from Pompeii in the 1st century CE.
It looks like something I could buy today in Venice.
Terracotta Frog
Is this little guy not the sweetest thing? It’s a statuette of a frog made from lead-glazed terracotta. I’m not sure what he was used for, but he sure caught my eye.
And he was just one of many, many such objects artfully displayed in room after well-lit room at MANN.
Deep Wine Cup
Look at the handiwork on this lead-glazed terracotta wine cup! It’s decorated with vegetable motifs and doves. Imagine drinking your wine out of that!
Cosmetic Jar
Ladies in Pompeii wore cosmetics just like women do today. But with plastic rather lacking, they stored their cosmetics in glass containers such as the one shown below.
Again, it looks brand new! The jar is described as free-blown glass from the 1st century CE.
Blue Glass Pitcher
And last but not least, I have to include this perfect example of a free-blown glass pitcher. Look at the color! There were also many, many more examples of pitchers blown in darker tones as well as clear glass.
I still can’t get over how they survived the blast, but I guess the ash buried things so thoroughly that they were preserved during the 1800 odd years they lay undisturbed. Remarkable!
Mosaics
The people of Pompeii and Herculaneum sure liked their mosaics. The floors of many houses, particularly those belonging to rich people (of which there were quite a few in Pompeii), were decorated with mosaics.
The mosaics in MANN give just a taste of just how opulent the homes must have been. The intricacy of the mosaics really is breathtaking.
Zootopia Mosaic
Here is a series of three mosaics, displayed in horizontal format, but shown here in three parts to better check out the imagery. Each of these mosaics includes a bevy of wild animals–from hippos to snakes to ducks to crocodiles. What a tour de force!
Dog Mosaic
The Romans definitely liked dogs! Here’s another depiction of a dog–this time in mosaic form. This image is very popular; it’s on various products sold in the gift shop, including bags, fridge magnets, and mouse pads.
I did buy a fridge magnet at the MANN gift shop, but of Sappho (see below) not the dog!
Sea Creatures
Can you imagine the imagination that concocted this delectable cornucopia of sea creatures? Wow! I particularly like the giant octopus in the middle. The mosaic also reminds me of the kinds of displays you’d see in 19th century natural history museums.
Frescoes
Paintings galore! You won’t believe how many paintings and frescoes you’ll find at MANN. This is because the Romans lavishly painted the inside walls of their villas and added painted embellishments just about anywhere there was a blank wall.
That so many of these paintings survived the eruption of Vesuvius is truly remarkable.
The Romans were unbelievably good painters. They’d mastered perspective and realism 1500 years before the Renaissance. So many of the paintings in MANN look like they could have been painted in the past few hundred years, particularly the gorgeous still lifes.
Here’s my best picks at MANN.
Isis & Snakes
Snakes are quite a recurring theme in the paintings in MANN. I’m not sure why that is; perhaps sea serpents were bigger and more threatening back in the day.
For whatever reason, you’ll see snakes depicted in mosaics and frescoes, and included as details on pots, urns, and other objects.
This fresco, which had once graced the wall of a villa in Pompeii, shows Isis hauling the boat with the body of Osiris along the Nile accompanied by snakes lurking below the surface. Cheerful.
Still Lifes
I couldn’t believe the quality and quantity of still life paintings at MANN. The realism truly is incredible. I have a soft spot for still lifes (see my post about the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam where some of my fave still lifes are exhibited).
I never knew that the ancient Romans were so adept at creating them.
Here are two still lifes–one of dead birds and mushrooms, and the other of a bunny with onions.
Erotica
Don’t miss the Secret Room if you’re inclined to view the museum’s extensive collection of erotic and sexually-themed objects and paintings salvaged from Pompeii and Herculaneum.
The room was finally re-opened in 2000 with a display that organizes objects according to their, ah, function and material.
It’s a bit of an eye-opener, but definitely interesting and proving there is nothing new under the sun!
