ENGLISH TOURS

       THE VATICAN, THE SISTINE CHAPEL & SAINT PETER'S CHURCH

Michelangelo and Raphael are our guiding stars during the tour of the Vatican Museums. This is one of the largest art collections in the world and contains, among other things, paintings from the Middle Ages to the present, ancient Greek and Roman statues and marble mosaics, and architecture from the Renaissance and the Baroque. The Sistine Chapel is the highlight of the tour, with the famous fresco paintings by Michelangelo.

St. Peter's Church is the largest church in the world, built where the Apostle Peter was buried, and is the main seat of the Christian Church with the Pope as its head. St. Peter's Square is characterized by Bernini's architecture with colonnades and sculptures and a stately obelisk from Egypt. The tour lasts about 3 hours and you walk a lot, including stairs, indoors most of the time.

The Vatican Museums are closed on Sundays and some public holidays.

Keep in mind that proper dress is a must when visiting the Vatican Museums, which is a religious site, and St. Peter's Church. Do not wear short shorts and skirts and avoid clothes with bare shoulders.

Tickets have to be booked and payed for on-line by you beforehand. They are being released two months in advance, so act quickly, they may sell out in just a couple of minutes.  

Adults:                                                                           € 20
Children & Youth 6-18 years:                                     € 8
Students under 25 with a valid Student ID:            € 8
Children under 6 years:                                              free

For booking a tour guide in Rome: marianneguideirom@gmail.com

COLOSSEUM, PALATINE HILL & FORUM ROMANUM

The tour begins with a visit to the Colosseum, which is the largest of the ancient amphitheatres. Gladiator games and animal fights were fought here in front of an audience of up to 80,000 people almost 2000 years ago. The Palatine Hill, located on one of Rome's seven hills, is our next stop. It was here that Romulus founded the city, where the first Emperor Augustus chose to live and the Roman emperors built great palaces overlooking the Circus Maximus. We admire the magnificent view of the Forum Romanum, where our modern Western civilization was born. From here we can see the Capitolium, the most important of Rome's seven hills, and the remains of temples, basilicas and triumphal arches, then stroll down the Via Sacra and walk up to the tomb of Julius Caesar.

The tour lasts about 3 hours and you walk a lot, even on stairs, most of the time outdoors. Comfortable walking shoes are recommended as the ground can be uneven in some places. Feel free to bring water, fruit or snacks, as there are no bars or restaurants in the area. 

Tickets have to be booked and payed for on-line by you beforehand. They are being released one month in advance, so act quickly, they may sell out in just a couple of minutes.  
Adults:                                    € 18
Youth 18-24 years:               € 4

Under 18 years:                    € 2 (pre-purchase fee)

For booking a tour guide in Rome: marianneguideirom@gmail.com

FOOD TOUR

Join me to try out different Roman foods in Esquilino, a residential neighborhood not very far away from the city center, but without the tourist crowds. The tour starts in front of the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore, one of the four Papal basilicas in Rome. Among my proposals is a small bakery producing biscuits and cakes since 1906 and run by the fourth generation. We will visit a great deli founded in 1930 selling all kinds of cheese, various cured meats of their own production & delicious take away dishes. Here you may try the famous supplì, rice balls with tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese, a Roman speciality. 

A large food market is part of the tour, offering in season fruits and vegetables and a huge choice of spices and nuts. Great Italian espresso is served by a bar roasting their own coffee since the beginning of 1900. We will visit a famous gelateria, founded in 1880 now run by the fifth generation, where people gather from all over Rome to eat ice cream. The tour may end with an aperitivo of Spritz in a genuine wine bar that is being run by the sixth generation. Close by is a fraschetta, from 1890, where you can sample the famous porchetta (roast suckling pig). The spots that we visit will vary, depending on when the tour is taking place (the market closes at 15:00).

