Rome wants to charge tourists for entry to the Trevi Fountain

The city of Rome said on Wednesday, September 4, that it is considering charging for entry to the iconic Trevi Fountain, which is visited by millions of people each year, a measure still under consideration to combat overtourism affecting the Eternal City. Alessandro Onorato, deputy in charge of tourism at Rome’s city hall, is considering imposing specific access times for visitors to the square where the Baroque masterpiece stands.I would be in favour of the idea of ​​examining a new type of access, limited in time and with a fixed number (of visitors), with a reservation system.” he told the daily Evening Couriercomments confirmed by his press service.

The ticket would be free for Romans and would cost one euro for tourists. The idea is not to make money but to control the crowd and, in particular, by filtering the entrances, to prevent tourists from eating ice cream or pizza on the steps, according to the newspaper. The Trevi Fountain, built in the 18th century, served as the setting for the most famous scene in the film The Sweet Life by Federico Fellini, when the actress Anita Ekberg bathes there, which is strictly forbidden.

Explosion in the number of tourists expected in 2025

A city spokesman told AFP that the idea of ​​tickets was just a “initial idea, there is nothing concrete yet». «This is a delicate and difficult question, but sooner or later it will have to be addressed. Tourism in Rome, which is recording record numbers, must be made sustainable for the city and the environment.” he added. Tourist numbers are expected to explode during the Jubilee, a holy year celebrated by the Catholic Church every 25 years or so, with some 30 million people expected to visit Rome and the Vatican in 2025.

This year, Venice has experimented with a system of paying day tickets for visitors during peak periods, in an attempt to better manage the flow of visitors. Giorgia Meloni’s government is considering increasing the tourist tax, but the idea has angered tourism federations, which fear that excessive increases could dampen tourist interest.

Mr Onorato added that Rome would also like to limit the opening of new bed and breakfasts or holiday homes in order to protect the historic centre, but the municipality does not have that power.Today we can limit the number of restaurants or fast food outlets in the historic centre, but we cannot prevent the opening of non-hotel accommodation facilities.” he said.

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