Special opening hours for major monuments, starting with Rome and Milan. Here are the venues and times

To keep major Italian monuments and museums open every day for up to four hours longer than usual. The trial begins on 1 August in Rome and Milan as part of a joint initiative between the Ministry of Culture, the Ministry of Tourism and Milan City Council, with the daily opening hours of three major landmarks being extended: the Colosseum, the Pantheon and Castello Sforzesco. The trial will run throughout August and will involve state-owned monuments in the capital and municipal monuments in the Lombard capital.

The aim is twofold: to benefit tourists and improve the management of visitor flows, offering the chance to visit these sites at times when it is cooler and more compatible with work commitments. Specifically, the Colosseum will extend its opening hours on Fridays and Saturdays from 7.45 pm to 11.30 pm; the Pantheon from 7.00 pm to 11.00 pm, every day except Thursdays; and the Castello Sforzesco from 5.30 pm to 7.30 pm. For the Minister of Culture, Alessandro Giuli, ‘the special evening openings of the Colosseum and the Pantheon provide an opportunity to experience, in a particularly evocative setting, two universal testaments to history and human ingenuity. Making these sites even more accessible promotes knowledge and reinforces awareness of the value they hold’. The collaboration between the ministries, says Giuli, ‘demonstrates the institutions’ ability to work together, putting their expertise and resources at the service of citizens’.

This project has also emerged from discussions with industry stakeholders, as highlighted by the Minister for Tourism, Gianmarco Mazzi. “This pilot scheme, the result of discussions with tourist guides and industry stakeholders, meets the needs of travellers and citizens. In particular, it strengthens the link between the Ministry of Tourism and the Ministry of Culture, which, according to ISNART (the National Institute for Tourism Research), has become the primary reason for travel among tourists since 2026, jumping from seventh to first place in just ten years. This is why we are devoting our full attention to cultural tourism, to explore the growth potential of a sector that already contributes 58 billion euros to the national economy.”

Milan is taking part in the pilot scheme with its most visited civic monument, the Castello Sforzesco, which recorded half a million visitors last year. The Councillor for Culture, Tommaso Sacchi, has announced the extension of opening hours and highlighted the growth of the city’s museums. ‘Milan is taking part in the national trial promoted by the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Tourism in collaboration with the City Council, which, from Saturday 1 August, will extend the opening hours of Italy’s major monuments. The Castello Sforzesco, which has recorded half a million visitors to its museums over the past year, will remain open every day until 7.30 pm, two hours later than usual. This figure is part of a steady growth in Milan’s civic museums, which have seen visitor numbers rise from 1.3 to 1.7 million since 2019, confirming the importance of culture in the city’s tourist flows. Throughout August, visitors on a reduced-price ticket will be able to admire the galleries of the Museum of Ancient Art and Michelangelo’s Pietà Rondanini, as well as the ‘Passione e Disegno’ exhibition in the Salette della Grafica, which brings together masterpieces ranging from Leonardo da Vinci to Keith Haring.”