Rome printable scavenger hunts for kids by a local mom! Print this FREE scavenger hunts for kids and discover Rome with children at your own pace. Learn the story of each location on your hunt on Mama Loves Rome and discover Rome with kids for free!
I am a Rome Mama, born and bred in the Eternal City, and I adore visiting my city with my kids.
I love walking around Rome with them, having them spotting known and lesser known attractions and tell them the stories they hide.
My kids love our sightseeing days however, visiting Rome with kids is also challenging as it requires a lot of walking; also, the city is not always the most open when it comes to spilling its secrets!
Often, you find yourself in front of a beautiful fountain or statue or monument and there is no sign telling you what it is!
If you are not from Rome, how can you keep your kids entertained and motivated while sightseeing and how can you get to quickly learn about what you see?
A tour is a great idea and I recommend here >>> great tours of Rome for families we love. However, tours are often expensive and not to everyone’s taste and learning style.
So what to do?
My way to make sightseeing with kids in Rome fun and affordable for first time visitors and families is a visual Rome printable scavenger hunt for kids!
I find that my children can walk miles if challenged with a scavenger hunt game and making it visual, with the use of photos, means they can quickly give a name to what they see, no matter how poor street signs may be.
You find my free printable Rome scavenger hint for kids on this page – it is FREE to download and all you need is an email address to signup to the website.
I hope you have fun with it!
By singing up to this page you will get:
- A bingo sheet/ scavenger hunt sheet for little kids to use while in Rome
- Our 2 page printable scavenger hunt for kids in Rome with photos of each item
- Links to our guides to discover what each site is and what stories it hides
Our printables are now also on Etsy! In our Etsy shop you will find: 2 Rome Bingo Sheets for Kids with items for kids to find and 4 pages of relevant Fact Cards to know what each is (two colors available) – this is twice as many as those in this free version! Five neighborhood scavenger hunts with fact cards (Colosseum > Piazza Venezia, Trevi, Pantheon/ Navona, Trastevere area) to help your kids stay engaged and entertained as you stroll around Rome city center. Bingo sheets and fact cards for Florence and Venice!. Find them here >>> Mama Loves to Print Etsy Shop
Rome printable scavenger hunt for little kids
Little kids need visual, cute and colorful things so the one I made for the younger ones in the family are fun, colorful and include items little children love (cats! birds!).
The printable comes with no fact cards, due to the age it is aimed at, and you can download it for free here >> Rome Bingo Sheet / scavenger hunt for little kids.
Free Photo- based Rome printable scavenger hunt Bingo Sheet for kids – how I chose the items
Rome is a treasure trove of attractions so the biggest issue I had making this list was picking what to include.
In the end, I opted to start with a simple version of a kids’ scavenger hunt with a variety of Rome must see sites and Rome things you can spot pretty much no matter where you are in Rome.
All the attractions on this kids’ scavenger hunt for Rome are free to spot. This way, you can use this map even on days when you don’t want to spend money or enter sights and museums.
Some of them such as the Colosseum inside are ticketed – I am in the process of creating scavenger hunts for each of them inside too so if you are interested, make sure you sign up for our mailing list and we will email you once they are ready!
Rome printable scavenger hunt for kids: tops sights guides
I have guides to (almost) all the items of this scavenger hunt on this website.
After your child finds the item, if you want to learn about it, come back to this page and click on each link to open the guide: they contain essential info about what you are seeing and tips about what to see nearby (even restaurants an playgrounds, if there are some we recommend)!
The Colosseum – no need for introduction for this one! The most famous Rome building and a sure success with kids, the Colosseum is easy to spot and recognize.
Find here >>> fun facts about the Colosseum for kids
The Pantheon – the Pantheon is one of the most recognisable buildings in Rome, an ancient temple turned Christian Church and one of the best preserved ancient buildings in the world
Find here >> fun and interesting facts about Rome Pantheon
Trevi Fountain – Maybe the most famous fountain in Rome, Trevi dates from the XVII century AD. The main male figure in the center is the God Oceanus and the horses in front of him represent the sea: one calm and one agitated, just like ocean waters can be.
Learn this and more here >>> all you need to know about the Trevi Fountain
Piazza Navona – Rome’s most famous piazza, Piazza Navona was an ancient Roman stadium (look at its shape: can you imagine races taking place here?) then turned monumental piazza. Its main landmark is the Fountain of the Four Rivers by Gianlorenzo Bernini
Learn here >>> all you need to know about the Fountain of the Four Rivers
Capitoline Hill – The Capitoline Hill is one of the seven hills of Rome and the piazza at its top was designed by Michelangelo Buonarroti. The main statue in its center is Emperor Marcus Aurelius. On the square you have Rome City offices and the Capitoline Museums.
