The Best Cities For A Day Trip If You're Staying In Rome, According To Visitors

Who knew that a 45-minute metro ride from the center of Rome could actually transport you back millennia? Ostia Antica, the site of ancient Rome's major port city, is one of Italy's best-preserved archaeological sites, offering visitors a tantalizing glimpse into ancient theaters, bathhouses, apartment buildings, and even mosaic billboards advertising local shops, admittedly long out-of-business.

Take the metro to the Ostia Antica stop, and you'll arrive at a 247-acre open-air museum of a city that once boasted roughly 100,000 inhabitants. The city was founded in around 620 B.C. at the mouth ("ostium") of the Tiber River. By the second century A.D., when Rome controlled the entire Mediterranean, the city was a vital, wealthy commercial port. Today, visitors can book several private or self-guided audio tours lasting (on average) three hours. Tours will guide visitors through the remains of the vast Ostia Antica Theatre, where performances are still held today; the Forum Baths, a large public bathhouse, and the Archaeological Museum of Ostia, which contains numerous sculptures and mosaics unearthed over the years.

Ostia Antica, hailed as a quieter alternative to Rome and Pompeii, is open  Tuesdays through Sundays, and entry costs €19.

For another ancient retreat, head about 30-40 minutes by car or train to Tivoli, the "Versailles of Ancient Rome." But unlike Versailles, Tivoli actually boasts two famous palaces — the ancient Villa Adriana of Emperor Hadrian and the 16th-century Villa d'Este palace, both UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Emperor Hadrian wanted to build a villa that celebrated the treasures of the Roman Empire, which was at its apex during his rule. A sort of EPCOT of its day, the Villa Adriana recreated famous structures from around the empire, including libraries, temples, baths, theaters, and palaces. Much of the palace complex was plundered in the ensuing centuries, but enough remains for an incredible visit.

The Villa d'Este remains gorgeously intact. The interior is a marvel of frescoes, tapestries, and craftsmanship, but the villa is best known for its hillside gardens, which cling to a steep cliff flowing with waterfalls, pools, streams, cypress trees, and panoramic views. The two villas are the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Tivoli's jewels. Don't miss the Villa Gregoriana, a park of woods and waterfalls at the foot of the ancient Temple of Vesta, the Rocca Pia medieval castle, or the 300-year-old Ristorante Sibilla, a watering hole for celebrities and royalty.

Looking for a creative getaway from the Eternal City? Drive 50 minutes north to Calcata, a mystical, bohemian artist's colony high on a cliff that is otherworldly. Since prehistoric times, the town has had a reputation as a place inhabited by mystical spirits. In the 1930s, the impoverished, isolated medieval city was abandoned for fear it would collapse. In the 1960s, artists from around the world began squatting in the dusty stone homes and, over the years, turned the decrepit village into a thriving, alternative, geologically stable artists colony.

Today, you can visit many of the workshops of the original revivalists, some of which are based deep inside caves. The Moon Lab, featuring handcrafted works inspired by the moon, and the Grotta Sonora, a workshop inside an Etruscan cave focusing on sound sculptures, give an idea of the Calcata vibe. Visitors also rave about Sala Da Tè, the "Room of the 201 Teas" that pairs 201 varieties of teas with sweeping views, and the Opera Bosco, or the Museum of Art and Nature, an open-air museum in the forest featuring 40 works made only from natural materials. The surrounding Valle del Treja Regional Park is a beautiful wooded space to commune with the muses who inspired this bewitching region.

Most Italian cities have a central duomo (cathedral) and perhaps a few smaller churches, but not as many have monks in brown robes and nuns in habits milling around crowds of pilgrims. As the birthplace of St. Francis and St. Clare and home to too many churches to mention here, the hilly Umbrian city of Assisi may be one of the most important cities in Roman Catholicism.

A little over two hours north of Rome by car, Assisi is another gem nestled among rolling hills. Its most well-known attraction is the Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi, the 260-foot Gothic cathedral containing the tomb of the saint it is named after. Today, entry to the church is free, and scores of pilgrims and tourists pay special attention to the frescoes of Giotto di Bondone depicting the life of the famous saint. Just next door are several more churches, including the Cathedral of San Rufino, the Convent of San Damiano, the Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli, and the ancient Roman Temple of Minerva, to name just a few.

