Our main recommendation is to follow the well known saying: "When in Rome do as the Romans do." Have dinner at a trattoria, and walk around eating a gelato.
Except for the classic Italian dishes (spaghetti alla carbonara, bucatini all'amatriciana, etc.) you should try also some of the Roman cuisine (cucina romana).
We suggest 2-3 quick features that allow you to avoid sure tourist traps:
Menu is only in English.
Owners/waiters are standing outside, saying "hello" and inviting you to sit at their restaurant.
The menu offers spaghetti bolognese, spaghetti napoletana, fettucini alfredo, or variations of such nonsense.
It perfectly matches the stereotype of Italian culture from abroad.
In general, bringing a local with you is the safest bet against tourist traps.
There are some good restaurants in random order close to the conference venue:
Trattoria Morgana: A very good typical Roman trattoria, with a large selection
Vecchia Roma: Also a good trattoria, slightly heavier
I buoni amici: A Sardinian restaurant, a good choice if you prefer seafood.
Trattoria Monti: A very good trattoria, more upscale.
A sample of other suggested restaurants:
Palazzo del Freddo (aka Fassi): probably the oldest gelato in Rome.
Il Capriccio di Carla: a nice ice cream shop which is close to Santa Maria Maggiore (and thus to the conference venue)
Regoli: perfect for small sweets on the go. Try maritozzi!
Panna & Co: among the best gelatos in Rome, in Testaccio
Coffee shops (called bar in Italy) are available in every square. Italians usually drink coffee on foot at the bar. They have a huge number of ways of having their coffee, but the main types of coffee are:
Caffè (or caffè espresso): standard espresso, usually less quantity than in other countries
Caffè lungo: like caffè espresso, but slightly larger quantity, similar to the espresso outside Italy
Caffè macchiato (literally, spotted coffee): caffè espresso with a drop of milk
Cappuccino
Nice places for caffè close to the conference venue:
Ciamei, also good to buy coffee powder for moka to bring back home
PiazzaDante, also good for drinks and aperitivo
Callimaco, same as PiazzaDante, but smaller and "less fancy"
Panella, a very good bakery that also serves coffee
IMPORTANT: It is forbidden to have cappuccino after 1 pm. At most, you can ask for a caffè macchiato.
If you'd like to explore Rome, we suggest the following places for a nice aperitivo:
Marziali 1922, in Piazza Caprera (near LUISS University)
Fáfiuché, in Monti (near the Colosseum)
Il Goccetto, near Campo de' Fiori
L'Angolo DiVino, near Campo de' Fiori
La Terrazza Esselunga, near Piazza di Spagna
Enoteca Palombi, in Testaccio
La Punta Expendio de Agave, in Trastevere
If you just want a drink close-ish to the conference venue we recommend:
Tipping is generally not required. Usually you will leave a couple of euros at dinner for small parties, more (5-10 EUR) for larger groups of people. For taxi you can round up the change.
In Rome, public transportation mainly relies on subway/metro, trams and bus lines. We also have a few (reliable) regional trains which cut through the city, with this being mainly relevant to get from the airport to the city centre. In general, you can mostly trust what Google Maps will tell you in terms of ETA and ways to reach a specific place through public transport: it is reliable since it uses an official stream of real-time data tracking trams and buses. That said, some additional information about the subway:
Rome has three subway lines, operated by ATAC: Lines A, B/B1 and C. Services generally begin at around 05:30 every day. From Sunday to Thursday, the last trains depart from the terminal stations at approximately 23:30. On Friday and Saturday nights, service is extended until approximately 01:30.
Metro A runs between Battistini (north-west Rome) and Anagnina (south-east Rome). It serves key destinations including the Vatican area (Ottaviano), the historic centre (Spagna and Barberini), Termini station, San Giovanni and Cinecittà.
Metro B has a southern terminus at Laurentina and splits into two northern branches after Bologna station:
Line B continues to Rebibbia via Tiburtina.
Line B1 branches towards Jonio, serving stations including Sant’Agnese/Annibaliano, Libia and Conca d’Oro.
The shared section of Lines B and B1 serves EUR, Basilica San Paolo, Ostiense/Piramide, Circo Massimo, Colosseo and Termini. You can interchange with Metro A at Termini.
