This route links the Pantheon with two of Rome's best-known squares and takes in three free Caravaggio paintings — four if you add the optional Sant'Agostino detour — a painted false dome, Bernini's elephant obelisk and a market lunch, all inside a walk of under two kilometres.
Realistically it is a five-hour morning with a sit-down lunch at the end, not a four-hour dash. The walking is flat and almost entirely pedestrian; the time goes on the stops.
Itinerary overview
Total time: about 5 hours with lunch · Walking distance: ~1.8 km · Cost: €7 Pantheon admission plus food; every other stop is free · Best start: 9:00, at Pantheon opening.
Route: Pantheon → Sant'Ignazio → Santa Maria sopra Minerva and the elephant obelisk → San Luigi dei Francesi → Piazza Navona → Campo de' Fiori.
Churches in the centre close for part of the middle of the day and during services, so confirm current hours before you set out — that, not distance, is what breaks this route.
9:00 — Pantheon (45 min)
Arrive at Piazza della Rotonda shortly before opening. Admission is €7, with free entry for under-18s and reduced rates for EU 18–25s. You can buy on the spot or book a timed slot online in advance. There is no genuine skip-the-line product at the Pantheon: booking saves the ticket queue, not the security and entry check.
Inside, do a full circuit — dome and oculus, Raphael's tomb on the left-hand side as you walk clockwise from the doors, the royal tombs, and the drain holes in the marble floor. Follow our interior guide. If a service is in progress, no photography.
10:00 — Sant'Ignazio di Loyola (20 min)
Four minutes east of the Pantheon, free to enter. Stand on the marked disc in the nave and look up at the painted false dome by Andrea Pozzo — a flat canvas that reads as architecture from that one spot and collapses as soon as you step aside. The nave ceiling fresco above it is the other reason to come.
10:30 — The elephant obelisk & Minerva (25 min)
Walk back past the Pantheon into Piazza della Minerva. The marble elephant carrying an Egyptian obelisk (1667) was designed by Bernini and carved by Ercole Ferrata. Behind it, Santa Maria sopra Minerva is the only major Gothic church in Rome, with Michelangelo's Christ the Redeemer and the tomb of Saint Catherine of Siena beneath the high altar. Free entry, dress code applies.
Book Pantheon Tickets, Tours & Hotels
Avoid buying your ticket on site by booking ahead — compare the official Musei Italiani ticket and the three best-known third-party providers, plus hotels next to Piazza della Rotonda.
Official Pantheon Tickets — Musei ItalianiSold by Italy's Ministry of Culture. €7 admission from July 2026. Any online transaction fee is shown at checkout.Musei Italiani Official SiteMusei Italiani is the official Pantheon ticket seller. Third-party products may be tours, hosted-entry products or bundled services — check the exact inclusions before booking.
TiqetsCompare advance Pantheon tickets, audio guides & combo bundlesCheck PricesKlookPantheon tickets & guided tours — cancellation varies by productCheck PricesTrip.comReward credits & frequent traveller dealsCheck PricesHotels near the PantheonStay 2 minutes from Piazza della Rotonda — compare boutique stays on Trip.com.View HotelsCompare all three providers to find the best price for your dates.11:10 — San Luigi dei Francesi (30 min)
North on Via Giustiniani, then right onto Via della Dogana Vecchia. The French national church holds three Caravaggios in the Contarelli Chapel: The Calling, The Inspiration and The Martyrdom of Saint Matthew. Free entry; bring coins for the light box. If you have time, add Sant'Agostino two minutes north for a fourth Caravaggio, the Madonna dei Pellegrini.
11:50 — Piazza Navona (40 min)
Three minutes west. The long oval follows the outline of Domitian's stadium from the late first century AD. At the centre is Bernini's Fountain of the Four Rivers (1651); on the western side, Sant'Agnese in Agone, its façade largely by Borromini. Coffee here is priced for the view.
See our Pantheon to Piazza Navona walking guide for the detour version of this leg.
12:40 — Campo de' Fiori market (25 min)
Leave Piazza Navona at the south-western corner, cross Corso Vittorio Emanuele II — the only busy road on the route — and walk down Via dei Baullari. The morning market in Campo de' Fiori typically packs up in the early afternoon, so arriving before 13:00 matters. In the middle stands the bronze of Giordano Bruno, burned here in 1600.
13:15 — Lunch near Campo de' Fiori
The terraces on the square trade on the location. One street back the value improves noticeably:
- Forno Roscioli (Via dei Chiavari) — long-established bakery known for pizza by the slice. Counter service, eat standing.
- Roscioli Salumeria con Cucina (Via dei Giubbonari) — sit-down, well known for carbonara and cacio e pepe. Book ahead.
- Filetti di Baccalà (Largo dei Librari) — a single-dish institution serving fried salt cod. Cash is often expected.
- Pianostrada (Via delle Zoccolette) — modern cooking and good focaccia, a slightly higher price bracket.
Opening days and prices change; check before building lunch around any one of them.
Extending the itinerary
If you still have energy after lunch, these are all within about fifteen minutes:
- Trevi Fountain — about 20 minutes east on foot. See our walking guide.
- Trastevere — 15 minutes south-west over Ponte Sisto, best for late-afternoon coffee and aperitivo.
- Largo Argentina — 5 minutes east; Republican-era temples and the area associated with Caesar's assassination.
- Palazzo Farnese — 2 minutes from Campo de' Fiori. Now the French embassy; interior visits only by advance booking.
For a fuller list, see things to do near the Pantheon.
Sources and further reading
- Ministry of Culture — official Pantheon tariff notice (€7 full price effective 1 July 2026) and free-entry categories
- Musei Italiani — official state ticket portal, direct Pantheon booking page
- San Luigi dei Francesi — official visitor and opening information
- Turismo Roma — Basilica di Sant'Agostino in Campo Marzio
- Turismo Roma — official city tourism information
Facts on this page last checked: August 2026. Prices, opening hours and transport routes in Rome change — always confirm with the official source before your visit.
Continue reading about the Pantheon
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Frequently Asked Questions
How long does this walk take?
Around five hours from a 9:00 start, including a sit-down lunch. Walking time alone is well under an hour — the time goes on the Pantheon, two churches and the squares.
What's the best order to visit these three?
Pantheon first thing, then Sant'Ignazio and the elephant obelisk, then San Luigi dei Francesi and Piazza Navona, finishing at Campo de' Fiori before the morning market winds down in the early afternoon.
Do I need to book the Pantheon?
Admission is €7 and there is no separate skip-the-line product — everyone passes the same security and ticket check. Booking a timed slot in advance mainly saves you the ticket queue; the entrance queue still applies.
Where should I eat near Campo de' Fiori?
Step one street off the square. Via dei Chiavari, Via dei Giubbonari and Largo dei Librari have long-standing bakeries and trattorias that generally price better than the terraces on the square itself.
Can I do this itinerary in the evening?
Partly. The churches and the Pantheon close in the late afternoon or early evening, so an evening version becomes a squares-and-dinner walk: Campo de' Fiori, Piazza Navona at dusk, and the floodlit Pantheon exterior at the end.