Trastevere · Rome neighborhood guide
Things to Do in Trastevere
Rome's most beautiful neighborhood, across the river from the crowds: medieval lanes, golden church mosaics, the best free view in the city, and a food-and-wine scene that runs late. Here's what's actually worth your time, ranked and judged.
Trastevere in brief
- What should you not miss in Trastevere?
- The golden 12th and 13th-century mosaics inside the Basilica di Santa Maria in Trastevere and the square in front of it, the sweeping free view from the Gianicolo terrace just above, Raphael's frescoes at Villa Farnesina, and an evening in the cobbled lanes around Piazza Trilussa.
- How do you spend a day in Trastevere?
- Cross Ponte Sisto in the morning, wander the medieval lanes to Piazza di Santa Maria and its basilica, see Raphael at Villa Farnesina, then climb to the Gianicolo for the noon cannon and the view. Spend the afternoon at the quiet Santa Cecilia, and stay for dinner and drinks after dark.
- Is Trastevere worth visiting?
- Yes. It is the prettiest and most atmospheric neighborhood in central Rome, a short walk over the Tiber from the historic center, with two great medieval churches, Raphael frescoes, the city's best free panorama, and Rome's liveliest evening eating and drinking, all on foot.
Get oriented
How Trastevere fits together
Trastevere is small, cobbled, and made for wandering, tucked into a bend of the Tiber just west of the historic center.
The name means "across the Tiber," and that is exactly where it sits: a short walk over Ponte Sisto from Campo de' Fiori. Viale di Trastevere cuts the rione roughly in two. The western half, around Piazza di Santa Maria and the lanes off Piazza Trilussa, is the postcard Trastevere of ivy, cobbles, and bars, and it climbs to the Gianicolo hill and Villa Farnesina along its edge. The quieter eastern half, toward the river and Viale di Trastevere, holds the Santa Cecilia basilica and a more residential, local feel. Almost everything in this guide is within a fifteen-minute walk.
A half-day loop on foot, crossing from the historic center and climbing to the view:
See & do, ranked
The best things to do in Trastevere
Our honest ranking of what's worth your time, from the must-sees to the hidden gems, with a verdict on each so you know what to prioritize and what's overhyped.
Must-see
The essentials, ranked.- 1
Piazza di Santa Maria Worth itBasilica di Santa Maria in Trastevere
One of Rome's oldest churches, with a golden mosaic apse most visitors walk straight past.
By its own tradition this is the first place in Rome dedicated to public Christian worship, founded on a site granted in the 3rd century and rebuilt in its present form in the 1140s under Pope Innocent II. The reason to step inside is the apse: a glowing 12th-century Coronation of the Virgin mosaic above Pietro Cavallini's celebrated Life of the Virgin cycle from 1291, set off by 22 ancient granite columns lifted from Roman ruins and a gilded coffered ceiling. It is free, it is rarely crowded, and the mosaics are a first-rank work of medieval Rome. Come in the morning when the apse catches the light, and dress modestly as you would for any working church.
Good for couples, families, solo
- 2
Piazza di Santa Maria Worth itPiazza di Santa Maria in Trastevere
The social heart of the neighborhood, around one of Rome's oldest fountains.
The rione's living room, centered on a fountain that is among the oldest in Rome, already drawn on a city plan of 1471 and reworked over the centuries by Bramante, Bernini, who moved it to the center in 1659, and Carlo Fontana. People sit on its steps day and night, buskers play, and the basilica's mosaic facade glows above it after dark. The honest catch: the restaurants and cafes fronting directly onto the piazza trade on the view and are reliably overpriced and ordinary. Enjoy the square, then walk one or two lanes back, toward Via della Lungaretta or Vicolo del Cinque, to eat where the food is better and cheaper.
Free20 minOpen 24 hoursGood for couples, friends, solo
- 3
Gianicolo Worth the hypeGianicolo Terrace (Janiculum Hill)
The best free panorama in Rome, with a cannon that fires at noon.
The Janiculum ridge rises just above Trastevere and gives what many Romans consider the finest free view in the city, a sweep of domes and rooftops from the Piazzale Garibaldi terrace, crowned by the grand equestrian monument to Giuseppe Garibaldi from 1895. Its signature ritual is the noon cannon, a blank round fired every day at 12:00, a tradition begun in 1847 to give the city one official time signal and synchronize its church bells, and moved to this spot beneath the statue in 1904. It is a ten to fifteen minute walk uphill from Trastevere and entirely free. Come near sunset, or just before noon for the cannon.
Open 24 hours; cannon fires daily at noonGood for couples, families, solo
Sourcesturismoroma.itturismoroma.it
Worth it with more time
Good additions once you've done the icons.- 1
Via della Lungara Worth itVilla Farnesina
A Renaissance villa with Raphael frescoes and almost no crowds.
