Whoever drinks the water of Trevi will return to Rome — the original form of the more famous coin-throwing tradition, asserting that contact with the Trevi Fountain's water binds the visitor to Rome, ensuring their return. Used to express the city's irresistible pull on those who experience it.
The Trevi Fountain tradition predates the famous 1954 film 'Three Coins in the Fountain' that popularized the coin-throwing version internationally. The older form of the legend involved drinking from the fountain's water, a practice rooted in the ancient Roman veneration of springs and water sources. The Trevi Fountain marks the terminal point of the Aqua Virgo aqueduct, one of ancient Rome's eleven aqueducts, built by Agrippa in 19 BC and still functioning today — making the Trevi one of the very few places where ancient Roman infrastructure continues to serve its original purpose. The legend of the water's binding power reflects Rome's deep conviction that its beauty is not merely pleasant but physically addictive — that to experience Rome is to be permanently altered by it. The 1954 Hollywood film shifted the tradition to coin-throwing, but Romans prefer the older, more austere version involving actually drinking.
The Aqua Virgo aqueduct, built by Marcus Agrippa in 19 BC, supplied water to his baths in the Campus Martius and continues to supply the Trevi Fountain today — making it one of only two ancient Roman aqueducts still in operation, the other being the Aqua Traiana supplying Trastevere.
A Roman guide explains the original tradition to tourists throwing coins
Sapete la tradizione vera? Chi beve l'acqua de Trevi torna a Roma — la moneta è per i turisti.
Do you know the real tradition? Whoever drinks the water of Trevi returns to Rome — the coin is for tourists.
A Roman expat returns after ten years abroad
Son tornato. Ho bevuto quell'acqua vent'anni fa — chi beve l'acqua de Trevi torna a Roma.
I've returned. I drank that water twenty years ago — whoever drinks the water of Trevi returns to Rome.
A Roman poet muses on the fountain at dawn
L'acqua Vergine scorreva già al tempo di Agrippa. Chi beve l'acqua de Trevi torna a Roma — e Roma non finisce mai.
The Aqua Virgo flowed already in Agrippa's time. Whoever drinks the water of Trevi returns to Rome — and Rome never ends.
A Roman bartender offers water from the city's aqueduct system
Quest'acqua viene dall'Aqua Virgo — la stessa de Trevi. Chi beve l'acqua de Trevi torna a Roma, ma qui costa meno.
This water comes from the Aqua Virgo — the same as Trevi. Whoever drinks the water of Trevi returns to Rome, but here it costs less.