The Leonardo Express train is the fastest and most convenient way to get from Fiumicino Airport (FCO) directly to the center of Rome. It connects Fiumicino Airport with the main Roma Termini station in the city center. This is a direct connection, and the journey takes about 32 minutes. Trains run every 15 minutes.

The train station is located directly within the Fiumicino airport complex. After arriving and picking up your luggage, just follow the visible blue signs with a train icon and the label "Treni / Trains".

Tickets can be purchased in advance on the official Trenitalia website or directly at the airport at machines and ticket counters.

Practical tips in Rome:

• You don't need to buy water in Rome. There are small fountains called "nasoni" all over the city. They provide drinkable water, and you can easily refill your bottle. Take one bottle in the morning and refill it throughout the day.
• When visiting churches and especially basilicas, appropriate clothing is expected. It's better to keep your shoulders and knees covered. A light scarf in your backpack can save the day.
• You can walk many kilometers between landmarks, often on uneven stone pavements. Therefore, wear comfortable shoes.

Head from the stop to your accommodation. If you have some time left afterwards, go and explore Rome. But if you're tired from the trip, just relax and get ready for the next day.

Welcome to the Roman Colosseum - a massive stone amphitheater where the footsteps of gladiators once thundered, thousands of spectators cheered, and incredible stories unfolded. Here, your whole family will turn into time travelers and be transported more than 2,000 years into the past!

• A combined ticket (known as a Combo Ticket) is the best and most cost-effective option, as all basic tickets automatically include entry to the Colosseum, the Roman Forum, and the Palatine Hill.
• Tickets must be purchased for a specific day and exact entry time to the Colosseum via the official website.
• Entry to the Colosseum is strict! You must enter the Colosseum exactly at the time printed on your ticket. It is recommended to arrive at least 15–30 minutes early for security checks. If you miss your time, the ticket is forfeited.
• You don't have to visit the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill at the same time. The ticket allows you to enter this area at any time within its 24-hour validity.
• Buy in advance (30 days): Tickets on the official Parco archeologico del Colosseo website are released exactly 30 days in advance and usually sell out within minutes. If you miss out, you will have to use more expensive tickets via agencies (such as GetYourGuide or Tiqets).

This valley was once full of marble palaces, noisy markets, secret temples, and triumphal arches. This is where famous emperors in togas strolled and orators shouted their speeches. 

Children can hunt for traces of the ancient Romans here - inscriptions, statues, columns, arches, or remains of old buildings.

Play at being archaeologists, guess what individual structures were used for and what once happened in that place.

Become Roman legionaries, imagining how soldiers marched through the Roman Forum.

• Although the area has several entrances and exits, once you pass through the turnstile and leave, your ticket becomes invalid and won't let you back in. 
• The area has three main entrances. Forget the main one right next to the Colosseum, where there are endless queues. The entrance from Via dei Fori Imperiali is located about halfway down the street connecting the Colosseum and Piazza Venezia. There are usually fewer people there.
• There are historical fountains (nasoni) with flowing ice-cold drinking water spread throughout the area. Take your own plastic or metal bottles (glass is forbidden) and refill them.
• There is no cafe, restaurant, or vending machine inside the entire area. Pack enough snacks for the kids in their backpacks (crackers, fruit, bars). 

On the way to Piazza del Campidoglio, you'll pass a replica of the Capitoline Wolf statue, a symbol of the city's founding and the legendary brothers Romulus and Remus. 

Kids will surely know that, according to ancient legend, this wolf saved two baby brothers whom an evil king had left in a basket on the River Tiber. Instead of eating them, she carried them to her cave and fed them her own milk like her own cubs! Those two rescued babies grew up to be strong heroes. According to the legend, Romulus then founded the whole city of Rome, which still stands today.