Built between 1506 and 1510 for Agostino Chigi, the fabulously rich Sienese banker to the popes, this small villa on Via della Lungara holds a fresco program by Raphael and his circle: the Triumph of Galatea, the nymph riding a shell across the water, and the Loggia of Cupid and Psyche, alongside Peruzzi's trompe-l'oeil Hall of Perspectives. It is owned by the Italian state and houses the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei, Italy's national academy of sciences. The payoff is high and the crowds are thin: a calm, close-up Raphael without the Vatican Museums crush. Allow about an hour, and note it is open weekday mornings only.
Good for couples, solo
- 2
Piazza Trilussa Worth itPonte Sisto & Piazza Trilussa
The pedestrian bridge into Trastevere, and the square where the evening starts.
Ponte Sisto is the Renaissance pedestrian bridge built between 1473 and 1479 under Pope Sixtus IV, on the foundations of an ancient Roman crossing, linking the historic center to Trastevere over the Tiber. It is the classic way to arrive on foot, best at golden hour for the view back toward St Peter's. It lands you in Piazza Trilussa, a small square with a monumental wall fountain and a statue of the Roman dialect poet Trilussa, and one of the most popular gathering spots for young Romans, who sit on the fountain steps with a drink before the surrounding bars get going. Cross by day for the view, come back after dark for the scene.
Free20 minOpen 24 hoursGood for couples, friends, solo
- 3
Vicolo del Cinque Worth itThe medieval lanes (Vicolo del Cinque & Via della Scala)
The ivy-draped cobbled backstreets that are the real reason to come.
If you have pictured Trastevere, you have pictured these lanes: the tangle of cobbled, ivy-hung streets west of Viale di Trastevere, around Vicolo del Cinque, Via della Scala, and the small Piazza de' Renzi. Vicolo del Cinque, named for the Del Cinque family and first recorded in 1416, runs from Piazza Trilussa to Via della Scala and is the densest run of bars and trattorias in the neighborhood. There is no single prettiest street, despite what the lists claim; the whole quarter is the draw. Wander it in the morning or at golden hour for the photographs, and again after dark when the terraces fill and it turns into Rome's best evening.
Free30 minOpen 24 hoursGood for couples, friends, solo
- 4
Porta Portese MixedPorta Portese Sunday Market
Rome's biggest flea market, but only on Sunday morning and only if you like the hunt.
Every Sunday morning, hundreds of vendors fan out from the 17th-century Porta Portese gate at the southern edge of Trastevere, selling vintage clothing, antiques, vinyl, books, and pure bric-a-brac in Rome's largest and most famous flea market. It is a genuine local institution rather than a tourist trap, but it is huge, chaotic, and loosely curated, so it rewards treasure-hunters and disappoints anyone after a quick, polished souvenir. Go early, before about 9am, for the atmosphere and the best finds. The crowds make it a well-known pickpocket spot, so keep your valuables on your body, not in a back pocket or open bag.
Free1 hrSundays only, roughly 7:00 AM – 2:00 PMGood for friends, solo, families
Sourcesarcheoroma.orgturismoroma.it
Hidden gems
Where the crowds thin out.- Hidden gem
Eastern Trastevere Worth itBasilica di Santa Cecilia in Trastevere
A near-empty basilica hiding the master fresco most Rome visitors never see.
In the quiet eastern half of Trastevere, the basilica of Santa Cecilia stands over the house of the saint, the patron of music, martyred here in the 3rd century. Two things make the detour worth it. Beneath the altar lies Stefano Maderno's delicate 1600 marble of Cecilia, carved as her body was said to have been found. And upstairs in the nuns' choir, behind a separate small ticket, is Pietro Cavallini's Last Judgement of 1289 to 1293, the master's only major surviving fresco and a genuine hidden gem: it is open weekday mornings only, a few visitors at a time, so the choir is usually near-empty while the rest of Rome queues elsewhere. The church itself is free; the fresco is a couple of euros.
Good for couples, solo
- Hidden gem
Gianicolo slope Worth itOrto Botanico di Roma
Twelve green hectares on the Gianicolo slope, a calm escape from the cobbles.
Behind Palazzo Corsini, on the lower slopes of the Gianicolo, the city's botanical garden spreads across twelve hectares run by Sapienza University. It is a genuine retreat from the crowds: a tranquil East Asian garden of cherries and maples, one of the richest bamboo collections in Europe, a rose garden of some sixty species, monumental old trees, and hillside views back over the rooftops. Locals treat it as a quiet green lung, and it is best for plant lovers and anyone who wants to slow down for an hour. One honest note: the ticket has climbed to about thirteen euros, so it is no longer the cheap stroll older guides describe. It is open every day.
Good for couples, families, solo
Verdicts and rankings are our own; ratings open each place on Google. Prices, where shown, are an approximate per-person guide in USD.