In between visits I will tell you about the Esquilino neighborhood which has a long and interesting history. I will also indicate the best bars and restaurants, where you can go for lunch or dinner. Lately a lot of new places have been opened in this area frequented mainly by locals. According to me the very best Roman pizza (thin and crispy) is served here, not far away from Piazza Vittorio Emanuele II, the largest square in Rome. The tour lasts for about three hours. Be sure not to miss this great opportunity!

For booking a tour guide in Rome: marianneguideirom@gmail.com

CITY WALK - THE JEWISH NEIGHBOURHOOD, THE TIBER ISLAND & TRASTEVERE

The city walk starts in the Jewish neighbourhood with its large synagogue, restaurants with typical Judeo-Roman cuisine, the ancient remains of the Portico of Ottavia and the Theater of Marcellus. We cross the Ponte Fabricio bridge to Isola Tiberina, the only island in the Tiber River. Here the Romans built a temple in honor of Asklepios, the god of healing, and the present-day Benefratelli hospital has an obvious place on the island. We will then walk through Trastevere's narrow alleys to the Santa Cecilia Church and its cloister. There we will see the beautiful crypt, Pietro Cavallini's fresco paintings from the 13th century and Carlo Maderno's famous marble sculpture. We continue walking through the picturesque neighborhoods towards one of the oldest churches in Rome, Santa Maria in Trastevere, located in the square of the same name. The trip lasts about 3 hours and you will walk a lot, most of the time outdoors. Comfortable walking shoes are recommended. 

Entrance fees to Santa Cecilia: 

The fresco paintings of Pietro Cavallini:             € 3,00 

The Crypt:                                                                € 2,50 

For booking a tour guide in Rome: marianneguideirom@gmail.com

                                    CITY WALK - ANCIENT ROME

The city walk begins at the Colosseum, the 2000-year-old amphitheater, which we will admire from the outside. The Arch of Constantine was erected when Christianity had been established as the official religion throughout the Roman Empire. We continue the tour by visiting the five Imperial Fora that we can see from the outside. From Piazza Venezia we ascend the Capitolium, which is the most famous one of the seven hills. The Temple of Jupiter and the City Archive were raised here, which today forms the foundation of Rome's Communal House. Michelangelo's well-known square also houses the Capitoline Museum, which was the world's first public museum. We will visit the medieval church of Santa Maria in Aracoeli, take in the view of the Roman Forum with the remains of basilicas and temples and then move on to the Pantheon. The trip lasts about 3 hours and you will walk a lot, most of the time outdoors. Comfortable walking shoes are recommended. 

For booking a tour guide in Rome: marianneguideirom@gmail.com

                  CITY WALK - SQUARES & FOUNTAINS OF ROME

This tour may start from the Spanish Steps in one of the most central parts of Rome, in the neighborhood where artists and Grand Tour travelers once lived. We will visit the famous Trevi Fountain, which the Swedish actress Anita Ekberg made into a national monument. On the way to the Pantheon, the best preserved building from antiquity, we will see the government building in the Piazza Colonna, the parliament and Hadrian's palace. The Pantheon was a Roman temple built 2000 years ago, later turned into a Christian church and is distinguished by the peculiar dome with the round and large opening, whose light inlet is the only source of illumination. The magnificent baroque square of Piazza Navona is our next stop, where we will admire Bernini's River Fountain. Nearby, we will pass the famous flower square Campo de' Fiori and end the tour at Piazza Farnese. The trip lasts about 3 hours and you will walk a lot, most of the time outdoors. Comfortable walking shoes are recommended.

For booking a tour guide in Rome: marianneguideirom@gmail.com

OSTIA ANTICA

Instead of going all the way to Pompeii, you can more easily visit Ostia Antica, which is positioned outside of Rome. The city was founded already in 600 B.C. and was an important part of Rome's infrastructure. Ships loaded with goods from the Roman provinces arrived here, which were then transported on to Rome. The city was excavated during the 20th century and there are roads, bathhouses, apartment buildings, remains of temples and a theater, which is still in use. In addition, there is a large amount of amazing mosaics and fresco paintings preserved. It is easy to imagine what it looked like here 2000 years ago, when the city had about 60,000 inhabitants.

