The sights of Rome: the 10 main places and a map

Rome has no single main place people come for: there are about ten of them, and all are within an hour's walk of each other. Below is a diagram of what stands where, and an honest account of how much time and money each one asks.

North: a convenient place to start

Piazza del Popolo — a large square with an obelisk and two almost identical churches. Free, ten minutes. A convenient place to begin the day: after this everything runs downhill and towards the centre.

Villa Borghese — the park above the square. Free, and the only place on the list where a child can simply run about. Inside the park is the Galleria Borghese, but tickets for that are taken a month ahead.

The Spanish Steps — 135 steps, free, fifteen minutes. The main thing to know in advance: you may not sit on the steps, and you are fined for it. A child will sit down within a minute, which is a perfectly good reason not to bring them here in the heat.

The centre: three places five minutes apart

The Trevi Fountain — since February 2026 the descent to the basin has been paid, 2 EUR per person, while the view from the square stayed free. We covered it in detail separately: why the Trevi Fountain started charging and where the coins go.

The Pantheon — an ancient temple with a hole in the dome that is not glazed: in the rain water pours in, and the floor has holes for it. Entry is paid, 7 EUR, free under 18. Twenty minutes, and one of the few places a child finds interesting almost at once.

Piazza Navona — a long square on the site of an ancient stadium: its shape is the shape of the running track. Free, three fountains, street artists.

South-east: antiquity

The Colosseum — the place people come for. A ticket is 18 EUR, free under 18, but children still need a ticket. How that works we covered in our piece on Colosseum tickets and what they include. Allow two hours together with the Forum.

The Roman Forum and the Palatine are on the same ticket. An honest warning here: without explanation it is a heap of stones, and a child gives up in twenty minutes. But the Palatine offers the best free view down over the Forum.

The Circus Maximus — a long field where the chariot races were held. Free, not much to look at, but easy to explain to a child: the length of the track, the turns, where the emperor sat.

West: the Vatican and the castle

St Peter's Basilica — entry is free, and that is the most underestimated line in any list. You only pay to climb the dome. The main trap is the dress code: bare shoulders and knees are not admitted.

Castel Sant'Angelo — the round fortress by the bridge, once an emperor's mausoleum. A ticket is 18 EUR, free under 18. Of the whole list this is the place children like best: inside there is a spiral climb, cannon, a secret corridor to the Vatican and a rooftop view.

Trastevere — the quarter on the other bank, where people go not to look at things but to walk and eat. Free, and the right place for the evening.

What is paid and what is not

Which of these a child will survive

The adult list and the children's list do not fully coincide. In our experience it works like this:

• Almost always a hit: Castel Sant'Angelo, the Colosseum, the Circus Maximus, the Pantheon, the fountains.
• A hit if you talk them through it: the Forum, the Palatine, St Peter's. On their own these are stones and marble.
• Honestly not a hit: the galleries and the Vatican Museums. That is two or three hours in a crowd and a queue at the door.

And the main rule of the day: two places before lunch, one after. A third museum in a row stays in nobody's memory, child or adult.

If antiquity rather than the baroque is your priority, there is the two-hour «Time Travel» around the Colosseum and the Forums for 220 EUR. And all the city routes are gathered on the page of our Rome tours.