Featured image: Ank Kumar / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Contactless transit, airport trains, Pantheon tickets, church dress codes, the Trevi Fountain fee and the city tax, with 2026 details from official sources.

In Rome, the bank card in your wallet doubles as a metro ticket. The airport train has its own fare, and the Pantheon now charges entry.

St. Peter’s also turns people away at the door for bare knees. Here is how each one works, with links to the institutions that set the rules.

Entrance to Cipro station on Rome Metro Line A

Photo: Blackcat / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

1. Tap a Contactless Card Instead of Buying Paper Tickets

ATAC’s tap & go system lets you pay with a tap.

  • Accepted: contactless credit, debit and prepaid cards, plus cards saved on NFC phones and watches
  • Where: metro lines A, B/B1 and C, and all surface lines
  • Price: €1.50 per tap, the same as a BIT ticket
  • What you get: 100 minutes on buses and trams, or one metro ride
  • Free transfers: tap again within 100 minutes and nothing new is charged
  • Best fare: a sixth BIT in 24 hours is billed as a €8.50 day ticket instead

The catch is the device. Every tap must use the same one. A physical card and the same card saved in your phone count as two.

Each person in your group needs their own card, too.

Quick tip: Before the trip, check with your Philippine bank that overseas contactless payments are switched on.

ATAC tram at Piazza Venezia, Rome

Photo: Fallaner / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

2. Choose a Roma 24, 48 or 72 Hour Ticket for Heavy Use

Packing in a lot of stops? ATAC’s tourist tickets count from the first validation.

  • 24 hours: €8.50
  • 48 hours: €15
  • 72 hours: €22
  • Covers: buses, trams, trolleybuses and the metro within Rome
  • Kids: up to age 10 ride free with a paying adult
  • Where to buy: the Atac Rome app, ticket offices, authorized shops, or machines in metro stations
Trains at Roma Termini station

Photo: Thomas Dahlstrøm Nielsen / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

3. Ride the Leonardo Express From Fiumicino

The Leonardo Express runs non-stop from Fiumicino to Roma Termini in 32 minutes.

  • Frequency: usually every 15 minutes
  • From the airport: 5:38 a.m. to 11:27 p.m., per Trenitalia
  • From Termini: 4:50 a.m. to 11:05 p.m.
  • Ticket: €14
  • Where to buy: right at the station, at Roma Termini or Fiumicino Aeroporto. The airport station is inside the terminal.
  • Group of four: the “Minigruppi” fare is €40 for all four, bought in one transaction
  • Contactless: tap a card, phone or watch at the gates, one ticket per card
  • Kids: under 4 ride free; each paying adult brings one child aged 4 to 11 free
  • Not valid: ATAC passes and other Metrebus tickets

Quick tip: Traveling as a group of four? The Minigruppi fare saves you €16.

Dome of the Pantheon in Rome

Photo: Livioandronico2013 / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

4. Plan Around Paid Entry and Free Sundays at the Pantheon

The Pantheon now charges entry.

  • Adults: €7 from July 1, 2026
  • EU visitors aged 18 to 25: €2
  • Under-18s: free
  • First Sunday of the month: free for everyone; no online booking, so pick up a free ticket on site and wait your turn

The Colosseum, Roman Forum and Palatine Hill run their own timed ticketing. A guided Colosseum, Roman Forum and Palatine Hill tour has timed entry built in.

St. Peter's Square and Basilica, Vatican

Photo: Ank Kumar / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

5. Cover Shoulders and Knees for St. Peter’s Basilica

Think Sunday Mass dress, then cover a bit more.

  • St. Peter’s Basilica: covered shoulders for everyone
  • Men: long trousers
  • Women: trousers or skirts below the knee

Its rules of conduct spell it out: shoulders and knees covered.

Quick tip: On a full-day trip like a Pompeii and Mount Vesuvius day tour, pack a light scarf or shawl in case the day includes a church stop.

A nasone drinking fountain in Rome

Photo: Wilfredor / Wikimedia Commons (CC0)

6. Refill Water Bottles at the Nasoni

The cast-iron spouts on Rome’s street corners are nasoni. They are public fountains fed by the city’s drinking water network.

  • Historic center: more than 200, per the water utility Acea
  • Citywide: about 3,000 drinking fountains
  • Colosseum Archaeological Park: three new nasoni since March 2024, per Acea

Quick tip: Bring a tumbler.

Trevi Fountain in Rome at night

Photo: RoyFokker / Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)

7. Pay €2 to Get Close to the Trevi Fountain

Since February 2, 2026, the area right by the Trevi Fountain basin has a €2 entry fee, per Roma Capitale.

  • Free entry: Rome residents, kids under 6, and visitors with disabilities plus one companion
  • Still free: viewing the fountain from the piazza above
  • Details and tickets: the official Trevi Fountain site

Quick tip: Bring a coin for the toss anyway.

Street in Trastevere, Rome

Photo: trolvag / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)

8. Expect a City Tax at Check-In

Rome hotels charge a contributo di soggiorno per person, per night, for up to 10 nights. The Turismo Roma rates by star rating:

  • Five-star: €10
  • Four-star: €7.50
  • Three-star: €6
  • Two-star: €5
  • One-star: €4

Example: a couple in a three-star hotel for four nights pays €48 on top of the room rate.

Quick tip: Many hotels collect it in cash at check-out, so keep some euros on hand.

Fares and rules are those published by ATAC, Trenitalia, the Direzione Musei nazionali della città di Roma, St. Peter’s Basilica, Acea, Roma Capitale and Turismo Roma as of October 2026. Check the linked pages again before you fly, since prices can change mid-year.

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