From July 1, people will pay to visit the Pantheon. And from July 16 comes Rome-Pompeii train.

Important news for culture in Italy is on the horizon: meanwhile, from July 1, a ticket will be paid to visit the Pantheon in Rome. And from July 16, a train will go into operation directly linking Rome and Pompeii. Announcing both novelties was Culture Minister Gennaro Sangiuliano, a guest of Bruno Vespa at his Forum in Masseria.

On the ticket for the Pantheon, only the date was awaited: in fact, on March 16, the agreement had been signed between the Ministry of Culture and the Chapter of the Basilica of Santa Maria ad Martyres-Pantheon for the introduction of the paid admission ticket, which will not exceed 5 euros. Only the date was awaited, which has now been announced by Minister Sangiuliano. The Pantheon is the most-visited state-run site in Italy: in 2019, the last year before the pandemic, as many as 9 million visitors had entered it, surely accomplice also to the free admission. Numbers probably unrepeatable with the entrance fee. Sangiuliano said on Bruno Vespa that “with the proceeds of the tickets we will be able to feed a few soup kitchens and tackle renovation and regeneration work on the monument, also setting up the back part as a museum.” And also at the Forum in Masseria, he announced that, in general, tickets will continue to increase: “There is an ethical reason: something, if it is worthwhile, must be paid for.”

Finally, another novelty, the train that will take people directly from Rome to Pompeii, created together with Ferrovie dello Stato, which will officially leave on July 16. “Inside,” Sangiuliano said, “you will also be able to see a video that introduces the history of Pompeii and the great excavations that began with the Bourbons, and you will be able to buy a ticket to access the excavations.”

From July 1, people will pay to visit the Pantheon. And from July 16 comes Rome-Pompeii train.

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