If you’re looking for the best Roman markets, you’re going to need to take a look at the Porta Portese Market in Trastevere, Rome as soon as you get the chance. I lived in Rome for a year before I moved back to London, and I can assure you that even the coolest markets in Shoreditch do not come close to the excitement I feel every time I’m around the Porta Portese Market.
There are lots of food markets in Rome, but Porta Portese Market is oh so different. It’s not even just food, it’s the plethora of secondhand clothes dangling from the stands and the flea market vibe that gets me excited and ready to pounce.
I’m planning to move back to Rome next year with my fiance, and if there is one outdoor market in Rome that gets me all fuzzy and warm inside, it’s the Porta Portese Market. By why? Why is this Sunday market so attractive? Let me show you.
Best Roman Markets: Porta Portese Market in Trastevere Rome
One of my favorite restaurants in Rome, L’Insalata Ricca, is located not too far from this institution of Roman markets. At Porta Portese, you can find anything and everything – especially if you’re not looking for anything specific. After a morning spent exploring the endless stalls at Porta Portese, there’s nothing better than treating yourself to something sweet. Just a short walk from the market, you’ll stumble upon Rome’s most underrated ice cream shop, a hidden gem serving creamy gelato flavors that rival some of the city’s more famous spots. Pair it with a visit to L’Insalata Ricca for a perfect day of market finds and culinary delights.
If you’d like to learn more about amazing places in Rome, here are a few guides I’ve written for you on The Working Line:
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Porta Portese Market: Location
The Porta Portese Market is located on Via Portuense, just a stone’s throw away from Caffè Trastevere, one of the best cafes in Rome for breakfast. Coming from the Tiber River, you’ll take roughly 20-25 minutes to walk to the Porta Portese Market, and on the way, you’ll see lots of small coffee shops and restaurants.
You are, after all, very close to some of the best pasta restaurants in Trastevere, and while the avenue is huge, it is in the adjacent streets that you’ll find lots of cute cafes, restaurants, and gelaterie. Porta Portese is actually the name of the big gate you can see in the picture above, and it resembles lots of other gates you can find around Piazza del Popolo or the Termini station, for instance.
Access to Porta Portese Market
- By Metro: Stations Circo Massimo or Piramide (both Metro B)
- By Tram: Tram 8
- By Bus: 3NAV, 170, 75, 23, H, 44
Porta Portese Opening Hours
- Sundays only, from around 7/8 am to 1/2 pm (sometimes later)
- Free entry
Porta Portese Market: Clothes
When visiting the Porta Portese Market, you have to know you’re in one of the oldest Roman markets, established in 1945. That doesn’t mean it’s the best for everyone, and if you don’t like flea markets in your home country, chances are you won’t like flea markets in Rome.
Yet, there’s a very different atmosphere in the outdoor markets in Rome than I have come across in Paris or London. The country is overall poorer than some other European countries, which means you will definitely find very cheap secondhand clothes at the Porta Portese Market.
There are roughly two kinds of clothes you’ll find at this Sunday market in Trastevere:
- secondhand clothes
- new, unbranded clothes and fakes
Budget For the Porta Portese Market
There are dozens of stalls at the Porta Portese market, and it can be very easy to spend a lot, even on those utterly cheap secondhand and vintage clothes. One thing to remember, like in many Roman markets, is that most of the stands are cash-only. In the beginning, when I moved to Rome and started visiting the Porta Portese Market on a weekly basis, I would take about €40 with me, which helped me rebuild my wardrobe entirely after I moved from London’s cold weather.
After some time, I figured it was enough to take about €20 since most of the secondhand clothes and vintage items are only priced around €1 to €2. Most clothes I would buy are from high-street brands like Bershka, Mango, or H&M, and you’ll find them by the handful at the Porta Portese Market.
Read: The Best Restaurants in Trastevere for Pizza and Pasta
However, some of the clothes you’ll find are a bit more expensive, like those amazing real leather jackets, I found for €8 at the time. If leather jackets are your thing, there are two or three stalls in the entire Porta Portese Market that sells exclusively leather jackets and nothing else. From brown to blue and burgundy, you’ll find every color you need or may wish for.
It’s also interesting to note that most secondhand clothes sellers that sell at the Porta Portese Market also sell in other locations in Rome during the week. For instance, you’ll find some of these sellers around Piramide and Ponte Mammolo on weekdays, and at the Porta Portese Market only on Sundays.
Porta Portese Market: Antiques
The Porta Portese Market is divided into several sections that are tacitly understood by locals visiting this outdoor market every Sunday. You’ll find there endless amounts of secondhand clothes, but it is far from being the only item at the Porta Portese Market.
While diving deeper into the Via Portuense, you’ll come across more and more food stalls, books, antiques, cameras, and lots of home decor.
Almost at the end of the Porta Portese Market, you’ll find more actual vintage clothes and shoes, with stands selling secondhand Converse and Dr. Martens, while others focus on selling vintage luxury brands. And when you take a right, before the end of the outdoor market, you’ll find plenty of antiques, from paintings and sculptures to old frames that all boast a certain charm.
Unless you’re an antiques collector and/or lover, there’s no real way to know whether those antiques sold at the Porta Portese Market are fakes or real vintage paintings and sculptures. But one thing is for sure, the endless collection of home decor will transport you, especially if you’re a lover of flea markets.
As I said, there are not many food stalls at the Porta Portese Market; it is not one of the proper street food markets in Rome per se. However, if you’re looking for different, unique things to do in Rome, then a visit to the Trastevere Sunday market is almost mandatory – for real.
But if you don’t like the flea market atmosphere, then don’t bother – the Porta Portese Market is perfect for fashion students and art lovers, people who do not mind browsing stands for hours in search of hidden gems.
Best Roman Markets: Porta Portese Market in Trastevere Rome
There you have it, a quick overview of the Porta Portese Market, the one and only Sunday market in Trastevere to have on your bucket list whether you’re moving to Italy or visiting Rome alone for a few days.
Later on, I will write about more amazing Roman markets with street food and cheap eats, and others for antiques and clothes. But for now, with the Porta Portese Market, you’ve got a bit of everything priced ridiculously cheap!
Until next time!
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