Crypta Balbi


The first of our themed sightseeing tracks puts the history of the Roman Empire at your feet, literally. Ancient Rome: From Romulus to the Caesars explores what’s atop, inside and underneath the buildings and streets of the Eternal City. Today you’ll travel through layers – spiritual, cultural and temporal – to witness first-hand Rome throughout the ages. Truly extraordinary.


Begin your time travels on an informative drive that includes the oval arena, Circus Maximus, evoking the setting of Ben Hur overlooking the Palatine Hill, and the Baths of Caracalla. In its day, this 3rd-century spa sprawled across 27 acres and welcomed 1,600 bathers at one time with steam rooms and hot and cold baths, followed by massages. Nearby, the Colosseum roars into view with a legacy of life-and-death entertainment. Inside you’ll walk in the footsteps of the victors and the vanquished and sit where some 50,000 Romans cheered and jeered the combatants who fought in the arena before them. Once the size of the Parthenon in Athens and the smallest of Rome’s seven hills, Capitoline Hill, abundant with temples and palaces, was the center of government in the Middle Ages. Michelangelo redesigned its central square in 1540, building a stunning staircase and new balconied palazzos that regale you with panoramic, ultimately cinematic, views of the Roman Forum – the center of the world for centuries – that take in two millennia of history in a single glance. Walk to the Teatro di Marcello and lunch in the Jewish Ghetto, an icon of Jewish solidarity on the banks of the Tiber River for hundreds of years.


Call your travel agent or Tauck World Discovery at 800-468-2825


Discoveries today (top to bottom) include the Baths of Caracalla, views of the Roman Forum and Capitoline Hill


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