The Campo de Fiori area

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Click for larger Rome Italy map: Campo de fiori area.

(This street map connects with the Trastevere, Aventino, Navona and Pantheon street maps. View all of the Street Maps Rome Italy together.)

What to see in the Campo de fiori area?

Continuing from its Renaissance and Medieval reputation as being one of Rome's liveliest areas, the Piazza di Campo de Fiori is still the heart of Campo de Fiori, and many residents from the surrounding areas also flock here for the social activities.

The square was originally an open field of flowers hence the name Campo de Fiori or field of flowers. It's also the only square in Rome without a church!
There is a market here every morning and you can purchase anything from flowers and spices to football jerseys and jeans. However most tourists venture here to absorb the culture and witness Romans being very Roman!

In the center of the square is a statue of philosopher Giordano Bruno who was burnt here in 1600 for heresy, a not so pleasant reminder of the square's dual purpose as a market and site for public executions.

Where the number 8 tram route meets with Via del Plebiscito/Vittorio Emanuele you find the Area Sacra di Torre Argentina. In the 1920s an excavation found several temples here, hence the name "area sacra" - sacred area. It was here that the senate would meet and where Julius Caesar was murdered on the Ides of March, 15th March 44 BC.
(Note: Argentina is an important landmark to remember as it's the meeting point for buses, electric buses and the no 8 tram. It also sits between the Pantheon and Campo de Fiori, and the Via del Plebiscito/Vittorio Emanuele runs straight from Piazza Venezia to the Vatican.)

Area Sacra di Torre Argentina

Argentina is also a main Bus Stop

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Just off Piazza di Campo de Fiori you will find Piazza Farnese and the Palazzo Farnese, home of the French embassy. Built for Pope Paul III (Alessandro Farnese) several great artists have worked on the palace, including Michelangelo.
The building is particularly impressive at night when the French leave the curtains of the main hall open and the interior lighting shows off the beautifully decorated ceilings.

The Marcellus theatre was built by Emperor Augustus and dedicated to his nephew who died in 23 BC aged 19 years. Its outer walls have since been used as the perimeter of a fortess, a palace for the Orsini family in the 16th Century, and workshops for artisans. The three columns which stand near the theatre are the remains of the Temple of Apollo.

The Marcellus amphitheatre sits on the border of the Jewish Getto. The Jewish community in Rome was founded on trading and their financial and medical skills were an integral part of Roman life. Their persecuation began in the mid 16th Century when the Catholic church forced then to live in a walled enclosure with a nighttime curfew. This punishment only ceased in 1848.
The predominant symbol of the Jewish Ghetto is the Synagogue which sits on the banks of the Tiber River overlooking the Tiber island and Trastevere.

A couple of paces from the Jewish synagogue and Marcellus Theater is the Piazza della Bocca della Verita (the mouth of truth square).
The legendary Bocca della Verita (mouth of truth) is found in the Portico of the Santa Maria in Cosmedin. Medieval legend has it that the mouth would close shut over the hand of the person who told a lie.

The Fontana dei Tritoni flanked by the Santa Maria in Cosmedin

In the center of the Piazza you can find the Fontana dei Tritoni, the Temple of Hercules and the Temple of Portunus. The fountain, temples, Santa Maria in Cosmedin, Marcellus theater and Arch of Janus all form part of the ancient Roman Forum Boarium. The Forum Boarium in Roman time was a busy cattle market and part of the old Roman port on the Tiber.

Getting to and from the Campo de Fiori area.

(Refer to the street map of the Campo de Fiori area above.)

Rome Tram:

• The No 8 tram runs from Largo di Torre Argentina down Via Arenula over Ponte Garibaldi (upstream from Tiber Island) and through Trastevere.

Rome buses: The main bus stop is at Largo di Torre Argentina (Via di Torre Argentina, close to Piazza di Campo de Fiori).

• The 116 and 119 are the two pocket size electric buses that zig zag through the streets of Campo de Fiori and Navona.
  The 116 rotates between the Vatican and Villa Borghese gardens, passing by Piazza Barberini, Trevi Fountain, Roman Pantheon and Piazza Navona.
  The 119 rotates between Largo di Argentina and Piazza del Popolo, passing by Piazza Venezia and Augustus Mausoleum along the way.
• There are numerous bus stops on Via del Plebiscito/Vittorio Emanuele. The no 40 runs straight to the Vatican and the no 87 runs through Piazza Venezia along Fori Imperiali (Roman Forum) to the ancient Roman Colosseum.

For more about the buses in Rome see my dedicated page Rome buses and Rome public transport.

Rome taxi: There is a taxi rank at Largo di Torre Argentina.

Rome tourist buses: The closest tourist bus stop is at 139 Viale Vittorio Emanuele, directly between Piazza Navona and Piazza di Campo de Fiori. There are also stops at Marcellus Theater (Teatro di Marcello) and Piazza Venezia.

Note: If you haven't already heard about it on my site then the ATAC public transportation in Rome site has a great tool for calculating the quickest route from point A to point B anywhere in Rome. When you arrive at the website click on the English language option to the right. Fill in your departure address and arrival address.

• Rome buses
• Rome trams
• Rome Metro

Piazza di Campo dè Fiori at night time

Even in Winter the main squares are full of customers dining outside.

Restaurants and nightlife in the Campo de fiori area.

The area is full of restaurants, clubs, arty cafès and bars, and wandering down the alleys you're sure to stumble upon some medieval themed pub or "botique" wine bar.
The Piazza di Campo de Fiori is a constant cycle of activity. The morning market gives way to street performers, and as dusk sets in the restaurants, cafès and pubs that line the perimeter begin to pulsate with activity and customers. The restaurants have an array of Roman cuisine to satisfy a wide demand of taste buds.

On Sunday afternoons after the market has finished you will find street performers and musicians (some traveling from other European countries) waiting their turn to perform in front of the crowds in the Piazza.

If for some reason you get bored with the choices in Campo de Fiori then the busy nightlife of Piazza Navona is 5 minutes away across the Via del Plebiscito/Vittorio Emanuele. Alternatively you can take a short beautiful stroll across the Tiber River to the Trastevere area.

For more advice about eating out in Rome visit my Rome restaurants page and also the Rome restaurant guide page for advice and tips from visitors to this site.