Rome for Seniors, Wheelchair Users and Kids: Golf Cart Tours and Easy Sightseeing

Rome is hilly, cobbled and spread out, so plan short days and ride between areas instead of walking. The Colosseum and the Vatican Museums have lifts, accessible routes and wheelchairs to borrow, under-18s enter Italian state museums free, and a taxi, a private driver or a golf cart tour covers the long distances.

Cover photo: daryl_mitchell, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

We are a local tour operator in Rome, in business since 2012, and families, older travelers and wheelchair users often ask us how much walking Rome really takes. Here is what makes the city tiring, how to plan easier days, what the main sights offer and how to save your legs.

Why is Rome hard on the legs?

Three things tire visitors most:

• Cobblestones. Many streets in the center are paved with sampietrini, small dark stones with gaps between them, where strollers bounce and wheelchairs jolt.
• Hills and steps. The Capitoline, Palatine and Aventine hills, the Spanish Steps and many church entrances mean climbs and stairs.
• Distances. The compact core is easy: Piazza Navona, the Pantheon and the Trevi Fountain are 5 to 15 minutes apart on foot. But from the Colosseum, the Trevi Fountain is about 25 minutes away on foot and St Peter’s Square about an hour.

Add summer heat, and a day that looks short on the map can exhaust a four-year-old or an 80-year-old.

How do you plan an easy day in Rome?

• One area in the morning, one in the afternoon: for example the Colosseum and the Forum, then Piazza Navona, the Pantheon and the Trevi Fountain.
• Start early and rest in the middle of the day, with a long lunch or a break at the hotel.
• Ride between areas, and save your energy for the sights.
• Book timed tickets: the Colosseum sells entry by time slot, so you stand in line less.
• Plan for rain: wet cobblestones are slippery. Our golf carts have rain covers and run all year.

Which sights are easiest with a wheelchair or a stroller?

The Colosseum and the Roman Forum. According to the Colosseum Archaeological Park:

• Three entrances on the Colosseum’s north side are accessible to wheelchair users, as are the main Forum and Palatine entrances at Largo della Salara Vecchia, the Arch of Titus and Via di San Gregorio.
• Inside the Colosseum, a marked path for all covers most of the first tier, and a lift for visitors with mobility issues reaches the whole second tier.
• You can borrow a wheelchair: 3 are available at the reception and security office on the Colosseum’s first tier, and 5 at the main Forum and Palatine entrances.
• In the Forum, an accessible path is an alternative to the Via Sacra. The top of the Palatine still has short steep stretches and uneven paving.
• Accessible restrooms, baby-changing tables, about 70 benches and 10 drinking fountains are spread across the Park.

Free tickets for under-18s and visitors with a disability, plus a companion, must still be booked on the official site. Our Colosseum guide explains the ticket types.

The Vatican Museums. The Vatican Museums say most spaces are accessible and publish a barrier-free route:

• Wheelchairs are lent free of charge at the cloakroom, subject to availability, against an ID and a deposit.
• Visitors with a certified disability of at least 67% enter free, with a companion if they are not self-sufficient, and skip the queue. These tickets are issued only at the desks in the entrance hall, not online.
• Electric wheelchairs and mobility scooters are allowed, except in some areas.
• Families with strollers are welcome. Staff show you the easiest route and the dedicated lifts, and there are baby-changing rooms and a nursing room.

Our Vatican guide covers tickets and the dress code.

The Pantheon is open every day from 9:00 to 19:00, and under-18s enter free. Its official site gives no accessibility details, so check our Pantheon guide before you go.

Stroller or baby carrier?

If you can, bring both: a carrier for steps, crowded churches and narrow cobbled lanes, and a light, foldable stroller for long days and naps.

• On our private golf cart tours, children of any age are welcome, child seats are available, and each child takes a seat and counts as a traveler. A folded stroller fits on board; just tell us when you book, along with the children’s ages.
• On our 90-minute shared golf cart tour with audio guide, children must be at least 4 and strollers are not allowed.
• On our vintage Fiat 500 tours, children must be at least 3. The cars are too small for child seats, and some have no seat belts, because they were built before seat belts were required.

How do you get around Rome without long walks?

Taxis. Rome’s licensed taxis are white, with a “TAXI” sign on the roof. Take one from a taxi stand, such as Largo di Torre Argentina near the Pantheon or Piazza Risorgimento near the Vatican, or call the city’s taxi number, 060609. Check that the meter is on.

Buses and the metro: with a wheelchair or a stroller, check accessibility with ATAC, Rome’s transport company, before you rely on them.

Private transfers. Our private transfers run door to door, and our licensed vehicles may enter Rome’s limited traffic zone (ZTL), so you are dropped at your hotel’s door. Between Fiumicino or Ciampino and Rome it costs €130 per vehicle for 1–3 people, or €190 for up to 7 in a Mercedes V-Class. Child seats are available on request, and if someone uses a wheelchair, tell us when you book.

Where can you rest and refill water?