Portraits
MANN includes several portraits of Romans in its collection. One of the most famous is the portrait of the baker Therentius Neo and his wife. Don’t they look contemporary?
Walking along the streets of Naples after visiting MANN brought us face to face with several of their descendants!
Here is another very famous portrait, this one of the poet Sappho, or at least that’s how it’s billed. The truth is that we don’t know if the portrait is actually of Sappho. It’s rather a “typological” representation of a young woman holding a stylus and a wax tablet–two things the real poet Sappho would likely have.
Anyway, it’s nice to think the portrait really is of Sappho which is probably why the image is everywhere in the gift shop, including on the fridge magnet I bought.
Could This be My Next Character?
And finally, I came across this lovely mosaic portrait of a young woman. According to the description, the mosaic dates to the Julian-Claudian era (27 BCE to 68 CE) in Pompeii. She’s likely pretty high born (check out the necklace).
I love how she looks directly out at the viewer. If I do decide to write a novel set in ancient Rome (and I am toying with some ideas), then this mosaic could be the image of my main character!
Tour Options in the Naples Area
Here are some Get Your Guide and Tiqets.com tickets and tours you may wish to consider while in the Naples area. I frequently purchase tours and tickets from Get Your Guide and Tiqets.com and have yet to be disappointed. The tours they include on their website are, in my experience, reasonably priced and interesting.
If you enjoy walking tours, then you can’t go wrong with GuruWalks. Check out their tours in Naples.
Where to Stay in Naples
Here are the two places I’ve stayed in Naples:
The Hotel Paradiso is located on Posillipo Hill and has a commanding view across the Bay of Naples to Mount Vesuvius. Relax on the terrace and enjoy! The hotel is comfortable and reasonably priced.
The Palazzorefici is a stylish apartment deep in the heart of Naples on a tiny side street. It’s close to a main street where you can easily get taxis to where you want to go in Naples.
Conclusion
In this post, I’ve just scratched the surface of the collection at the National Archaeological Museum of Naples. I recommend you make time in your itinerary to visit, preferably as I said earlier, before you visit Pompeii.
In fact, if I had to choose between visiting Pompeii and visiting the museum, I’d choose the museum. Yes, I know that the ruins are way more famous–and they are pretty impressive. However, they truly are mobbed with visitors.
And they are BIG! If you can, visit very early in the morning or late in the evening to avoid the heat. Alternatively, visit at a time of year when temperatures are less ferocious. There is virtually no shade anywhere.
Have you visited the National Archaeological Museum in Naples? What were some of your favorite objects? Share in the comments below.
Fancy taking a cooking class while you’re visiting Rome?
I highly recommend the experience. I’m a huge fan of taking cooking classes when I travel around interesting locales that have unique cuisines.
So far, I’ve taken a market class and a French sauces class (sweet and savory) in Paris, a tapas class in Madrid, and a pasta & tiramasu class in Rome.
In this post, I share my experience taking a Pizza, Gelato, and Suppli-Making class in Rome.
Choosing a Class in Rome
Most cooking classes available in Rome are variations on the pasta/tiramasu class I took on an earlier trip to Rome. Fortunately, after a bit of searching on GetYourGuide, I discovered a pizza and gelato-making class.
Perfect! I signed up on Tuesday for the class on Friday.
EnjoyCooking.com with Crown Tours
I’d taken the pasta/tiramisu class with InRome Cooking, which I highly recommend. But this time, I decided to go with EnjoyCooking.com for the sake of variety and having a new company to write about on Artsy Traveler.
EnjoyCooking.com partners with Crown Tours to offer cooking classes in a lovely, brick-arched space next door to their tour office and across the street from the Colosseum.
The day before the class, I got a WhatsApp call from the company. The family that had signed up to take the class at the same time as me had canceled, leaving me on my own.
