Exploring Rome, Italy at Night

Can You Avoid Crowds in Rome By Touring at Night?

Just like other giant cities in Europe, Rome contains enough history and one-of-a-kind treasures that it would take months to see enough to satisfy your curiosity. But if you don’t have an entire day to devote to each amazing sight in Rome, embarking on a tour with a guide is an excellent option, especially since they’ll often drive you around in a van or other conveyance. Rome traffic is nothing to sneeze at, especially during rush hour.

During my brief time in the city, there were all sorts of updates occurring to the underground mass transit system, but from what I gather, a lot of halts and stops and starts were happening because every time the construction crews dug a little further into the earth they found more ancient history and treasures that needed exploring, cataloguing, saving. So, as it stands right now, Rome’s public transit very much felt like an “in-progress” beast.

That’s why I chose to take a tour with a guide who would drop us off at a bunch of the major sights around Rome so we could see things in person without hiking our way across the city. Now, truth be told, I did, in fact, hike my way across the city the next day when it was daylight, but seeing everything first by car the day before was awesome not only because someone else was driving us around but because the vibe was totally different at night.

Were there crowds in Rome at night? Yes, there were crowds at night. Was the traffic crazy at night? To a point, yes. There was traffic at night. Would I recommend seeing Rome after dark? Absolutely, because the Romans don’t shut everything down just because the sun has disappeared. You can take a look at almost everything – from the outside at least – after dark, and the visuals you get at night are just as awesome as you’d see during the day.

(note: some of the links here are to websites with which I am an affiliate, and your purchases help fund my website!)

St. Peter's Square in Vatican City, Rome, Italy. — Touring Rome at Night Offers Slightly Less Insane Crowds for Popular Sights

Do You Miss Anything in Rome With Night Tours?

I don’t think you miss anything truly important when you choose to see Rome at night versus the day, but you do get a different experience in the city versus what you get during the day. The crowds do indeed still exist but at varying levels across town. If you visit the Vatican at night, for example, you’ll see an almost deserted St. Peter’s Square, which is quite amazing since the place is usually quite full of people.

On the other hand, almost any of the famous fountains throughout Rome, like the Trevi Fountain, will still have a fair number of people taking pictures, even if it’s well past sunset. The lighting at night is so impressive that you don’t really miss anything after the sun goes down, so visitors tend to crowd around many of Italy’s landmarks no matter what time of day it is.

However, just because some locales are always busy doesn’t mean every location is full of people. That’s really what you’re fighting against when you visit Rome. The city is just awash in visitors no matter the season. We visited in late March (it might have technically been April at that point), and there were tons of people at almost every well-known tourist venue.

However, the traffic was definitely less of an issue after dark, and the views of all the famous, iconic structures at night were quite amazing. The Spanish Steps, for example, looked marvelous at night. Me and my traveling partner ran all the way to the top at full speed without anyone getting in our way, just to see if we could do it. That probably wouldn’t have been possible in the middle of the day.

The Trevi Fountain in Rome, Italy at night. — Seeing the fountains around Rome at night was awesome.

Maximizing Your Time in Rome With a Night Tour

One of the benefits of taking a tour at night is that it’s an excellent way to stuff more visuals into your time in Rome when you only have a short few days. My time in Rome was particularly brief, and I was only there a few days. It would have been lovely to stay there a month, but I took what I could get.

By embarking on a night tour, I was able to visit some iconic places around Rome that I might not have gotten to see had I only had one full day of touring. My traveling partner and I arrived in Rome around the traditional check-in time for our hotel (around 2 or 3 PM), and our tour started at 5 PM.

I probably could have just vegged out in the hotel and walked down the street to a hotel, but with the night tour, I was able to fill that second half of the day with some awesome sights and sounds. Plus, the fact that the tour was at night meant there was no overhead sun or heat to deal with.

(no, March/April isn’t the hottest time of the year, but it was when we went – it was about 90 degrees Fahrenheit during the day). Strolling around Rome at night was cool and peaceful, especially when compared to the day after when we did the Vatican tour in the morning and then strolled around Rome for the rest of the day.

The Spanish Steps in Rome, Italy at night. — The Spanish Steps would be completely full during the day, but not at night

Can You Safely Explore Rome at Night?

I think every traveler to Europe, particularly when they come from the United States, expects that there might be some issues with pickpockets and minor thefts when they’re touring famous places, and that’s about the extent of anything I would expect in Rome. Walking around at night doesn’t really seem to change that, especially if you’re at the popular tourist places anyway.

It’s going to be a rare street in Rome where you’ll be all alone with only the pickpockets and thieves to accompany you. Sure, Rome has its issues with crime like all cities, but you shouldn’t feel at all uneasy when strolling around. Participating in a group tour can help ensure you don’t get lost or turned around too much, but even then, Rome is a pretty sedate place.

I think you’re probably at the same likelihood of meeting up with a thief during the night as you might be during the day. You might even be more susceptible to theft during the day because the crowds are so incredibly thick, and it’s much easier to lose track of everything around you when you’re surrounded by a ton of people.

As always, traveling with a partner is a great way to maximize your safety while traveling, but joining a group tour is also a helpful option when you’re a solo traveler to Rome. The Italians are quite welcoming and friendly, especially to tourists (I think we tend to puff up the economy a fair amount!), so you shouldn’t feel at all concerned or afraid when visiting Rome, whether your exploration of all its sights and sounds is during the day or night.