Whether you have chosen to stay in a small family run B&B or a luxurious centre hotel, Rome offers a wide variety of unusual attractions that are off the well-worn tourist track – from underground exploration to vegetarian cookery tours.

Underground Rome

If you want something a little quirkier than the usual tour of the Vatican to get you out of your centre hotel, Rome has a little treasure of a tour. You can descend into the Eternal City’s underground world of burial chambers, catacombs, a pagan temple, and Christian artefacts. You will learn about the Imperial and early Christian Rome and all its mysteries and secrets hidden buried beneath the vibrant city.

Vegetarian Rome

If you are a vegetarian food lover, or any food lover, then you can experience many tasty tours, all on the doorstep of your centre hotel. Rome offers the chance to experience the vegetarian side of Italian cuisine by cooking in a traditional Roman kitchen and being privy to all the delicious secrets hidden within the aromatic dishes.

Italians use a wide variety of beautiful fresh fruit and vegetables in their cooking and this makes the cuisine perfect for vegetarians or vegans. The tour starts in the local bustling markets populating Rome, where you will buy fresh produce with which to cook. You will be taught about the ingredients traditionally used in Italian cooking and about the seasonal food you can expect to find. You will be given lessons in how to shop for the important ingredients such as herbs, wine, honey and balsamic vinegar. Then you return to the kitchen and learn how to prepare, cook and serve the ingredients in the traditional Roman way. This is a great experience, even if you are not vegetarian!

Religious Rome

If you like sightseeing with a hint of the macabre, then head to the Church of Santa Maria della Concezione. From the street-level door, you can descend into the basement of the church where you will be faced with an intriguing sight – the bones of 4,000 Capuchin monks. These bones have been arranged around the crypt in a variety of artistic designs reflecting the Baroque and Rococo style. Entrance is free but donations are requested, and if you can get past the Capuchin monk who guards the entrance, then well done you! This is definitely a sight worth leaving your room in your luxurious centre hotel. Rome has a great tradition and many intriguing sights, so make sure to add this one to your list.

Shopping Rome

If you need to shop for presents and souvenirs, but fancy something a little more ‘real Rome’ than plastic statues, head to Porta Portese in Trastevere. Trastevere is almost a city in its own right, and its inhabitants claim to be the only true Romans left. The flea market consists of over 4,000 stalls selling a multitude of bric a brac, antiques, junk, second-hand goods, food, books and craft goods. Due to the increasing popularity of this market, it is getting harder to find a bargain, but if you have the nerves to enter into a bartering match with an Italian, you will always leave with a good deal.

Author Bio: Looking for the best centre hotel, Rome ? Roberta Stuart is the Travel Manager for World Hotels, a company offering the best holidays, in a centre hotel Rome and a selection of unique four and five star hotels around the world

Category: Travel
Keywords: centre hotel Rome