Rome Is Now Charging Tourists to Visit the Trevi Fountain — and Some Are Already Trying to Avoid the Fee

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Rome has begun charging tourists a small fee to access the Trevi Fountain as part of an effort to manage overtourism, but some visitors are already attempting to bypass the new system to toss coins into the landmark’s waters.

Trevi Fountain (or Fontana di Trevi in Italian) is a fountain in Rome, Italy. Commissioned by Pope Clement XII in 1732 and completed in 1762, it’s the largest Baroque fountain in the city and, some say, the most beautiful in the world.

The fountain’s history

Anyway, the fountain’s traditional legend says that if visitors throw a coin into it, they’re ensured a return to Rome. So, of course, for centuries now, visitors make sure to throw a coin (or two. Or three) in.

There’s a background for how many coins you throw in:

• One coin means you’ll return to Rome.
• If you throw in two coins, it means you’ll fall in love with a Roman.
• Three coins? It means falling in love and eventually getting married.

There’s even a tradition of how you throw the coin in – you have to stand with your back to the fountain and throw the coin(s) over your left shoulder, with your right hand.

That’s got to be a lot of money

Indeed — the Trevi Fountain sees around 30,000 tourists every day (and up to 70,000 per day during peak seasons), according to Travel And Tour World. And those 30,000 visitors throw in about €3,000 (over $3,500 USD) in coins every day. The money is collected regularly and, since 2001, has been donated to Caritas, a Catholic charity that supports those in need.

But now there’s a fee

Unfortunately, Rome, like many other locations in Europe, is suffering from overtourism. So in 2024, the city began experimenting with barrier systems to limit tourists’ access to the fountain, to see if crowd control was even a possibility. It decreased visitor numbers and was deemed a success.

So as of this past Monday, February 2, Rome’s city government officially began charging tourists €2 (about $2.35) to stand close to the iconic landmark and toss a coin into what some consider its “lucky” waters.

The fee will be charged every day from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m., when the site typically has the most foot traffic. On Mondays and Fridays, the timeframe will be from 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Turismo Roma notes that access to the basin will remain free for local residents, children under 5, and people with disabilities (and their caretakers).

Roman officials believe the Trevi Fountain fee could wind up generating up to €20 million (roughly $23 million USD) every year.

However, believe it or not, CNN reports that people have already figured out a way to hack the system so they don’t have to pay.

The “free” way to throw coins into Trevi Fountain

According to CNN, a group of Spanish tourists refused to pay the fee on the first day it was enacted. But they still wanted to toss a coin into the water so they could return to Rome, fall in love, etc., so the group reportedly stood outside the barrier Roman officials had put up and threw coins at the fountain from farther away instead.

Of course, several of the coins didn’t reach the water at all. On top of that, the Spaniards’ fellow tourists had to run away to avoid being hit with flying coins.

Quoting a city official, CNN reports that patrols will soon be stationed at the fountain to help prevent a similar situation from happening again.

How to buy tickets

Obviously, most visitors will be happy to pay such a small amount to see Trevi Fountain up close and not have to risk bonking someone in the head with a coin thrown at a distance.

The €2 ticket can be purchased online at fontanaditrevi.roma.it, or in person at Tourist Infopoints and Civic Museums ticket offices. You can also buy tickets at the entrance to the controlled area via QR code. On-site payments are card only, while Civic Museums/Infopoints and authorized outlets also take cash.

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