What should I pack for Rome?

Shoes are the single decision that will make or break your Rome trip. The city runs on sampietrini — those small black basalt cubes you'll feel through every step from the Colosseo metro exit to the narrow lanes of Trastevere. They're uneven, they get slick when wet, and they punish anything with a narrow heel or stiff sole. Sneakers with rubber tread work. Leather-soled loafers do not. You'll walk 15-20 km on a full sightseeing day — the distance from your hotel near Termini down through the Forum, across to the Pantheon, and back up to the Spanish Steps adds up fast. That dull ache in your arches by 4 PM is the sampietrini tax, and better shoes are the only way to reduce it.

A lightweight scarf or shawl solves Rome's most common wardrobe problem: the Vatican Museums, St. Peter's Basilica, Santa Maria Maggiore, and San Giovanni in Laterano all enforce a no-bare-shoulders, no-above-the-knee rule. Guards at St. Peter's will turn you away — no exceptions, no rental wraps, just a walk of shame back to the entrance. Men in shorts get rejected too. Mind you, the enforcement varies: smaller churches in Monti or on the Aventine Hill tend to be relaxed, but the four papal basilicas are strict. For spring visits — and mid-April currently sits around 18-19°C during the day, dropping to 10°C after dark — pack layers you can peel off. The sun hits hard in the Forum where there's zero shade, but step inside any church and the stone walls hold a chill that makes you reach for that extra layer.

Italy uses Type C and Type L outlets at 230V — if you're coming from the US, you need an adapter, and your 110V hair dryer will burn out without a converter. A 1-liter refillable water bottle pays for itself on day one: Rome has over 2,500 nasoni — those cast-iron drinking fountains with the curved spout you'll spot every few blocks. The water is cold, clean, and free. Plug the top hole with your thumb and it arcs up like a proper drinking fountain. Bring a portable charger. Between Google Maps navigation, timed-entry tickets on your phone for the Borghese Gallery, and the inevitable 200 photos at the Trevi Fountain, your battery won't survive past 2 PM. A crossbody bag beats a backpack — pickpockets work the 64 bus to the Vatican and the crowds around Termini station, and a zipped crossbody is harder to open without you noticing.

Skip packing full-size toiletries, an umbrella, and most over-the-counter medicine. Roman farmacie stock everything you'd find at a US drugstore, often cheaper — ibuprofen runs about €3 for a box of 12 at any farmacia near Piazza Navona. Umbrellas appear at every street vendor's stand the moment rain starts, usually €5. Sunscreen is comparable in price to the US. That said, if you have a preferred brand of deodorant or specific allergy medication, bring those — Italian pharmacies carry different formulations, and the language barrier at a farmacia counter when you're congested and jet-lagged is not the adventure you want.