A stroll through Rome affords you plenty of amazing views without costing a euro. Additionally, museum cards provide discounts on attractions that do cost money.

Discounts

There are choices when it comes to discount passes in Rome. The three-day combination ticket costs €23 and grants admission to the Colosseum, the Palantine, the Baths of Caracalla, the Palazzo Massimo alle Terme and the Palazzo Altemps.

Another option is the three-day museum card selling for €6.5. This gets buyers into the Palazzo Altemps, Palazzo Massimo alle Terme, Crypta Balbi and Terme di Diocleziano.

The seven-day archaeological card for €27.5 gives buyers admission to nine of the city's major sights including the Colosseo, Palantine Hill, the Baths of Caracalia, Palazzo Altemps, Palazzo Massimo alle Terme, the Baths of Diocletian, Villa dei Quintili, Tomb of Cecilia Metella and Crypta Balbi.

The two seven-day cards also allow for one EUR discounts on guided visits as well as a €1.50 price on audioguides.

Cards can be purchased at any and all of the participating sights.

Free Attractions

Roam if you want to in this ancient city because you are bound to run into something old and stunning at every turn. The Eternal City offers lots of free sights, out of doors, in the form of monuments, fountains, columns, clergy and a little city-state called the 'Vatican.'

Walking is an ancient art in this town. In fact, Rome is the city that taught humans to stroll. Cicero and Ovid had many philosophical and romantic insights to share regarding putting one foot in front of the other. Enjoying a simple stroll went to the next level with the creation of porticoes in the second and first centuries B.C.

Some churches not to miss along the way include the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore. Mosaics from the 5th-century decorate the triumphal arch and nave. The Basilica di San Pietro in Vincoli houses Michelangelo's Moses. And, of course, this is where one can also see the chains worn by St. Peter during his imprisonment.

The Chiesa di San Clemente is interesting in the fact it is a 12th-century church built over a 1st-century house. The mythological Bocca della Verita is housed at the Santa Maria in Cosmedin. Legend has it, if one places his or her hand in the 'bocca' and tells a lie, the mouth will snap shut.

The Pantheon is one of the best-preserved buildings of ancient Rome. Admission is free to enter Agrippa's Temple. Piazza Navona is the square lined with baroque palaces and shows off three fountains. Bernini's masterpiece Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi is found flowing. Grab a seat and take it all in as artists use the sight as spiritual inspiration.

Another fountain, the one featured in 'La Dolce Vita,' is the Trevi. Designed by Nicola Salvi in 1732, this monstrous waterworks display is yet another gorgeous Roman sight plopped in the middle of the city.

The Piazza Farnese is home to the palace of the same name. It is now housing the French embassy. Two enormous granite baths taken from the Baths of Caracalla are here as well.

Villa Borghese is a large park and also the site of the 17th-century villa housing Museo Galleria Borghese. Admission is not free, but one can admire it from the outside while picnicking on the grass. At the city's northern entrance, the Piazza del Popolo, to the west of Villa Borghese and a fourth of a mile (.4km) northwest of The Spanish Steps, is the perfect place to catch a beautiful view of the city. It's at the foot of Pincio Hill and the square itself is the convergence of three roads.

The Piazza di Spagna and the Spanish Steps are famous sights as well as famous places to sit down and take a break or meet up with other tourists. This is also the site of Festa della Primavera in late April or early May, when the people of the city cover the steps with flowers.

One can view the Colosseum from the outside, though going in has an admission fee. On the west side of the Colosseum is the triumphal arch built in 312 to mark the victory of Constantine over Maxeentius. The reliefs are from earlier structures.

In the neighborhood of Trastevere rests the Basilica di Santa Maria. Feel free to gawk at the interior redecorated during the baroque period. The apse and mosaics date back to the 12th-century. The Basilica di Santa Cecilia in Trastevere has an amazing 13th-century fresco. Via Giulia is an elegant street designed for Pope Julius II and, fortunately, here for all cheapos to enjoy. Lined with Renaissance palaces, shops and art galleries, it's a real beaut.

And, last but not least, the mammoth Vatican City is a blessing for anyone on a budget. St. Peter's Basilica is the perfect place to start because it's free.