Booking choice: The Spanish Steps, Trevi and Pantheon walk, from $56 per person. Check dates Tour details
For centuries the Spanish Steps were Rome's front porch. Painters' models waited here for work in the 1800s, and Audrey Hepburn ate her gelato on them in Roman Holiday. Since August 2019 that is over: sitting, lying down and eating on the 135 steps can get you fined.
The rule surprises a lot of visitors, mostly because the photos they saw before the trip show crowds sitting shoulder to shoulder. Those photos are old. Here is the current rule, checked against the city's regulation and the press reports of the day it came in.
The quick answer
You cannot sit, lie down or eat on the Spanish Steps. Rome's urban police regulation has treated them as a monument since 2019, and the municipal police fine €250, rising to €400 if you dirty or damage the stone. Walking up and down, standing and taking photos stay free and allowed, day and night. For a seat, use the benches on the Pincio terrace, ten minutes from the top, or a café table on the square.
Can you sit on the Spanish Steps in 2026?
No. Sitting or lying on the Spanish Steps has been banned since 6 August 2019, and the ban is still enforced in 2026.
The ban comes from the Regolamento di Polizia Urbana, Rome's urban police regulation, which the city council approved in June 2019. It lists the Steps as a monument, and from 6 August 2019 the municipal police began fining anyone who sat on them (ANSA, 6 August 2019). It applies around the clock and in every season, including the weeks when the azaleas are out.
Nobody stops you from using the Steps as stairs. You can climb to Trinità dei Monti, stop on a landing, lean on the balustrade and take as many photos as you like. Sit down on a step and you break the rule.
How much is the fine for sitting on the Spanish Steps?
€250. It rises to €400 if you also dirty or damage the steps, for example by spilling food or a drink or dragging a stroller or suitcase up them.
What you can and cannot do, according to the 2019 regulation as reported by Wanted in Rome and ANSA:
| On the Spanish Steps | Allowed? | Fine |
|---|---|---|
| Walking up and down | Yes | n/a |
| Standing, stopping for photos | Yes | n/a |
| Sitting or lying down | No | €250 |
| Eating or drinking on the steps | No | €250, up to €400 if you leave a mess |
| Dragging a wheeled suitcase or stroller | No | Up to €400 if it damages the stone |
| Wading in the Barcaccia fountain | No | Fined under the same regulation |
The police collect on the spot or issue a ticket. Tourists get no discount for not knowing; the signs are small, and the excuse never works.
Thirty minutes at the Steps with a guide who knows the rules, then Trevi, the Pantheon and Navona.
Check dates for the Spanish Steps, Trevi and Pantheon walkWhy did Rome ban sitting on the Spanish Steps?
To protect the travertine. The Steps were restored in 2015-2016 for €1.5 million, and gelato, wine, chewing gum and scooters kept staining and chipping them.
The Steps were built between 1723 and 1725 and the soft, porous travertine soaks up anything spilled on it. The fashion house Bulgari paid €1.5 million to clean and repair about 3,000 square metres of stone between October 2015 and September 2016 (Wikipedia). Within three years the steps were stained again, which is why the 2019 regulation treated them as a monument rather than a public bench.
Vandalism has not stopped. In 2022 a couple threw a rented electric scooter down the steps and chipped them; each was fined €400. Fans of the Dutch club Feyenoord damaged the Barcaccia fountain at the foot in 2015.
Is the sitting ban actually enforced?
Yes. Municipal police officers patrol the square and the steps and blow whistles at anyone who sits down, and travellers still report this in 2025 and 2026.
Most of the time a whistle and a wave is all it takes: people stand up and the officer moves on. Fines go to those who argue, sit back down or leave rubbish. The patrols are most visible in the middle of the day and in the evening, when the crowds are biggest. Early in the morning you may see a few people sitting, unwatched. They are still breaking the rule.
Tour guides know the drill too. On every tour on this site the group stands for the 10 to 30 minutes it spends at the Steps, which is worth knowing if anyone in your party struggles to stand for long.
Can you eat gelato on the Spanish Steps?
No. Eating on the Steps falls under the same ban, so the Roman Holiday scene is now worth a €250 fine. Eat your gelato on the square, away from the stairs.
The irony is not lost on anyone. The steps are famous partly because Audrey Hepburn ate a gelato on them in 1953. Today the 2019 regulation also targets "messy eating" at monuments across the centre, and dripping ice cream on travertine is exactly what it had in mind.
