Borghese Gallery Guided Tour with Skip-the-Line Entry
Description
Visit Galleria Borghese with this Exclusive Semi Private small group tour limited to 15 people. Book your visit to one of the most famous villas in Rome. Enjoy the possibility to enter without queuing. Open your eyes and be dazzled by the works of Caravaggio, Canova, Bernini, and Raphael. During this tour you will be able to know the story behind the famous sculpture of Apollo and Daphne, you will be amazed by the wonderful works of Bernini, Canova and the most famous paintings by Caravaggio. Walk through the twenty rooms where you can admire the famous painting of "Young Sick Bacchus" by Caravaggio or the Boy with a Basket of Fruit. Let yourself be enchanted by the works of Gian Lorenzo Bernini, which comprise a significant percentage of his output of secular sculpture, starting with early works such as the Goat Amalthea with Infant Jupiter and Faun to his dynamic Rape of Proserpine, or the iconic Apollo and Daphne which are considered seminal works of baroque sculpture
Tour Options
Itinerary
Apollo and Daphne – a marble sculpture in the Baroque style in natural size, made by the Italian artist Gian Lorenzo Bernini and executed in 1622-1625. Placed in the Borghese Gallery in Rome, this work depicts the culmination of the history of Apollo and Daphne (Phoebe and Daphne) in Ovid’s Metamorphosis.
Pauline Bonaparte as Venus Victrix (or Venus Victorious) is a semi-nude life-size neo-Classical portrait sculpture by the Italian sculptor Antonio Canova. It was commissioned by Pauline Bonaparte’s husband Camillo Borghese and executed in Rome from 1805 to 1808 after she married the representative of the Borghese family. Then, the sculpture moved to Camillo’s house in Turin, then to Genoa, only arriving in the Galleria Borghese around 1838.
Two Busts of Cardinal Scipione Borghese are marble portrait sculptures created by Gian Lorenzo Bernini in 1632. Both versions of the portrait are located in the Borghese Gallery in Rome.
Truth Unveiled by Time is a marble sculpture by Gian Lorenzo Bernini. It was executed between 1646 and 1652. The artist wanted to show Truth allegorically, as a naked young lady being unveiled by a Time figure above her. However, a figure of Time was never executed. Bernini managed to express his idea by adding the figure in 1665.
David is a life-size marble sculpture by Gian Lorenzo Bernini. Cardinal Scipione Borghese commissioned it to decorate the Borghese Gallery. The masterpiece was completed in seven months, from 1623 to 1624. The main subject of the sculpture is the biblical David, about to throw the stone that will bring down Goliath, which will enable David to behead him.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- Late Arrival Policy: Late arrivals will not be accommodated or refunded. Please arrive at least 15 minutes before the scheduled departure time
Reviews(327)
This tour was amazing. Our guide had so much knowledge and made the 2 hour tour very interesting. She shared really interesting details regarding the relationship between pieces of art in a single space and the rich history of the papal family. Highly recommended! Even my teen boys loved it.
Nice collection, the Berninis are spectacular. Tour took a full 2 hours but not much time to stop and admire, and skipped some rooms or moved quickly. But plenty of time with sculptures and Caravaggios. Good tour guide.
Thank you for your review. We are pleased to hear that you enjoyed the Borghese Gallery collection and your guided tour experience. We appreciate your feedback and thank you for choosing us. Doooing Experience Team
Great trip with Luca and nick!!! Informative and fun .. great way to get over some jetlag
Thank you for your kind review. We are delighted to hear that you enjoyed the tour with Luca and Nick. Thank you for choosing Doooing Experience. Doooing Experience Team
Our guide Alessandra was excellent. She was friendly, engaging and extremely knowledgeable. Through her expertise, she conveyed not just the factual information about the magnificent sculptures and paintings, but also the colourful stories behind them. The Borghese collection is fabulous in itself, but to have it brought to life through the personal details and backstory of the Borghese protagonists was delightful. I can assure you, not all guides are equal and after a disappointing experience with a different company, we were nervous, but we need not have worried. Thank you Alessandra
Thank you for your wonderful review. We are delighted to hear that Alessandra made your Borghese Gallery experience so enjoyable and engaging. Your kind words mean a lot to us, and we will be sure to share them with her. Thank you for choosing Doooing Experience. Kind regards, The Doooing Experience Team
We really enjoyed the tour, incredibly beautiful galleria. Martina, our gide is absolutely amazing. Very interesting and professional explanations and perfect knowledge of the topics. Beautiful way to carry the conversation.We have learned so much. Thank you! We definitely recommend this tour!!!