Did I want to postpone the class to the evening slot? I could not because in the evening, we had the opening of my husband Gregg Simpson’s art exhibition at Il Leone Galleria in Rome. I was assured that they were happy to still offer the class at the 10 am time slot even if I was on my own.
Lucky me!
Arrival at EnjoyCooking.com
I arrived on Friday morning and was ushered into the cooking space. There was room for eight people in a class so it was much more intimate than the class I took at InRome Cooking which hosted twelve people.
To my delight, there was one other woman in the class. Over the course of the next three hours, we bonded and had an awesome time.
Chef Marco!
But the biggest surprise was meeting the chef. In walked Marco–the same chef who had taught the pasta/tiramisu class at InRome Cooking.
I couldn’t believe it! I told him I’d taken his class and showed him the blog post. He was so excited!
Back again with Chef Marco, this time at EnjoyCooking.com
So that was a great way to kick off the morning.
Over the next three hours, Chef Marco led my new friend and me in a lively, hands on and informative class. I’m always amazed at how much I learn about cooking technique in these classes.
Gelato Making
We started with gelato. I discovered to my relief that the ice cream maker I’d purchased several years earlier could be dragged out, dusted off, and used to make gelato. Who knew?
We heated several pints of fresh milk in a pot over an electric hot plate. Marco informed us that the milk should be as fresh as possible–so fresh that it would spoil after three days.
Of course, getting milk that fresh is pretty much impossible in North America unless you live on a farm, which I don’t. But the next best thing is high quality organic milk.
We heated the milk and whisked in sugar followed by ten egg yolks and grated lemon zest to make limone gelato. The lemons had come from the Amalfi coast and smelled divine.
After mixing the gelato, we poured it into the commercial gelato maker that would produce perfect gelato within thirty minutes.
What an impressive looking machine!
Marco informed us that we would also make raspberry sorbetto to go along with the limone gelato. Sorbetto is even faster and easier to make than gelato.
We mixed water with raspberries and once the gelato was made, we poured it into the gelato-maker (after the limone gelato was done, of course).
Here’s a video of the raspberry gelato being extruded from the gelato maker–an exceedingly beautiful and satisfying sight.
Suppli Making
I had never heard of suppli–a Roman street food that is widely available all over the city.
Marco showed us how to take rice cooked in tomatoes and form it around fresh cubes of mozzarella cheese, then bread and deep fry it. The result was a log-shaped rectangle that when still hot and pulled apart stretched the warm mozzarella cheese.
It was yummy but a bit rich for me at only 11 am!
But when in Rome!
Pizza Making
The main event of the cooking class was making pizza the proper way–like they make piazza in Napoli where Marco was from.
I learned that the pizza dough should be rested for two hours after mixing and then rested in the refrigerator for up to three days.
That was something new to me. I’d always let my piazza dough rise for about an hour, if that, and then cooked it. Apparently, doing so results in dough that is still fermenting when it enters your tummy. Not good!
Mixing the Pizza Dough
We mixed the dough and kneaded it for about six minutes–a very satisfying process. The dough was light and very elastic.
It was then put away to rest and presumably used for a class the next day. Marco then produced dough that had already been rested and risen for a day, and we proceeded to learn how to shape the dough into a pizza.
Handling the soft, pliant dough was such a pleasure. We didn’t learn how to throw it in the air, but we did learn a few tricks I can apply back home.
Baking the Pizza
Another tip I learned was to slather on the tomato sauce first, bake the pizza for about six minutes in a home oven (much less in a high temperature commercial oven) and then add the toppings and cook for another three to four minutes.
Who knew? I also learned that certain toppings such as prosciutto should not be cooked, but added after the pizza came out of the oven.
For best results, I was told that I should get myself a pizza stone so that’s going on my Christmas list for next year!
Topping the Pizza
After baking the pizza with the sauce, we were offered a wide array of toppings to dress our pizza. My companion chose mozzarella cheese and fresh sausage.
I chose anchovies, mushrooms, olives, and of course mozzarella cheese. Here we are making our pizzas in front of the scrumptious assortment of toppings.
