Trastevere Area, West River Bank
Located on West side of the Tiber river, just a 3-minute walking distance from Rome’s Centro Storico, Trastevere is without doubt one of most loved neighbourhoods in Rome both by locals and by foreign travellers. If you’ve already stunned at the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican Museums and marvelled at the Colosseum, then take your time to explore the picturesque area of Trastevere, lose yourself down the winding cobblestone streets and immerse yourself in its fascinating atmosphere!
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Trastevere has not always been the lively and vibrant neighbourhood that it is today. Until the Age of the Emperor Augustus (44-23 a.C), the first Roman Emperor, the area of Trastevere was actually a peripheral area of the city.
It was only at the end of the Republican Age that Trastevere saw its growth into a real neighbourhood, becoming a working-class district. Workers and traders started moving to this area, attracted by profitable business opportunities due to the proximity to the Tiber river.
At the end of the Roman Imperial Age, Trastevere had already become a really vast area in Rome. However, in the coming centuries the area was still characterized by poverty and by a temporary nature that set Trastevere apart from other areas of the city of Rome. Hovels and tiny houses were scattered across narrow streets and alleys, in midst of early churches such as Santa Maria in Trastevere and San Crisogono.
It was only at the beginning of the 16th century, under the Papacy of Julius II, that Trastevere underwent a transformation into a more organized borough, destined to host the Roman middle class. The Church of Santa Maria in Trastevere became the centre of the neighbourhood. However, apart from other Roman quarters, Trastevere never saw the construction of sumptuous buildings and churches, neither of splendid houses for the Curial aristocracy.
Today, Trastevere still preserves this unique, fascinating nature and an authenticity which is really hard to find somewhere else in Rome. Thanks to this very essence, Trastevere has become one of the nightlife centre of the city, with shops open until late in the evening, local restaurants and trattorias, pubs and coffee shops.
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