No matter how many times I return to Rome, I am always amazed by the prominence of the ancient past in daily life. On my first evening back in town, it has become my habit to head to Sora Lella, a family-owned trattoria on Tiber Island, which is deservedly renowned for its robust Roman cuisine. After dinner, I stroll back to my hotel by way of the Ponte Fabricio, a bridge that was built by Lucius Fabricius in 62 B.C. and has been in constant use ever since. Of course, the world has numerous cities of great antiquity, but few give the traveler quite the same dizzying feeling of time travel. Many have been bombed or bulldozed or partially submerged beneath concrete. But Rome is a glorious exception, and despite all the invasions and upheavals, as well as the ruthless repurposing of the classical past — most of its churches were constructed with marble taken from the Colosseum — 3,000 years of the city’s history are still plainly visible.

Probably the two best panoramic views of Rome are those from the rooftop restaurants of Hotel Eden and Hassler Roma. Both hotels are located on the steep hillside that rises from the Piazza di Spagna to Via Veneto, flanked by the gardens of Villa Medici. Being situated at the top of the Spanish Steps, the outlook from the Hassler’s sixth-floor Michelin-starred Imàgo is unimpeded. The Eden is higher up, so the view is slightly more extensive, even though part of the foreground is taken up by the twin towers of the church of Trinità dei Monti and the back of the Hassler. The Eden’s great advantage over its rival is its outdoor terrace, where you can sit gazing in rapture at the splendor spread out below.

Hotel Eden

I stayed at Hotel Eden on my very first visit to Rome, some 35 years ago. The property was then run by two brothers, Giuseppe and Gianfrancesco Ciaceri, grandsons of the hotel’s 19th-century founder, Francesco Niestelweck. After a chance conversation in the lobby, I found myself invited to lunch on the roof. From there, Giuseppe delighted in pointing out the city’s principal landmarks — the Pantheon, the Castel Sant’Angelo, the dome of St. Peter’s — before adding his own personal fragment of history to the scene. He had been sitting in exactly the same spot, he said, on June 5, 1944, and had seen the first American tanks rumble into the city across the Piazza Venezia.