Outdoors
Basalt paving, umbrella pines and tombs older than most countries.
The Appian Way was begun in 312 BC and ran all the way to Brindisi. The stretch just outside Rome still has its original basalt paving, and either side are the tombs of the families who wanted to be remembered by people walking past. It is the most atmospheric road in Italy and almost no one cycles it.
On Sundays and public holidays the traffic is banned along the older part of the road, so we go then. Electric bikes take the bumps out of the cobbles and the hills out of the afternoon, which means you can look around instead of at the road.
9:30
We meet at the bike rental on the Appian Way, fit the helmets and the e-bikes, and test the gears on a quiet side track.
10:00
We ride out through the Porta San Sebastiano and onto the cobbles. Your guide stops at the first tombs and explains who was buried here, and why the road was lined with the dead.
11:15
We lock the bikes and go below ground for a short guided visit to one of the catacombs, among the oldest Christian burial places in Rome. It is cool and quiet, and it is closed on Wednesdays.
12:15
We ride to the park of the aqueducts, where the arches march across the meadow. This is the place for photographs and a snack.
13:00
We finish with a long lunch at a farm on the road, with local cheese, cured meat and wine, before riding back.
EcoBike rental, Via Appia Antica 58/60
Via Appia Antica 58/60, 00179 RomaThe rental point sits just inside the park. Taxi from the centre is about 15 minutes; we send a pin.
Open in mapsYes. The e-bikes give you a gentle push, and the cobbles are slow ground. If you are nervous we start on a quiet track to build confidence.
We ride in light rain with a poncho, and we reschedule or refund for heavy rain, since the stones are slippery.
Cars are banned from the old road then. On weekdays it is shared with traffic, so we run those rides on request with a different route.
Food
from€149per personStart at the covered market in Testaccio with a local cook, buy your own ingredients, then learn to make cacio e pepe, supplì and a classic Roman dessert in a home kitchen.
Day trips
from€540per groupA private day with your own driver and guide: the Renaissance fountains of Villa d'Este, a long lunch in Tivoli and the ruins of Hadrian's vast country villa.
