Trevi Fountain

Why the Trevi Fountain in Rome is special
This water-intensive sculpture is the world's most-famous fountain.

When to come
Be prepared for crowds
The square is tiny and Rome has countless tourists. Go when tour-bus tourist crowds are light (early morning and late afternoon. Lunch time is usually also a good period.)

Should I view it in the daytime or nighttime?
Do both. Trevi Fountain takes on a different aura in the evening when it and its waters are lit.

Making a wish at Trevi Fountain
Cute ritual
According to a popular superstition, you are guaranteed to return to Rome if you toss a coin over your shoulder into the Trevi Fountain. As an astute local friend told me, your wish will always come true except when it doesn't.

Do the tossed coins go to charity?
Yes, but that wasn't always totally the case. In 2002, the police caught a man who admitted that for years he had been removing coins in the lonely middle of the night, before city workers came to gather the money in the morning.

More Trevi Fountain tips and insights
Cinema boosted Trevi Fountain's fame
Two popular 20th century films helped spread the word around the globe.

• Three Coins in a Fountain
  This hit 1954 movie helped make this 18th century attraction the world's best-known "wishing well".
  
• La Dolce Vita
  The 1960 La Dolce Vita film forever etched in the minds of cinema buffs the scene of Anita Ekberg gleefully splashing about in the water.

Design
The structure is built against the wall of the Poli Palace. A statue of Neptune is the Trevi Fountain focal point. He stands on a seashell chariot pulled by two seahorses.

How it got its name
Trevi Fountain gained its name because three roads (tre vie) meet in its square.

Location in Italy