If I had to choose one of the most frequently asked questions we receive at The Beehive, at the top of the list would be those regarding safety. Is Rome safe? Is our neighborhood safe?
Guidebooks can paint a grim picture of Rome as a city ruled by pickpockets and lawlessness. However, as a long time resident of Rome, I have always felt secure here. Since guns are illegal the thought has never crossed my mind that I would be the victim of an armed hold-up or on the wrong end of someone’s mental instability or bad day. As a woman and a mother of three daughters, I don’t take matters of safety lightly.
Rome is still a big city though with big city problems and there are some crimes & scams that you should be aware of and look out for:
1. Petty theft and pickpockets
Keep an eye out for men & women and groups of young children (who should be in school), called baby gangs because of their youth, loitering near any area where there is a large concentration of tourists: the train station, on crowded metros and buses, popular tourist attractions and/or holding pieces of cardboard – many of these people are indeed gypsies, but I will stress here that not all gypsies are thieves. However, if you want to try to get tourist information from the two girls holding the piece of cardboard in the picture above – be my guest.
The reality is that you may encounter people throughout the city who come up to you offering to help you with your luggage or buying a train ticket or asking for money and they need to be kept at a distance. The general rule is that when you’re somewhere that’s very crowded and you could be easily distracted, you need to be hyper aware of your belongings and the people around you. Don’t get so immersed in what’s on your iPhone that you become oblivious. Don’t put your handbag on the back of your chair or resting beside you on a bench. These are just a few of many common sense approaches to take when being in a city anywhere in the world.
2. The outsiders
Around Termini train station and throughout the city, you will often see scenes like those above. I have never had nor heard of anyone who has had a negative encounter with these people. They either simply just sit there and ask for money as you walk by like the begging woman in the top photo or are too wrapped up in a cloud of drink or drugs and their own suffering to do much of anything else like the person in the bottom photo. Many people visiting Rome are shocked by these scenes as their fantasy images of what Rome is like clash with what the reality is actually like for any large urban center, and Rome is no exception.
3. Cars & scooters
I can’t stress enough – BE CAREFUL when crossing the street! The statistic is that an average of 7 pedestrians a day are hit while crossing streets in Rome and personally, I have been witness to tourists getting hit by a car while they were on the crosswalk. The problem is exacerbated by crosswalks and corners being used as parking spaces making it difficult for cars to see you. Please don’t assume that if you are on the crosswalk cars will stop for you. Be vigilant and be fast when crossing the street!
4. Con-artists
There’s a good rule of thumb that I know you’ve heard before: If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. There are some scams that play out in Rome everyday many of them preying on people’s sense of an almost childlike gullibility when traveling to a foreign place. Here are some scams you may encounter:
Scam #1: Someone approaches and motions to you to extend your finger or who says they have a “regalo” (gift) for you. They will make a “friendship” bracelet or offer some sort of cheap trinket and then you will be expected to pay for it. Best not to extend your finger or shake hands with anyone. They will and can get nasty if you refuse to pay.
Scam #2: You’re walking down the street and a man in a car with a map on the front seat pulls up next to you and says he is lost. He will say he works for Valentino, Armani, Gucci or any known designer. He will ask if you can help him with gas money and will trade you one of the “expensive” sample leather or suede jackets he has in his backseat for the low price of between €20-€50. The “leather” or “suede” jacket turns out to be an extremely cheap, smelly, PVC jacket not worth €5. It’s an elaborate scheme, but the guy is persistent. Just walk away.
Scam #3: Guys beware! This one also is a bit of an elaborate scheme and I don’t know how common it is, but I’ve heard about it more than a few times over the years and there are different variations, but the gist of it is like this: A man walks up to you “looking lost” who says he is an Italian-American from New York. He says he is looking for a particular pub and cannot find the street on the map he is carrying and could you help him. Once you have found the street for him he asks if he can buy you a beer at that bar. Apparently when you arrive there is a big bouncer guy at the door and upon entering you notice it’s a pub/strip club type place. Girls are issued to your table to sit with you, than the waiter brings a bottle of sparkling wine and asks if you would like to buy the girls drinks. When you get the bill, you’ve been charged an exorbitant amount of money with big bouncer guy making sure you don’t skip out on the bill. Beware of girls in g-strings “baring” gifts.
