Advisory report for
Roma Capitale DMO
Interactive policy lab — Tourism Policy Fair 2026

Rome has an
overtourism problem.

35 million visitors per year. 2.8 million residents. Explore how Roma Capitale can manage tourism flows sustainably.

35MVisitors/year
12:1Tourist/resident ratio
34,000Airbnb listings
3Policy recommendations

The fountain has spoken ⛲

The visitor just threw a coin. Tap which hotspot they landed on and then show them what really happens there, and where they should go instead.

Step 1 — tap the hotspot the visitor landed on
🏛
Colosseum
visitors/day
Current crowd level
Our policy recommendation
↓
Instead, the fountain recommends...
🍕
Hidden gem -- much less crowded
crowd level
How we fix it -- our 3 policy recommendations
UNWTO Strategy 2 + 6 -- dispersal and new products
Launch Roma Fuori: a neighbourhood identity programme
Alternative districts lack identity and incentives to pull visitors away from the centre. Roma Fuori creates three flagship neighbourhood brands, a digital passport reward system, and a Green Loop minibus circuit.
Testaccio (food capital), Ostiense (industrial heritage), Garbatella (local culture)
Digital passport in existing RomaPass: rewards for visiting 3+ non-centre locations
Green Loop electric minibus connecting the three districts every 12 minutes
Ring-fenced DMO budget separate from main city marketing
UNWTO Strategy 3 + 8 -- access management and digital tools
Redesign Trevi fountain access as a layered experience
Building on Rome's existing €2 entry fee, a three-tier system generates revenue, protects heritage, and restores resident access while improving the visit for everyone.
Free standard slot: 48h advance booking, capped at 200 visitors per 20-minute window
Ora d'Oro (€15): 30-min early access with AR audio from Sapienza University of Rome
Free resident fast lane: no booking required for Rome address holders
Google Maps data-sharing: automatic crowd alerts when hotspots exceed 80% capacity
UNWTO Strategy 1 + 5 -- temporal dispersal and new products
Build a Mesi di Roma year-round cultural calendar
Rome has no coordinated off-season strategy. Mesi di Roma creates twelve themed months with flagship events, neighbourhood focuses and targeted campaigns.
November: Roma Sotterranea -- after-dark tours of catacombs and Mithraic temples
February: Quartieri in Tavola -- food festival across Testaccio, Prati and Garbatella
Bundled flight and festival-pass packages targeting Northern European short-break market
Monthly revenue-per-visitor metric published to justify off-season investment

Interactive GIS mapping station

Drag the slider to see how our policy redistributes tourist pressure across Rome. Tap any location for details.

Current situation -- overcrowded After policy -- redistributed
No policy applied -- drag right to see the change

Rome -- tourist pressure map

Overloaded hotspot
Alternative district
Current flow
Redirected flow
Tiber Centro Storico HIGH PRESSURE Trastevere HIGH Vatican area EXTREME Testaccio ALTERNATIVE Garbatella ALTERNATIVE Piazza Navona HIGH Ostiense ALTERNATIVE Green Loop shuttle Colosseum Trevi Fountain Spanish Steps Vatican Piazza Navona Trastevere Testaccio Garbatella Ostiense Baths of Caracalla N ~1 km
Route legend
Current tourist flow -- all converging on hotspots
Redirected flow -- dispersed to alternative districts
Green Loop shuttle route connecting districts

Tourist pressure per district

Drag the slider to see redistribution
95%At hotspots
5%Alternatives
📍 Tap any location on the map

Rome in numbers

Visitors/year
35M
Residents
2.8M
Tourist ratio
12:1
Airbnb listings
34,000

Policy strategies

Based on the UNWTO (2018) management strategies, we selected three approaches that best fit Rome's situation.

UNWTO Strategy 2 + 6 -- dispersal and new products
Launch Roma Fuori: a neighbourhood identity programme
Roma Capitale already aims for dispersal but alternative districts lack the identity and incentives to actually pull visitors away from the centre. Roma Fuori fixes this with three flagship neighbourhood brands, a digital passport reward system, and a Green Loop minibus circuit.
Testaccio (food capital), Ostiense (industrial heritage), Garbatella (local culture)
Digital passport integrated into existing RomaPass -- rewards for visiting 3+ non-centre locations
Green Loop electric minibus connecting the three districts every 12 minutes
Ring-fenced DMO budget separate from main city marketing fund
UNWTO Strategy 3 + 8 -- access management and digital tools
Redesign Trevi fountain access as a layered experience
Building on Rome's existing €2 entry fee, a three-tier access system generates revenue, protects heritage, and restores resident access while making the visit better for everyone.
Free standard slot: 48h advance booking, capped at 200 visitors per 20-minute window
Ora d'Oro (€15): 30-min early access with AR audio from Sapienza University of Rome
Free resident fast lane: no booking required for Rome address holders
Google Maps data-sharing: automatic crowd alerts when hotspots exceed 80% capacity
UNWTO Strategy 1 + 5 -- temporal dispersal and new products
Build a Mesi di Roma year-round cultural calendar
Rome has no coordinated off-season strategy. Mesi di Roma creates twelve themed months with flagship events, neighbourhood focuses and targeted campaigns -- giving visitors a genuine reason to come outside July and August.
November: Roma Sotterranea -- after-dark tours of catacombs and Mithraic temples
February: Quartieri in Tavola -- food festival across Testaccio, Prati and Garbatella
Bundled flight and festival-pass packages targeting Northern European short-break market
Monthly revenue-per-visitor metric published to justify off-season investment

About this report

Background on our research approach and sources.

Research approach

This advisory report was written for Roma Capitale, the Destination Management Organisation of Rome, as part of the Tourism Policy course at Inholland University of Applied Sciences (2026).

We investigated how sustainable tourism currently functions in Rome, what the ideal situation would look like for both residents and visitors, and which policies can achieve this. Research included desk research, policy document analysis, and primary interviews conducted in Ghent and Amsterdam.

Research question

"How can Roma Capitale manage tourism in Rome more sustainably, so that the city remains liveable for residents while staying attractive for visitors?"

Our three recommendations map onto UNWTO Strategies 1, 2, 3, 5, 6 and 8 from the Overtourism report (UNWTO, 2018).

Key references

  • UNWTO. (2018). Overtourism? Understanding and managing urban tourism growth beyond perceptions. World Tourism Organization.
  • Roma Capitale. (2019). Il piano strategico del turismo di Roma Capitale.
  • Milano, C., Cheer, J. M., & Novelli, M. (Eds.). (2019). Overtourism: Excesses, discontents and measures in travel and tourism. CABI.
  • European Parliament. (2018). Overtourism: Impact and possible policy responses.
  • Euronews. (2026). Rome announces new access fee to Trevi Fountain.
  • Booking.com. (2024). Sustainable travel report 2024.
  • Inside Airbnb. (2023). Rome data snapshot.
  • OECD. (2020). OECD tourism trends and policies 2020.