A Campo de’ Fiori hosts the most famous and typical food market of Rome. It takes its name after a cultivated and flowered field that used to cover the area during the 5th century, some say. Others suggest, instead, that the name comes from a Latin toponym, Campus Florae, that is Field of Flora (general Pompeus’ beloved): this second report sounds more realistic.

The square where the market takes place is also a very busy place for night life, especially in summer, when guys and girls come around for a beer. Campo de’ Fiori market, located at a stone’s throw from the renowned Piazza Navona, mainly hosts stalls with fresh fruit and vegetables, but also meat, fish, spices and flowers, creating a charming and quaint palette of colors.

The square is dominated by a statue, surrounded by flower stalls: it is the statue of Giordano Bruno, an Italian philosopher who was here burned at the stake for heresy. The market is not very big but the atmosphere it creates is suggestive: the shouts of the vendors melt with the buzz of conversation of the crowd and of the tourists. In this market you can sense the true atmosphere of Rome, despite some vendors come from other countries.

The prices here are a bit higher than in other markets of the city, but we would recommend you to go anyway, even just for a stroll, to admire the colours and the variety of the stalls and of the products sold. Numerous are the stalls that sell uncommon souvenirs, too, and the area offers plenty of restaurants, bars and shops. The ones in the square are quite expensive, but cheaper bars and restaurants are within a few minute walks, so turn round the corner and start wandering about the surrounding alleys.