10 FREE Things to do in Rome!

10 FREE things to do in Rome! Plus some ways to save money on meals, accommodation and transport. 

Rome is our favourite European city. It has everything: The weather is wonderful, the food is fantastic and everything is so pretty! 

But it's very easy to spend a lot of money in Rome - most of the main sites charge an entry fee, there are people trying to sell you things on every corner and you're not going to want to miss out on anything! Don't worry though, we've put together a great list of 10 free things to do in Rome - which take the main sites into consideration too:

1. The Colosseum 

It's no wonder the Colosseum is one of the seven new wonders of the world. We were astounded by the architecture and even more amazed when we remembered it's around 2,000 years old. I mean, if people nowadays are astounded by it, imagine what the people back then thought of it!! 

You have to pay to go inside the Colosseum - and how much it costs depends on if you want to jump the queue/if you book online etc, but a stroll around the circumference is completely free and still awe-inspiring!

It's nice to sit and stare at it (and the people),  but the guys selling things (junk) can get a bit annoying. My approach was to be rude and shout 'no' any time they came close, so they'd back off. Tanbay's approach was to try and sell them things (his sunglasses, my plastic bracelet etc.) Both approaches worked well (mine was more effective, Tanbay's more entertaining). 

2. Roman Forum 

Situated next to the colosseum is the Roman Forum. It is an impressive bunch of ruins originally used as a marketplace, but over the years hosted many important events including elections, trials and gladiator fights! 

It's completely free to walk through, and so cool! 

3. Altare della Patria 

In terms of age, this is super-duper young compared with most of the other sites in Rome (it was completed in 1925)! So, unless you're Australian, you won't be impressed by it's 'ancientness' ;) - so why am I mentioning it? 

Firstly, it's the largest monument in Rome. It also holds the unnamed soldier - a soldier picked at random after WW2 to commemorate all the unnamed and lost soldiers. 

It is also pretty controversial (the locals hate its newness and its whiteness). Hence it's earned a fair few harsh nicknames such as the wedding cake. 

We thought it was impressive though, and worth a look on your way to the Colosseum.

4. Torre Argentina Cat Sanctuary

Less controversial and far cuter is the Torre Argentina Cat Sanctuary. This was one of my absolute favourites in Rome because it's where
archaic Rome meets cute, caring Rome.

Torre Argentina does what it says on the box and cares for cats. They collect the strays, neuter them and debug them. Then they are free to roam the ruins and wait in comfort for an adopter. 

They were so friendly and so gorgeous! Seriously! Most stray cats we've met have been (understandably) grumpy/stand-offish /scared but these guys were just so lovely and sweet :)

For more cute kitty pictures, check out Claire's post about the cat sanctuary on - World Traveler in Training 

5. Trevi Fountain

Photo credit: pixabay

Okay this one was a bit of a disappointment because it was under renovation! Yes the above photo credit goes out to pixabay.com. This is what it looked like when we were there:

There are two bits of bad news here, a) it looked bad and b) we didn't get to throw in a coin! Legend has it that if you throw in a coin you are destined to return to Rome (I did it when I was seven and it clearly worked). 

Luckily we believe in making our own fate, and will return to Rome! And see the fountain!

6. The Pantheon

This was my other favourite thing, we'd never heard of the Pantheon, but a couple of people recommended that we go there and it was easy enough to find on the map so off we headed. I'm so glad we went there, it is SO beautiful!

You can go inside, which looks great too.

But for me it was the outside that was marvellous. 

7. Piazza Navona

Piazza Navona is a great little spot. If you go in the morning it will be completely deserted and you can fully appreciate the fountains.

If you go in the evening it will be packed and you can enjoy the street artists and people watch. 

8. The Tiber

The Tiber is the main river in Rome, it's so beautiful! And not just the cute little bridges, even the water itself is a nice colour. Well done Tiber. Lovely to take a stroll along.

9. Castel Sant'Angelo 

Like the Colosseum, Castel Sant'Angelo has an entry fee, but is free to observe from the outside and, like the Colosseum, it has a good looking exterior.

Castel Sant'Angelo was built by/for emperor Hadrian! (Think wall.) I think it's cool. 

10. The Vatican City

Okay, okay our final free thing to do in Rome is actually not even located in Rome, because despite it feeling like you're still in Italy, and the border being a tiny gate, when you're in the Vatican City you are in a whole other country! 

It's the smallest independent state in the world, and it's beautiful.