Metro C runs between Pantano and Colosseo/Fori Imperiali, serving the eastern districts of Rome, the Casilina corridor, Pigneto, San Giovanni and Porta Metronia. You can interchange with Metro A at San Giovanni and with Metro B at the new subway station Colosseo/Fori Imperiali.
Typical waiting times vary throughout the day. As a rough guide, consider about 3–4 minutes on Line A, 5 minutes on Line B, 13 minutes on the B1 branch, and 9 minutes on Line C. As stressed above, always double check with Google Maps, since there may be planned construction works or other issues/anomalies.
In Italy, **unfortunately**, there is no UberX service, so taking rides is extremely expensive since you have to go through official taxi services (which are a monopoly) and Uber is only available through its premium Uber Black service. In general, use taxis only as a last resort: for example, if you want to get from Fiumicino Airport to the city centre, you can just take the Leonardo Express train and get to Termini station in half an hour, and from there take the subway (Termini is 1/2 stops away from the conference venue with Metro A) if you are staying close to the conference venue. If you need to get a taxi and you need to get reimbursed/pay with credit card, ask for the possibility of getting a receipt and/or pay with credit card before starting the ride.
In Rome, we have three Electric Scooter/Bike Sharing services: Lime, Bird and Dott. They are extremely convenient to move around and cover the deficiencies of our public transportation system, but be aware that you need an helmet to use them, and it is not provided by the sharing services. If you do not have an helmet, you can get fined, especially in the city centre, which is heavily controlled by the local police. Also, if you decide to use them, some of these services (e.g. Dott) provide some passes that allow you to pay in advance instead of paying as you go. This is normally much more convenient than the pay as you go option, which can be extremely expensive.
If you want to do some sightseeing in Rome, get ready to walk a lot. You can find plenty of information online. We recommend to walk around the neighborhoods we show below. Some more ideas for sightseeing are the following, which are only a small sample of what you can see in Rome:
Colosseo
Roman forum (Foro Romano)
Piazza Navona
The Pantheon
Christian catacombs
Spanish steps (Piazza di Spagna)
Piazza del Popolo
Aventino hill
Trevi fountain (Fontana di Trevi)
Mouth of truth (Bocca della verità)
Park of Villa Borghese
Park of Caffarella and Appia Antica
MACRO (museum of contemporary art). There is the main one (via Nizza 138) and an annex (piazza Orazio Giustiniani 4)
National museum of Rome: a collection of 4 museums
Capitoline museum
Vatican museum
MAXXI: most famous by its building designed by Zaha Hadid.
Galleria Borghese: A small gallery inside the park of Villa Borghese, with several famous pieces. Appointment and reservation is required.
Villa Giulia: A large collection of Etruscan antiquities.
St. Peter's Basilica
Santa Maria Maggiore, close to the conference venue.
San Pietro in Vincoli, close to the conference venue. Mostly famous for Michelangelo's statue of Moses.
San Clemente, close to the conference venue. Make sure to visit the old church underground.
San Giovanni, close to the conference venue.
Santa Prassede, Santa Pudenziana and Santa Maria in Domnica, near the conference venue, are three very early Christian churches.
Chiesa del Gesù, look at the roof!
San Luigi dei Francesi, you can admire the triptic of Saint Matthew by Caravaggio.
Santa Maria del Popolo, still Caravaggio.
...
Rome is beatiful for strolling at the streets.
Old city center, close to Piazza Navona and Campo de' Fiori
Old city center area, close to Piazza di Spagna, Fontana di Trevi, and Piazza del Popolo
Trastevere
Jewish Ghetto
Trastevere
Campo de' Fiori
Monti
Colosseo
The following two areas are mostly frequented by students and tend to get busy rather late (after 11pm).
San Lorenzo
Pigneto
Rome is generally a safe city, and it is safe to walk around the conference area and the city centre. As in any large city, participants should use ordinary caution when walking alone late at night.
The main safety concern for visitors is pickpocketing, especially in crowded tourist areas and on public transport. Please keep an eye on your belongings when using the metro, buses and busy stations; bus line 64, which connects Termini with the Vatican area, is particularly well known for pickpocketing. We recommend keeping bags closed and in front of you in crowded places, avoiding wallets in back pockets, and being cautious if someone unexpectedly distracts you, for example by bumping into you or asking for help.
A calm but attentive attitude goes a long way: visitors who appear aware of their surroundings and keep their valuables secure are much less likely to be targeted.