Less than 500 years ago, this square was completely designed and planned by the famous Renaissance artist, painter, and architect Michelangelo. Leading up to the square is a huge staircase called the Cordonata. It’s special because the steps aren't steep; they are actually wide, gentle ramps. Why? So that ancient knights and kings could ride up them comfortably on horseback! In the middle of the square stands a giant equestrian statue of Emperor Marcus Aurelius. 

After a tasty lunch, visit the biggest LEGO model exhibition in Europe. Kids will find giant models of famous landmarks here like the Trevi Fountain or Circus Maximus. There are even life-sized LEGO gladiators. 

An ancient temple of all gods that hides one of the greatest architectural wonders in the world. When you walk inside and look up, your head will spin. The Pantheon has the largest unreinforced concrete dome (meaning concrete without iron bars inside) in the entire world. How come it doesn't fall? The ancient Romans mixed the concrete smartly – the higher the roof rises, the lighter the stones (like light pumice) they added to the concrete!

Right in the middle of the roof is a huge round opening called the Oculus (which means eye in Latin). It has a diameter of almost 9 meters! It's the only window in the whole building, so the sun shines through it like a giant cosmic spotlight that moves across the walls throughout the day. 

Yes, when it rains in Rome, it actually rains inside the temple through the hole in the roof. But the floor is intentionally slightly curved and has mini holes drilled into it (secret channels) through which the water drains away immediately. You can try to find them there with your kids!

One of the liveliest and most cheerful squares in all of Rome. You'll run into street magicians, painters, and musicians here. 

In the middle of the square, you can't miss the massive Fountain of the Four Rivers. It features four statues of muscular giants, each representing one major river from different corners of the world – the Danube, the Nile, the Ganges, and the Rio de la Plata. Can you manage to spot the lion and seahorse statues among them? 

A super interesting underground museum full of weapons, shields, and shiny helmets! This museum is a bit of a hidden gem. When you arrive at the address, you first enter a large toy and gift shop. Only in the back part are the stairs hidden that lead you down into a mysterious underground world. For the bravest visitors, there is a special gladiator cell (prison) prepared in the museum. You can climb right inside, and your parents can take a cool photo as a souvenir of what it was like waiting for a match in the arena.

The museum is relatively small; the whole tour will take you about 30 minutes. 

It doesn't look like an ordinary fountain, but rather a giant theatrical stage carved from white marble, with thousands of liters of wild water cascading down it. People from all over the world throw coins into the fountain to have their wishes granted. But there are strict rules: you have to turn your back to the fountain, take the coin in your right hand, and toss it over your left shoulder! Legend has it that:

• 1 coin: Guarantees you'll return to Rome again someday.
• 2 coins: You'll find your great love in Rome.
• 3 coins: A beautiful wedding awaits you in Rome!

Not far from the fountain, you'll find the famous wooden toy shop, Pinocchio - Bartolucci Italy. The whole shop smells of wood and looks just like the workshop of old Geppetto from the fairy tale. All the toys here are handmade from solid wood.

Right by the entrance or inside the shop, there's a giant wooden Pinocchio puppet sitting on a bench. Kids can sit next to him, and parents get a perfect spot for a great photo.

A square that looks like it's straight off a runway! It's one of the most famous spots in Rome, where people from all over the world gather to take a great photo on the giant steps. Famous fashion shows used to be held here, with models walking down in stunning dresses. Nowadays, sitting or eating on the steps is forbidden to protect the landmark, but running to the top for a view of the city is an awesome experience.

Incredibly clean and cold water flows from the boat-shaped fountain. It's drinking water that comes here from an ancient underground aqueduct. 

This museum is completely different from other boring museums. There is one main rule here: TOUCHING IS MANDATORY! 

You will spend about 60 to 90 minutes in the museum. Because the models are interactive and kids can spin and play with them, time flies by incredibly fast. The museum is most fun for kids aged 5 to 12, who already enjoy exploring how things work and like to build things themselves.

