I though this was a brilliant race. The views as you run are gorgeous - an extended tour around all the Roman monuments.

The route is almost all flat (despite the famous five hills) and there are loads of water/food points along the way.

On the down side, there could have been a lot more spectators and the last section - going up and down the same road - felt very irritating.

This was my first marathon, and it was a good experience.

The good:
--Expo was easy to get to and everyone spoke English well
--Received a great bag with registration
--Course visits many interesting landmarks (cobblestones really weren't bad)
--Had still water and Gatorade at all stops
--Not much for hills! An overpass was the biggest one!

The bad:
--Difficult registration for foreigners
--Chips had problems (but they did resolve this quickly)
--Lack of porta-potties (I had to use the bushes)
--The last 10K are out and back with no shade and in a deserted area
--Not much spectator support
--Had to dodge people through the tourist areas
--Baggage buses were not staffed in the women's area and were not set up until shortly before the race
--Sometimes had to wait at the aid stations for water to be poured, and the sponge stations didn't always have sponges (save that sponge!).

I had a good time running this marathon, but I wouldn't recommend it for a first marathon.

Fantastic views. You really see all of Rome in three hours. It is well organized and it is amazing. They give a lot of priority to the runners, so you tend to have the whole road for yourself (nice). It can be hot; it starts at 9 and at 11:30 the sun really hit me. The pavement is not very good, so you spend a lot of time saving patches on the floor. I love the place.

Impressive event. Rome is a lovely city, and running past some of the sites almost helps overcome the pain. I would like to stress that it is well organized. Those responsible should be given charge of the public transport system.

Pushing (and jumping barriers to improve starting position beyond that given according to previous time) by other particpants should perhaps have been more harshly dealt with, as should the fact that apparantly every male needed to urinate within a meter of the course. But when in Rome....

There was a mess up with the chips, but that was dealt with swiftly.

Nice package-bag, drinks, medal, etc. for those taking part. Really enjoyed this one.

I chose this race as my first marathon because, well, it's Rome. From comments that I've read on this website and others, I knew it wouldn't be the fastest course or the best organized race that I could have chosen, but since my goal was just to finish my first marathon, I don't think I could have picked a better race. The race officials made an obvious effort to ensure that the course passed by every important landmark in this magnificent city. In fact, I carried a small disposible camera with me along the way, stopping to take pictures of all the sites. Yes, the streets are narrow, yes the cobblestones are dangerous, and yes they could have done a better job of keeping pedestrians out of the way. But all in all, who can complain? It was Rome on a perfect spring day. What could be better?

Rome was truly an exciting marathon. The race was extremely well-run. We began at the Colosseum and there was a bit of traffic for the first couple kilometers, but then it spread out. There were sponge stations every 5K, followed by flat water and Gatorade stations, followed by solid food stations. Now, the Italians really value their food. There were blood red oranges (sliced), as well as bananas, biscuits, and salt cubes at most stations. They were great at handing everything out as well. If I had known, I would not have brought so much Gu and so many supplies with me.

There were many cobblestones everywhere - and not just at the beginning and end, but throughout - so it was tough on the feet. There were some rolling hills although they were not significant. The temps got up to the 70's, which was warm, and it was a pretty sunny, bright day. Everything was in kilometers, so it might be helpful to consider how long it takes you to run a kilometer for segmenting. The scenery was incredible. Every turn brought you to a site: a major Piazzo, Spanish steps, a Trevi fountain, the Vatican (to name a few). The scenery was worth the trip, and the cobblestones were challenging but manageable. The pasta loading was to die for and the celebrating after was unforgettable.

An incredible course. The day was perfect. A great experience. Starting and finishing at the Coliseum, crossing the river and heading to St. Peter's, and running through the piazzas, is something no other city can offer. The cobblestone streets weren't too bad and made for a unique run.

Registration was a bit complicated for Americans (especially credit card transactions and the health form), and the expo was a little out of the way (but easy to get to). The finish area was crowded and confusing.

The crowds were friendly, altough sparse in some areas. In the city center, many spectators were smoking and blowing smoke directly into the faces of passing runners.

Although the organizers prove, year after year, to be unable to set up a decent expo (either far from city center, or overcrowded), the race is very well managed. The route is as scenic as it can be in such a splendid city. Not completely flat and with some cobblestones, but nevertheless quite fast. I can only confirm my previous post from last year: this one is a must in Europe.

As for the negative points stated by Robert, I think the only relevant one is about the limited number of porta-potties.

Showers were indeed available near the finish (Martelini Stadium) as indicated on the website.

This was a terrific race course - I can't imagine better sites to see while running a race. Organization was very good - no difficulties getting to the race or during the pre-race schedule. A lot of hydraton stops with many sponge stops.

I would suggest two changes:
1) More toilets - too few at the start and on the course.
2) The last 6 miles were difficult due to the out-and-back. It was hard when you are running out and others are running in right across the street.

I would do this race again in a heartbeat - I had a great time.

I am an over-5-hour marathoner. The shopping streets were inundated with shoppers, but when in Rome.... The scenery more than made up for anything; the people on the course, even the shoppers were encouraging, and most importantly the organizers must be listening, as they kept the intersections marked and the water stops open.

Cobblestones do hurt the feet. The course and scenery makes up for everything. There were porta-potties throughout the course, sometimes a little before the water stops, sometimes a little after. You did have to have your eyes open though.