Finishing the Pizzas
The pizzas went back in the oven and voila! Within minutes they were being served to us.
The first bites were wonderful–the crust slightly charred and very puffed up (the sign of a good pizza) and the toppings fresh. I managed to get through three pieces before having to give up.
Marco thoughtfully put the remainder in a pizza box for me to carry home to Gregg.
After pizza, we were served the gelato we’d made earlier. OMG!
The limone gelato, in particular, was truly to die for. I don’t think I’ve ever tasted a fresher and more delightful-tasking gelato. It puts the run-of-the-mill gelatos found in gelato stores to shame. As Marco said, it’s all about using the freshest ingredients.
The class ended with me receiving my certificate and posing for a picture with Marco. I was thoroughly satisfied with my second Rome cooking experience in EnjoyCooking.com and Crown Tours.
A smile was on my face as I threaded my way through the crowds of tourists streaming past the Colosseum and Forum on my way back to our comfy little apartment in the Jewish Ghetto.
Thank you, EnjoyCooking.com and Marco for an excellent experience.
EnjoyCooking.com Class
Here’s a link to the cooking class I took through Crown Tours. As I’ve mentioned often on Artsy Traveler, I’m a very big fan of GetYourGuide.
What is it about Siena that makes an artsy traveler swoon? Mention Siena to anyone who has traveled there and immediately they’ll clasp their hands to their hearts and look heavenward while intoning their undying love for this gem of a medieval city.
Every time I visit Siena (and I’ve been five times), I am inundated with a profound sense of living history. Of course, I could say that about many other places in Europe, but there’s something about Siena that makes it extra special.
Why is Siena so Special?
One reason why Siena is so special is that the modern world intrudes so discreetly that it’s easy to believe, especially at night, that you’ve been transported seven hundred years into the past. The stone and brick walls of ancient buildings soar into the deep blue sky either side of stone-paved streets. Everywhere you look are bricked archways, scarred and ancient wooden doors, iron rings for tethering horses, and shadowed alleyways. Everywhere the ancient past lives and breathes.
Walking Into the Campo
When I walk into the Campo—surely, the most beautiful public space in the world—I feel my throat constrict with emotion. I am in Siena! I am walking where my Sofia (from The Towers of Tuscany) walked, where my Lena grew rich and regretful (The Merchant of Siena – to be published) and where hundreds of years of Sienese people have lived and died, fought, prayed, loved, and hated.
On these bricks in the Campo, laid down even before the Black Death, people in heavy gowns walked and talked. They argued and haggled in business, they gazed at each other with love, they snubbed an enemy and clasped hands with a friend. This space—this Campo—has teemed with life for centuries, its shape and beauty unchanged through wars and famines and plagues and the chain stores of the 21st century.
Views Over the Campo
The view across the Campo to the Torre Mangia and Palazzo Pubblico from the cafés lining the high side of the Campo has not changed appreciably since the buildings were new.
Lorenzetti strode across these bricks on his way to paint the Allegory of Good and Bad Government in the Palazzo Pubblico. From one of the windows in a palazzo above where I sit sipping my Aperol Spritz, my Lena watched her lover Paolo enter the Campo with an army of mercenaries. My Sofia first entered the Campo with Francesco from the street to the left of the Torre Mangia and was instantly captivated.
Siena & Visitors
Siena is still a pulsing living city with more locals than tourists, although there are certainly plenty of tourists. But the crowds are manageable and easy to sidestep. One minute, I’m on a street streaming with people, occasionally standing aside to let a car go past. The next minute, I turn into a small side street and am alone with the ghosts and my imagination.
At night, Siena belongs to the locals, particularly young people. The Campo is filled with groups of teens–boys in one tight knot, girls in another. In the side streets, students spill out from the bars, glasses of wine in hand and voices at full volume. In the wee hours, a cadre of loud young men pass under our window, singing with drunken abandon. It’s more endearing than annoying.
