Current Tourist crowd in Rome

I'm in Rome now, and although I did not enter any of those places I am not seeing a lot of tourists on the streets or standing in line. The weekend was busier, but still not bad. I took a "red bus" tour and there were not crowds on those, either, although on the weekend they were mostly full. The subway Sunday AM was mobbed, but I think mostly locals. It's lovely weather here, so I'd expect people to be out and about, so I'm guessing the tourist season hasn't quite started yet

I'm looking for the answer to that question too. I am going to be in Rome first week of April and I'm trying to book some group walking tours - I'm getting replies from tour companies saying that group tours are not really happening right now. My week is spring break for school locally so I'm wondering if by early April things will pick up?

Hi Phil,
I just returned. For the most part, I thought that the crowds were pretty light during the weekdays but of course much more crowded on the weekend. I went to the Basilica on a Tuesday, waited in a fairly quick moving line at security. Of course, it is huge inside, so it felt pretty uncrowded. I had purchased tickets in advance for the Scavi tour for that same day. After the tour we went back into the Basilica, it was a bit more crowded in the afternoon. I did not purchase advance tickets for the Vatican Museum/Sistine Chapel. We went on a Thursday, got in line at about 2:30 and was inside by 3:00, not crowded. I went 10 years ago in May and both the museum/Sistine Chapel was jammed. As the months go on, it will get more crowded of course. But in March it was so nice to be able to sit on a bench along the wall in the Sistine Chapel, admire the artwork without the hassle of the guards trying to rush you out. I went to the Forum on a Sunday, not crowded. I had purchased an underground tour for the Colosseum and did that on Monday. There was a decent crowd at the Colosseum, but I had my tickets in advance.
At this time, for the Pantheon, if you plan to attend on Saturday or Sunday, you need a reservation. It is free. I went on Friday morning, waited in a short line to have my CDC card checked. Walked by the Pantheon later in the day, the line was huge. The only thing that we missed out on was Castel Sant'Angelo. We stopped by on Friday afternoon, and they were not allowing anymore visitors until 5:00.
Enjoy your trip. The weather was great. Chilly in the morning/evenings but much better than sweating!

PS: when you are ready to return, upload a photo of your negative COVID result and CDC vaccine card to your airline's app or website so that you are marked "travel ready." When we got to the airport the was a VERY LONG line of passengers waiting to have their paper documents examined. I was glad that I had my documents uploaded.

Great input, thank you all.

We are currently in Rome and are quite surprised by how crowded some of the sites are, especially on the weekends. We must go back to the Pantheon and Trevi fountain later in the week as it was WAY too crowded over the weekend. The Colosseum on Monday morning 9:30 am was crowded. We were able to enjoy some areas with fewer people but needed to be strategic by starting at the highest level and working our way down. We then toured Palatine Hill prior to the Forum which was a great call as it avoided most of the crowd. The Vatican Museum was not overcrowded, but we were unable to sit within the Sistene Chapel on Tuesday. I was a bit disappointed about the noise level in the chapel given talking is not allowed but difficult to enforce with the many tours inside. No issues at all getting into St. Peter’s Basilica. Be aware that you are unable to enter the basilica after the Sistene Chapel. You must walk all the way back through the gallery to exit where you entered then walk back to St. Peter’s and go through security before entering. We were unaware of this which added about 30-40 minutes. We enjoyed climbing to the dome top with a manageable crowd. Enjoy! The weather is fantastic!!

Be aware that you are unable to enter the basilica after the Sistene
Chapel. You must walk all the way back through the gallery to exit
where you entered then walk back to St. Peter’s and go through
security before entering

Correct. That interior passageway has been closed to EVERYONE, including tours (it was supposed to be accessed only by guided tour) for some time. There are rumors that it may stay that way indefinitely but who knows? 🤷‍♀️ In the meantime, plan on the longer walk around + additional security line for the basilica.

Thanks for the report, and enjoy that wonderful weather, Tanya!