6 Parks and Green Spaces in Rome You Have to See to Believe

Part of what makes Rome such a beautiful and distinctive city are the marble monuments and pastel-colored palazzos but there are plenty of green spaces too.

The cartoonish maritime pine trees are just as characteristically Roman as the Colosseum. Take a break from pounding the cobblestones and chill in one of these six parks & green spaces in Rome.

Photo Credit: Gillian’s Lists, Text Overlay: Devour Rome Food Tours

1. Pincio Gardens

Climb up the winding stone staircase that begins at the edge of the Piazza del Popolo and you will be rewarded by a Western view over the Piazza towards San Pietro and as far as the Monte Mario. On a late summer evening you might catch a private fireworks display in the distance. The park has ancient origins but what you see today was designed by Giuseppe Valadier in the early 1800s. Take the gravel paths through the park and hunt for the unusual water clock or a shady bench. The Pincio Gardens are linked to the vast Villa Borghese park by a pedestrian bridge that crosses over the busy Via del Muro Torto.

2. Villa Aldobrandini

Villa Aldobrandini is a hanging garden bounded by the traffic clogged via Nazionale on one side and the residential neighborhood of Monti on the other. Up the stairs and past a headless Roman statue or two you will find a slightly neglected space with lush trees, benches to sit and empty fountains where neighbor dogs play off their leashes. From the viewpoint at the far edge of the garden you can see the wonky Torre delle Milizi that is inside the Trajan Market, two churches; Santi Domenico and Sisto and Santa Caterina in Magnanapoli and the top of the National Monument of Victor Emmanuel II. A few thousand years ago the space below your feet was once used as warehouses for the Trajan market.  

3. Colle Oppio

Looking for a great view of the the Colosseum? Head to the Colle Oppio one of Rome’s famous seven hills. In the late spring and summer there are expanses of bright fuchsia bougainvillea hedges growing on ancient walls. If you are traveling with kids there is small playground next to the ruins of ruins of the ancient baths of Trajan and there is often a afternoon pick-up soccer game next to the Fascist era fountain decorated with copies of amphorae. This park is also where you can find Nero’s golden house the Domus Aurea.

4. Doria Pamphili

If you really want to feel like a Roman head up the hill past the Fontana dell’Acqua Paola or take the number 8 tram through Trastevere to the residential neighborhood of Monteverde to the Villa Doria Pamphilli. This enormous public park has a cafe, jogging paths, yoga classes and a lot of dogs. There is plenty of shade and green grass for a lazy picnic. Peer through the locked wrought iron gates into the elaborately manicured gardens of Casino del Bel Respiro that were once part of a country escape for Pope Innocent X in the 1600’s. 

5. Parco Savello

This park on the noble Aventine hill as another name. You might have heard it called the Giardini d’Aranci, but the official name is the Parco Savello. The park gets its name from the Savelli family who had a castle here in the 13th century. If you look you can still see parts of the castle walls. There are plenty of orange trees, which are tremendously fragrant in the late winter and early spring. The real reason to come here is for the sunset view from the terrace.

6. Giardino di Palazzo Venezia

Hidden away in a palace on the ridiculously hectic Piazza Venezia is a secret oasis. The Giardino di Palazzo Venezia is filled with trees, lush plants, benches and the odd fragment from an ancient sarcophagus. This a lovely quiet spot to take a break from your site seeing before you head back out into the fray.