Learn here >>> all you can see in PIazza del Campidoglio
Vittoriano – The Vittoriano is the Altar to the Fatherland, a monument celebrating Italy as a unified country (Italy united in 1861) . The man on the horse is the first King of Italy: Vittorio Emanuele II. The everlasting flames are the monument to the Unknown Solider
You will pass Vittoriano many times as you stroll around Rome and it is worth learning what it is and what stories it hides, including one of an unusual dinner in the horse’s belly!
Learn here >>> all you need to know about Il Vittoriano
Trinita’ dei Monti – The Spanish Steps are one of the most famous Rome landmarks and take their name from the fact that the Spanish Embassy to the Holy See is in this square.
They were built in the XVIII century to connect Piazza di Spagna below to Trinita’ dei Monti church above
Discover why they are called ‘Spanish’ and much more here >>> our guide to the Spanish Steps in Rome
The Barcaccia Fountain is a famous fountain by the Berninis (father and son).
Its name means ‘bad boat’ as the fountain has the shape of a sinking ship! It is said to recall a real ship stranded in the city after the Tiber flooded. Can you see bees on it? Those are the crest of the Barberini family who paid for it to be made.
Discover here >>> all you need to know about Barcaccia fountain in Rome
SPQR Sign – this one of the most fun things to spot for kids in Rome! The SPQR sign is everywhere in the city, often hidden on fountains, drainage systems and lamp posts.
It is one of the most ancient and most important symbols of Rome and it is an acronym stating for Senatus Populous Que Romanus aka The Senate And The People of Rome, a way to say that something belongs to the city and its inhabitants.
You can learn here >>> all about the symbols of Rome
Rome’s She-Wolf – Do you know the story of Rome’s she-wolf and the twins she reared?
She is one of the symbols of Rome and appears in many places including the Capitoline Hill, coat of arms and Roma football team gear! According to the legend, she nursed Romulus (and his brother Remus) who is the founder of Rome. He founded the city on 21 April 753 BC
>>> all you need to know about Rome’s she-wolf
In Rome you find many triumphal arches. These all date from the time of the Roman Empire and were built in celebration of successful wars. One of the biggest is beside the Colosseum and it is to celebrate Emperor Constantine I
Learn here >> all you need to know about Rome’s arches and where to see them
Nasoni – One of the most iconic things you can see in Rome are the city’s drinking water fountains!
Nasone or Nasoni, plural, means ‘big nose’ and are the traditional drinking fountains of Rome. Their water is free, fresh and delicious: to drink, stand beside one (not in front!) and close the spout with your palm: ready for a fun surprise?
You can learn here >>> all about Rome’s drinking fountains
Castel Sant’Angelo / St Angelo Castle – Rome has one, very peculiar castle called Castel Sant’Angelo. It is one of the best attractions to visit in Rome with kids but even just from the outside, it is quite a sight!
St Angelo Castle is one of the most unique buildings in Rome. It started off as the tomb of Emperor Hadrian but then became a fortress of the Popes (complete with cannons and a secret passage to St Peter’s!). It is now a museum.
Learn here>>> all you need to know about St Angelo’s Castle
A carved column – Rome has many columns but there are two that are very special as they tell a story through their beautiful carvings!
In Rome there are two columns with very elaborate carvings: the column of Trajan and that of Marcus Aurelius. They date from the time of the Roman Empire and the carvings tell the story of the Emperors’ war successes. They tell a story via images, like a movie!
Discover why and how to see it here >>> our guide to Trajan’s Column in Rome
There are many statues of emperors in Rome, some original, some not! You can always tell who they are by the writing on the pedestal. A great place to see many of them is along the Roman Forum: they are not ancient though, they are all copies!
St Peter’s Square – St Peter’s Square is not technically Rome (Vatican City is a different state, but that’s another story you can find here >>> is the Vatican a country?).
St Peter’s square is in Vatican City so it both inside Rome (geographically) and outside! Admire the Basilica but also look at the colonnade and count the rows of columns. Then look for a mark on the ground that says ‘centro del colonnato’ and count the rows again. What do you notice?
Learn this and more on >>> our guide to to St Peter’s Square
I hope you enjoyed this free Rome printable scavenger hunt for kids and it helps you make sightseeing in Rome with kids fun and engaging!
Going to other cities too?
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Rome scavenger hunt for kids printable (free) – PIN THIS!