Atop a steep cliff rising above the basilica lies the Rocca Maggiore, a 14th-century citadel guarding Assisi with outstanding views. A 14-minute walk away lies the Basilica of St. Clare, the burial place of the nun who was one of St. Francis's first followers and founder of the Order of the Poor Ladies, also known as the Poor Clares.

Ah, Firenze. It is easy to fall in love with the Tuscan capital, the widely accepted "birthplace of the Renaissance," brimming with iconic statues, museums, and cathedrals. It's more of a week trip than a day trip, but since the bullet train from Rome takes only about an hour and a half, we knew we had to include it.

To save time and money on what's sure to be a busy day, it's best to book one of the many city passes on offer. The €85 Firenzecard buys entry to most major museums plus a supplemental exhibition, while the €77.90 City Pass gets priority entry to the city's top sites, along with a free guided city tour and audio tour of the Florence Cathedral.

The cathedral is a masterpiece. It is definitely worth a visit, not only inside but also atop the largest brick dome ever constructed for panoramic city views. Equally unmissable is the unofficial symbol of Florence, the Renaissance, and perhaps Western art itself: Michelangelo's David. The original statue stands in the Galleria dell'Accademia, but there are two more copies in the Piazza della Signoria and another atop the Piazzale Michelangelo. Other crucial stops include the Renaissance masterpieces inside the Uffizi Galleries and the cluster of shops seemingly growing out of Florence's oldest bridge, the charming medieval Ponte Vecchio.

An hour's high-speed train or flight south of Rome will land you in Naples, Italy's third-largest city. The seaside city is often described as "gritty," "noisy," and "chaotic," but in the same breath lauded for its incredible food, culture, and heritage, making it a real magnet for history buffs.

Naples is called both the "City of Five Hundred Domes" and the "City of Seven Castles." Guided tours will transport you around the grand Naples Cathedral, famous for the vial of saint's blood that predicts what kind of luck Naples will have for the coming year. You should also take a Castle Tour, which includes the Castel dell'Ovo, the ancient Roman seaside castle named after a magical egg supposedly placed there by the poet Virgil, and the Castel Nuovo, the medieval castle located near City Hall.

Like Orvieto, Naples is also famous for its mysterious underground. A "Napoli Sotterranea" tour will transport you through 2,400-year-old Greek and Roman tunnels, aqueducts, and theaters. Travelers also rave about the San Gennaro Catacombs, which contain nearly 3,000 graves, crypts, and ancient art.

Crypts and tunnels may not be for everyone, but pizza surely is. Naples is credited as the birthplace of modern pizza and is home to a vast array of exceptional pizzerias. Go straight to the source at the Antica Pizzeria Port'Alba, which was founded in 1738 and is the oldest pizzeria in the world, or L'antica Pizzeria da Michele, one of the city's most famous.

Tired of noisy streets and anxious glances at the spout of Vesuvius? Travel less than an hour south of Naples by car, train, or ferry, and you'll find yourself along Italy's magical Amalfi Coast, a 30-mile stretch of dreamy pastel-colored villas perched high above a sparkling turquoise sea. The coast comprises a few cities, but to truly live la dolce vita for a day, head to Positano, a gleaming resort village that John Steinbeck said "bites deep. It is a dream place that isn't quite real when you are there and becomes beckoningly real after you have gone."

That "dream place" is renowned for its many excellent hotels and restaurants, notable among them Hotel Poseidon and Le Sirenuse. Even if you don't stay there, it's worth sampling the cuisine at their acclaimed restaurants, Il Tridente and La Sponda, respectively. For more waterside dining, lounge at one of Positano's many private beach clubs, which offer excellent dining and are less crowded than Spiaggia Grande, the main beach.

But no trip to the Amalfi Coast is complete without experiencing SS163, or Amalfi Drive, the enchanting road zigzagging through towering mountains and the Mediterranean. We highly recommend booking either a car, boat, or scooter tour to get bitten as deep as you can.