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One of the first things American students Fiona Hastings and Olivia Nieporte did as they visited Rome for the first time was venture to the Trevi fountain to partake in the age-old ritual of tossing a coin over their shoulder and into the world-famous landmark.
They had envisaged their coins falling into the basin of the 18th-century masterpiece as water cascaded down from its elaborate sculptures. Instead, they found it bone dry, and had to make do with throwing their money over a transparent panel and into a small pool that has been specifically installed to allow tourists to perform the ritual, as the monument undergoes maintenance.
“I did chuckle to myself when I first saw it,” said Nieporte as the pair emerged from the confined space in front of the fountain, crammed with fellow tourists jostling for their chance to lob a coin, which according to legend guarantees a return visit to the Eternal City. But it didn’t sully their experience. “It’s still amazing,” said Hastings.
They were chuffed as their coins managed to land in the pool on the first attempt. Others were not so lucky. “It is much more of a challenge with the barrier there,” said Fausto Pastori, a visitor from Milan. “It is funny to look at, but I guess it gives you a unique experience.”
The fountain was emptied of water and cordoned off in early October as it undergoes €300,000 (£250,000) worth of works.
The plan is also to erect an elevated walkway that will allow visitors to get a closer look at the monument, and which will also be used as a way for the city’s leaders to monitor the flow of tourists before a €2 access fee is introduced.
Four million people flock to the Trevi fountain each year, and the access fee is designed to help authorities get a grip on the implications of overtourism as the city gears up for the 2025 jubilee, a year-long Roman Catholic event that is expected to draw more than 35 million tourists and pilgrims to the city.
Anne Scheffer-Mann and her family visited Rome to celebrate her parents’ 50th wedding anniversary. Each took a turn to throw a coin into the pool. “My parents were last here in 1999 and described a completely different experience,” said Scheffer-Mann. “I understand the works need to be done, and while the pool is a little peculiar, it’s a nice idea.”
Katia from Veneto was less impressed. “Throwing a coin obviously works because this is my sixth visit to Rome,” she said. “But I’m disappointed to find a pool this time – it’s just not the same.”
The initiative attracted irony on social media, with some renaming the fountain “Trevi swimming pool”. One commenter wrote: “Imagine if you’d flown 14 hours to see the Trevi fountain and instead find a municipal swimming pool.”
The coins thrown into the Trevi add up to about €1.5m each year, money which is swept up by the Catholic church-run charity Caritas. The gesture is believed to have its origins in an ancient pagan ritual offering to the water gods.