Spanish Steps: Free, No Sitting, Nearby Stops

Step 1: Find the Spanish Steps in Piazza di Spagna

The Spanish Steps stand in central Rome and connect Piazza di Spagna at the bottom with the church of Trinità dei Monti at the top. Rome's tourism office says the stairway links the Pincio hill with the square below. It was built between 1723 and 1726 by the architect Francesco De Sanctis.

Metro line A has a stop called Spagna close to the square. We did not find an official station page, so check ATAC's line A map before you go. Roma Mobilità lists the first line A train at 5:30 and the last at 23:30, Sunday to Thursday. On Friday and Saturday the last trains leave the end stations at 1:30. Our guide to Rome public transport covers tickets and passes.

The steps are free. The city's page for the stairway lists no ticket, no booking and no opening hours. Anyone can walk up at any time.

To sleep near the steps, the TB Place Roma is a hotel on Via Mario de' Fiori near the Spanish Steps, a short walk from the Trevi Fountain.

Step 2: Climb, look and know the sitting rule

You may climb the Spanish Steps, but you may not sit on them. Rome's police rules have treated the stairway as a monument since 2019. According to ANSA on 7 August 2019, sitting and lying down are banned, with a fine of €250 that can reach €400 for serious cases such as dirtying the monument. We found no newer official page, so follow the signs and officers on site.

The climb is short. The city says the staircase has 11 ramps of 12 steps each, which makes 132 steps, with balustrades that break the slope. The city calls those landings resting points to enjoy the landscape, and the church of Trinità dei Monti stands at the top. Its page lists the church's chapels and cloister but gives no opening hours or entry price, only a phone number, so check before you plan to go in. The city's pages do not describe what the view shows, so we do not either. No official page gives a walking time. At an easy pace, expect a few minutes to the top, and plan another 20 to 30 minutes for photos and the view.

From mid-April to mid-May the steps are covered in white and lilac azaleas. The city says about 450 plants stand on the stairway for the traditional show. The flowers are pretty, and the crowd is thicker then.

After dark the square is calmer and the buildings are lit. For a guide at night, the small-group night walk is run by Global Experiences by Carpe Diem Tours Group. The walk lasts 2.5 hours and is from €25 per person, rated 4.8 from 1,053 reviews, with free cancellation. The title says small group, but the listing gives no group size, so ask the operator for the number. It passes the Pantheon, the Colosseum and the Trevi Fountain, and the price excludes entry to any attraction. The listing says the walk has 2 meeting points and that yours depends on the option you select, so read the meeting point on the booking page before you pay. It is not suitable for wheelchair users. The page does not say that the walk passes the steps.

Prices and ratings as shown on GetYourGuide on 25 October 2026.

Pro Tip Come for the view from the top, not for a rest. Sit in a café on one of the side streets instead, where nobody can fine you.

Key Takeaway The Spanish Steps are free, but sitting on them can cost €250. Treat them as a viewpoint and a photo stop, then move on.

Step 3: Use the hour around the steps

The best use of the hour around the Spanish Steps is a short walk and one real activity. Everything below is close to Piazza di Spagna.

The Keats-Shelley House stands beside the steps. Rome's tourism office describes it as a museum for the Romantic poets, where Keats died in 1821. It has a terrace with a view over the square. We found no hours or prices on the city's page, so check them before you go.

For a meal you make yourself, the Pasta and Tiramisu cooking class meets at Via della Croce 34, close to the steps. Cheforaday runs it. The class lasts 2 hours and is from €44.5 per person, rated 4.8 from 2,203 reviews. It includes a glass of wine or a soft drink, and you can cancel for free. The listing says it is not suitable for wheelchair users or vegans.

The Trevi Fountain is the next landmark. Since 2 February 2026 the city charges €2 to enter the basin area closest to the fountain, as Turismo Roma explains. Our Trevi Fountain guide has the details.

For the history of each stop, the City Highlights walking tour is run by City Walkers Tours. The walk lasts 2.5 hours and is from €35 per person, rated 4.8 from 126 reviews, with free cancellation. The listing gives no group size. The listing says the monuments are explained from outside, and the tour is not suitable for people with mobility impairments. For more guided options, see our picks of Rome daily tours.

Prices and ratings as shown on GetYourGuide on 25 October 2026.

Things to Do in Rome's count of GetYourGuide listings in October 2026 found 36 walking tours (the word walking in the title), from €19.90.

The Scala Santa is a different staircase

The Scala Santa, also written Scala Sancta, is not the Spanish Steps. It stands at Piazza di San Giovanni in Laterano 14, on the other side of the centre, near the metro line A stops San Giovanni and Manzoni.

Pilgrims climb it on their knees. The sanctuary says tradition holds that its 28 steps came from Pilate's palace, and that Helena, mother of Constantine, brought them to Rome after her journey to the Holy Land in 327 to 328. People climb them on their knees to honour the Passion of Christ. The wood that covers the marble dates from 1724.

Anyone may climb, and no booking is needed. The climb is open Monday to Saturday from 6:00 to 13:30 and from 15:00 to 18:30, and from 7:00 on Sunday and holidays. From November to March the afternoon closing is 18:00. Shoulders and knees must be covered, and photos and video are not allowed. Side stairs lead to the upper floor if you do not want to kneel. The Sancta Sanctorum chapel above costs €3.50.

The film shot on the Spanish Steps

The film most linked with the Spanish Steps is Roman Holiday from 1953, with Audrey Hepburn. No official Rome page lists film locations, so this is general film knowledge and not a sourced claim. It explains why so many visitors expect to sit on the steps with a gelato. Today that is the one thing the rules do not allow.

Step 4: Walk on to the Pantheon

From the steps, the Pantheon is the best next stop. A ticket for the Pantheon in Rome costs €7 since 1 July 2026, says the Ministry of Culture. It is open daily from 9:00 to 19:00, with the last entry at 18:30. Entry is in order of arrival, and there is no skip-the-line option on the official page.

Entry is free on the first Sunday of the month and for anyone under 18. The Pantheon entry with audio guide is run by 1 City Tour. The visit lasts 1 hour and is from €7 per person, rated 4.5 from 10,525 reviews, with free cancellation. It gives you a reserved entry time and a digital audio guide, and you bring your own headphones.

To stay near the Pantheon, the Hotel Albergo Santa Chiara is by the Pantheon, 200 metres from Largo Argentina.

Prices and ratings as shown on GetYourGuide on 25 October 2026.

A staircase is for going somewhere, and this one is a good one.

When a tour is the wrong choice

A tour is the wrong choice if all you want is a photo and a look at the view. That needs no ticket and takes a few minutes. The pasta class is the wrong choice if you are vegan, because the listing says so. The walking tours need 2.5 hours on your feet, the city walk is not for people with mobility impairments and the night walk is not for wheelchair users. Both walks list no group size. The pasta class has up to 20 people, so it is a shared table, not a private lesson. A tour also costs more than going alone, which is free for the steps: the cheapest walk is €25, and the guide mainly adds the story behind each stop. If the steps are your only goal, skip every booking and go on your own. A tour is worth it when you want the story behind each stop, a guide at night, or a meal you cook yourself. The Pantheon ticket at €7 is the cheapest booking here, and it only adds a reserved entry time and an audio guide, because the official page says entry is in order of arrival.