The Spanish Steps

The baroque staircase between Piazza di Spagna and Trinità dei Monti

Built between 1723 and 1726 with French funds, the Spanish Steps, 135 steps in travertine, link Piazza di Spagna, named after the Spanish embassy to the Holy See, to the church of Trinità dei Monti with its two bell towers and an Egyptian obelisk in front. In spring the steps are decorated with azaleas.

At the foot of the steps lies the Barcaccia, a fountain shaped like a half-sunken boat by Pietro Bernini, father of Gian Lorenzo, inspired, it is said, by a boat left there by a flood of the Tiber. On the right of the steps is the house where the English poet John Keats died in 1821, now the Keats-Shelley House museum. From the square starts Via Condotti, the street of luxury fashion boutiques.

Tip: sitting on the steps is forbidden and can be fined; from the top, the view over the rooftops is beautiful at sunset, and the walk continues to the Pincio terrace.

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