Trastevere on screen
Where you've seen Trastevere before
Trastevere's lanes and the hill above them have drawn filmmakers for decades. Tap a trailer, then go stand in the scene:
- Film, 2013
The Great Beauty
Paolo Sorrentino's Oscar-winning portrait of Rome opens with the Gianicolo noon cannon and returns again and again to the hill above Trastevere, the Acqua Paola fountain on Via Garibaldi, and Bramante's little Tempietto on the slope down into the neighborhood.
Gianicolo Terrace (Janiculum Hill)Source - Film, 2012
To Rome with Love
Woody Allen shot part of his Rome film right here: the paparazzi corner an unwilling celebrity at Ristorante Sabatini on the piazza, and the chase spills out across Piazza di Santa Maria in Trastevere and into the surrounding lanes.
Piazza di Santa Maria in TrastevereSource - Film, 1948
Bicycle Thieves
Vittorio De Sica's neorealist masterpiece was shot on the real streets of postwar Rome, and the search for the stolen bicycle crosses the Tiber into Trastevere, with one shot framing the entrance of the Santa Cecilia basilica in the background.
Basilica di Santa Cecilia in TrastevereSource
Eat & drink
Where to eat and drink in Trastevere
Trastevere is one of Rome's best eating neighborhoods, from classic Roman pasta to gelato and cheap local wine. A few we'd point you to, all a lane or two off the main square:
Trattoria Da Enzo al 29
Eastern TrastevereThe classic tiny family trattoria for the four Roman pastas, the cacio e pepe and carbonara, plus fried artichokes. No reservations for the main room and a long queue, so come early or expect to wait.
on Google
Otaleg
Via di San CosimatoGelato spelled backwards, and some of the best in Rome, a multiple Gambero Rosso Tre Coni winner with rotating, inventive flavors alongside the classics. Open late.
on Google
Supplì Roma
Via di San Francesco a RipaA fried-rice-ball institution open since 1979. Order a classic ragù supplì and a slice of pizza al taglio at the counter; it's a quick stand-up snack, cheap and excellent, not a sit-down meal.
on Google
Bar San Calisto
Piazza di San CalistoThe lived-in local bar just off the main square, beloved for rock-bottom prices on wine, spritz, and coffee, and a famous chocolate. Come for the no-pretense scene that spills onto the piazza, not a polished cocktail.
on Google
Getting around
Getting around Trastevere
Trastevere is small and best on foot, just over the river from the historic center.
Walk in over the river
The nicest way in is on foot: cross Ponte Sisto from Campo de' Fiori, or Ponte Garibaldi from the Jewish Ghetto, and you're in the heart of the neighborhood in minutes.
Tram 8 and the trains
Tram 8 runs along Viale di Trastevere from Piazza Venezia, and Trastevere station on the regional and airport lines sits at the southern edge, a short walk or tram ride from the center of the rione.
Two halves, one viale
Viale di Trastevere splits the area: the postcard lanes and Piazza di Santa Maria are on the western side, the quieter Santa Cecilia and the market on the eastern and southern side.
Come back after dark
Trastevere is lovely by day and comes alive at night. See the churches and the view in daylight, then return for dinner and the lanes around Piazza Trilussa.
Where to stay
Where to stay in Trastevere
Staying in Trastevere puts you in Rome's most atmospheric neighborhood, walkable to the center but with a village feel of its own. Where you base yourself within it makes a real difference:
Around Piazza di Santa Maria
The postcard heart, walkable to everything and full of life, but the busiest and loudest after dark. Best if you want the atmosphere on your doorstep and don't mind the noise.
The western lanes (Vicolo del Cinque)
Cobbled, pretty, and central, with the densest run of bars, so lively and a little noisy at night. The classic Trastevere base for first-timers.
Eastern Trastevere (toward Santa Cecilia)
Quieter and more residential, with a local feel, a short walk from the action and the tram on Viale di Trastevere. Calmer nights, still central.
Toward the Gianicolo & Via della Lungara
Up the edge of the hill, leafier and calmer, near Villa Farnesina and the botanical garden, with the city view a short climb away.
Explore the Rome City Guide
See every Rome neighborhood, itinerary, and the essentials, and find the right base for your trip.
View the guideWho it's for
Trastevere for couples, families, and solo
- Trastevere for couples
- Climb to the Gianicolo terrace for sunset and the view over the domes, then come back down for dinner in the lanes and a drink in Piazza Trilussa after dark.
- Trastevere for families
- The squares and fountains are easy with kids, the Gianicolo has a traditional puppet theatre and space to run, and a gelato at Otaleg or a supplì on the go keeps everyone happy between churches.
- Trastevere for solo travelers
- Trastevere is safe and made for wandering: free churches to duck into, a counter seat for a supplì or an espresso, and the cheap, friendly buzz of Bar San Calisto in the evening.
More of Rome
Nearby neighborhoods
A short hop from Trastevere, and worth pairing on the same trip.
Ready to explore Trastevere?
Tell Zoya, your personal travel assistant, how you like to travel, and she'll turn these into a Trastevere day, or a whole Rome trip, that fits your dates.
Start planning