Castel Sant'Angelo
#8von 8 Orten zum Besuchen in RomeRome, Lazio, Italy
Auch bekannt als Mausoleum of Hadrian · Mausoleo di Adriano
Kurz gesagt
Öffnungszeiten: 09:00–19:30, closed Mondays, last entry 18:00. Eintritt: €16. Plane 1.5 hrs ein. Beste Zeit: 09:00–10:30.
Aktualisiert am · Erstellt von Traveliac, KI-unterstützt · 5 Min. Lesezeit
- Öffnungszeiten
- 09:00–19:30
- Closed Mondays
- Eintrittspreis
- €16
- Ticket ab
- Benötigte Zeit
- 1.5 hrs
- Beste Tageszeit
- 09:00–10:30
- Beste Monate
- Apr – Jun, Sep – Oct
- Adresse
- Lungotevere Castello, 50, 00193 Roma RM, Italy
Über Castel Sant'Angelo
Castel Sant'Angelo charges €16 for adult admission, as of 2026, and began as Emperor Hadrian's personal mausoleum, completed in 139 CE, a year after his death, as a cylindrical drum of brick-faced concrete originally clad in travertine and topped by a garden and a bronze quadriga statue, none of which survive in original form. The structure's core — a massive circular tumulus over 60 metres across — still forms the building's base beneath the medieval and Renaissance fortress layers added over the following 1,800 years. A covered elevated corridor, the Passetto di Borgo, connects the castle directly to Vatican City roughly 800 metres away, built in the 13th century as an emergency escape route for popes; Clement VII famously used it during the 1527 Sack of Rome to flee an invading army. The castle's upper terrace, beneath the bronze Archangel Michael statue that gives the building its current name, is one of the highest publicly accessible viewpoints in central Rome.
Beste Tageszeit: 09:00–10:30. At opening, for the terrace views over the Tiber and St. Peter's dome without the midday haze and crowd buildup.
Öffnungszeiten von Castel Sant'Angelo
Castel Sant'Angelo öffnet um 09:00 und schließt um 19:30. Diese Zeiten gelten auch samstags und sonntags.
- Öffnungszeiten
- 09:00–19:30
Monday Closed Tue–Sun 09:00–19:30 - Tuesday–Sunday 09:00–19:30, last admission 18:00.
- Geschlossen an
- Monday, 1 January, 25 December
Gut zu wissen: Summer evening openings (early July–early September) extend hours to around 01:00 on select nights; confirm exact dates each season.
Öffnungszeiten zusammengestellt aus castelsantangelo.cultura.gov.it und öffentlichen Quellen, zuletzt aktualisiert am . Sie können sich ohne Vorankündigung ändern — vor der Reise bitte bestätigen. Wie wir diese Reiseführer schreiben
Eintrittspreis für Castel Sant'Angelo
| Ticket | Preis |
|---|---|
| Standardticket | €16 |
| Ermäßigt (Studenten / Senioren) | €2 |
| Kinder | Kostenlos |
€16 full-price adult ticket at the counter and online via CoopCulture with a timed slot, as of 2026. EU citizens aged 18–25 pay €2; under-18s free. Free on the first Sunday of every month. Book through castelsantangelo.cultura.gov.it or CoopCulture to avoid resale markups. As of 2026, verify current pricing at the official site before travel.
Preise zusammengestellt aus castelsantangelo.cultura.gov.it und öffentlichen Quellen, zuletzt aktualisiert am . Sie können sich ohne Vorankündigung ändern — vor der Reise bitte bestätigen. Wie wir diese Reiseführer schreiben
Beste Reisezeit für Castel Sant'Angelo
- Quiet
- Moderate
- Busy
09:00–10:30
Morning OpeningBest time to go
Quietest entry window; the spiral ramp and lower Roman chambers are calm before tour groups arrive.
Quiet10:30–13:30
Midday Peak
Combined Vatican-area visitors add to castle numbers; upper terraces get busiest around this window.
Busy13:30–16:30
Afternoon
Crowds ease somewhat; papal apartments and interior galleries remain comfortable to view.
Moderate16:30–19:30
Late Afternoon
Fewest visitors of the open hours; good light for terrace photography over the Tiber before last admission at 18:00.
Quiet
Geschichte von Castel Sant'Angelo
Hadrian designed the mausoleum for himself and his successors, and it held the ashes of Roman emperors from Hadrian through Caracalla, spanning roughly 139 to 217 CE, before later emperors were buried elsewhere. The building's transformation from tomb to fortress began in 401 CE, when Emperor Honorius incorporated it into Rome's Aurelian Walls as a defensive strongpoint against the deteriorating security of the late Western Empire.