This is where the Sistine Chapel lives, which does cost to enter, but the city itself is gorgeous and free to hop in and out of. 

So these were our 10 free things to do in Rome, 10 free things that will easily fill up about two days and leave you in love with Rome. But what about everything else? How can you save money in other areas? 

Tips on how to save money in Rome: 

Accommodation: 

Yes, we'll admit we weren't house sitting here (unfortunately, because house sitting in Rome would be the best). House sitting in Rome or cities in general is certainly possible - we've House Sat in Berlin, Helsinki and the Gold Coast, Australia, so we'd definitely recommend that you check out  this website where we find all our yummy House Sits. 

Failing that, you can do what we did and try AirBnB. We stayed in the most beautiful little apartment which had the nicest bathroom: 

It was like staying in a hotel, except it was cheaper, nicer and we had our own kitchen.

If you're new to AirBnB we are pleased to give you a AirBnB voucher - get 22 euros off when you spend 67. Yey :) 

Food: 

We have two tips here, the first one of which may or may not apply to you, so let's get that one out of the way first:

1. If you're staying at a House Sit or an AirBnB, you can make at least one of your meals at home (and save some dough). Eating home-made sandwiches at the Colosseum can't be the worst thing that's ever happened to you, right?

Of course, if you're only going to be in Rome once you're  probably going to want to have all of your meals out and soak up as much of that yummy Italian food as possible.

But for us (and maybe for you too) travelling long term means that our wallets (and growing bellies) can't cope with three meals out a day. 

So yes, if you are staying in Italy for a long time and/or have plans to return (we're here for a month and coming back in October), then consider having a few budgety meals in your AirBnB/House Sit. 

2. This one is for everyone: 

Eat away from the main sites wherever possible.

Like buying a croissant next to the Eiffel Tower, any quick, 'cheap' food bought next to the Colosseum will be a) over priced and b) not great for your taste buds. 

If you walk just a few blocks away, the prices will be cut almost in half, and the tastes will double in tastiness. 

Our favourite meal in Rome was at Carlo Menta. The pizzas there cost between 4 and 6 Euros, are massive, and are so, so, SO delicious!! Thank you so much Ashley and Alex from In Pursuit of Adventure for the tip!

Transport: 

We are massive advocates of public transport, and we love going on the underground, but when it comes to Rome, please AVOID TRANSPORT! You won't see half as much as you will if you just meander along at your own pace, get completely lost, and discover more fantastic ruins that certainly can't be found if you're on the bus/tube. 

But if you really, really hate walking, then we can highly recommend renting a bike and cycling round the city, you will still discover all the cool bits, and hopefully work up a bit of an appetite for more pizza. We really liked the company Bim Bim Bikes - why not give their wheels a whirl?

Time: 

This is just a general tip for the summertime - get up EARLY. Yes I know it's disgusting, but believe us you get to see things tourist-free (and generally native-free too) AND the weather is more agreeable. 

We actually got up early, did some sightseeing until lunchtime, had a nap and did more sightseeing in the afternoon/evening. Our favourite time of the day in Rome was early morning. 

Okay so what do you guys think? There is so much to do in Rome and 3 days is a great amount of time to get a good taster - we hope you enjoyed our highlights of a few of the things you can do for free!

If you did you may also enjoy our other European city guides - they're all about what things you can do for free in a short amount of time: 

• 22 Fun (and FREE) Things to do in Berlin
• Amsterdam for the day
• How Should you Spend Just One Day in Paris?
• Visit London on a Budget

For any questions you might have about Rome, or indeed anything else, please feel free to contact us on Facebook or Twitter - or leave a comment below :)

How To Spend 24 Hours In Awesome Tallinn

Want to visit Tallinn, the capital of Estonia, but have limited time? Don't worry, with this guide you will experience the best sights of Tallinn in just 24 hours! 

Estonia is a small country with a sad history, which mainly involves being occupied - be it by Soviets, Germans, Swedes or even Danes. 

But the last twenty years have been happier, and Estonia now holds its own as a country with good education and good freedom of speech. It's also a very internet happy country and brought us the wonder that is Skype! So we headed to its capital: Tallinn.

We only had 24 hours in Tallinn, which isn't really a long enough time to make a judgement on a country, but is long enough to have a taste of it and to be able to bring you some recommendations, so:

How should you spend just one day in Tallinn?