• Nasoni. Rome’s cast-iron drinking fountains are all over the center. Bring a refillable bottle, and show children the trick: block the spout with a finger and the water comes up through the small hole on top.
• Parks. Villa Borghese has shady paths and a small lake, and the Orange Garden on the Aventine is a quiet garden with a view over the city.

Which golf cart tours suit seniors, wheelchair users and children?

For most families and older travelers, yes. On our private golf cart tour of Rome, the driver picks you up at your hotel in the historic center and stops at sights such as the Colosseum, the Pantheon, Piazza Navona and the Trevi Fountain, which you see from the outside, with only a few steps at each stop.

• Children: no minimum age, and child seats are available.
• Wheelchairs: on our private tours, wheelchair users move onto a seat of the golf cart, and the folded wheelchair travels on board in place of the two back seats. The chair must be foldable and compact. If the traveler cannot move from the wheelchair to a seat, contact us before booking.
• Breaks: the tour includes the Trevi Fountain ticket and a stop for gelato or coffee.
• Rain: the carts have rain covers, so the tour also runs in the rain.

The tour lasts 2, 3 or 5 hours, from €350 for 1–3 people (2 hours, November to mid-April), or €115 per person from 4 guests. We guarantee up to 21 guests (on the 2-hour tour, the maximum depends on the start time), and larger groups on request, with plenty of notice. Drivers are not licensed guides, but they know the city well.

Here is which of our tours suit wheelchair users:

Children who want to stand where gladiators fought will like the golf cart tour with the Colosseum Arena: 3 hours, including 20 minutes on the Arena floor, without a guide. Tickets are issued in each guest’s name, including infants, and the booking is non-refundable.

Our 3-hour Dolce Vita tour by vintage Fiat 500 costs from €590 for 1–3 people and suits children from 3; for a wheelchair or a child seat, choose a private golf cart tour.

When is another option better?

• If your group walks well and the budget is tight, explore the compact core on foot and take taxis between areas.
• If you travel alone or as a couple, a private tour costs the same for 1, 2 or 3 people, so a few taxi rides cost less.
• If the Vatican Museums are a must for a wheelchair user, go on your own with the free wheelchair and priority entry: the Museums’ own guided tours are not open to wheelchair users, except a barrier-free tour of the Vatican Gardens. Our private Vatican tour and the golf cart + Vatican combos are not suitable for wheelchair users either.
• If the traveler cannot leave the wheelchair at all, ask us before booking, and we will tell you honestly what we can do.

See Rome with us

All our options are on the pages for golf cart tours in Rome and vintage Fiat 500 tours in Rome. Private tours pick you up in the historic center; if you are staying farther out, we meet at our office at Via del Colosseo 11A, near the Colosseum. Drivers speak English and Italian.

Explore it with us

Private Golf Cart Tour of Rome2, 3 or 5 hours, hotel pickup, child seats available · from €350 for 1–3 peopleBook nowGolf Cart Tour + Colosseum Arena3 hours, 20 minutes on the Arena floor · from €485 for 1 personBook nowDolce Vita Tour by Vintage Fiat 5003 hours, private, children from 3 · from €590 for 1–3 peopleBook now

FAQ

Is Rome wheelchair accessible?

Partly. Cobblestones, hills and steps make the old center hard going, but the Colosseum has accessible entrances, a lift to the second tier and wheelchairs to borrow, and most of the Vatican Museums is accessible, with free wheelchairs at the cloakroom. Taxis, private transfers and golf cart tours cover the distances in between.

Is Rome good for toddlers?

Yes, with short days and a slow pace. Plan one area in the morning and one in the afternoon, rest at lunch, and bring a carrier as well as a light stroller for the cobblestones. Children under 7 enter the Vatican Museums free, and under-18s enter the Colosseum and other Italian state museums free.

What is the best way to see Rome for seniors who can’t walk far?

Ride between the sights and walk only at the stops. A private golf cart tour picks you up at your hotel and shows you the Colosseum, the Pantheon, Piazza Navona and the Trevi Fountain from the outside, with a few steps at each stop. Taxis and private transfers are good for single journeys.

Can you take a stroller to the Vatican Museums and the Colosseum?

The Vatican Museums welcome families with strollers, and staff direct you to the dedicated lifts and baby-changing rooms. The Colosseum’s official website does not mention strollers; it describes accessible entrances and a lift between the first and second tiers, while the Forum and the Palatine have slopes and uneven paths, so a carrier is the safer choice there.

Can children join a golf cart tour in Rome?

Yes. Our private golf cart tours have no minimum age, child seats are available, and each child takes a seat and counts as a traveler. On our 90-minute shared tour with audio guide children must be at least 4, and our vintage Fiat 500 tours take children from 3, without child seats.

Can wheelchair users take a golf cart tour in Rome?

On our private tours, wheelchair users move onto a seat of the golf cart, and the folded wheelchair travels on board in place of the two back seats. The chair must be foldable and compact. Tell us when you book, so we send the right cart, and contact us first if the traveler cannot move from the wheelchair to a seat. Semi-private and shared golf cart tours, and the golf cart + Colosseum Arena and Vatican combos, are not suitable for wheelchair users.