Do it the legal way: buy the cone, stand in the square or walk up Via dei Condotti, and finish it before you climb. Most guided walks around here build a gelato stop in. The LivTours small-group walk starts at the foot of the Steps and includes one; the golf cart tour adds a gelato break on the way.
Start at the foot of the Spanish Steps in a group of six, then a gelato or coffee on the way to Trevi and the Pantheon.
Explore the small-group walk with gelato Tour detailsWhere can you sit near the Spanish Steps?
On the benches of the Pincio terrace and in the Villa Borghese gardens, about ten minutes from the top, or at a café table on the square.
- The Pincio terrace: from the top of the Steps, walk left along Viale della Trinità dei Monti for about ten minutes. Benches, shade and one of the best views in Rome, over Piazza del Popolo to St Peter's dome.
- Villa Borghese: the park behind the Pincio, with lawns and plenty of benches. Free to enter.
- Babington's Tea Rooms: at the left foot of the Steps since 1893. Not cheap, but you sit indoors with a view of the square.
- Antico Caffè Greco: at Via dei Condotti 86, open since 1760, three minutes from the Steps. Stand at the bar for the cheaper price, or take a table.
- Church pews: Trinità dei Monti at the top is free to enter and cool in summer. Sit quietly and respect services.
The top of the Steps also has a wide terrace in front of the church where people stand at the balustrade. Leaning is fine; sitting on the balustrade is not a good idea.
Can you use a stroller or a wheelchair on the Spanish Steps?
Not on the steps themselves. Carry a folded stroller, and for a wheelchair reach the top by road along Via Sistina from Piazza Barberini, or use the lifts at Spagna metro.
Dragging wheels up the stone is one of the things the regulation fines, and with 135 steps you would not want to anyway. Families usually carry the child and the folded stroller. Wheeled suitcases are banned on historic stairways for the same reason: book a hotel you can reach without climbing the Steps with your luggage.
For a step-free route to the top, Spagna metro station has lifts and moving walkways towards the upper exit on the Villa Borghese side, and Via Sistina runs level from Piazza Barberini to Trinità dei Monti. Details are in how to get to the Spanish Steps.
Which other Rome rules catch visitors out?
The Trevi Fountain ticket, the Pantheon fee and the fountain rules. Trevi's basin area costs €2 from 9:00 to 22:00 since February 2026; the Pantheon costs €7 since July 2026.
- Trevi Fountain: since 2 February 2026, non-residents pay €2 to enter the area by the basin from 9:00 to 22:00, card only at the fountain, with up to 400 people at a time (Turismo Roma). The view from the piazza above is free, and so is the basin area after 22:00.
- The Pantheon: €7 for adults since 1 July 2026, €2 for ages 18 to 25, free for under-18s and on the first Sunday of the month (The Local).
- Fountains: no wading and no climbing. The little nasoni street fountains are the ones for drinking and filling bottles.
- Churches: covered shoulders and knees, including Trinità dei Monti at the top of the Steps.
The walk from the Steps to Trevi takes ten minutes; our Steps to Trevi guide covers the route and the ticket in detail.
Trevi from the water level, Pantheon entry and the Spanish Steps, with the tickets sorted on the main option.
Check dates for the walk with Trevi and Pantheon ticketsFrequently asked questions
Is it free to visit the Spanish Steps?
Yes. The Steps and Piazza di Spagna are a public space, free and open 24 hours a day. No ticket, no queue, no gate.
Can you sit on the Spanish Steps at night?
No. The ban applies at every hour. The Steps stay open and lit at night, and walking up and down is allowed.
Can children sit on the Spanish Steps?
The rule makes no exception for children, though police usually just ask a family to stand up. Plan a rest on the Pincio benches instead.
Can you take photos on the Spanish Steps?
Yes. Standing on the steps for photos is allowed and free. Just keep moving if the officers ask, and don't sit down for the shot.
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Free cancellation up to 24 hours before on every option. Prices are from-prices in USD and move with the season.
Spanish Steps, Trevi & Pantheon Walk
- Licensed guide and headsets
- 30 minutes at the Spanish Steps
- Trevi Fountain, Pantheon (outside) and Piazza Navona
Rome Golf Cart Tour with Gelato
- Small-group golf cart with a live guide (max 14)
- Stops at the Spanish Steps, Trevi and the Pantheon
- Gelato, bottled water and headsets
Small-Group Centro Storico Walk with Gelato
- Group of no more than 6 guests
- Starts at Babington's Tea Rooms, Piazza di Spagna
- Pantheon visit (not on first Sundays and holidays)