Wander Around Old Town

True to it's name, this is a very Old Town, with some parts dating back as far as the 11th century. The whole thing is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and it's very impressive with surprises round every corner.

One of the most famous towers is Fat Margaret's Tower. I don't know who poor Margaret was, but I think it's a bit harsh to name a fat tower after her:

Although Old Town is very small (about 30 minutes walk from one end to the other) there are so many little side streets and alleys that to explore it properly takes hours.

Check out Raekoja Plats

This is Raekoja Plats (Town Hall Square). It's at the centre of Old Town and has lots of restaurants and souvenir shops and quite often a market too. 

We thought about having lunch here, but it was a) expensive and b) the restaurant people stand outside and pressure you to go in. That makes me feel super awkward and mean when I say no. 

There were also a lot of Italian restaurants. We LOVE Italian food, but wanted something a bit more 'Baltic'. In the end we settled for a delicious burger and beer:

Walk to the top of St Olaf's Church

St Olaf's Church was built around the 12th century and is very pretty from the outside. If you've read our 14 Free Things to do in Helsinki post you will know that we have three categories for churches: spiritual, creepy and boring.

St Olaf's unfortunately fell into the latter category, but nevertheless it was pretty from the outside and you can walk up it. 

Count the creepy dolls

For some reason, there are a lot of creepy dolls in Tallinn. Perhaps it was because we'd just seen 'Annabelle' but they were scary. Still, you can't miss them if you wander around Tallinn and they make great Instagram photos! 

Stay with AirBnB

We really enjoyed our AirBnB stay in Tallinn, our host was super! He came and picked us up from the Town centre, which isn't required by AirBnB, so it was super nice of him. Plus he had a beautiful BMW.

The flat was just a studio, but had everything that we needed for the night - plus tasty coffee and a log fire.  

We had a great night and like with our first stay with AirBnB we slept a lot better than we ever have in a hotel. 

If you'd like to stay with AirBnB (cheaper and more authentic than a hotel) please have a $25 AirBnB voucher :)

Transport

Tallinn was extremely easy to get to from Finland by the ferry. Where the ferry drops you off look out for St Olaf's Tower and then head straight towards it (if you want to go into Old Town). 

Tallinn is also very easy to reach/ leave from by plane. Thanks to Skyscanner (an excellent website which compares plane prices) our flights to Germany were super cheap. The airport is very close to the city centre - and only ten minutes walk from where we stayed with AirBnB.

All in all we really enjoyed Estonia - even though we weren't there for very long, it's always great to experience a new country.

The strangest thing was, going from Finland - Estonia - Germany, was half the price of journeying straight from Finland - Germany. 

(We took the ferry from Helsinki to Estonia, and then a cheap flight from Tallinn to Bremen.)

Have you ever been to Tallinn? What was your favourite bit? Write a comment below and let us know!

14 FREE Things to do in Helsinki

Helsinki is actually a really amazing city. Our initial reaction though was that it was cold and expensive, but once we got over that we ended up really enjoying it - it's clean, everyone's really friendly and unlike some other capital cities you don't feel threatened or like you're going to be mugged. Go Helsinki! We are so pleased we scored a House Sit here.

But back to the cold and the expense. We have written a list of 14 awesome places you can go to in Helsinki which are all FREE. Most of them are INDOORS too, but if you really really hate the cold, just come in the summer! 

Now this list, like Helsinki itself, is a little weird. It's one part churches and one part naked statues and Moomins. But bear with me. Hopefully it will have a bit of something for everyone (and hopefully I won't offend anyone). 

1. Helsinki Cathedral

Helsinki Cathedral is the iconic symbol of Helsinki - it's like the Eiffel Tower of Helsinki. We really love the stars on the dome and that it's free entry and warm inside, but really if I'm honest it wasn't our favourite cathedral/church in Helsinki. It's a little boring inside - not spiritual or creepy or anything. Still, it is impressive from the outside and the quintessential symbol of Helsinki, so you can't miss it.

2. Hang out in the Moomin shop

The Moomins were one of my favourite cartoons as a kid. And they come from Finland! There is a lot of Moomin merchandise dotted around Helsinki - especially in the supermarkets and the souvenir shops. But if you are a super Moomin fan (which you should be) you have to head into one of their shops. I spent over half an hour in the Moomin shop in the Forum shopping centre before Tanbay put his foot down and dragged me out. Heheh. Browsing is free (and not frowned upon). But there is 10% discount for newbie shoppers (yey).

