Rome shops by street, not by mall: Via del Corso for every budget, the luxury streets off the Spanish Steps, antiques on Via dei Coronari, vintage on Via del Governo Vecchio, Monti's independent boutiques and the Castel Romano outlet, plus the January sales and tax-free rules.
Rome shops by street, not by mall. Via del Corso, the long straight street from Piazza del Popolo to Piazza Venezia, has something for every budget. The streets that fan out from the Spanish Steps, Via dei Condotti first, are the city's luxury quarter. And the lanes of the centro storico and Monti are where the independent shops are: antiques on Via dei Coronari, vintage on Via del Governo Vecchio, young designers around Via del Boschetto. If you want designer labels for less, the Castel Romano outlet is 30 minutes south by car or shuttle bus.
Most of it is walkable from the sights: Via dei Condotti sits at the foot of the Spanish Steps, Via dei Coronari is two minutes from Piazza Navona, and Via del Corso passes within five minutes of the Trevi Fountain. For food shopping and flea markets (Campo de' Fiori, Testaccio, Porta Portese, Via Sannio), see Rome's best markets.
Store hours vary by shop. Spagna on Metro (subway) line A is the station for the luxury streets; for the rest of the network, see getting around Rome, and for a base near the shops, where to stay in Rome.
Via del Corso is where Rome actually shops. Rome's tourist board calls it the city's open-air shopping centre: about two kilometres of shops, from the big names and single-brand stores to the cheapest chains, running dead straight from Piazza del Popolo to Piazza Venezia. It's the right street for everyday fashion, shoes and sports brands at normal prices. Who it suits: everyone with a normal budget. The trade-off: it's crowded, narrow-pavemented and mostly international chains, so it's not where you'll find anything you couldn't buy at home. Halfway down, Galleria Alberto Sordi (below) gives you a break from the pavement.
Walk it north to south, from Flaminio (line A) at Piazza del Popolo down to Piazza Venezia; Spagna (line A) is a short walk east of the middle stretch.
Via dei Condotti is the luxury street, running from the foot of the Spanish Steps to Via del Corso, lined with the boutiques of the biggest fashion houses. The luxury quarter spreads into the parallel and crossing streets the tourist board lists alongside it: Via Borgognona, Via della Vite, Via Frattina, Via delle Carrozze and Via Vittoria, plus Piazza di Spagna and Piazza Mignanelli. Who it suits: serious buyers, and anyone who likes a window. The trade-off: the prices you'd expect; the window-shopping is free. Pair it with a coffee at a historic café nearby; breakfast and coffee in Rome has the options.
Nearest Metro: Spagna (line A), at the top of the street by the Spanish Steps.
Via del Babuino runs from Piazza del Popolo to Piazza di Spagna, one of the three streets of the Tridente, and it's quieter and more design-led than Condotti: the tourist board singles it out for its ateliers. Detour one block east into Via Margutta, a quiet lane of galleries and studios. The trade-off: like Condotti, it's high-end; come to look as much as to buy.
It links Piazza del Popolo (Flaminio, line A) with Piazza di Spagna (Spagna, line A), so walk it in either direction between the two stations.
Galleria Alberto Sordi is the Art Nouveau arcade on Via del Corso opposite Piazza Colonna, named after the Roman film star. Inside are mid-range fashion stores (Uniqlo, Mango and Calvin Klein among them), a Mondadori bookshop, a Hamleys toy shop and places to eat, including Iginio Massari's pastry shop. It's the easiest place in the centre to get out of the rain and sit down. The trade-off: it's chain stores under a beautiful roof; come for the building and a coffee as much as the shops.
On Via del Corso opposite Piazza Colonna; about 8 minutes' walk from the Trevi Fountain, and Barberini (line A) is about 10 minutes.
Rinascente on Via del Tritone is Rome's big department store: eight floors, 14,000 square metres and around 800 brands of fashion, design, jewellery and beauty, by the tourist board's count. Two things make it worth a visit even if you're not buying. On floor -1, the remains of the Aqua Virgo (Acquedotto Vergine), which the tourist board dates to 19 BC under Augustus and which still feeds the Trevi Fountain, are on show; and the rooftop terrace looks out over the city's roofs. The trade-off: the big brands are the same as in any department store, so come for the aqueduct, the terrace and the convenience. Non-EU visitors can ask for a tax-free invoice (rules below).
Go down to floor -1 for the remains of the Aqua Virgo aqueduct, then up to the rooftop terrace. Metro: Barberini (line A), about 5 minutes' walk.
