In short
Four days in Rome, New Year's Eve at the Colosseum, and a very lucky midnight walk through the city.
There are so many ways to spend New Year's Eve, but watching fireworks over the Colosseum is definitely one of the more dramatic ones.
We spent four days in Rome over New Year's, and when the evening finally came, we found ourselves sitting on the steps of the little park on the hill just across the Colosseum. From there, we had a great view of the Stadium while eating pizza and waiting for midnight.
As the countdown got closer, more and more people gathered around us, all waiting for the clock to hit twelve. Then, suddenly, the fireworks started lighting up the sky above the Colosseum. Not exactly a bad way to say goodbye to the old year.
It was crowded, loud and slightly chaotic, as you'd probably expect from New Year's Eve in Rome. But honestly, that's part of the fun. Everyone was waiting for those few seconds when it finally happened, the whole place came alive.
After the fireworks show, instead of immediately heading back to the hotel, we decided to walk through the city for a while. Because apparently, we still had some sightseeing left in us...
And somehow, this idea paid off.
We made our way towards the Trevi Fountain and against all odds, found it almost completely empty.
If you've ever been to Rome, you know how rare this is. Trevi is usually packed with people, all trying to squeeze into the perfect spot for a photo. But that night, it was almost completely empty.
So obviously, we stayed.
The fountain was glowing in the middle of the night, the streets were unusually quiet, and for a few minutes it felt like we had somehow found our own private version of Rome.
Eventually, we decided it was probably time to go back to the hotel.
Our hotel was just around Piazza di Spagna, and when we got back, there was an unexpected little surprise waiting for us. The staff had left us a bottle of champagne to celebrate the New Year.
So naturally, going straight to bed was no longer an option.
We took the champagne out onto the balcony, opened the bottle and looked down towards the Spanish Steps. By then, the crazy New Year's crowds had disappeared and Rome had finally gone quiet.
And that's how we ended our first night of 2026. Fireworks at the Colosseum, a completely empty Trevi Fountain, a midnight walk through Rome and champagne by the Spanish Steps.
The champagne was great, but having Trevi almost to ourselves was definitely the real treat!
Honestly, we'll take that as a good sign for the year.