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Rome has followed another Italian city, Venice, in drawing up plans to tax tourists in an attempt to raise revenue.

Guests staying at four- and five-star luxury hotels in Rome will pay 3 euros (£2.50/$4) a night from January 1st next year, and there will be a 2 euros (£1.70/$2.66) a night tax on all other accommodation.

Tourists will be advised about the Contributo di Soggiorno tax on arrival and they’ll have to pay the levy before they check out. The maximum number of nights taxable per stay is 10, a charge of up to £25 ($40). Children under two and youth hostels will be exempt.

It’s understood that five per cent of the income generated by the tax will be used to improve tourist facilities in the Eternal City, although further details have not been released. Nine million people visit Rome every year.

The tax could still be challenged in the courts. The European Tour Operators’ Association has criticised the levy, likening it to ‘being on a plane and then being charged to leave’.

by Andy Moreton

Luxique offers a selection of luxury hotels in Rome, as well as a handy city guide.

A restaurant in Rome has been temporarily closed after presenting a Japanese couple with a bill of nearly 700 euros (£600 / $980) for lunch.

The young couple, who haven’t been named, were outraged by the bill for what they said were two plates of pasta, a bottle of water, a bottle of wine and a fruit salad. The service charge alone (to which they said they hadn’t agreed) was 115 euros (£98 / $161).

Their protests, however, were brushed off by the manager of the restaurant, Il Passetto, located close to the tourist hub of Piazza Navona. He said they’d ordered ‘a lavish meal’.

The newspaper Il Messaggero said that following their complaint, Rome’s Mayor ordered a raid on the restaurant by health and pricing investigators, and they found a series of breaches of hygiene and administrative regulations.

The inspectors checked the prices on the tourists’ receipt against those on the menu (which the Japanese said they never saw), and found they were quite a bit higher.

by Andy Moreton

If you’re planning a visit to the Eternal City, check out Luxique’s range of luxury hotels in Rome.

Two US tourists who chipped off a piece of the Colosseum in Rome 25 years ago have returned it – along with an apology.

The fragment of stone, small enough to fit into a pocket, arrived in Italy in a package from California. A note inside read: “We should have done this sooner.”

Rome’s archaeology officials have accepted the couple’s apology and the local tourism officer has invited them to return to the city.

The tourists appear to have been concerned about their questionable memento for some while. “Every time I looked at my souvenir collection and came across that piece it made me feel guilty,” the note read.

“Over the years, I started thinking that if all the visitors to that beautiful monument took a piece of it away with them, nothing would be left standing. It was a selfish and superficial act.”

There is one problem with this, however. The passing of time seems to have led the couple to forget from where exactly they chipped the fragment. Officials in Rome believe it might not be from the Colosseum at all, but from the area of the Roman Forum or the ancient Palatine Hill.

by Andy Moreton

Luxique guides you through the process of finding and booking the finest luxury hotels in Rome.

One of the most distinctive sights for visitors to the Vatican is the men of the Swiss Guard in their blue, yellow and red uniforms and ceremonial halberds.

Recruits, who swear allegiance to the Pope, are traditionally single men from Switzerland, where they must have undergone basic military training.

An important pre-condition might soon change, however, because the force’s new commander has said he’s considering bringing in women. Colonel Daniel Anrig said logistical problems at the barracks of the 110-strong Guards could be resolved simply by building separate living accommodation.

He said the female recruits could perform a number of duties carried out by male members of the force. “Certainly we can think about this,” said Colonel Anrig.

Most Swiss Guards find their greatest battle is putting up with thousands of tourists asking the same questions: “Is there a bathroom?” “Which way to the museum?” and “Why can’t I see the Pope?”

As anyone who’s been to the Vatican can confirm, they attend to these day after day with patience and sometimes even a smile.

by Andy Moreton

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It would be fair to say that Dan Brown is not the Vatican’s favourite author. It’s described his books, particularly The Da Vinci Code, as blasphemous, saying they turn the Gospels upside down.

So it came as no surprise when the Vatican authorities refused to allow the makers of the latest Brown film, Angels and Demons, to film in St Peter’s Square. Father Marco Fibbi, spokesman for the Diocese of Rome, said at the time: “Normally we read the script, but this time it was not necessary. The name Dan Brown was enough.”

That left the film company with a problem, which it solved by having a team of people posing as tourists and taking thousands of photos and hours of video footage. These were then used to help digital effects experts recreate many of the famous papal buildings, Tuscan colonnades, fountains and monuments within St Peter’s Square.

The new film again stars Tom Hanks as symbologist Robert Langdon. It’s set for release around the middle of this month.

by Andy Moreton

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Rome is limiting the sale of take-away alcohol in some neighbourhoods famous for their nightlife.

Under the new rules, no alcohol ‘to go’ can be sold in bars, restaurants, supermarkets or other outlets after 9pm. And the sale of alcohol is banned inside bars and restaurants after 2am, although discos are exempt.

The city authorities want to crack down on all-night drinking and partying after reports of incidents and complaints from residents. The measures are in line with the law-and-order platform of Rome’s new right-wing mayor, Gianni Alemanno.

Earlier this month, an American tourist was stabbed in a fight near Campo de’ Fiori, the piazza where hundreds go every night to party in bars and restaurants. That area is covered by the new measures, as is Trastevere, whose narrow alleys are lined with bars, and Testaccio, home to popular nightclubs.

