Events in Rome

What are you doing this weekend?
Come visit us. Rome awaits with art exhibits, rock and classical music concerts, theatre shows, lots of sports and all sorts of other events, all with something very special.

27 March 2009 - 10 January 2010
Divus Vespasianus
To celebrate the 2000th anniversary of Vespasianus' birth, Rome organises Divus Vespasianus. A series of events, including a central exhibition at the Colosseum, highlight the greatness of this self-made man, from his rise of power to innovative social policies.

18 June 2009 – 14 September 2009
Villa Celimontana Jazz Festival
The "Jazz and Image at Villa Celimontana" jazz festival was created in 1994 to start the Roman summer with a jazz event. Since then Villa Celimontana has been chosen as the Jazz Villa and since 1995 it has entertained the long review "Jazz & Image", a demonstration which has been gaining increasing popularity year after year.

29 June 2009 (annual)
Feast of St Peter and St Paul
On 29 June, a public holiday in Rome, the Eternal City celebrates its two patron saints, St Peter and St Paul. This mostly religious feast involves special observations in churches, including San Paolo fuori le Mura and St Peter's Basilica.

July 2009 (annual)
Festa de' Noantri
Every year, around the 3rd Saturday in July, a statue of the Vergine del Carmine is taken out from its resting place in the church of Sant'Agata in Rome, paraded through the streets of the Trastevere quarter and taken to San Crisogno, where it remains on display for eight days. This solemn religious procession, led by 30 monks of the orders of Ss Sacramento and Santa Maria della Croce, is accompanied by the much less formal festivities of the locals, who set up stalls and markets, spectacles and street theatre for the entertainment of tourists and locals alike.

10 July 2009
Golden League Athletics - Golden Gala
Rome's Stadio Olimpico hosts an evening of world-class athletics. The Golden Gala is part of the annual Golden League series, a format created in 1998 to ensure that the world's leading athletes have the opportunity to meet on a regular basis.

18 July - 2 August 2009
FINA World Championship
The FINA World Championship is the world championship for aquatic sports - diving, swimming, open water swimming, synchronised swimming and water polo. The event takes place every two years and the 2009 edition is held at Rome's Foro Italico.

September 2009 (annual)
White Night
After the huge success of its previous editions, the Notte Bianca, or White Night, returns to the Eternal City Rome. More than 100 free visual arts, music, dance and theatre events are all crammed into one long night.

15 - 23 October 2009
International Rome Film Festival
After the first three extraordinarily popular editions with the public, the International Rome Film Festival will be back from October 15 to 23, 2009 with films, retrospectives, meetings and major international stars. Once again, this fourth edition will be based on a blend of popular vocation and quality culture. This combination enables the event to attract both film fans as well as those who have never taken part in  festival before. The entire city of Rome will provide the magnificent backdrop to the event, with the Auditorium Parco della Musica (designed by Renzo Piano) and the Cinema Village acting as its nerve centre.

November 2009 (various dates)
Rome Jazz Festival
Rome's annual jazz festival takes place twice a year at the Auditorium Parco della Musica, bringing an array of international artists to the city.

December 2009 (annual)
Feast of the Immaculate Conception
Pilgrims and Romans, spearheaded by the Pope himself, celebrate the Feast of the Immaculate Conception by laying down floral wreaths and decorations on and around her statue in Rome's Piazza di Spagna. The Feast of the Immaculate Conception is a very popular Catholic celebration with a long history.

December 08 2009 - January 06 2010
Christmas Market in Piazza Navona
With no fewer than three famous fountains, the great oval of Piazza Navona, built in the 15th century on the site of a Roman amphitheatre, makes a fine setting for the annual Christmas Market. Held over the Christmas period and into the New Year, stalls are set out offering gifts and tasty seasonal sweets such as biscotti, torrone (nougat with almonds and honey) and panettone (a traditional Italian seasonal cake). Santa Claus puts in an appearance and children can visit him in his grotto. He has a rival in the shape and form of Befana, a good witch, who doles out presents to well-behaved children. A holiday atmosphere pervades the old square which, with its many restaurants and cafes, is always abuzz with activity no matter what time of the year it is.

December 31 2009
Celebrate New Year's Eve on a breathtaking terrace, with a unique panoramic view all over ancient Rome!
Domus Colosseo apartment is within walking distance from many of the initiatives that will be held during New Year's Eve. From its terraces you will be able to see the traditional fireworks that take place all over the city. Already from the week of Christmas and during all the celebration period up to the first week of January, in the city it will be possible to visit the various Christmas markets in the squares (the most beautiful one is in Piazza Navona) with the offers of typical food for the dinner of New Year's Eve.
During the evening of San Silvestro in Rome, like every year, in Piazza del Quirinale a greeting concert of classical music will be organised with the presence of the President of the Italian Republic and many important personalities, who will wait for the arrival of midnight to cheer with all the guests to the new year.
The first days of January, at least up to the Epiphany, remain one of the most suggestive period to visit the city of Rome; in fact, although the night and the relative celebrations of New Year's Eve are over, this winter period offers the spectacle of the roman squares with the colours of the Christmas markets together with the possibility to profit from the last events dedicated to the celebration of the new year.

March 2010
Rome Marathon
Rome's annual marathon passes some of the city's most famous landmarks, including the Colosseum and St Peter's Basilica, the main synagogue and mosque. The city also organises Roma Fun Run, a shorter, non-competitive race.

21 April 2010 (annual)
Birth of Rome
Every year proud Romans celebrate the birth of the Eternal City (21 April), founded by Romulus in 753BC. Parades, gladiator shows, traditional Roman banquets and public speeches galore at held at venues throughout Rome, including Fori Imperiali and Circo Massimo.

April - May 2010
ATP Masters Series: Internazionali BNL d'Italia
Great tennis returns to Rome with Internazionali BNL d'Italia, the Masters Series event at the Foro Italico. Aside from the Grand Slams, the ATP Masters Series is the highest-ranking tennis competition in the world.

1 May 2010 (annual)
Primo Maggio Music Festival
Rome welcomes the spring season with Primo Maggio, a gigantic music festival in Piazza San Giovanni.