Reliving my Novels in Siena
Everywhere I walk in Siena, I think about scenes in the two novels I’ve set there. Is this the street Lena ran down before being captured by mercenaries in The Merchant of Siena? In this piazza, did Sofia in The Towers of Tuscany watch a girl be whipped for dressing like a boy? I’ve spent so many months, years even, seeing these streets in my mind as I write that to walk in them now feels like I’m coming home.
Arriving in Siena
I booked a room at the I Merli di Ada which is inside the walls of Siena. Usually, we avoid places inside medieval towns because we know from experience that driving through narrow medieval streets mobbed with people is a recipe for disaster. But we wanted to be close to the action in Siena and so decided to take the risk.
The hotel sent instructions about parking. We were to enter Siena from the Porta Romana, drive to a little piazza near the hotel, drop off our luggage, then hand our keys to a valet parking attendant. The cost of valet parking is an exorbitant 30 euros per day, but I don’t care. The benefits of staying within Siena’s walls and having someone else park the car far outweigh the cost.
Driving Into Siena
With trepidation, we follow the GPS directions to drive through the Porta Romana past a phalanx of official-looking people in uniform who don’t stop us. I know we’re being electronically monitored. If we stay too long in Siena, we’ll be subject to a hefty fine. Tourists are allowed a small amount of time to drive to their accommodation and drop off their bags. They then must skedaddle, fast (or in our case, give the keys to a valet who does the skedaddling for us).
The GPS directs us along a street with pedestrians who stand aside to let us pass. Gregg drives very, very slowly. We turn left as directed up a side street and then sharp left again. The hotel’s directions tell us there will be a little piazza to our right where we can stop to unload our luggage. Lo and behold, there it is! We pull in and breathe a sigh of relief. I hop out and walk a few paces down the street to find our hotel.
Entrance to I Merli de Ada on a side street in Siena
Phew! That was one of the easier entries into a medieval town we’ve experienced. With great gratitude, Gregg hands the keys to the valet who appears moments later to smilingly move our car to God knows where and I don’t care! We’re informed that we’ll see the car again on Sunday. Spoiler alert – we do.
I Merli di Ada
The I Merli di Ada hotel is lovely. The entrance way is brick-arched and reeking with history. The tiny elevator that climbs very slowly from the lobby to the third floor is the only modern intrusion. We put our luggage into the elevator and climb the winding marble staircase. How many feet have climbed here? I don’t know how old the current building is, but I can say with certainty that its foundations are probably medieval, if not older.
Lobby of the I Merli di Ada in Siena
Our room on the third floor is high-ceilinged, the white-painted beams reminding us of former times. I can’t help wondering how many people have lived and breathed in this space over the centuries. The window looks out over the street and the building opposite—the same red brick as our building with arched windows, most shuttered.
First Walks into Siena
We walk out into Siena with an agenda—find a laundromat, eat a late lunch, buy Gregg some art materials, and, most importantly, drink in our first encounter in six years with my favorite city in Europe.
Thanks to Google, I find a laundromat just down the street, so we head there first. The directions are thoughtfully posted in both Italian and English. Within minutes, we’ve loaded our laundry into one of the machines, inserted eight euros, and pressed the start button. We leave to find lunch.
Lunch in the Campo
Minutes later, we are entering the Campo and my knees go weak. I want to run right out into the middle and twirl. I resist (although later I do a spot of twirling under the cover of darkness–see later in this post). We choose one of the ubertouristy cafés on the edge of the Campo and settle in.
Even Rick Steves, who usually eschews places in ‘high rent’ areas like the Campo, has written in his Siena guidebook that camping at one of the cafés on the Campo is a must-do. Hang the cost.
As it is, the cost is perfectly reasonable, the service efficient and good-humored, and the food really delicious. We split an order of bruschetta along with a large salad replete with anchovies, hard-boiled eggs, very fresh greens, and tomatoes.
