Can Rome really be done in a day? I didn’t plan to find out, but after missing my flight and getting stranded in Italy’s capital, I had no choice but to make the most of 24 unplanned hours.
With no itinerary, no hotel booked, and it being my first time in Rome, I turned a travel disaster into a full-throttle adventure.
From scrambling to find a last-minute hostel to walking straight to the Colosseum, navigating ancient ruins, tossing a coin at the Trevi Fountain, and even stepping into Vatican City, this is how I experienced Rome in a single, unforgettable day.
After leaving a short vacation where I met up with a friend, I was supposed to fly from Oslo via Rome. Unfortunately, a delay left me stranded in Italy’s capital.
Fortunately, I was able to reschedule a flight; however, it wouldn’t be until the following day. So, with no itinerary and no place to stay, I had to make the most of it on my first time in Rome.
First on the Agenda
First things first, I needed a place to stay, so I pulled up Google Maps, searched for nearby hostels, and checked room prices for ‘today’… And there weren’t many options. Thankfully, I found one, grabbed a taxi, and I was off. When I arrived at the hostel, the receptionist asked me if I had a reservation, which I didn’t, and told me it was unlikely they had a room.
When I told them Booking.com through Google maps said there was, he looked a little surprised, played around with his computer and told me I must be the luckiest man in Rome as they had one spare bed, and that practically every room in Rome was already booked for that night.
Great, so I got my room, and I was given a map. All that was left was to change out of the clothes I had prepared for my arrival in Oslo, get some food, and see what Rome had to offer, with absolutely no plan other than seeing what was closest to me at the time.
Heading to the Colosseum
Lucky for me, my hostel wasn’t far from the Colosseum, so under the scorching heat of the Italian summer, I booked straight there.
Having no plans to actually be in Rome, seeing the Colosseum felt like a dream, particularly because my family has a competitive spirit when it comes to travelling, so snapping a selfie at the Colosseum and getting my family’s surprised and annoyed reaction that one of the dominoes they held over me for years had now fallen.
But it wasn’t enough just to see it. I had to get inside, so I made my way to the ticket office, only to be stopped by someone who said all the tickets were sold out. Heartbreaking… but, like a true gladiator, I didn’t give up.
When I was told that there were no tickets left, I noticed how he specified that there were no “tours” left. So I asked him, “What if I don’t want a tour? I just want to go inside to say I’ve been there.”
He looked at me for a second and asked me to follow him. We got talking about where I was from and why I was in Rome, and when he heard I was in Rome for just one day, he wished me the best of luck with my ticket.
We arrived at a separate ticket office a short walk away from the Colosseum, and my guide asked the ticket office if they had any more tickets. He confirmed yet again, “all tours are sold out,” but my guide pleaded my case for a solo entry ticket, no tour guides.
The angles of Rome must have been on my shoulder that day, just like at the hostel, he fiddled on his keyboard, looked at me, and said, “I can do it, but it’ll cost €50.” Without hesitation, I took it, because I had no idea when/if I’d ever be back in Rome, so for me, this was potentially a once-in-a-lifetime deal.
My guide pointed me in the direction of where I needed to go, I thanked him profusely, and within a couple of minutes, I had fulfilled one of my travelling dreams. I explored everything I could as fast as possible, as I still had so much more to do, snapped a selfie inside, and made my way out.
After the Colosseum
Time was of the essence; at this stage, it was already mid-afternoon, and I actually had no idea how many things there were that I wanted to see. I was just ticking them off as I went.
From the Colosseum, I just walked in the direction of anything that looked old. L’Arco di Costantino, la Via Sacra. The Arco di Tito, the Foro Romano, I didn’t even know what they were or their significance; I just needed to feast my eyes on them to mark them off the list.
Eventually, I needed to actively choose my next spot, so it was off to the Pantheon, but wait, what’s this building? I have no idea, just go inside. Turns out it was the Monumento a Vittorio Emanuele II.
I was going at such a breakneck pace that I probably walked past some of the most significant buildings in human history without blinking an eye. From the Monumento a Vittorio Emanuele II, I made it to the Pantheon. There was a queue, but I made it inside, got scolded by a 4-foot security guard for wearing a hat, and then made it to the Trevi Fountain.
At this point, I was starving, exhausted, sunburned and ready to call it a day. However, Rome had one last prize to offer that I couldn’t miss. Within Rome is an entire country in and of itself, meaning that I could not only mark Italy off the list of countries I had been to, but another country as well.
The Vatican City
Vatican City is the world’s smallest independent sovereign state, at just 0.49 square kilometres, and serves as the administrative centre of the Catholic Church. It was created by the 2929 Lateran Treaty to ensure the Papacy’s independence from Italy.
Despite the fact that there was little to nothing to do at the Vatican other than shout out for the Pope and hope he responds, you simply can’t go to Rome and not step foot on its grounds just to say you’ve left Italy and entered an entirely new country.
As the sun began its descent toward the horizon, I grabbed a taxi and told the driver to drop me off as close to the Vatican as he could. And what was it that greeted me upon my arrival?…… Nothing really.
While there are a number of things you can do, as I said, for me, it isn’t so much about what’s there, and it’s more about the historic significance of its grounds. Now was the perfect time to video call my family, to gloat about how I had marked the Vatican off my list, to which, of course, they replied, “big deal,” but you could hear the pain in their voices.
At this point, I was out of time, so I headed back to my hostel, showered, and headed out for some food, and what better to eat in Italy than a Pizza while watching the world go by, and even though (at the time) I didn’t speak any Italian, I understood enough that when my waited winked and nudged at me for facing the street while I ate, he knew it was to check out the Italian girls walking by.
Memories In Motion
So while Rome may not have been built in a day, it certainly can be seen in one. While you won’t get to see everything, there’s more than enough time in an afternoon to find accommodation, food, and see most of the sights, and if you’re lucky like me, you don’t even have to pre-book any tickets. While I don’t recommend it, it just goes to show how you can turn a disaster into an unforgettable experience, and I don’t intend to forget my one day in Rome anytime soon.