The name Castel Sant'Angelo dates to 590 CE, according to tradition, when Pope Gregory the Great reported a vision of the Archangel Michael sheathing his sword atop the building, interpreted as a sign that a plague afflicting Rome had ended; a chapel and later a bronze statue commemorate the vision, though the precise historicity of the account, as with much of this period, rests on later hagiography rather than contemporary record.
Successive popes converted the fortress into a papal residence and prison from the medieval period onward, adding the Renaissance-era papal apartments still decorated with frescoes attributed to Perino del Vaga and his workshop. The composer Giacomo Puccini used the castle as the setting for the final act of his 1900 opera Tosca, in which the heroine leaps from its ramparts — a scene that has made the terrace a minor pilgrimage site for opera enthusiasts independent of its historical significance.
Regeln & Etikette in Castel Sant'Angelo
The visitor route follows a spiral ramp up through the original Roman core before reaching the medieval and Renaissance floors — this ramp has an uneven ancient surface and no separate accessible route for much of its length, a genuine consideration for visitors with mobility limitations.
The upper terraces are open-air and largely unshaded; the parapet walls are original historic stonework and climbing on them for photographs is prohibited and monitored by museum staff.
Photography without flash is generally permitted throughout, including the papal apartments, though tripods require the same Ministry of Culture permit as at other state-run sites in Rome.
Tipps für den Besuch von Castel Sant'Angelo
- 1
The Ponte Sant'Angelo, the pedestrian bridge crossing the Tiber directly in front of the castle, is lined with ten Bernini-workshop angel statues (mostly executed by assistants to Bernini's designs) and offers one of the best free photograph angles of the fortress itself, particularly at sunset.
- 2
Combine a visit with the walk along the Passetto di Borgo's route toward St. Peter's Square — the corridor itself is not always open to the public, but its raised brick arcade is visible and walkable alongside at street level, tracing the same 800-metre escape route popes once used.
- 3
The rooftop terrace café, when open, is a reasonably priced break point given the premium pricing typical of similarly located Rome viewpoints; check seasonal opening since it does not always operate outside peak months. The castle sits close enough to St. Peter's Basilica (roughly 900 metres) to combine both into a single Vatican-area itinerary.
Anreise nach Castel Sant'Angelo
Lungotevere Castello, 50, 00193 Roma RM, ItalyRoute in Google Maps
Ab Rome Fiumicino Airport (FCO)
31 km · 55-75 min
€14 train + €1.50 metro
Ab Lepanto Metro Station (Line A)
0.8 km · 10 min
Free
Ab St. Peter's Square
0.9 km · 12-15 min
Free
Nächster Flughafen
Ab Rome Fiumicino (FCO)
31 km, approximately 45–65 minutes by road or train-plus-transfer.
Nächste Station
Ab Lepanto (Metro Line A)
10-minute walk, or Ottaviano–San Pietro (Metro Line A) – 15-minute walk.
Häufige Fragen zu Castel Sant'Angelo
What was Castel Sant'Angelo originally built for?
Emperor Hadrian built it as a mausoleum for himself and his imperial successors, completed in 139 CE. It held the ashes of Roman emperors for roughly 80 years before being converted into a military fortress in the early 5th century.
Is Castel Sant'Angelo connected to the Vatican?
Yes, by the Passetto di Borgo, a fortified elevated corridor roughly 800 metres long built in the 13th century as an emergency escape route for popes, most famously used by Pope Clement VII during the 1527 Sack of Rome.
Is Castel Sant'Angelo free on the first Sunday of the month?
Yes, admission is free on the first Sunday of every month, as of 2026, alongside the standard reduced rate of €2 for EU citizens aged 18-25 and free entry for under-18s.
Why is the castle named after an angel?
Tradition holds that Pope Gregory the Great saw a vision of the Archangel Michael sheathing his sword atop the building in 590 CE, taken as a sign that a plague in Rome had ended; a bronze angel statue has topped the fortress since, though the vision itself is legend rather than documented fact.
Mit KI-Unterstützung aus offiziellen Quellen und öffentlichen Aufzeichnungen erstellt und erst nach den Prüfungen veröffentlicht, die beschrieben sind unter Wie wir diese Reiseführer schreiben. Niemand von Traveliac war persönlich vor Ort. Zuletzt aktualisiert am . Wie wir Orte bewerten und prüfen