Thank you for your kind review. We are delighted to hear that you enjoyed the Borghese Gallery and that Martina made your experience so memorable with her knowledge and passion. We truly appreciate your recommendation and thank you for choosing Doooing Experience. Kind regards, The Doooing Experience Team
Fantastic tour! Our guide Martina was delightful, well-informed, and able to answer all our random questions. So interesting to see the stunning artwork (6 Caravaggios in one room!) and learn more about the history behind the artists and innovations. Highly recommend!
Dear Diane, Thank you for your kind review. We are delighted to hear that you enjoyed the tour and that Martina's knowledge and enthusiasm helped make your visit to the Borghese Gallery so memorable. Doooing Experience Team
My wife and I thoroughly enjoyed this small-group tour of the Borghese Gallery. Our guide, Marina, was exceptionally knowledgeable, engaging, and passionate about the art and history of the museum. She brought the sculptures and paintings to life with fascinating stories and insights that we would have missed on our own. The group size was perfect, allowing us to hear clearly, ask questions, and move comfortably through the gallery. The time flew by, and we left with a much deeper appreciation for the masterpieces housed there. A very enjoyable experience from start to finish. We would happily take another tour with Marina and highly recommend this tour to anyone visiting Rome.
Dear Gregory, Thank you for your kind review. We are delighted that you and your wife enjoyed the Borghese Gallery tour. We will be sure to share your compliments with Martina, who will be pleased to know her knowledge and passion made your experience memorable. Thank you for your recommendation, and we hope to welcome you again in Rome. Doooing Experience Team
Our tour guide Alessandra was very informative and had a great personality!
Dear Alessia, Thank you for your kind review. We're delighted to hear you enjoyed your visit to the Borghese Gallery and that Alessandra made the experience both informative and enjoyable. Doooing Experience Team
I loved this gallery and became a big fan of Caravaggio. His works are beautiful and beautifully displayed. I may have to go back again before I leave Rome.
Dear Susan, Thank you for your kind review. We are delighted that you enjoyed the Borghese Gallery and discovered a love for Caravaggio's art. We hope to welcome you again for another Doooing Experience. The Doooing Experience Team
They were very strict with arrival time with no tolerance whatsoever for late arrivals. Which is a pity because we were 15 minutes late and all we asked was to join the (already small) group) wherever they were up to at the tour but no, we were not allowed. So we went in by ourselves (fortunately the fee we paid already included the entrance ticket) and it just so happened that we caught up with the group (only one guest as all the others were late too) in one of the Galleria’s rooms - we saw the guest wearing the operator’s sticker on their shirt. I politely asked the guide if we could join her right then and there but she pretended not to know what operator she was working for and responded rather rudely that we needed to follow our own ‘instructions’. The price for the guided tour was not cheap (around AUD325 per person) so it felt like a rip off when we could not join the guided tour because of a rigid policy. (By the way we were late because our car ride kept cancelling and it took us more than 45 mins to find one).
Dear Ingrid, Thank you for your feedback. We would like to clarify that all booking information clearly states that participants must arrive at the meeting point in advance and that late arrivals cannot be accommodated. This policy is displayed in the product description, voucher, and pre-tour instructions. Additionally, Borghese Gallery tickets are valid for a strictly timed 2-hour visit, as required by the museum's regulations. Even if a guest enters late, they are still required to leave at the original exit time. Delaying the tour by 15 minutes would therefore have reduced the visit time for all other participants who arrived on time. As a courtesy, we contacted the other guests and asked whether they would be willing to wait. They declined, as they did not wish to lose part of the experience they had paid for. As this was a shared group tour, we could not require other customers to shorten their visit because of another guest's late arrival. We also communicated with you while you were en route and advised that we could only wait a limited amount of time. Unfortunately, once the tour had started and tickets had been validated, it was no longer possible to accommodate additional participants without disrupting the experience for the rest of the group. We understand that transportation issues can occur and sympathize with your situation. However, these circumstances were outside of our control, and we had to respect both the museum regulations and the rights of the guests who arrived on time. For these reasons, the tour departed according to the published schedule and in accordance with our stated late-arrival policy. Kind regards, Doooing Experience Team
