Pontile di Ostia

An iconic piece of architecture, suggestively stretching out towards the sea that bathes Rome's lively coastal district, the Ostia pier offers unparalleled views of spectacular sunsets, hosts musical and cultural events, charming seasonal markets and is a must-see after a long day at the beach, a romantic stroll or a seafood meal in one of the many restaurants along its promenade.

It was inaugurated on 27 October 1940, essentially to enhance the vocation of the Roman Lido, by then consecrated, with the construction of the historic bathing facilities of the time - Rex, Vecchia Pineta and Plinius - to the welcoming of bathers and holidaymakers.

In addition, the pier offered, especially to the early twentieth-century generations unaccustomed to conceiving of the sea as a holiday resort, an unprecedented and surprising view of the Roman coastline during the canonical months of the summer holidays.

Located at the end of the Via Ostiense, facing the Piazza dei Ravennati, the pier was a sort of emanation of Rome, extending from the inland area into the Lido di Ostia - today a small city, made up of long stretches of sand and characteristic rationalist and Art Nouveau architecture - and then directly, and ideally, into the sea.

Its history, however, is somewhat troubled, made up of destruction, due to the bombings of World War II, damage, caused by the impetus of the waves, and reconstruction, the last in 1982, which has always returned it to Rome and its inhabitants, a shining example of resilience and an undisputed symbol of a city and its sea.

150 metres long and 10 metres wide, the pier is partly on land and partly on the sea where it ends with a large 20-metre wide rotunda at the centre of which is a travertine wind rose. Its aesthetics are very simple and reminiscent of its origins, as it was conceived, without frills and excessive ornamentation, to offer a view of the sea as far as the eye can see.

Find out more about Ostia and the Roman coast

Ostia's Pontile ph. Turismo Roma