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‘No tourist pressure’: Rome’s biggest attractions reopen without the crowds

The Colosseum, the Vatican Museums and other famous attractions reopened this week after being closed for 88 days due to coronavirus restrictions - the longest closure since World War II.

Published: 2 February 2021 15:15 CET
Updated: 3 February 2021 09:22 CET
'No tourist pressure': Rome's biggest attractions reopen without the crowds
The first visitors enter the Sistine Chapel after its reopening on Monday. Photos: Andreas Solaro/AFP

The Vatican's famed collection of museums opened its doors again on Monday to mostly local residents.

“Today is a celebration,” said Director Barbara Jatta, who welcomed photographers and television crews inside.

Jatta had expressed much the same sentiment in June, however, when the museums reopened after Italy's initial strict lockdown, beginning in March.

Photo: Andreas Solora/AFP

Italy's museums and art galleries were closed again in November under strict rules aimed at preventing the spread of coronavirus.

They have now been allowed to reopen Monday to Friday in “yellow zone” areas under the country's colour-coded system.

Rome's Lazio region was among those to have their risk level downgraded in the latest Health Ministry review.

The rules have not been relaxed across the whole country, however, and five regions remain under higher restrictions.

READ ALSO:  'We're bucking the trend': Italy eases Covid rules despite experts' warnings

People visit Rome's landmark Colosseum after its reopening. Photo: Vincenzo Pinto/AFP

At the Vatican, visitors must pre-book tickets and will be given timed entry slots. Those who did so on Monday said they were taking the chance to enjoy Italy's treasures without the crowds.

“I had to seize the opportunity,” said Sanon Bertin, who has lived in Rome for six years but never visited before.

Richard Corbon agreed it was a unique opportunity to view art in an environment “free of the pressure of tourists”.

“I almost have the impression there are more employees than visitors,” Corbon said.

The Sistine Chapel, with its vault and altar wall frescoed by Michelangelo, normally attracts huge crowds. But on Monday it was practically empty.

The vast chapel is also looking fresher than it might usually at this time of year, since the shutdown allowed staff to carry out its annual deep-clean a
month early.

Photo: AFP

Revenue from the museums, which employ 700 people, are crucial for filling the coffers of the Vatican State.

The museums averaged about 23,000 visitors per day in 2019, said Jatta, who said she hoped to have “a few thousand” daily in weeks ahead.

Rome's Colosseum and the Forum also reopened on Monday to just a handful of visitors.

Photo: Vincenzo Pinto/AFP

Rome's museums will be open Monday-Friday only, with strict safety protocols including wearing masks and social distancing.

In most cases advance booking is required. Privately-owned art galleries can open at weekends.

At the moment, only those already in the Lazio region of southern Italy can visit the sites.

READ ALSO: What are the rules in Italy's coronavirus 'yellow zones'?

Italy currently has a complete ban in place on non-essential travel, including for tourism, between all regions regardless of their colour under the country's tiered system of restrictions.

The entire country also remains subject to a night-time curfew, while bars and restaurants must end table service at 6pm in yellow zones and cannot open at all in Italy's remaining orange zones.

Photo: AFP

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ROME

Did you know: Rome wasn’t Italy’s first capital city?

With its prestigious history, famous landmarks and breathtaking art, Rome is known all over the world as Italy's capital. But was it always that way?

Published: 8 March 2024 15:55 CET
Did you know: Rome wasn't Italy's first capital city?

Rome is often one of the first cities to crop up when thinking of European capitals, and it’s easy to see why: its multiple treasures, including the Colosseum, the Spanish Steps and Piazza Navona, make it one of the most instantly recognisable cities in Europe, if not in the world.

But Rome hasn’t always been Italy’s capital.

In fact, there have been two Italian capitals other than the Eternal City since Italy’s Unification in 1861: Turin and Florence.

Currently the capital of Italy’s northwestern Piedmont region, Turin’s tenure as the country’s capital was fairly short-lived.

The northern city first became capital of the Kingdom of Savoy in 1559, it then became the capital of the Kingdom of Sardinia in 1713 and eventually it became capital of the Kingdom of Italy on March 17th 1861, the day that marked the country’s unification.

Turin, Italy

A view of the Mole Antonelliana, one of Turin’s most recognisable landmarks. Photo by GIUSEPPE CACACE / AFP

By 1865 however, Turin had already lost its capital status to Florence. 

The transition wasn’t exactly smooth though as the local population took to the streets to rebel against the decision on September 21st 1864. What followed is now known as the Turin massacre, in which around 60 civilians were killed.

Florence’s capital status was not long-lived either as in February 1871 – just six years after the transfer to the Tuscan city – Rome formally became the new capital of the Kingdom of Italy.

That’s not all however: a small town in southwestern Sicily claims to have been the first Italian capital as it was supposedly proclaimed so by Giuseppe Garibaldi – an Italian general that was among the leading contributors to Italy’s unification and the creation of the Kingdom of Italy – on May 14th 1860. The Sicilian town claims to have held the title for a day.

That said, according to history books, there have only been three capital cities in Italy: Turin, Florence and Rome.

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