Half-Day Itineraries

Palaces and Private Residences of Rome
9.30-13.00 Monday to Sunday
This tour is focused on the discovery of private collections and marvellous palaces that are still property of roman noble families. All the palaces will be opened with special permission for our clients.
The  unique opportunity to visit private Palaces will give the possibility to understand the history of collection, to meet the owners, and to discover the extraordinary history hidden behind each family.  Palaces still preserve inside hundreds of paintings, furniture of the time and you will be received as a friend in a  unique and private atmosphere.
Possibility to organize private dinners upon request. Details of the Palaces available upon request.

The great Splendour of the Roman Empire
9.30-13.00 Monday to Sunday
A Visit with the art historian to the incredible sites of the Roman Empire. Trajan’s Markets and forum, recently reopened, the Palatine Hill, with the magnificent architecture of the Domus Augustana and Domus Flavia (House of the Emperors).

Visit to Augustus’ House on the Palatine and to the Farnese gardens.
Upon request visit to the “Domus Aurea”, the Golden House of Empero Nero.

Trajan’s Markets
Excavated only in 1920, built in 107-10 A.D. at the same time as Trajan’s Forum, the building is the best preserved example of a functional architecture in the Roman time. Extraordinary concrete vaults, an emicycle with shops, the ancient road “Via Biberatica” (from the latin biber, for beverages) the visit of the complex brings back to life the atmosphere and culture of Roman life.

Palatine Hill
The hill called “Palatine” is the legendary place where Romulus founded Rome. In the Imperial time the Palaces of the Emperors where constructed here and the imposing ruins still dominate the landscape. Popes, cardinals and nobles chose the magnificent location for their gardens and villas.

Ancient Rome: The Field of Mars ( walking tour)
9.30-13.00 Monday to Sunday
The Ancient Campus Martius, the field consecrated to Mars, God of the War, became later the center of medieval and renaissance Rome. The streets are on the line of the ancient streets, and some buildings are on top of thermal baths, roman theatre and temples. We will visit the Ara Pacis, recently transformed with the project of the great architect Richard Meier: the Altar of Augustan Peace that stands next to the Mausoleum. The visit will continue with a private view of the Underground of the Basilica of San Lorenzo in Lucina, where the archaeologist found ruins of a Roman Insula (condominium of the Roman time), with mosaics and frescoes.

Augustu’s story continues with a visit to The Pantheon, and the Ruins of the Basilica of Neptune, and the Temple of Hadrian.

Cults and Mysteries of underground Rome
9.30-13.00 Monday to Sunday
This tour is focused on places of Rome that "hide" mysteries and traditions of the Ancient City in order to see some beautiful roman "frescoes" of the II century A.D, and to enter places with difficult access to the general public: Private visit of the Temple of Mithras.  Visit of the Roman houses rediscovered under the Basilica of Santi Giovanni e Paolo on the Celian Hill and visit of the Basilica of San Clemente.

The Temple of Mithras, is not open to the public and is one of the most interesting underground sanctuaries in Rome. It illustrates the secret practices of the cult of the God Mithras that had its origins in India and was brought to Rome in the 1C BC by the Roman legions posted in the Eastern provinces. According to the legend, Mithras was born out of a rock hit by light and came to life in order to redeem mankind from the forces of evil. The traditional image of Mithras shows him killing a bull, symbol of the basic instincts and of brutal force, whose blood will bring new life to earth.

The Roman houses on the Celian hill have been recently restored and are particularly interesting for their wall paintings. Excavations have revealed four phases of habitation, including two apartment houses with shops (2C-3C AD), a Roman domus, as well as a Christian house and an oratory (early 5C). The fresco decorations range from imitation marble and delightful pagan motifs (youths bearing garlands, birds and vines, masques and mythological images) to early Christian themes.

The Basilica di San Clemente ranks among the most extraordinary examples of Medieval churches in Rome and illustrates the many layers of history that characterize the city. Besides the splendid 12C mosaic decorating the apse and the 15C frescoes by Masolino (the master of Masaccio), the basilica preserves a subterranean church with frescoes of the 9C and 11C, as well as a Mithraeum and the remains of a 2C house.

The Mosaic: Splendours and Gold in Medieval Rome
9.30-13.00 Monday to Sunday
Rome has always been the City of mosaics: The itinerary is arranged chronologically and traces the fundamental steps of the art of mosaic in Rome, from its origins, influenced by Byzantine art, to its rebirth in Carolingian times and the highest moment of its development in the 13C.

The Basilica of Ss Cosmas and Damian, near the Roman Forum, was built in the 6C using the architectural core of two Roman buildings, including the temple of Romulus of the IV AD. The apse inside is decorated with a famous image of the Blessing Christ, one of the finest examples of the new attempt of naturalism developed in the style of early Christian Art.

The Basilica of Santa Prassede was founded in the 5C by the daughter of a Roman senator and rebuilt in the early 9C under Pope Paschal I. The chapel of Saint Zeno inside is entirely covered with mosaics of shining colours and is the most important "Byzantine" monument in Rome. This is a very secret corner of the city!

According to tradition, the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore was founded in 356 by Pope Liberius on the site of a miraculous snowfall. Sixtus III reconstructed the church a century later and dedicated it to the Virgin Mary, whose position as mother of Christ had just been defined in the Council of Ephesus (431). Of the same period are the impressive mosaics with scenes from the Old Testament decorating the nave. The façade, apse and transepts were rebuilt in the 13C under Nicholas IV and embellished with fine mosaics by Filippo Rusuti and Jacopo Torriti.

Along the Via Appia: Monuments and Villas of Ancient Rome
9.30-13.00 Monday to Sunday
( Possibility of cooking lessons on Roma traditional food)
The Romantic "Queen of the Roads", portrayed by poets, painters, and musicians is the focus of this magic itinerary, that includes the Visit of the Villa dei Quintili of the II and III Century AD, the Tomb of Cecilia Metella, round spectacular Mausoleum, and the walk along the ancient Via Appia, paved with the original stones, with cypress and pine trees.

Called by Statius the Regina Viarum (the queen of roads), the Via Appia was the most important of the Roman consular roads. It was built by the censor Appius Claudius in 312 BC as far as Capua, and later extended to Beneventum and Brundusium (Brindisi). The ancient road survives as far as the twelfth Roman milestone (over 16 km) passing through the picturesque Roman Campagna (countryside) and preserving sections of the original basalt paving. For the first kilometres the road served as a cemetery and was lined with funerary monuments, usually in the form of a tower or tumulus.

Among the best preserved is the massive Tomb of Cecilia Metella, built in the Augustan period and decorated by an elegant frieze. It was much admired over the centuries and extensively drawn by the Grand Tourists. Along the road are also the remains of luxurious villas such as the Villa of the Emperor Maxentius, built in 309 AD, which also includes a well-preserved circus, holding up to 10.000 spectators and one of the most romantic sites of ancient Rome.

The magnificent ruins of the Villa dei Quintili, residence of two wealthy brothers who served as consuls under Antoninus Pius (AD 151), are enclosed in a park of some 24 hectares. The two Quintili were put to death by Commodus for the sake of their possessions, including this villa, which passed into the hands of the emperor. Numerous statues and sculptures were found on the grounds, testifying to the refined taste of the owners.