Coin Tossing at the Trevi Fountain... Entrance Fee Required Starting February Next Year

Entrance Fee Applies Only to Tourists
Five Formerly Free Cultural Sites to Charge Admission

The city of Rome, Italy, will introduce an entrance fee for the Trevi Fountain, one of its most iconic tourist attractions, starting in February next year.

According to AFP and ANSA news agencies on December 19 (local time), Rome Mayor Roberto Gualtieri held a press conference that day to announce the new policy of charging an entrance fee for the Trevi Fountain. Mayor Gualtieri explained, "Visitors can still view the Trevi Fountain for free from a distance, but only those with tickets will be allowed to approach it more closely." The entrance fee will be 2 euros (approximately 3,500 won) and will apply only to tourists who do not reside in Rome, while Rome residents will continue to have free access as before.

The city of Rome is introducing the entrance fee for the Trevi Fountain both to address the problem of overtourism, with millions of visitors flocking to the site, and to cover management and operational costs. As of December 8 this year, the cumulative number of visitors to the Trevi Fountain reached approximately 9 million. This figure is more than double the annual number of visitors to the nearby Pantheon last year (about 4 million). The city estimates that introducing an entrance fee at the Trevi Fountain could generate annual revenue of around 6.5 million euros (approximately 1.13 billion won).

Tourists are tossing coins over their shoulders at the Trevi Fountain in Rome, Italy. Photo by Reuters Yonhap News Agency

Completed in 1762, the Trevi Fountain is considered a masterpiece of the late Baroque style and is a renowned landmark in Rome. Designed by architect Nicola Salvi, the fountain features a grand structure standing 26 meters tall and depicts figures from Greek mythology. Its name, Trevi, derives from its location at the junction of three roads (tre via). The fountain is famous worldwide for the tradition that if you stand with your back to the fountain and toss a coin over your left shoulder with your right hand, you will return to Rome. Coins thrown into the Trevi Fountain are collected three times a week, cleaned and sorted, and then donated to the Catholic charity Caritas.

In addition to the Trevi Fountain, the city of Rome will also begin charging entrance fees at five other cultural sites that have previously been free, starting February 1 next year. The sites becoming fee-based are the Villa of Maxentius, the Napoleon Museum, the Barracco Museum, the Museum of the Roman Republic and Garibaldi Memorial, and the Canonica Museum, each with an entrance fee of 5 euros (approximately 8,600 won).