Via dei Coronari was, until recently, the street of Rome's antique dealers, in the tourist board's words, and it still has antique shops and galleries along its length. It's one of the prettiest streets in the centre: opened by Pope Sixtus IV as the first straight street through the medieval maze, and named after the coronari, who sold rosaries to pilgrims walking to St Peter's. It runs from just north of Piazza Navona towards Ponte Sant'Angelo, and Gelateria del Teatro is on the way. The trade-off: real antiques at real prices; most visitors browse.
Start from the Piazza Navona end (Piazza di Tor Sanguigna) and walk west towards Ponte Sant'Angelo; the street ends a few minutes from the bridge.
Via del Governo Vecchio and Via dei Giubbonari, by Campo de' Fiori, are the centre's streets for second-hand and vintage, the tourist board's pick for cheaper alternatives to high fashion. Governo Vecchio is a narrow lane of old palazzi running west from Piazza Navona, with small shops, cafés and restaurants along it. Who it suits: vintage hunters and anyone who'd rather browse than buy designer. The trade-off: shops are small and stock is hit and miss, so give it time.
It starts just west of Piazza Navona; carry on to Via dei Giubbonari by Campo de' Fiori for more second-hand shops.
Monti is the neighbourhood for independent shops. The tourist board points to Via del Boschetto, Via degli Zingari and Via dei Serpenti for crafts, vintage and the work of young designers, and the lanes are small enough to loop in an hour. It's ten minutes north of the Colosseum, so it fits after a morning in ancient Rome, and Piazza della Madonna dei Monti is the place to stop for a drink afterwards. Nearest Metro: Cavour (line B). The trade-off: the shops are small and spread over a few lanes, so it's a browse rather than a haul.
Metro: Cavour (line B), about five minutes' walk. Loop back along Via dei Serpenti and Via degli Zingari.
Designer Outlet Castel Romano is McArthurGlen's outlet south of the city, with more than 160 designer brands at outlet prices, open 10am to 8pm every day. It's about 30 minutes' drive from the centre via the Via Pontina, and the outlet runs shuttle buses from Termini and from EUR Fermi on Metro line B; times and fares are on its own plan-your-visit page, so book there rather than through a reseller. Who it suits: people with a specific label in mind. The trade-off: it's half a day out of Rome. Its site doesn't list holiday closures, so check before going on 25 December or 1 January.
About 30 minutes' drive from the centre via the Via Pontina. Shuttle buses run from Termini and from EUR Fermi (Metro line B); check the outlet's site for times and fares.
Italy's sales (saldi) run twice a year, and each region sets its own dates. In Lazio, the region that includes Rome, the winter sales start on the first working day before Epiphany (6 January), the rule set by the regions' agreement of 24 March 2011. In 2025 that was Saturday 4 January.
January 2027: not announced yet. The Lazio region hadn't published its date by 3 November 2026; watch regione.lazio.it. In 2022 the region set the sales at six weeks, and promotional sales aren't allowed in the 30 days before they start.
January is also one of Rome's quietest months for visitors; the best time to visit Rome has the rest of the calendar.
If you live outside the EU (that includes visitors from the UK and the US), you can get Italian VAT back on goods you take home. The rules, from Italy's customs agency (Agenzia delle Dogane e dei Monopoli):
When you leave, OTELLO's checks send you to a green channel or a red one; red means you must take the goods to the customs office for inspection, so leave time at the airport.
About 3 km, flat, from the luxury streets to the antiques. Allow three to four hours with stops.
1. Flaminio (line A) → Via del Babuino to Piazza di Spagna, with a detour into Via Margutta. 2. Via dei Condotti and the side streets, Via Borgognona and Via Frattina. 3. South down Via del Corso to Galleria Alberto Sordi, with a detour east to Rinascente on Via del Tritone. 4. West past the Pantheon to Piazza Navona. 5. Via dei Coronari for antiques, or Via del Governo Vecchio for vintage, and finish at Campo de' Fiori.
For lunch on the way, cheap eats in Rome has the pizza by the slice and sandwiches near the route, and the best gelato in Rome has the shops.
Paying: shops in Italy have to accept cards, but carry a little cash for small purchases at markets. Dress codes: none for shops, but if your route takes in churches, cover shoulders and knees. Christmas: the 2026 dates for the Via del Corso and Tridente lights haven't been announced; last season Rome's tourist board listed them from 26 November 2025 to 6 January 2026.
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