FAI Spring Days

The Capital's hidden heritage for two days

The FAI Spring Days represent the largest event dedicated to Italy's cultural and landscape heritage. Promoted by the FAI - Fondo per l'Ambiente Italiano ETS since 1993, the event takes place every year on a weekend in March, involving hundreds of cities across the peninsula. In Rome, the Metropolitan City of Rome Capital, and the wider Lazio region, the initiative takes on special significance: the density of institutional buildings, historic villas, religious complexes, and diplomatic seats allows for a program of openings that is unmatched elsewhere.

What to visit in Rome

The core of the initiative is the extraordinary opening of places that remain closed or accessible only by special authorization for the rest of the year. Recent Roman editions have opened the doors to, among others, the Palazzo della Cancelleria—the first great example of Renaissance architecture in Rome, featuring the famous Salone dei Cento Giorni frescoed by Giorgio Vasari—the Palazzo di Giustizia, home to the Supreme Court of Cassation, the Ministry of Education and Merit in Trastevere with its five internal courtyards, the Royal Academy of Spain on the Janiculum Hill, Villa Lante al Gianicolo, now the seat of the Irish Embassy, and Villa Spada.

Some openings are reserved for FAI members, who always enjoy priority access to all sites: this is the case, in several editions, for Palazzo Corrodi. Those who are not yet members can sign up directly on-site at the desks set up in front of the accessible locations.

The Apprendisti Ciceroni

The formula that makes the FAI Spring Days recognizable is the guidance provided by the Apprendisti Ciceroni: high school and university students, trained by FAI volunteers and teachers, who lead visitors while recounting the history, architecture, and stories of the sites. Every year, tens of thousands participate across Italy, and in Rome, they involve numerous schools from the city and province. It is a heritage education project that gives the event a strongly participatory and intergenerational character.

How the visits work

• Entry is by voluntary contribution: you do not buy a ticket, but support the Foundation's mission with a donation (suggested starting from 3 euros).
• Visits are guided and in groups, with shifts of varying duration (generally between 45 and 90 minutes depending on the site).
• Some locations require online booking or the presentation of an identity document, particularly institutional headquarters and ministries.
• FAI members have priority access and can enter some sites reserved exclusively for them.

A national event with local roots

The FAI Spring Days are organized locally by FAI Delegations, groups of volunteers who select the sites each year, obtain authorizations from owners, and manage visitor reception. In Lazio, the delegations cover, in addition to Rome, the provinces of Frosinone, Latina, Rieti, and Viterbo, with openings in villages, archaeological areas, castles, and rural complexes that broaden the scope well beyond the Capital.

Why it is worth attending

For those living in Rome, it is the chance to finally enter buildings you pass by every day without being able to enter. For those visiting the city, it is an experience different from the classic tourist circuit: no queues at the most famous museums, but courtyards, monumental staircases, historic libraries, and gardens that tell the story of a lesser-known Rome. The Roman spring, with its first warm days and blooming gardens, also offers the ideal setting for a walking itinerary between one opening and another, especially in the Janiculum Hill and historic center areas.

Information and program

The complete program, updated province by province, is published on the official FAI website in the weeks leading up to the event, with times, addresses, visit durations, and indications for sites requiring reservations. It is worth checking in advance: the most popular locations quickly fill up their available slots.