3. Kamppi Chapel - Chapel of Silence 

Three minutes walk from the Moomin Shop is the Kamppi Chapel or Chapel of Silence. We understood that it was a religionless church and a quiet oasis in the middle of the city. It definitely was quiet, but there were also a lot of bibles - in about 30 different languages. Anyway, with free entry it's definitely worth a look, we loved all the wood! It really was peaceful and the staff are very friendly. 

4. See the Moose

Outside the Natural History Museum is a great statue of a moose (or is it an elk? I don't know). The Museum is usually 10 Euros, but on the first Thursday of every month you can go in for free for the last two hours. 

5. See the Reindeer

Again, not sure if this is a reindeer or an elk or a moose or what.. but he's cute! Located between the Natural History Museum and Temppeliaukio Church is a souvenir shop with a lovely stuffed animal in front of it, which you can pretend is alive and that you're feeding ;)

6. Temppeliaukio Church 

Also known as the Rock Church because it is literally built into the rock. Now we always make a point to visit churches when we go abroad because they're generally free and always great examples of that country's architecture. We rarely feel 'spiritual' in them though, mostly they are boring and some of them are just down right creepy. But this was one of the rare exceptions - it was lovely! Being built into the rock gave it a really natural feel and there was a piano playing in the background which really added to the ambience. It was very peaceful and spiritual and a must see in Helsinki.

7. Gawk at the Ice Skaters

Okay not the best photo to represent the ice skaters, but we wanted a shot which really shows how big the ice rink is. (Plus when we were there there were only three people skating.) The outdoor ice rink is right next to Helsinki Central Station. Not free to go on of course, but free to gawk at!

8. Go tram spotting

Helsinki has a great tram system, well it actually has a good public transport system in general. The metro is very straightforward and the ticket machines are in English - as are the names of the most important stations (Central and the Uni). The metro tickets are also valid on the trams/buses and some ferries. We took the metro in from Vantaa and our tickets were valid for a whole hour, so we could hop on the trams and see the whole city in the warmth! 

9. Check out the men at the station 

Helsinki Central Railway Station is an impressive building. It was built in 1919 and designed by a Finn. We really liked the strong (Germanic looking) men holding the lanterns. It's very art deco and we liked it a lot.

10. Check out the Finnish men in all their glory

Whilst we're checking out statues of men, it's worth mentioning the Three Smiths Statue. This one is from 1932 and still has bomb damage from the Continuation War (Finland vs the Soviet Union in WW2). 

What we found interesting about this statue was a) they are naked but more that b) some 'vandal' had covered up their manly parts with Sellotape.. In England vandals can't wait to add willies to art, but apparently in Finland they can't wait to cover them up. Lol. 

11. Or the women

So maybe naked Finnish men aren't your thing, what about women? Three minutes walk or so from the Three Smiths Statue is a statue of two naked women. It's a tribute to Zachris Topelius (an author and rector of the University of Helsinki).

12. Market Square

Market Square is definitely worth a look. We had some delicious, salty sardines here and a Reindeer Hotdog (tasted exactly like a usual hotdog..). There are lots of touristy things here - reindeer skins, knives, flags etc. The Reindeer Hotdog cost money of course (and a lot at 6 Euros!) But browsing is free and the sardines were a free sample (followed by an attempt to make me buy them). All in all an interesting place if you like souvenirs and food (and who doesn't)?

13. Vanha Kauppahalli - Old Market Hall

Located right next to the market square is the old market hall, which we much preferred to the Market Square. Partly because it's inside (and warm) and partly because the stuff they were selling was cooler - lots of fish, reindeer, wine and wild boar. Yum!

14. Uspsenski Cathedral 

Last but not least we have Uspsenski Cathedral, better than Helsinki Cathedral but not as good as the Rock Church. It's Russian and was build in the 1800s. Entrance is free, but they're closed on Mondays. It's certainly an impressive building, but definitely falls in the creepy category in our books - check it out!

So there you have it, 14 free things to do in Helsinki - most of which are indoors. Helsinki is a really interesting place, we are very glad we scored a House Sit here (which you can read more about here). 

Being cheap people, we often spend a lot of time in cities doing mainly free things, so if you liked this post you might like to check out our other budgety city guides:

Top Free Things to do in Berlin

Top Things to do in Birmingham

How to spend the day in Paris
Australian Cities - which is the best?

Amsterdam on a budget

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