August 2022: What's on in Rome.

August in Rome sees hordes of tourists arrive on vacation in the Eternal City as a large proportion of local residents bail out of the heat - heading to the mountains or the sea - to mark Italy's Ferragosto summer holiday.

Foreign visitors may be surprised to find some restaurants and businesses closed in August however the city's museums and archaeological sites will stay open as normal.

Although many of Rome's summer festivals draw to a close in the first week of August, a number of popular events stay open all summer.

These include the annual Lungo il Tevere initiative, with pop-up restaurants, bars and cultural events along the banks of the river Tiber, as well as the jazz and swing music festival at Villa Celimontana and open-air movies at the Casa del Cinema in Villa Borghese.

There is also cinema under the stars on the Villa Ada lake with the return of the Floating Theatre film festival, which leaves behind its former venue in EUR, starting on 24 August.

• What's on in Rome this summer?

One of the main novelties in summer 2022 is the capital's Cerchi e Fori programme of cultural events being held on Via dei Cerchi (which runs parallel to Circus Maximus) and Via dei Fori Imperiali (the street beside the Roman Forum leading to the Colosseum).

The free events include live music, dance, circus acts, magic and theatre, taking place each night between 4 and 23 August, from 20.30 to 23.30, with both streets pedestrianised for the duration of the festival.

Rome's summer opera festival at the Baths of Caracalla ends on a high note in early August with classics Carmen and The Barber of Seville. The summer opera season continues however with Cinema Opera, a free outdoor programme of opera and dance films projected onto Teatro Costanzi from 10-13 August.

Theatre fans can enjoy the Shakespearean festival at the Globe Theatre whose Italian-language productions in August include A Midsummer Night's Dream.

• Best day trips from Rome

One of Rome's most unusual summer traditions takes place on the night of 5 August when the city recreates a miracle snowfall, dating back to the fourth century, outside the Basilica di S. Maria Maggiore.

Some of the capital's big summer exhibitions include Titian at Galleria Borghese and Robert Doisneau at the Ara Pacis, with the capital's national and city-run museums opening for free on Sunday 7 August.

Most of Italy's state museums and archaeological sites will open especially for the Ferragosto holiday on Monday 15 August. 

The city's zoo or Bioparco di Roma will be open on Ferragosto too, from 09.30 until 19.00, with last entry at 18.00.

There are also open-air concerts of classical, jazz and folk music every night at the archaeological site of Teatro di Marcello, as part of the annual Concerti del Tempietto programme.

• Ancient Rome comes to life with Virtual Reality Bus

The Colosseum holds its popular moonlight tours on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays throughout August. The 'Luna sul Colosseo' experience lasts about an hour, with tours on offer in Italian and English.

The history and drama of ancient Rome comes to life each night thanks to the Viaggi nei Fori project, with multimedia displays screened on the ruins of the Forum of Augustus and Forum of Caesar.

Finally, for those who wish to cool off, here are our guides to this year's Blue Flag beaches in the Lazio region, lakes near Rome, and the best outdoor pools in the Eternal City this summer.

For updated events in Rome see our What's On guide.