There are times walking around the centre of Rome when you may feel that tourism is the city’s raison d’etre. That’s not entirely true, but tourists are certainly spoiled for choice in the Eternal City. In this expanding section of our Rome destination guide, we’ll pick out some of the top tourist attractions and endeavour to put them into some kind of context.
Entrance fee
Note that at many museums (including state-owned museums) entrance is free or heavily reduced for EU citizens under 18, with lesser reductions for those aged between 18 and 25. Take your passport as proof.
Many Rome attractions are closed on a Monday. We give times and days where available – but please be prepared for variations as changes to opening hours are rarely publicised. Many attractions close earlier in the winter.
Colosseum – Rome’s most famous tourist attraction
Castel Sant’Angelo – built as Hadrian’s mausoleum, later a Papal fortress
Catacombs – underground burial complexes with early Christian frescoes and carvings
Rome Zoo, the Bioparco – Rome’s zoo is in the Villa Borghese area and adds variety to a family holiday
Roman houses on the Celio hill
Capitoline Museums – the best of Rome’s ancient statuary
Centrale Montemartini – Roman sculptures and mosaics displayed in a former electricity generating plant
Museo di Roma (Palazzo Braschi) – Museum of Rome, in the Centro Storico
Museo della Civiltà Romana – Roman history, portrayed through plaster replicas and models
Museo Nazionale delle Arti e Tradizioni Popolari – folk art and traditions
Museo dell’Alto Medioevo – museum of the Middle Ages in Italy
Galleria Spada – small art gallery housed in a pretty palazzo
Galleria Borghese (book in advance) – superb collection of paintings and statues
Palazzo Barberini – another collection of paintings
Museo Barracco – small and attractive collection of ancient sculpture
Free entry / outdoors
Pantheon – one of the best-preserved and loveliest buildings from the Ancient World
Trevi Fountain – dramatic fountain famed for coin-throwing
Vittoriano – big ugly white monument with good views (pay for access by lift to the highest panoramic terrace)
Teatro di Marcello – Roman theatre later converted into residence
Via Appia Antica – the old Roman Appian Way lined with ruined tombs and archaeological sites
Protestant Cemetery – peaceful spot where Keats is buried
Scala Santa – Holy Staircase – pilgrimage destination
Basilica of San Giovanni in Laterano Rome’s cathedral
Abbazia delle Tre Fontane – little-visited abbey out of town
Parks and Gardens
Villa Celimontana
Roseto Comunale (Public Rose Garden)
Orto Botanico (entrance fee)
Valley of the Caffarella
Interesting Buildings
Acquario Romano – former Rome Aquarium