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BORGHESE GALLERY Tour with an Art Historian​

LIVE TOURS › MUSEUMS&GALLERIES › BORGHESE GALLERY Tour with an Art Historian​

BORGHESE GALLERY Tour with an Art Historian

The Borghese gallery is a beautiful example of the taste in art the wealthy Roman’s habit of collecting during the XVII Century. Even if you are familiar with the park as a place for Sunday picnics or if you’re curious about the casino, don’t think twice about adding this tour to your list!

bernini self portraits borghese gallery tour

GOOD TO KNOW

THIS TOUR INCLUDES:

  • Bernini’s sculptures
  • Caravaggio’s paintings
  • Raphael and Titian’s canvases
  • All the secrets of the Cardinal Scipione’s art obsession through his amazing collection of masterpieces will be revealed.

The Borghese gallery is a beautiful example of the taste in art the wealthy Roman’s habit of collecting during the XVII Century. Even if you are familiar with the park as a place for Sunday picnics or if you’re curious about the casino, don’t think twice about adding this tour to your list!
This tour is a unique experience to visit this magical gallery with an enthusiastic and expert art historian.
Welcome to Casino Borghese: this grand house built for Cardinal Scipione Borghese was modelled on the style of a villa from classical Rome and to house the Cardinal’s outstanding, original collection of paintings, antiquities and statues.

The great treasures of this collection are, among many others, paintings by Caravaggio, Raphael, Correggio and Titian and  sculptures by Bernini and Canova, gathered in an enchanting backdrop.
Our tour of the Borghese Gallery with a licensed and local Art Historian will reveal all the secrets of Cardinal Scipione obsession for art!

Who are the artists you’ll discover in the Borghese Gallery Tour?

Take a few hours to admire some of what  makes Rome magic. Our expert guide will walk with you through chambers ornamented with the rarest materials and filled with art works of dazzling quality: Renaissance, Baroque and modern works all in one place.
Cardinal Scipione was the nephew of Pope Paul V, collector of many works of ancient, Renaissance and contemporary art so he acquired both ancient sculptures and promoted the creation of new ones to rival the ancient works.
You will admire this astonishing collection of paintings: among the hundreds of canvases you’ll find Caravaggio‘s “Boy with a Basket of Fruit” and “David with the Head of Goliath“, Raphael’s “Deposition“, Titian‘s “Sacred and Profane Love“.
Last but not least there is Paolina Borghese, reclined upon a sumptuous couch among dozens of statues both by contemporary artists of Cardinal Scipione’s  century, such as Bernini, and ancient Roman sculptures. The world famous “Apollo and Daphne” by Gianlorenzo Bernini will come to life for you thanks to our passionate, expert guides and you will ask yourself whether Daphne was turned into a laurel tree too soon or too late…

Don’t miss the chance to hear the behind-the-scenes stories about one of the most complete private art collection in Europe

This tour will let you peep through the keyhole into the lives, loves, passions, power and wealth of 17th century nobility while you learn why Cardinal Scipione’s collection is so valued today.
Our guides are licensed, local and experts, and we only select our enthusiastic ART HISTORIANS to guide you through the Borghese Collection.
Enjoy feeling like royalty during this relaxed, two hour private tour and relive the sagas and stories of nobility and Rome, the history and myths of emperors and popes, artists and cardinals.

How does the tour and the booking process work?

The Borghese Gallery allows only 300 people inside the gallery every 2 hours. This means that you must choose an entrance time between 9AM, 11AM, 1PM, 3PM or 5PM if you want a private tour, or choose the times we prefer and recommend for small groups (9AM and 5PM).
Tickets are often sold out and this is why it is very difficult for us to accommodate last minute requests  since it’s not possible to buy tickets the same day or they may all be sold out days before.
Therefore, we recommend you reserve the tour as early as possible in order to receive the instructions to buy your own tickets on line. 
During the 2 hours of tour, our guides will make the best out of the short time available, so that you “feel” the atmosphere of the place from the time of Scipione and even after….

