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Number 19 of 20 in Rome

Ostia Antica: a Roman town, half an hour from Rome

Ostia was Rome's port at the mouth of the Tiber. When the river silted up, the town was abandoned and the dunes covered it. They kept it very well.

The stone seats of the Roman theatre at Ostia Antica, with pines behind.
FoekeNoppert, Public domain
What it is
Day trip
Time to allow
4 to 6 hours
Cost
Ticket, and a local train
Best time
A clear morning in spring or autumn

Rome this week

    Why Ostia Antica is worth it

    Among Roman towns, only Pompeii and Herculaneum are better preserved, and Ostia has something they lack: it was not a resort but a working city, and it died slowly, not in a day. You walk its main street for more than a kilometre between warehouses, bakeries, taverns, public lavatories and blocks of flats several storeys high. It shows how ordinary Romans lived, which the capital itself no longer can.

    The name comes from the Latin for mouth, the mouth of the river. The sea has since moved away: the coast is now three kilometres off, and the ruins lie among umbrella pines, 25 kilometres south-west of Rome.

    It is also quiet. On a weekday you can have whole streets to yourself, which never happens at the Forum.

    What to see

    1. The theatre

      Restored and still used for performances in summer. Climb to the top row for the view over the town.

    2. The Square of the Corporations

      Behind the theatre: the offices of the shipping companies, each with a black and white mosaic at its door showing its trade and its home port.

    3. The Baths of Neptune

      A terrace looks down on a great floor mosaic of the sea god driving four sea horses.

    4. The tavern and the flats

      The Thermopolium, a bar with its marble counter and a painted menu on the wall, and the House of Diana, an apartment block of the second century.

    How to do it well

    • Take the local train from Porta San Paolo, beside the Piramide stop on metro line B, to Ostia Antica. It takes about half an hour and uses an ordinary city ticket.
    • From the station it is a five-minute walk over the footbridge to the entrance.
    • The site is big and the paving is rough. Wear proper shoes and allow at least three hours.
    • There is one café, by the museum in the middle of the site. Bring water.
    • Do not confuse it with Lido di Ostia, the modern seaside town two stops further on.

    Where it is

    Address

    Ostia Antica, 25 km south-west of Rome

    Nearest station

    Ostia Antica, on the local train from Porta San Paolo, by Piramide on line B

    Tickets and tours: Ostia Antica

    Ostia Antica: common questions

    Is Ostia Antica worth visiting?
    Yes. It is one of the best-preserved Roman towns in existence, surpassed only by Pompeii and Herculaneum, it is far less crowded than either, and it is half an hour from Rome.
    How do you get to Ostia Antica from Rome?
    By the local train from Porta San Paolo station, next to the Piramide stop on metro line B. Get off at Ostia Antica: the entrance is five minutes' walk away.
    Ostia Antica or Pompeii?
    Pompeii is larger and more famous, but it is a long day from Rome. Ostia Antica gives much the same experience of walking through a Roman town, in half a day and with few other visitors.
    How much time do you need for Ostia Antica?
    Allow 4 to 6 hours. That is this site's estimate for an unhurried visit.

    What visitors say about Ostia Antica

    Rating from Google

    4.7

    10,455 ratings on Google

    Google's figures as read on 6 October 2026.

    Read every review on Google

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    Hotels near Ostia Antica

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