A multimedia and interactive show that acts as the perfect family time machine. It's the best way for kids to grasp 2700 years of Rome's history in just an hour through a fun digital cinema experience and glowing models.

You'll find one of the very best and most famous ice cream parlors in all of Rome here. This place is legendary, and kids will absolutely love it because of one special bonus they won't get anywhere else. When the server piles the scoops onto your cone, they'll ask if you want it dipped in topping – for free. They then quickly dunk the entire ice cream into liquid dark or white chocolate. It instantly hardens on the ice cream, creating a crunchy chocolate shell that the kids have to bite through first.

At Roma Termini station, get on the orange Metro line A. Get off at the 6th stop, called Ottaviano. The metro ride itself takes about 10 to 12 minutes. From there, it's also about a 10 to 12-minute walk to St. Peter's Square.

A standard BIT ticket for €1.50 is all you need. It's valid for 100 minutes from the time you validate it.

Or, you can take bus 64 from Roma Termini and get off at the Cavalleggeri/S. Pietro stop.

The entire square is surrounded by a huge colonnade made up of four rows of columns (there are 284 in total!). It looks like a dense forest. Bernini, the gentleman who designed the square, hid a secret magic trick in the ground. Find the marble disk on the ground between the obelisk and the fountains that says "Centro del Colonnato".  When a child stands exactly on this disk and looks at the columns, a miracle happens. The four rows of columns line up perfectly behind each other, making it look as if there is only one single row. The other columns seem to have evaporated!

The Egyptian obelisk in the middle of the square is a huge pointed stone and it does not come from Rome. It is over 3,000 years old and was brought all the way from distant Egypt. Imagine how hard it was to transport such a giant. The Romans built a huge ship, and to keep the obelisk from breaking during the voyage across the sea, they filled the whole ship with thousands of tons of lentils! It worked like ancient bubble wrap.

Entry to the church itself is completely free, but the security checks are a hurdle.

The Vatican guards are uncompromising when it comes to dress code. If you aren't dressed properly, they won't even let you into the line. Make sure your shoulders and knees are covered.

The Roman Emperor Hadrian had a huge circular tomb built for himself and his family. Later, however, Rome was often in danger. Therefore, the tomb gradually became a fortress. In the Middle Ages, it was also used by popes as a safe refuge, and later it was even a prison. Today, the castle is a museum.

A secret escape tunnel for the Pope.

When you look towards the Vatican, you will see a long stone wall that connects the castle directly to the Vatican Palace. 

Inside this wall is a hidden secret passage. When the Pope was in danger in the Vatican and enemies attacked the palace, he would quickly put on a plain cloak so he wouldn't be recognized and run half a kilometer through this passage to the safety of the fortress here. The castle was so secure that no one could ever conquer it. Kids can run outside next to the wall and imagine that secret escape.

A beautiful bridge, Ponte Sant'Angelo (Bridge of Angels), leads across the Tiber river to the castle.

Kids, how many angels are there on the bridge?

Bus 115 to Gianicolo Belvedere

A famous observation deck where you'll have the whole of Rome, including the Vatican, in the palm of your hand. In the middle of Piazzale Giuseppe Garibaldi stands a huge equestrian statue of Giuseppe Garibaldi. Garibaldi symbolically stands over the city he fought for, and Rome spreads out before him like a vast historical backdrop.

A small tropical kingdom hidden right in the Orto Botanico di Roma, the botanical garden of Rome's La Sapienza University. You'll find yourself in a warm and humid tropical environment full of greenery, flowers, and above all, freely flying tropical butterflies and moths.

A large part of the program is dedicated to how a butterfly is actually born. You can learn about the entire cycle:

egg → caterpillar → pupa → butterfly

It is closed on Mondays.

From here, you can take the direct H bus, which ends right at the main train station, Roma Termini.

Hop on the Leonardo Express train, which will take you straight to the airport.

Don't forget to be at the airport at least 2 hours before your flight. Have a safe flight home.