As an easy day trip from Rome, Anzio is saturated with Italian culture.

There’s no place like home, but sometimes you just need to get away.

A few weeks ago, my roommates and I decided to venture away from our beloved Rome and see a different Italian town.

We each paid 3.60 euros for a train ticket to Anzio. This tiny coastal town is about an hour south of Rome.

I’ll highlight what we did during our day trip so other travelers can feel inspired to visit Anzio!

Click here to read the best non touristy things to do in Rome!

Day Trip from Rome: Anzio

First stop: the beach

After hopping off the train in Anzio, we beelined towards the beach.

Rich blue waves rushed over the sand, and the gleaming sun warmed our faces.

We were thrilled to be out of the city and breathing in ocean air.

So we spent quite some time walking along the coast and taking in the view of the sea with snowcapped mountains in the distance.

Stop 2: Anzio town and harbor

The town itself was quaint, with palm trees framing the colorful, block buildings.

As we walked around the curved harbor, boats rocked lazily in the waves.

Fishermen untangled their nets while chattering enthusiastically in Italian.

A smiling man supervised a candy cart, where we bought crispy, sugary roasted peanuts.

We also browsed through little carts piled high with Italian books.

Stop 3: antique market

In our walk along the harbor, we came across an outdoor antique market.

Tables overflowing with old clocks, action figures, jewelry, seashells, and other random trinkets filled an entire square.

Around the corner I saw the most adorable produce shop, with lots of fresh fruits and vegetables surrounding the doorway.

A sparkling fountain sat in the neighboring public square.

Here, children ran around screaming with joy, couples sat on benches eating gelato, and elderly people strolled arm in arm, without hurry.

Stop 4: struggling to find a restaurant for lunch

At lunchtime, we had to try three different restaurants before the staff decided to serve us.

Even though some of my roommates spoke Italian, we were clearly foreigners. Servers turned us away from their empty restaurants without reason.

We had already realized that we were the only tourists in this small town.

So we were thrilled to finally be able to sit down and eat after being rejected a few times.

Stop 5: fresh seafood and pasta

We ate outside by the water, where everyone ordered things like pasta with anchovies, a potato and vegetable dish with giant prawns, spaghetti with some unknown local fish, salad with calamari, and I had the best eggplant parmesan of my life.

Stop 6: more local food!

Our food adventures continued later in the day with cheap, simple, and delicious pizza from a takeaway window.

We also had kebabs and falafel wraps made by staff who loved practicing their English with us.

At least we found two people in Anzio who liked Americans.

Other magical moments from this day trip from Rome

Throughout the day we napped in the sun, walked through quiet residential neighborhoods, watched dogs play on the beach, and admired the warm glow of the saturated sunset.

It was such a beautiful day in a random Italian town.

I’m happy I got to enjoy the adventure with my crazy, charismatic roommates.

Traveling to Italy?

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To read about my other experiences in Italy, check out these articles:

Best Vegetarian Street Food In Rome

6 Reasons To Visit Cinque Terre

A Day In The Tuscan Countryside

Best Views of the Amalfi Coast

Top 13 Things To Do In Florence