It’s a controversial opinion, but Rome’s major sites are overrated. Crowded, costly and utterly devoid of charm, the city’s most visited landmarks have been cheapened in the age of mass tourism into little more than a box-ticking – or selfie-taking – exercise.
Which isn’t to say you shouldn’t go. Everyone should be accosted by a middle-aged Italian man in a plastic centurion’s costume or shouted at by a Vatican security guard at least once in their life. But there’s a lot more to the Eternal City than its ancient ruins and Renaissance sculptures.
