Eighth edition of Open House Roma opens the doors to more than 200 fascinating buildings, both ancient and contemporary, across Rome.

11-12 May. Registration is now open for the 2019 edition of Open House Roma which involves more than 200 of Rome’s museums, libraries, galleries, studios, academies, palaces and contemporary buildings - to which there is normally limited public access - opening free of charge over the weekend of 11-12 May.

The theme of this year's edition is Utilitas, or utility, which organisers say is a fundamental classical theme of architecture, along with Firmitas (solidity) and Venustas (beauty).

Since its launch in 2012, the annual initiative dedicated to Rome’s varied architectural design has opened up hundreds of interesting, important and sometimes off-limits buildings.

Highlights of the eighth edition include guided tours of the the unfinished Città dello sport in Tor Vergata; the Italian space agency; the Circolo Sportivo RAI in Tor di Quinto; the Palazzo della Civiltà Italiana - the headquarters of fashion house Fendi; the WEGIL building in Trastevere; and street art tours in Ostiense.

The programme includes foreign cultural institutions such as the French Academy at Villa Medici, the American Academy in Rome on the Janiculum Hill and the Danish Academy in Valle Giulia, as well as libraries such as the Angelica, Hertziana and Lateranense; and contemporary art studios and galleries such as AlbumArte, Atelier Montez and Contemporary Cluster.

There are also guided tours of international landmarks such as the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and John Cabot University; and lesser-known museums such as Museo Mario Praz, Museo Boncompagni Ludovisi and Museo Hendrik Christian Andersen.

The Rome version of the worldwide Open House initiative, which began in London in 1992, is co-ordinated by non-profit cultural association Open City Roma and its 500 volunteers.Booking is required for many of the tours and children's workshops. For full programme see Open House website.