The tour lasts about 3 hours and you walk a lot, almost all the time outdoors, comfortable walking shoes are recommended.

Entrance tickets can be purchased on the site or be booked and paid for online in advance.

Adults:                                   €18

Youth 18-25 years:              €2

Under 18 years                    free

CAPITOLIUM & THE CAPITOLINE MUSEUMS

The long staircase La Cordonata, the beautiful square with the statue of Marcus Aurelius and some of the buildings were designed by Michelangelo. We visit the church of Santa Maria in Aracoeli, which was built in the 7th century and is one of Rome's oldest churches. Frescoes by Pinturicchio and Pietro Cavallini and angels in marble by Bernini are some of the works of art. We admire the view of the Roman Forum and the Colosseum from a terrace high above. The Capitoline Museums is the world's oldest public museum and is a good alternative to the Vatican Museums, if you want to avoid queues and crowds. In the museum there is a large collection of ancient sculptures in bronze or marble like The Dying Gaul, The She-Wolf with Romulus and Remus, The Boy with a Stick in His Foot, the Markus Aurelius Statue and the Fonseca Bust. In addition, there is a picture gallery with paintings by Caravaggio, remains of the Temple of Jupiter as well as beautiful halls and courtyards.

The tour lasts about 3 hours and you walk a lot, including stairs, both indoors and outdoors. Please note that correct dress is a must to visit the Church of Santa Maria in Aracoeli. Do not wear short shorts and skirts and avoid clothes with bare shoulders.

Tickets can be purchased before the tour or booked by you in advance:
Adult:                                 €11.50
Youth 6-25 years:             € 9.50
Over 65 years:                  €9.50
Children 0-6 years:           free

For booking a tour guide in Rome: marianneguideirom@gmail.com

GALLERIA BORGHESE

The museum, located in the beautiful Villa Borghese park, was built by Cardinal Scipione Borghese in the early 17th century with the intention of exhibiting his private art collection. On the ground floor are sculptures by Antonio Canova and Gian Lorenzo Bernini, as well as floor mosaics of gladiators and ancient marble statues of emperors and mythological figures. Among the paintings on the first floor are works by Raphael, Rubens, Correggio, Titian, and Caravaggio which can be viewed in sumptuous halls with beautiful paintings in the ceilings. The tour lasts about 3 hours.

Tickets have to be booked and payed for on-line by you beforehand. They are being released two months in advance, so act quickly, they may sell out in just a couple of hours.  
Adults:                               € 13 
Youth 18-25 years:          € 2
Under 18 years:               free entry

For booking a tour guide in Rome: marianneguideirom@gmail.com

CITY WALK - BERNINI & BORROMINI

During this walking tour through the center of Rome, you will get to know two of the most prominent artists and architects of the Baroque period in Rome. From the beginning they were colleagues and worked together on different projects, but unfortunately they ended up as bitter enemies. Gian Lorenzo Bernini and Francesco Borromini have made a strong impression on the cityscape of Rome that has become permanent. We visit a large number of the churches and palaces they designed and see some amazing sculptures: the Church of Santa Maria della Vittoria, Barberini Square & Barberini Palace, the Churches of San Carlo & Sant'Andrea on the Quirinal, the Church of Sant'Andrea della Fratte, and the Fountain of the Four Rivers in Piazza Navona are some examples of everything that we will see during the tour. The trip lasts about 3 hours and you walk a lot, almost all of the time outdoors. Comfortable walking shoes are recommended. 

Remember that correct dress is a must to visit the churches. 

Do not wear short shorts and skirts and avoid clothes with bare shoulders.

For booking a tour guide in Rome: marianneguideirom@gmail.com