Want to know more about Bernini and Caravaggio? Check our  Bernini and Caravaggio walking tour!
GENERAL INFORMATION
  • Your guide will be LICENSED and specialized in ROMAN HISTORY and ART.
  • The cost of the entry tickets is NOT included in the tour guide fees.
    Buy the tickets by yourself and you will save money: we ask you to buy your tickets online on your own sending you instructions to do it. The online procedure is very easy and you can save money doing it by yourself.
    After paying the deposit to secure the tour, we will send you a description of the online booking procedure to follow, to get your voucher.
  • Borghese Gallery tickets:
    ADULTS: 15 euro (or 20/22 when there is an exibition held in the museum).
    UNDER 18yo: 9 euro.
    If you are 5 or more, there will be 70 euros reservation fee to pay the the museum to enter as a “small group”.

From June to October: an extra fee of 15% will be added on top of the price for every last minute request (since 3 days before the date requested for the tour).

PRICES: The tour guide fees must be considered as a total, not per person.

TOURS & PRICES

We run only private tours.

We don’t run small groups.

We can accommodate time/day request according to our guides’ and entry tickets availability.

Final and detailed price will be provided after receiving your request from the contact form.

Starting price for a private tour 2,5 hrs for 2 adults: 350 euro + tickets but definitive price is provided *only* upon request.
Price can be reduced during low season or increased during holiday, peak dates or last minute request.

For group larger than four, price will be provided upon request.

Meeting point

ASK for availability

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People say about us…

  • star rating  What a wonderful experience led by our tour guide, Marta! Our children ages 7 and 5 really absorbed the stories and enjoyed their scavenger huntlooking for specific objects. ... read more

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    February 5, 2023

    star rating  This was our third tour with Joy of Rome and second with Francesca. She has a gift for bringing the stories behind the artworks to life and sharing her enthusiasm.... read more

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    star rating  Our guide Francesca was fantastic! As an art historian and curator of street art, she really made the subject com alive. I strongly recommend this activity for anyone interested in... read more

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    star rating  Francesca‘s narrative is always the best. She is our joy of Rome. No one brings Rome to life better.

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    October 5, 2022

    star rating  We loved this tour! Their guide was wonderful and the tour at night was magical! We got so much more out of the experience this way and thoroughly enjoyed our... read more

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    star rating  Loved this tour! Maria was AMAZING with my two boys (5.5 and 8 yrs) while touring the Colosseum in August. They are both shy, she was caring and kept them... read more

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  • star rating  Arianna showed my wife, our six year old son and I around the Colessuem. We all loved it. Very engaging, very informative and very friendly. Removed all... read more

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    star rating  We did four tours with Grace and found her to be extremely knowledgeable, speaking at length about the history, culture and traditions of the artifacts we saw. She answered all... read more

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    star rating  Took four tours with Joy of Rome and Francesca and Grace were a true Joy! We did the Vatican, catacombs, pantheon and colosseum. Highly recommend! Thanks so much ladies.

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  • star rating  Francesca was a great guide. She engaged with my 8 yo and had lots of interesting details to share. Definitely a must do tour in Rome.

    experiencejunkie
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    star rating  Great tour with not just historical facts but plenty of anecdotes that kept the teenagers attentive the whole time. Massimo was just fantastic. Period.

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    star rating  My teen daughter and I had a private tour of both the colosseum and the Vatican on 2 separate days.
    Our tour guide was Sarena. This was an... read more

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    Would highly recommend this company and your .
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    star rating  Francesca was a terrific guide to the Colosseum and ancient Rome, and she kept our boys (aged 11 and 16) engaged and interested, even though it was a rather warm... read more

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    star rating  Our Joy of Rome tour was our favorite tour we did in Rome. Serena was our guide and not only was she informative, but kind and accommodating. She was excited... read more

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  • star rating  Thanks to Francesca, our Colosseum tour was the highlight of our Rome trip. She kept our young boys (6 and 8) engaged and focused. The Colosseum is a huge place... read more

    jtcraze
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    star rating  Francesca was extremely knowledgeable. She has great enthusiasm for the art, artists, the gallery and helping us learn. She answered our questions and welcomed them. It deepened... read more

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    star rating  Arianna opened our eyes to marvels that we would have never known without her guiding us through this extraordinary museum. We loved her enthusiasm, knowledge and great ability to... read more

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    star rating  I would highly recommend Joy of Rome. The whole experience from booking the tickets by email to being guided to the meeting point to the tour itself was faultless.
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  • star rating  the thing i liked the most about the tour was that Grace our tour guide was an expert in the field and showed how professional she was by her excellent... read more

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    star rating  SUPERLY AND HIGHLY RECOMMEND THEIR TOURS!!!
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