Hi friends, welcome to the conclusion of my Italy series! Jon and I were not ready to leave Positano, but we were looking forward to our last night in Rome and one more trip to our favorite gelato spot. We said our goodbyes to beautiful Positano and had a porter take our bags up the 400+ stairs. Our driver was waiting to take us to the Naples train station and we had an easy train ride back to Rome. We then grabbed a cab back to Hotel Nazionale, where we stayed during our time in Rome. This time we got upgraded to a larger and quieter room.
After settling in, we went to Giolitti for one last gelato. I got my usual salted caramel, dark chocolate, and a dollop of cream. Jon went with dark chocolate and maybe tiramisu with some cream. Oh how we miss our daily gelato!
From there we walked to Trastevere to get in line for dinner at da Enzo 29. I mentioned this in my where to eat in Rome post, but this restaurant doesn’t take reservations and people start lining up at least an hour before the restaurant opens. We were in line a little after 6pm, and were seated around 7:15. We ordered the burrata, cacio e pepe and amatriciana. It was a delicious final meal in Italy!
Jon and I figured we should put our carb coma to use and see the Eternal City at night. We walked by the Forum and it looked so peaceful without all the tourists.
I loved finally seeing the Colosseum at night. You can take a night tour of the Colosseum that would be neat and a good way to avoid the crowds.
Trajan Market is a spot we walked by a few times, but never had a chance to visit until now. This site was commissioned by Emperor Trajan and built around AD 100. This site is thought of as the first shopping mall and possibly housed Trajan’s administrative offices. You can see some of the exterior for free but there is also a museum to see more artifacts. Maybe next time!
Our final stop was at the Trevi fountain to throw in our coins to guarantee a return trip. It’s usually lit up at night, but maybe they didn’t have it lit because the environmental protestors had thrown charcoal in the fountain a few days before. It was really a perfect last night roaming around Rome!
We had heard there was a transportation strike so we had our hotel arrange a car to take us to the airport. All was going smooth until just before boarding the plane when the gate agents announced the in-flight entertainment was down and suggested we go buy a magazine………. Luckily, I had a long book, podcasts, and a little shut eye to keep me entertained.
Jon and I had such an incredible time in Italy! It is our favorite vacation to date and was so worth waiting three years for. We saw so many amazing sites in the two weeks we were there and we certainly enjoyed eating all the pizza, pasta, and gelato. My top highlights of the trip were the Uffizi Gallery, Colosseum, Vatican Museum, Amalfi Coast boat ride, and the Path of the Gods hike. Thanks for coming along on this adventure with me. I hope this series has brought back some great memories or inspired an Italian adventure of your own. Ciao!
Posts in this series:
Florence
- Where to Stay & Eat
- Piazza Michelangelo & Ponte Vecchio
- Uffizi Gallery
- Santa Croce, Santa Maria Novella, Accademia
- Climbing the Duomo
- Duomo Museum, Bell Tower, & Baptistry
- Palazzo Vecchio & Tuscon Wine Tour
Rome
- Where to Stay & Eat
- Churches, Churches, & Churches Oh My!
- Borghese Gallery
- Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, & Pantheon
- St. Peter’s Basilica
- Victor Emmanuel Monument & Capitoline Museum
- Forum & Palatine Hill Tour
- Colosseum Tour
- Castel Sant’ Angelo
- Twilight Trastevere Rome Food Tour
- Vatican Museum – Prime Experience
- St. Peters Dome & Square
Positano
This has definitely inspired me to plan an Italy adventure of my own!
Maybe you can do a hiking trip in the Dolomites, that would be stunning!
Love those buildings at night!!! I might have died without inflight entertainment on the way home 😂😂
It was a long flight home! Thankfully my book was pretty long.
I’m sad to see the conclusion of your Italy series – have absolutely loved living vicariously through your descriptions. Thank you! 🙂☀️
I am so glad you have enjoyed this series!! It is bittersweet to end the series.
