Open House Roma: step inside buildings usually closed

Prati, beside the Vatican, is a calm residential base with wide streets, shops and the Ottaviano and Lepanto metro stations nearby. It suits early Vatican Museums slots and quiet evenings, but it is about a 25-minute walk to Campo de' Fiori and roughly 45 to the Colosseum, and nightlife is limited. Choose a street…

Each July Trastevere celebrates Festa de' Noantri, a neighborhood festival around the feast of the Madonna del Carmine whose name means the rest of us. Expect a procession with the statue through the lanes, free evening shows in Piazza Santa Maria in Trastevere, and on the final Sunday a boat procession along the…

Alexanderplatz on Via Ostia in Prati has hosted live jazz since 1984, in a small room reached by a staircase from an easy-to-miss door. Tables sit close to the stage and the club lists music every night from 21:30, with dinner an option. Entry works through a season membership, so ask about it when you book. Check the…

The Auditorium Parco della Musica, designed by Renzo Piano, has three concert halls and an open-air Cavea built around a central piazza. Its programme mixes classical, jazz, theater, film and pop, so check the calendar and pick the hall that matches your taste. The large Sala Santa Cecilia hosts big orchestral and…

Via dei Coronari runs from near Piazza Navona to the Tiber at Ponte Sant'Angelo and is named after the medieval sellers of rosary beads to pilgrims. Antique shops show furniture, 17th and 18th century paintings and sculpture, mixed with workshops for glass, ceramics and bookbinding. Walk it slowly and look above the…

Every day at 12:00, rain or shine, a blank cannon shot is fired from the top of the Janiculum, beneath the Garibaldi statue. Pope Pius IX began the custom in 1847 so the city's church bells could ring together. Arrive a few minutes early to find a spot at the belvedere, then look out over central Rome's rooftops. The…

The Pincio terrace sits above Piazza del Popolo, with St. Peter's dome on the horizon, Monte Mario to the right and the Quirinale to the left. Go in the afternoon toward sunset and look for Garibaldi's monument on the Janiculum in the distance. Walk up the ramps from Piazza del Popolo, or take metro line A to Piazza…

The Vatican Museums open Monday to Saturday, with last entry at 18:00, and on Sundays only on the last Sunday of the month, when entry is free from 9 to 14 with last entry at 12:30. Free days have no online booking, so you queue and should arrive very early. Plan a normal visit for another day and buy only on the…