Rome on €37/Day: Hostels, Colosseum and Vatican

ITEM	COST (2P)	NOTES
Stay	€187.40	5 nights in a hostel. €117.40 + €70 city tax. €18.74/night per person
Transit	€11.90	Metro and public buses
Food	€74.00	€7.40/day per person. Shopped at Lidl. Cooked in the hostel
Sights	€96.00	Per person: €18 – Colosseum (+Roman Forum) €5 – Pantheon €25 – Vatican Museums (Sistine Chapel)
TOTAL	€369.30	5 days at €36.93/day per person

• Hostel Review: Zidan Guest House. 4/5. Surprisingly comfy and very peaceful. Good location – close to the center but not in a busy area. Quite a social atmosphere. Kitchen is okay, but they close it for the night.

Tips

• Go Off-Season: Do yourself a favor and go off-season. Much better experience. February was perfect. Cheaper accommodation, and the city is not so crowded.
• Book in Advance: Colosseum and the Vatican Museums as main highlights need to be booked well in advance. In high season as much as 30-60 days in advance. Off-season gives you a bit of leeway and 2-3 weeks prior can be enough. Pantheon tickets can be bought on the same day, but booking in advance will save you queueing up.
• From EU and Under 25?: Lucky you, all state run sights will cost you only €2. That includes Colosseum, Pantheon and Castel Sant’Angelo. The Vatican Museums don’t qualify for this discount due to their location in Vatican – not in Italy and technically outside of the EU.
• Free Entry Day: First Sunday of every month for sights run by the Italian state (Colosseum, Pantheon, Castel Sant’Angelo). Tickets cannot be booked, you have to queue for them, and it can get very crowded. The Vatican Museums are free on the last Sunday of the month – again, very crowded and opening hours are reduced. If you want to save €25, arrive very early to queue up, probably 7am.
• Tourist Tax: A significant add-on on top of budget stays. €4-€10 a night depending on the type of accommodation and location.
• Pizza: Some local spots can get as cheap as €5 per pizza.

Travel Further

• Buses Within Italy: Very cheap due to fierce competition between Itabus and FlixBus. I took Itabus on Rome-Naples route for €5.
• Flights: If you’re flexible with your travel dates – as low as €10-€15 with Ryanair and Wizz Air from and to France, the UK, Greece, Spain, Poland, Germany, and many other European destinations.