5. Bill padding at restaurants
Excessive and outrageous bill padding by bars and restaurants has recently made the news on several different occasions including a recent event where a bar/gelateria charged around €64 (about US$84) for 4 ice creams. Many bars in the center charge triple for sitting at a table outside (go to a coffee bar outside the historic center and this isn’t the case) and always check prices before ordering. At restaurants, there’s a thing called “coperto” that actually by law you are not obligated to pay that restaurants say is to cover the costs of the bread basket they bring out. To be honest, I can’t bother to squabble over the coperto, but then I also don’t tip especially when the coperto is added. Paying the coperto is a hell of a lot cheaper than paying a tip of 15-20% of the bill. I only add on a bit more if I liked the food & service, but tipping is not mandatory here (that’s another blog post!) That said, note prices when you order and before they take away the menu and don’t accept a bill with just one price scrawled onto a piece of paper. It’s not quaint or charming. Ask for an itemized bill.
6. Taxi drivers
There are official taxis in Rome – usually marked on the side with their cooperatives phone number and/or “SPQR Comune di Roma” and then there are private car companies that do airport transfers, called NCC (usually these are black-car sedans and vans). The white city taxis have the rates posted to the airport on the side and a card inside the taxi that explains the fare and any additional charges. Taxis start the meter at €3, Mon-Fri, 6am-10pm and at €6.50 from 10pm to 6am. Sundays and holidays from 7am-10pm the meter starts at €4.00. NB: If you call a taxi rather than picking it up from a taxi stand, the meter starts from when the call was made and not from when it actually arrived and picked you up. NCC drivers are hired for a flat fee and don’t go by meter.
My warning to you when taking a white city taxi is to make sure the meter is set to “Tariffa 1” and not “Tariffa 2” – many taxi drivers are notorious for putting it on “2” or switching it to “2” sometime during the journey. I’m sure there are plenty of honest taxi drivers, but unfortunately, we have had this happen one too many times and feel compelled to warn others. In every taxi there should be a price list in several languages. Taxi drivers at the train station and the airports are notorious for overcharging (despite set rates from the airport) so keep an eye out in any taxi you get into.
Please note that if you happen to leave a camera, phone or other items in a city taxi – unless you remember the name of the taxi driver and his driver number (listed on a panel attached to the doors in the back) as well as the taxi cooperative that he/she belongs to (this number is on the outside of the taxi), it truly is impossible for us to help you recover your lost item. There are many drivers and many taxi cooperatives out there and not one central line.
Sometimes, despite precautions, bad things can happen. We’ve known people who have had their iPhone snatched out of their hand in the middle of the day, and when we first moved to Rome, I had my purse stolen right out from under my feet in a restaurant. Be cautious, but there is only so much you can do if you don’t want to walk around in a constant state of fear and paranoia. That’s no fun either and will prevent you from experiencing fully the place you are visiting or being open to new experiences.
When traveling, for maximum peace of mind – purchase travel insurance. Not only will it cover the cost of theft (if you have proof of purchase of your items), but it’ll cover your tickets if you miss a flight, cover medical expenses and much more. You may or may not end up needing it, but the cost is low compared to what you could potentially lose.
We are proud to have recently started a partnership with World Nomads since we have always encouraged our guests to consider travel insurance. We use this insurance ourselves when we travel and as a family of 5, we think it’s well worth it. Having a back-up plan and something that can help take the sting out of a bad experience will be worth every penny.
Great article, good for the Italians too! There is one single mistake, “coperta” is a blaket. The charge in the restaurant is called “coperto”.
Thanks labarbano! I was just thinking “cover” which in Italian is coperta, but the wrong kind! Have made the change, thanks for pointing that out!
Linda, I learned 2 news things from your blogs posts after more than 2 years here! That we are not obliged to pay the coperto and also that public bars must allow us to use their bathroom. Grazie! 🙂
That’s great! Glad to be of help. And believe me, after going through 3 pregnancies in Rome, I think I visited every bathroom there is! 🙂
Nice place, nice blog. 🙂 As an Italian resident I startled at the remark that coperto is not compulsory, It’s true that the Regional Law n. 21/2006, article 16, comma 3, says that nobody can oblige you to pay a priori for coperto. But you have to pay if you use it. And coperto is, basically, traditionally, the bread and the cutlery. Now, you’ll agree that it is rather difficult to enjoy Italian food without doing scarpetta in the sauce. It is even more difficult to enjoy it without cutlery, isn’t it?