The sun beats down pleasantly warm as we gaze out at the Palazzo Pubblico and the Campo. I am truly in heaven.
Errands in Siena
After our late lunch, we hightail it back to the laundromat, put the clothes in the dryer (another five euros), then go in search of art materials. We find them at a little shop on the other side of the Campo. Gregg buys a pad of paper and some paints and looks forward to many happy hours of art creating to come.
We pick up a few groceries so we don’t have to buy the hotel breakfast in the morning, then huff up the three flights of stairs to our room for a bit of quiet time before dinner.
Dinner in Siena
In the evening, we venture out to enjoy an excellent dinner at a well-reviewed osteria not far from the hotel. The service is excellent and the ambiance cozy and warm in a brick-vaulted room that’s probably been in use for centuries.
So far as I can hear, we’re the only English speakers. Most of the other diners are Europeans. We start with fried cheese accompanied by fresh pear sauce recommended by the server and then Gregg has a tasty pasta with bacon and I have thinly sliced Florentine steak. We share a green salad. The food is fresh, simply prepared, and absolutely delicious. With wine, the bill is about 60 euros—perhaps not a bargain, but certainly not over-priced considering the quality of the food, the service, and the ambiance.
Evening Stroll in Siena
After dinner, we stroll to the Campo where I do indeed twirl across the 14th-century pavement and snap endless shots of the floodlit Palazzo Pubblico in front of a deep azure sky. We end the evening with a walk along narrow medieval streets and a final stop at a gelateria for a small cup with two flavors—very dark chocolate with amaretto for me; stracciatella and fragola (strawberry) for Gregg.
A Perfect Full Day in Siena
The next day, I’m up early, excited to begin my only full day in Siena. I start with a caffè Americano at a lovely little café just down the street from our hotel. The place is deserted and I spend a productive hour working on The Merchant of Siena. Set in the second half of the 14th century—a time of great strife and hardship for Siena—the novel tells the story of a woman who is determined to control her own destiny in a world where all the odds are stacked against her.
April Weather
The weather has turned cloudy and chilly. By the time I emerge from the café, the rain has started in earnest, and I wish I’d brought some warmer clothes. I mistakenly thought that Italy in April would be warm. It can be, for sure, but it also can be chilly and wet. There’s a reason why the Tuscan countryside is so green.
I return to the hotel and together, Gregg and I set out to tour the Palazzo Pubblico. I’m anxious to see an exhibition of costumes from the Palio, and of course to revisit my favorite Lorenzetti frescoes.
Palazzo Pubblico
The Palazzo Pubblico is most certainly the most photographed building in all of Siena. I’ve taken dozens of photos myself in as many lights as possible—from brilliant sunshine to moonlit evening. The Palazzo Pubblico with its accompanying tower (the Torre Mangia) was built between 1297 and 1310 and is considered the world’s most perfect example of civic Gothic architecture. The Signoria and the Podestà resided in the Palazzo Publicco and still today, the building is a symbol of political power.
Alas, I discover while buying our tickets that the Lorenzetti frescoes are being renovated. Oh well. I’ve seen them a few times already, and there is still plenty to see between the public rooms and the current exhibition of Palio costumes.
Exhibition of Palio Costumes
We first head downstairs for the costume exhibition that features examples of the medieval-inspired costumes worn by participants in the Palio. I’m a sucker for a good costume exhibit and this one certainly doesn’t disappoint. The only thing lacking are women’s costumes since the focus is on how the riders in the Palio dressed and all of them are for men (or at least I presume so).
Public Rooms in the Palazzo Pubblico
Upstairs in the main part of the Palazzo Pubblico are the stunning reception rooms. With the room containing the Lorenzetti frescoes of Good and Bad Government off limits, the main highlight is the Sala del Mappamondo (the World Map Room), which was once the headquarters of the Council of the Republic.
