Visiting the Rome Catacombs

Six catacombs sit under the roads out of Rome, and between them they are open almost every day of the week — but never all on the same day. Here is what you pay, when each site opens, and how to get out there.

Admission — what you pay

Three of the sites are run by the Pontifical Commission for Sacred Archaeology and share one tariff. The Capuchin Crypt on Via Veneto is a separate foundation with its own ticket, and the audioguide is included in the price.

Reduced admission covers children aged 7 to 16, school groups, students of archaeology, architecture, art history and cultural studies up to the age of 25, and clergy and members of religious orders. All of those need proof at the desk. Prices for the Catacombs of San Sebastiano vary between sources, so check the official site before you travel rather than take a figure from a guide.

Hours, and the day each site is shut

This is the single most useful thing to know before you plan a morning. The sites deliberately close on different weekdays so that at least one is always open, and they all break for two hours in the middle of the day.

The last morning visit at San Callisto leaves at noon, and the afternoon session ends at 17:00 — so the final departure of the day goes down at about 16:20. At Domitilla the last guided visit of each session starts 20 minutes before closing. Priscilla's last tours leave at noon and at 16:00.

All of the sites close on 1 January, Easter Sunday and 25 December, and each takes an annual maintenance break of roughly a month. San Callisto's falls from mid-January; Priscilla closes for a spell in the second half of August. Those dates move, so confirm on the official website for the site you are visiting before you set out.

Guided only — what that means for turning up

Every catacomb open to the public is a guided visit. There is no self-guided route, no audio-only ticket and no way to wander. San Callisto will not run a visit for fewer than two people, so a solo traveller who arrives without a reservation waits for a group to form. That is the practical case for booking something with a time on it. You have three ways in:

1. Book online with the site. Cheapest at €10, and the honest answer if you are already out on the Appian Way with a free morning. You take whichever language group is leaving next.
2. Turn up at the desk. Possible outside peak months, and a gamble between April and October. Groups leave every half hour with a cap, so the wait is real.
3. Book a guided departure. From $55, and it adds the transfer out past the walls, a guide in English and a slot reserved in your name. On this attraction the transport is most of what you are buying.

Whichever you choose, Rome Catacombs Tours lists what each departure actually includes so the comparison is like for like.

Getting out to the Appian Way

The catacombs are outside the Aurelian Walls because Roman law put every cemetery there, so none of them is a walk from the centre. Bus 118 leaves from Circo Massimo and the Colosseum and runs down the Appian Way, stopping at San Callisto and San Sebastiano. Domitilla is closer to Garbatella on Metro line B, then about ten minutes on foot. Priscilla sits north on Via Salaria, served by buses from Termini.

Driving is possible but rarely pleasant: the old road is narrow, partly closed to traffic and badly signed. Most visitors on Rome Catacombs tours let the operator handle it, which is why almost every listing here includes a private transfer. If you want the galleries without the journey planning, an underground Rome Catacombs tour includes the transfer both ways.

How long to set aside

Below ground you will be walking for 30 minutes to two hours depending on the site and the departure. Add the journey each way and a straightforward visit takes half a morning. A tour that pairs a catacomb with the Capuchin Crypt runs three to four hours door to door, and the e-bike day along the Appian Way runs six.

If you want the maximum time in the galleries rather than the maximum number of stops, the two-hour Domitilla walk gives more underground than anything else here. You can compare Rome Catacombs tours on duration and time below ground before you choose.

What to bring, and what stays outside

Knees and shoulders must be covered at every site, and it is checked at the door. A scarf or a light shirt in your bag solves it. Take a layer regardless of the season: the galleries sit at 15 to 16 °C all year, which is a relief in August and a surprise in April.

Photography is not allowed inside any of them. Nor is there phone signal, so agree a meeting point with anyone waiting above. There are toilets at the entrances and none underground. Full details of the dress code and the temperature are on what to expect underground, and the individual sites are described on the catacombs one by one.