Free Site seeing

Month 6 - Bite 19

Many of the sites and venues featuring as essential viewing come at a cost, and that's fine - there is a price for the upkeep and maintenance of all such highlights. There are, however, many sites that don't cost a thing! It doesn't take much exploring or researching to find them and this trip we've discovered lots that we hadn't visited before.

Churches are one huge storehouse of interest and fascination. Whether that's marvelling at the work of  masters - like this statue of Moses by Michelangelo in St. Pietro in Vincoli....

or looking at the monuments to the long dead (and sometime seeing them too) or finding out more about the revered relics in their care. This time it was the chains that held St. Peter and a fragment of the manger. Whether you hold these in esteem or look at the effect they have had on the faithful over time they add new interest to a trip.

Churches aren't the only free sites.

Our walk along the Appian Way with its monuments and relaid original paving led us to the Villa di Massenzio with ruined buildings and a Circus worthy of any chariot race. Not only was it free, but we were virtually the only people there!

There are sites like these around in many countries (including our own) some appreciate donations or if there's a shop (most of the sites we went to this time didn't have a commercial outlet - just a warm welcome) then buying something will help swell the coffers, but most are there to celebrate and inform.

Month 6 - Bite 20

Many years ago I went to Greece as part of a tour and it was explained to our group that on Sunday we would be going on a boat trip out of Athens as this was the day that the sites were free and the tour operators tried to take their customers out to enable locals easier access to this. I'm not sure we totally believed that as the sites needed tourists to pay in order to keep going, but anyway the boat trip was great!

It is, however, still the practice in many countries to have a free day for visiting sites either weekly or monthly. It's worth finding out and then booking ahead if need be in order to make use of the offer.

Some places have cheaper entrance rates on different days or at varying times of the day - we found that when we rocked up early at the Pitti Palace in Florence one time and got in half price.

A little research goes a long way!