Rome in 3 days: Ancient Rome, the Vatican and the Baroque centre

Begin the day at the heart of Imperial Rome's world of spectacle. Work on the Flavian Amphitheatre began under Vespasian in AD 70 and his son Titus completed it in 80; it was built where the artificial lake of Nero's Domus Aurea had been and held about 50,000 spectators. Going in at the first slot of the morning, before the crowds build, makes the visit easier. Remember that once you have entered the site, the same ticket will not let you in a second time.

In the same archaeological area next to the Colosseum, walk among the temple ruins of the Roman Forum, where the city's political and religious life took place, then climb to the high gardens of the Palatine, where the emperors lived. Moving from arena to Forum to Palatine reads like the story of how Rome was born, in order. There is little shade, so bring water and comfortable shoes.

After lunch around the Jewish Ghetto, climb to Piazza del Campidoglio, designed by Michelangelo. The Capitoline Museums on the square hold one of the most important collections of ancient Roman sculpture and look down over the Roman Forum, so you see the morning's ruins again from above. In winter, when the archaeological area closes early, spending the afternoon here balances the day.

Isola Tiberina, the Tiber's only urban island, is joined to the Jewish Ghetto and Trastevere by two bridges; cross over to the right bank. With its narrow lanes and squares recalling old Rome, Trastevere is the city's most neighbourly corner for ending the day. Stop at Santa Maria in Trastevere, probably Rome's first official place of Christian worship, meet at Piazza Trilussa and have dinner at a trattoria serving traditional Roman food.

The collections the popes built up over centuries culminate in the Sistine Chapel with Michelangelo's ceiling and "Last Judgement" frescoes. This is the longest and most intense visit of the plan; buy your ticket in advance so you can go in at opening and move ahead before the rooms fill up. Wear clothes that cover shoulders and knees and leave large bags at the free cloakroom. No photos or video in the Sistine Chapel, where complete silence is requested.

Michelangelo's dome, his Pietà and Bernini's bronze baldachin share one space. Michelangelo took on the dome in 1547, aged 72, and died before it was finished; the Pietà (1498–99) in the first chapel of the right aisle is the only work he signed. Bernini's baldachin, about 29 metres high, dates from 1624–33. Entry begins with a security check by the Italian State Police, at the right-hand colonnade as you face the basilica.

After lunch in Borgo or Prati, walk to Hadrian's Mausoleum on the right bank of the Tiber. An emperor's tomb turned fortress, papal refuge and museum shows Rome's layered history in a single building. In 1625 the bronzes of the Pantheon's portico were stripped for St Peter's baldachin and for this castle's cannons, a link you will recall at the Pantheon tomorrow. The angel statues on the bridge and the view of the Tiber are worth stopping for even if you do not go inside.

Built over the track of the Stadium of Domitian, Piazza Navona still keeps the shape of the ancient racecourse. The square sets the two great rivals of Roman Baroque face to face: Bernini's Fountain of the Four Rivers, commissioned by Pope Innocent X, and Borromini's church of Sant'Agnese in Agone. Walk the square in the late-afternoon light, then have dinner a few streets away around Campo de' Fiori.

Sculptures in which Bernini turned marble into flesh and paintings by Caravaggio can be seen up close, at the scale of a villa. Here are Bernini's "David", "Apollo and Daphne" and "The Rape of Proserpina"; Caravaggio's "Saint Jerome Writing" and "Young Sick Bacchus"; Canova's "Paolina Borghese"; and works by Raphael, Titian and Correggio. Plan your visit ahead by choosing a time slot.

Walk through Villa Borghese and the Pincio to reach the top of the steps at Trinità dei Monti. Linking the Pincian Hill to Piazza di Spagna, the steps were built between 1723 and 1726 by the architect Francesco De Sanctis and opened by Pope Benedict XIII for the 1725 Jubilee. The view from the top down Via Condotti shows the city's elegant side. In spring, from about mid-April to mid-May, around 450 azaleas are placed on the steps.

The end point of the ancient Aqua Virgo aqueduct, still working today, where Baroque sculpture meets water. Nicola Salvi won the competition Pope Clement XII launched in 1732, and Giuseppe Pannini completed the work. The famous scene in Fellini's "La Dolce Vita" was filmed here, and tradition says that whoever throws a coin into the fountain will return to Rome. Because the inner area opens at 11:30 on Mondays and Fridays, the visit is set for midday.

After lunch around the Pantheon, go inside: light falling only through the opening at the top of the dome tells the whole story of the building. Agrippa built the first temple in 27 BC; Hadrian rebuilt it in AD 118–125, and it became a church in 609. The dome's height equals its diameter (just over 43 metres) and the oculus is about 8.92 metres across. Raphael and the kings of Italy are buried here. Afterwards, enjoy free time in the streets between Navona and Campo de' Fiori.