San Clemente District Festival

A neighborhood festival in the archaeological heart of Rome

The San Clemente District Festival takes place in the area between the Colosseum, the Oppian Hill, and the Basilica of San Giovanni in Laterano, along the axis of Via di San Giovanni in Laterano, which connects two of the capital's most layered sacred sites. This grassroots festival, promoted by the Associazione Via San Giovanni in Laterano APS, has for nearly forty years brought together residents, merchants, and religious communities of the Celio and Monti districts around the Basilica of San Clemente al Laterano, in the Municipality of Rome, Metropolitan City of Rome Capital, in the Lazio region.

In 2025, the festival celebrated its 39th edition and was officially recognized and supported by the Municipio Roma I Centro, joining historic events such as the Festa de' Noantri, the Ottobrata Monticiana, and the Feast of Saint Joseph. This recognition follows the even more significant achievement in 2020, when the event was declared a demo-ethno-anthropological asset by the Archaeological Superintendency: it is not merely a street event, but a living popular tradition to be protected.

The Basilica of San Clemente: three cities in vertical

The heart of the festival is the basilica dedicated to Pope Clement I, one of Rome's most fascinating monuments precisely because it tells the story of the city vertically: the 12th-century medieval church rests upon a 4th-century early Christian basilica, which in turn sits atop Roman buildings from the Republican and Imperial ages, including a Mithraeum. Descending the levels of the basilica means crossing nearly two thousand years of history in just a few meters. Entrusted since 1667 to the Irish Dominican Fathers, the basilica also gives the festival its international character, which over the years has opened up to the many foreign communities now living in the Celio and Monti districts.

The program: torchlight procession, the Mile, and Roman flavors

The day alternates between religious, sporting, and social moments. The highlight is the historical re-enactment of the translation of the relics of San Clemente, a torchlit procession accompanied by prayers, music, and the Bersaglieri Fanfare, which winds through the streets of the two districts in an atmosphere suspended between devotion and popular theater.

• The San Clemente Mile — the traditional race connecting the Basilica of San Clemente to that of San Giovanni in Laterano, held along the road linking the two complexes.
• District Games — at the Nerone Library and the Colle Oppio Senior Center, mixed bocce matches and a collective chess game are held, designed to bring different generations and communities together.
• Roman pans — traditional open-air cooking of popular Roman cuisine, served alongside traditional dishes.
• Stalls and crafts along the neighborhood streets.
• Openings and cultural activities dedicated to promoting the basilica and its archaeological heritage.

A theme that changes every year

For several editions, the festival has adopted a central theme: in 2025, it was "Upside-Down Encounter between West and East," a reference both to the vertical stratification of the basilica and to the role of San Clemente as a bridge between Latin and Eastern Christianity, as well as the daily coexistence of different languages and traditions in the districts. Music, readings, and testimonies from the foreign communities present in Municipality I bring the theme to life.

When to go

The festival revolves around the liturgical solemnity of San Clemente, which falls on November 23rd, and is usually held on the nearest weekend, in accordance with the basilica's celebrations. It is one of the few opportunities to see Rome's historic center lived in by its inhabitants rather than just crossed by visitors: those arriving in November, outside the peak tourist season, will find a quiet, domestic Celio that for one day fills with torches, bells, and voices.