Rome question?

Question

I hope to visit Rome sometime in the future and was planning to see a lot of the historical sights. While I have the Colosseum on the itinerary, I was wondering if anyone had info on the Roman forum and the Appian way. Do these places even exist, or are they just desolate ruins that aren't worth the nickel? Any advice would be great, thanks.

Answer 1

Both still exist.  There is a wonderful nighttime show at the forum which illustrates a lot of the history.  Long stretches of the Appian Way still exist.  Have a great trip!

Answer 2

Now, as you have the answers, go and see by your eyes. It's quite amazing.

Answer 3

They exist and they're worth seeing.

One not entirely related point - that I've just mentioned in response to another question - if you're also going to visit the Vatican, note that you can't go in to St Peters in shorts.

If you're interested in Roman (and Greek/Hellenistic) ruins - start looking into a visit to Libya...that was fantastic and the ruins & mosaics there far outweighed the quality of what I saw in Rome - and Rome was superb.

Answer 4

The Roman Forum is right next to the Colosseum - just a few steps away.  It is free and does have some neat ruins left.  Adjacent to the Forum is Palatine Hill, which you have to pay to see.  However, it is included on your Colosseum tickets.  So I would definitely stop and see both.  There's some neat stuff to see.  

We visited the Catacombs which are down the Appian Way.  I thought it was worth it.  It is closed on Sunday to traffic, so it made for a beautiful walk.  It is somewhat outside the city, so it was a nice break from the bustle.  There are a few different catacombs that are open.  We went to the largest one, Callisto.  We did it in the morning and went back to the city for the afternoon.  Buses run out here, but not the Metro.