The ban, which remains in effect until March, has bar-owners up in arms. One said: “We have to be vigilant about rules that smell of Prohibition,” referring to the United States’ all-out ban on alcohol in the 1920s.

by Andy Moreton

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After a gap of nearly 2,000 years, gladiators are set to do battle at the Colosseum in Rome.

The head of archaeology at Rome City Council, Umberto Broccoli, said it was time that the five million people who visited the Colosseum every year experienced the sights, sounds and smells of ancient Rome.

The mock combats will be part of a series of events being held this year to mark the 2,000th anniversary of the birth of the Emperor Vespasian, who began the construction of the ancient arena.

It has yet to be decided whether they will be staged on a floor placed within the arena or outside it. Mr Broccoli insisted that the fights would be visually authentic, with gladiators using the same weapons. He wasn’t seeking a ‘Disneyland attraction,’ rather an educational experience to bring the spirit of antiquity alive.

Sergio Iacomoni, who runs one of a number of gladiator schools in Rome, said: “We have 200 students and are more than willing to take part in this. This is a real passion for us.”

City officials said mock gladiator fights were a more appropriate form of entertainment at the Colosseum than pop concerts, which risked damaging the monument through vibration. In the past, Paul McCartney, Simon and Garfunkel and Elton John have performed on a stage next to the arena.

by Andy Moreton

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Italy’s national railway, Trenitalia, is hoping to tempt people away from flying by the introduction of its high speed Milan to Rome service.

The new Red Arrow or “Frecciarossa”, which can reach a speed of 186 mph, covers the 300 miles between Italy’s political and financial capitals in three-and-a-half hours, shaving an hour off the standard time. There are eighteen services a day.

With the turmoil surrounding the state airline, Alitalia, the air service between Rome and Milan has been uncertain recently and Trenitalia has enjoyed the benefits. It’s now hoping to attract 60 per cent of the 3.7 million passengers who fly the route every year.

However, analysts say it won’t really start taking a significant bite out of air travel until the journey time gets under three hours. That’s expected at the end of 2010 when the track between Florence and Bologna is improved.

by Andy Moreton

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The Vatican is doing its best to go green.

Christmas at St. Peter

The largest Christmas tree ever to be placed in St Peter’s Square was lit up last Saturday and the Vatican says all the wood will be recycled to make toys for needy children and benches for schools.

The 33-metre (109-foot) red spruce, which is about 120 years old, came from the forests of southern Austria. Hundreds of pilgrims from Austria sang carols in the pouring rain as the tree was officially unveiled.

It’s decorated with 2,000 gold and silver balls, white lights and a shining star. It stands next to a larger-than-life-sized Nativity scene, which will be unveiled on Christmas Eve.

The recycling of the wood after Christmas is the Vatican’s latest effort to be environmentally conscious. Last month, it activated a large system of solar panels on the roof of its audience hall.

by Andy Moreton

If you’re planning a trip to Rome and Vatican City, Luxique has a selection of the finest luxury hotels in Rome.

Rome in high summer can be uncomfortably hot, but the Eternal City can offer a delightful long weekend break in the shorter and cooler days of autumn and winter.

OK, the current economic situation means a lot of belt-tightening for many travellers, but the trip need not cause you to stretch too far.

Flying to Rome has never been easier or cheaper. Like every other commodity, airline ticket prices have started to fall, giving the savvy tourist the option of flying from New York to Rome for about $800 (£440 or 570 €), while the low cost carriers such as RyanAir are practically giving away seats from London Stansted at £50, ($90 or 64 €) round trip.

Nearly all the luxury hotels in Rome offer special packages and, as I last week in relation to Paris, don’t hesitate to negotiate. Free upgrades, free spa use, free meals – these are all possibilities when hotels are feeling the pinch as much as the rest of us.

The Eden, for example, a chic hotel situated close to Rome’s Spanish Steps, has a winter offer that includes an upgrade depending on availability, a welcome gift and free admission to the Picasso exhibition until January 31st 2009.

The Westin Excelsior, another luxury Rome hotel, is offering what it calls its ‘Fall For Rome’ package, with a deluxe double room, American breakfast, free extra bed or cot for a child up to 12 and free access to the pool and Jacuzzi. This is available until the end of the year.

If you’re looking for a stay with something extra, consider Casa Howard, a designer B&B in two locations with individually decorated rooms. It feels less like a hotel, more like the pied-a-terre of a rich friend with a keen eye for style.

Rome is beautiful and historic, but has just earned an unwelcome label – the most dangerous city in Europe for traffic accidents. The London Daily Telegraph’s correspondent, Nick Squires, reports that more than 230 people died in accidents in 2006 in the Italian capital, ‘where motorists thunder down narrow cobbled alleyways, swerve around pedestrians on zebra crossings and disregard road signs.’

Renowned travel writer, Bill Bryson, had much to say on the subject, such as: “You turn any street corner in Rome and it looks like you just missed a parking competition for blind people.” And: “Romans park their cars the way I would park it if I’d just spilled a beaker of hydrochloric acid in my lap.”

So, take extra care on that special winter weekend, but relax and enjoy.

by Andy Moreton