Rome is a city of queues. Outside the Colosseum, outside the Vatican, outside the Borghese ticket desk. We skip those lines because we buy timed tickets three months ahead. That leaves room in four days for the things a standard itinerary never fits in.

Our hotel is in Monti, fifteen minutes on foot from the Colosseum and five from Cavour metro station. It means you can go out at seven for a coffee in a bar where locals stand at the counter, rather than a restaurant with photos on the menu. Our guide Marek has lived part time in Rome since 2014 and builds the days so that you see the big sights early in the morning or late in the afternoon, when the light is better and the crowds thinner.

Day two is ancient Rome: the Colosseum with arena floor access, the Roman Forum and the Palatine. That is four hours of walking, mostly on uneven stone, so the afternoon is a break. Day three is the Vatican with an 8:00 entry, ahead of most groups. The Sistine Chapel stays quiet for about six minutes and then it fills. St Peter Basilica is free to enter, but the dome climb costs 10 euros and 551 steps. The last afternoon is yours. We suggest the Borghese Gallery, for which we can add a ticket, or simply sitting on Piazza Navona and watching. Both are fine answers. Rome is loud and dusty and finding a bench in the centre is close to impossible. It all goes down easier once you know where to get a coffee for one euro sixty standing at the bar, which is exactly what Marek shows you on day one. Over four days you will walk about twenty six kilometres, most of it on stone.

What you will see

• Colosseum entry onto the arena floor, not just the upper tier
• Vatican Museums booked for eight in the morning
• Hotel in Monti, fifteen minutes on foot from the Forum
• Evening walk through Trastevere with dinner at Da Enzo
• A free final afternoon; the plan is a suggestion, not a duty
• Small group, so nobody follows an umbrella held over the crowd