Bittersweet to be sure. Nice to be going home, but sad to be leaving Italy. You did your last day well Lyssy. Gelato and a good Italian meal is the way to go. Lineups are always worth it if the food is top notch. Great night shots. We did the coin in Trevi routine, but have never been back to Rome, although we did finally manage to get back to Italy in 2019, so I guess it worked?? Happy Thursday Lyssy. Allan
After two weeks we were really in our groove, but a busy summer awaited us! We can appreciate a good line, especially living in NYC. It was a great last day with all our favorite things. We would love to see other parts of Italy one day and I imagine we’d fly into Rome before taking a train other places. It seems Italy is a place people can’t get enough of!
Day or night, Rome is spectacular, but seeing Rome at night is particularly special. When things slow down, and darkness falls, the city still bathes light upon its most unique treasures and buildings. Thanks for sharing and have a good day 🙂 Aiva xx
It is such a beautiful city, I was glad we finally saw all the sights at night. Thanks for following along on this series 🙂
“… conclusion of my Italy series…” should make me unhappy, but I assume your Switzerland series will soon take its place? So glad you got one final night in Roma to revisit your favorite places. Love that you dined outdoors at Enzo 29. And looks like you flew home in style – roomy seats! Thanks for sharing so much of this trip with your readers. You really can’t appreciate the wonders and warmth of Italy without visiting in person.
I think Switzerland I will save for January when it is gloomy. I’ll have lots of holiday content and our Fourth of July Catskills trip in between. It really was the perfect last night in Rome. I like to watch the flight prices and first on the way home is usually not as expensive if we do comfort on the way there. Makes leaving not so bad. I agree, Italy is really special in person!
Rome looks beautiful at night! Such a great trip you guys had. Maggie
It was such an incredible trip, I’m glad we had one last night to see all the sights!
The meal looks well worth the wait. We joined a similar queue outside a Michelen restaurant in Naples that didn’t accept reservations but as we were stood in the scorching heat pump and I have gave up after awhile deciding to eat elsewhere. A lovely finale to your Italian holiday.
Ah yes the heat would deter me from waiting in the line for sure. It was a perfect end to our Italy trip 🙂
What a great end to your time in Italy! I enjoyed following along for the ride. Da Enzo 29 sounds like a wonderful restaurant and, like you, I’m willing to wait the hour-plus queue for some heavenly food! Can’t wait to see where the next adventure takes you!
It was the perfect ending to our trip, especially that meal and gelato! Thanks for following along on the adventure 🙂
We visited there in Rome. This Colloseum was in the evening. You really enjoyed this amazing food. Anita
It really is such a beautiful sight at night! The meal was the perfect last Italian meal.
Such an enjoyable series of posts, sorry to see it concluded 😞
Glad you enjoyed the series! It always feels a trip isn’t over until I blog about it.
I know exactly what you mean. Kinda prolongs the pleasure.
Exactly!
It was a wonderful journey, well narrated and well illustrated, I still have a few episodes to read for my pleasure. Italy is such a feast to visit!
Thank you! Italy is such a great place to visit and I love the variety of sights and delicious restaurants.
Glad you were able to get one last gelato at your favourite spot. It’s neat how the city looks so different at night. Sounds like a great time to avoid the crowds.
We were obsessed with that gelato, but it was so good! The city did look so different at night and we finally weren’t too exhausted from all our sightseeing to wander around.
Great post! I spent so much time sprinting around the city during the day that I was passed out by the time evening hit- it’s so cool to see it at night!
The cuisine in Rome looks so spectacular, and I love your night photos of Rome, it looks so magical! This seems like it was an awesome travel adventure!
Oh, thank you for helping me relive my trip two years ago with my daughter. I absolutely loved Italy. Glad you made it to the Trastevere side because it is just as incredible. Rome is the most walkable city I’ve been in! You sure have some fantastic photos…..absolutely striking night pics!
I’m sorry it’s over, Lyssy. I have enjoyed your posts so much! Your photos in this post are fabulous, and that food looks fabulous too. Your posts always make me hungry 😊 Have a great week ahead.
What a wonderful trip and I love that it has gone to the top of your vacation list. I’ve loved following along and looks like you had the most AMAZING time. Rome is stunning at night. Switzerland next? 🙂
You had an amazing trip and I’ve enjoyed reading this series very much. I love the city at night, all the monuments are beautifully lit up. Glad the food did not disappoint on your final night, that burrata looks fantastic!
The food pictures make me want to go, lol 😆 🍝
Such a beautiful trip, thanks for taking us with you 😊 ✨