Martini Fresco
I stand in the middle of the large room and stare at the Maesta by Simone Martini. In The Towers of Tuscany, Sofia stands exactly where I stand to look at the Maesta. Although obviously restored, the 2024 version probably doesn’t hold a candle to the brilliantly colored original that Sofia would have seen.
Fresco of the Maesta by Simone Martini in the Palazzo Pubblico in Siena
I spin around to see Martini’s other famous masterwork–the fresco of Guidoriccio da Fogliano. Mounted on his charger, the captain of the Sienese army rides across the territory he has just conquered (Montemassi, in 1328). Recently, art historians have disputed the attribution of this work to Martini, claiming that it was either a slightly later work or even a 16th-century fake. Part of what sparked the debate was the 1980 discovery of a slightly older scarred fresco lower on the wall. This earlier painting depicts two figures standing in front of a wooden-fenced castle. Some claim this is the fresco Martini painted, while those who support the authenticity of the Guidoriccio attribute this older fresco to Duccio, Pietro Lorenzetti, or Memmo di Filippuccio.
Fresco attributed to Lorenzetti in Siena’s Palazzo Pubblico
Who knows! It’s awesome whoever painted it.
Siena Cathedral
The sun bursts forth after our visit to the Palazzo Pubblico. Gregg heads back to the hotel and I set off to tour Siena Cathedral and the adjoining museums. Here’s where you’ll find the crowds in Siena! The cathedral is mobbed with tour groups, but it’s definitely worth a look-see.
Don’t miss the very cool 15th century paintings in the Piccolomini library. You have to line up to get in, but entrance is included in your ticket to the cathedral.
Interior of the Piccolomini Library in Siena Cathedral
If you visit Siena Cathedral, buy a ticket that includes all of the various components, even if you don’t visit them all. I made the mistake of only buying a ticket for Siena Cathedral and then discovering later that I couldn’t access the Museo Opera where the fabulous Maesta by Duccio is housed (it has a cameo appearance in The Towers of Tuscany). By the time I figured out that I didn’t have the right ticket, I couldn’t summon the energy to trudge all the way back to the side of the cathedral to line up to buy the correct ticket. Fortunately, I’ve seen the Duccio twice before!
I return “home” for an hour’s rest before setting off for the other side of Siena where we find a great place for dinner prior to attending a concert.
Italian Opera in Siena
When we’d arrived at I Merli di Ada, I’d picked up a brochure about opera concerts held three times a week in Siena. The price is reasonable and tickets are available. We decide to check it out. The Italian Opera in Siena concert turns out to be very entertaining. A soprano accompanied by a pianist sings many opera favorites by Puccini, Verdi, and Bizet.
Afterwards, we float out on an operatic high and stroll the thirty minutes back to our hotel through the moonlit streets. Siena at night goes beyond magical to mesmerizing. Most of the time, we are alone, the only sounds our footsteps on the cobblestones and the muted clanking of iron rings in the wind.
Out in the Campo for the last time, I shoot a 360-degree video of one of my favorite places in the world!
Siena will forever hold a special place in my artsy traveler heart!
Where to Stay in Siena
Here are more options in addition to the highly recommended I Merli di Ada:
Tour Options In and Around Siena
On one trip to Siena several years ago, I joined a small group tour of wineries in Montalcino and Montepulciano that also included an amazing lunch. If you’re in Siena for a few days and want to spend one of them touring the wine regions, then check out some of the many tours available. You could also choose a cooking class (I always enjoy a good cooking class!), or guided tours of some of Siena’s sites. As I’ve mentioned many times on Artsy Traveler, I’m a huge fan of Get Your Guide tours. Without exception, every tour I’ve taken has been excellent value. Full disclosure – if you click on any of the tours below and purchase a tour (any tour) from Get Your Guide, I receive a small commission. Thank you.
Have you visited Siena? Share your tips for an awesome experience with other artsy travelers in the comments below. And here are more posts about Italy:
