Piazza del Campidoglio (Capitoline Hill): Michelangelo's square in Rome

Updated on October 1, 2026

Piazza del Campidoglio sits on top of the Capitoline Hill, between Piazza Venezia and the Roman Forum. Designed by Michelangelo from 1538, it is framed by three palaces: Palazzo Senatorio, Rome's city hall, and the Palazzo dei Conservatori and Palazzo Nuovo, which house the Capitoline Museums. The square, the Cordonata and the viewpoints over the Forum are free and open to all, day and night. Allow 20 to 30 minutes to see it all, longer if you go on to the museums.

Highlights

Michelangelo's square

In January 1538, Pope Paul III entrusted Michelangelo with the redesign of the Capitoline Hill. The architect turned the square towards the modern city rather than the Forum and laid out a trapezoid around an oval. The star pattern of the paving, part of his design, was only completed in 1940.

The statue of Marcus Aurelius

In the centre, the emperor's equestrian statue is a copy, placed in 1997 on the pedestal designed by Michelangelo. The gilded bronze original, set up here in 1538, is now displayed indoors in the [Capitoline Museums](/fr/attractions/musees-capitolins).

The Cordonata

This broad ramp of shallow steps, designed by Michelangelo, climbs from Piazza d'Aracoeli up to the square. At the top, the balustrade carries the colossal statues of the Dioscuri, Castor and Pollux, found in fragments in the 16th century and set up in 1583. To the left, a steeper staircase leads to the church of Santa Maria in Aracoeli.

The three palaces

At the back, Palazzo Senatorio, the city hall, is fronted by a double staircase and a fountain where the goddess Roma is flanked by the river gods of the Nile and the Tiber. On the right stands the Palazzo dei Conservatori, on the left the Palazzo Nuovo, built as its mirror image in the 17th century. In the evening, the lit façades and paving make the square very photogenic.

The viewpoints over the Forum

On either side of Palazzo Senatorio, Via del Campidoglio (on the right) and Via di San Pietro in Carcere (on the left) lead to terraces overlooking the [Roman Forum](/fr/attractions/forum-romain). The view is free and open at all hours; the Tabularium, on which Palazzo Senatorio stands, can only be visited with a museum ticket.

Weddings and tours of Palazzo Senatorio

The Sala Rossa in the Palazzo dei Conservatori hosts civil weddings, and you will often see newlyweds on the Cordonata. Palazzo Senatorio occasionally opens for free guided tours: on Sunday 4 October 2026, four tours in Italian (10:00, 11:30, 15:00 and 16:30, about 75 minutes), booking required on 060608.

Opening hours and tickets

The square, the Cordonata and the viewpoints are free and open every day at all hours, with no booking. Only the Capitoline Museums charge admission: €16.50 for non-residents until 1 November 2026 (exhibition included), free for residents of Rome and its Metropolitan City, and for everyone on the first Sunday of the month.

Infos pratiques

Tips

Arrive by the Cordonata from Piazza Venezia: it is the approach Michelangelo intended, facing Marcus Aurelius. In the evening, the viewpoints on Via del Campidoglio look over the floodlit Forum, away from the daytime crowds. On the first Sunday of the month, the museums are free for everyone and the square is much busier.

How to get there

Piazza del Campidoglio, 00186 Rome. Metro Colosseo (line B) or Colosseo-Fori Imperiali (line C), then about 15 minutes on foot along Via dei Fori Imperiali. Buses 40, 64, 70 and 170 and tram 8 to Piazza Venezia, a 5-minute walk from the foot of the Cordonata.