Moreover, the coperto system is the Italian version of the tip in US. With the difference that you don’t have to leave 15%, but 1-2 euros each.
Thank you Sergio for your comments. Many consumer complaints about coperto have arisen because of situations like this: “Un altro aspetto interessante delle denunce raccolte dall’U.Di.Con è che i cittadini in molti casi hanno fatto notare al ristoratore l’esistenza della legge e quindi chiesto spiegazione del conto lievitato del coperto, ma alle loro proteste, non sempre hanno trovato persone disposte a stornare dal conto il prezzo della tassa ormai vietata.” So despite not wanting the bread basket – many times – restaurant staff do not make it an option for you NOT to have it or make excuses about why they are unable to remove it. That said, just like I did mention in my post – I do not squabble over the coperto because I prefer to pay that and a couple of euro more than a tip of 15-20% – and these days the average is more 20% the US and UK.
Please pay the coperto…why would you not? It’s part of the service for sitting down at a restaurant. I couldn’t imagine arguing over that with a waiter! The tip is what you don’t need to pay…also, I am sure they are obligated to let you use the bathroom in bars but the curteous thing to do is to purchase something, even just a coffee…after all, someone will have to clean the bathroom you used, a bar is not a public latrine. I am Italian, i have never even considered walking into some store and going to use their bathroom and not pay, how embarassing would that be!
As I mention in the post, I do pay the coperto. But I would have to disagree that it’s “part of the service for sitting down in a restaurant”. Really? The price you pay is for the food that you consume. And like I also mention, I prefer to pay the cover rather than tip so that’s fine with me and I have never squabbled over paying the coperto. If cities like Rome had access to clean public bathrooms, then using the bathrooms in bars would not be necessary, but I would rather have my children use the bathroom in a bar than see what many Italian mothers do which is pull the pants down of their children in public and use the bathroom out in the open. Now that’s embarrassing and unhygienic.
We stayed at The Beehive with our two grandaughters (11 & 4) for a week in August this year. We didn’t experience any issues at all, no pickpockets, no gypsies, no scams…just lots of walking, sightseeing, gelati & great relaxing times in the courtyard. We were out walking very late in the evenings around the neighbourhood. Everyone we encountered was cheerful, helpful & happy. A wonderful Rome experience.
Hi Jenny, I’m so glad you had no issues while you were here – I hope most people don’t and I always hope people have a great time. But I do believe forewarned is forearmed – there are definitely certain things people should be made aware of when visiting Rome. That said, I do believe Rome – by many big city standards – is a lot safer than most.
[…] To read about stuff you should worry about, and CAN avoid, in Rome, read Linda’s recent blog post about safety in Rome here. […]
Howdy! This post couldn’t be written any better! Looking at this article reminds me of my previous roommate! He always kept talking about this. I’ll send this post to him. Fairly certain he’s going to have a great read. I appreciate you for sharing!
I would say one thing – don’t get in an illegal cab. I had one take me to St John Lateran church, and then he grabbed a 50$ euro out of my wallet and pretended it was a 5$. I yelled at him in Italian until he turned around and threw my change at me. Scary, never happened in DC or NYC.
Ugh Amy I’m sorry to hear that. Official city taxis are white with a reddish/orange shield on the side with the initials SPQR. In the cabs the rates are clearly stated and the meter should read Tariffa 1 and not Tariffa 2.
love your post, my husband and I are heading off to rome and beyond next September, and it has been so helpful. the beehive looks like the place to stay as well, caio, (that’s my Italian exhausted ), louise
Thanks Louise! We begin accepting reservations 6 months in advance so if you want to stay with us, please check our reservation page starting 1 March when we open the calendar for September and see which room type interests you and you can reserve with us directly with an instant booking. And if you have any questions or if I can be of any help, don’t hesitate to contact me at info@the-beehive.com All the best, Linda
Great article, thanks for the tips! Being home to the most UNESCO world heritage sites globally, Italy is indeed a fascinating land to visit. However, there are a number of crooks targeting tourists in the country.
Do be wary of the fashion guru asking for petrol money, gypsy groups, Rome gladiators, string/bracelet scam, pickpocketing, fake luxury products, rose scam, gold ring scam, unofficial tour guides, pigeon scam and many more!