Tourists hoping to get close to Rome’s Trevi Fountain will soon need to pay a €2 charge, according to the city’s mayor, as officials seek to generate revenue from Italy’s most visited landmarks.
Mayor Roberto Gualtieri told journalists that the new fee system would begin on 1 February, adding that the initiative is expected to bring in €6.5 million annually, reports RTE.
“Two euros isn’t very much … and it will lead to less chaotic tourist flows,” Mr Gualtieri said, underlining that residents of Rome will still be able to access the fountain free of charge.
Visitors will be required to pay if they wish to step onto the stone stairs around the fountain’s basin, although the small nearby square that offers a view of the striking monument will remain open to all, reports RTE.
The Trevi Fountain, where tradition says tourists throw a coin into the water to ensure a return to Rome, has long been one of the city’s top attractions, even drawing visiting world leaders.
Finished in 1762, the monument is a late Baroque masterpiece portraying Oceanus, the god of all water, and representing the changing moods of the world’s seas and rivers, reports RTE.
Mr Gualtieri said the site has welcomed nine million visitors so far this year, suggesting that many people may choose to admire the fountain from a distance in the future rather than pay to approach the water.
Some visitors said they would be happy to pay if the funds were used responsibly, reports RTE.
“If it means that money is used to keep it maintained, then yeah, that’s fine,” said British tourist Yvonne Salustri, reports RTE.
Mr Gualtieri also said that five other lesser-known locations in Rome, which are currently free to enter, will begin charging €5 from February, continuing a broader push to generate income from Italy’s cultural assets.
In 2023, a €5 admission fee was introduced for entry to Rome’s ancient Pantheon, reports RTE.
As a consequence, the square outside the site is often packed with people waiting for their turn to pay and go inside.
Venice has brought in a tourist entry-fee system during peak travel periods, while Verona has recently started charging visitors to access the balcony in the northern Italian city linked to Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet”, reports RTE.
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