Declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2001.
Villa d'Este grounds include a masterpiece of Italian garden design with an amazing concentration of fountains, nymphaea, grottoes, water themes and a organ which produces audible effects created by water.
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Opening days
Every day
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Opening times
Monday 2.30 a.m. – 7.45 p.m.
Tuesday to Sunday 8.30 a.m. – 7.45 p.m.
The ticket office will close one hour before closing timeThe time at which visitors must leave the Garden depends on the time at which the sun sets during the month in question:
January: 4.45 p.m.
February: 5.15 p.m.
March: 6 p.m. (7 p.m. when summer time comes into force)
April 7.15 p.m.
from May until August: 7.30 p.m.
September: 7 p.m.
October: 6.15 p.m. (5.15 p.m. when winter time returns)
November and December: 4.45 p.m. -
Closing
1 January and 25 December, with the exception of special occasions
- Web Villa d'Este
- BACKGROUND
This is the place where, disillusioned at not having been elected as Pope, Cardinal Ippolito II d’Este revived the splendour of the courts of Ferrara, Rome and Fointanebleau, and brought the magnificence of Villa Adriana back to life. Governor of Tivoli from the year 1550, he soon toyed with the idea of creating a garden on the slope of the Valle gaudente, but it was only after 1560 that the architectural and iconological aspects of the Villa, designed by painter-archaeologist-architect Pirro Ligorio and built by court architect Alberto Galvani, became clear.
The palace was decorated by the protagonists of late Roman Mannerism.
The Villa had almost been completed by the time Ippolito d’Este died in 1572.
Further work in the 17th century was followed by a period of decline, until Cardinal Gustav Adolf von Hohenlohe refurbished the old grandeur and even hosted musician Ferenc Liszt (1811-1886).
Purchased by the Italian government between the Twenties and Thirties of the last century, the Villa was renovated and opened to the public.
Services
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Audioguide
€ 4.00
available in Italian, English, French, German, Spanish
temporarily suspended - Bookshop
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Wardrobe
temporarily suspended
Additional Info
- The water organ of the Fountain of the Organ is activated daily from 10.30 a.m. onwards, every two hours.
- Certain parts of the Villa may be closed for restoration work; ask at the Ticket Office for information. Pay particular attention to areas where danger signs have been affixed.
- Should the river Aniene become swollen due to heavy rainfall, the water supply of the Villa fountains could be temporarily shut off for a few days.
Where
Piazza Trento, 5 - Tivoli (RM)
Transportation
Visitors enter from Piazza Trento, obligatory exit from Piazza Campitelli.
BY CAR
From Rome: Take the A24 motorway, exit at the Tivoli toll booth, then proceed along the Maremmana Inferiore road until you reach the junction with Via Tiburtina. Now head towards the centre of Tivoli. Alternatively, you can take via Tiburtina directly.
From L’Aquila: Take the A24 motorway and exit at the Castel Madama toll booth. Proceed along via Empolitana, then via Acquaregna and follow the directions for the town centre. Pay attention to the restricted traffic areas.
Parking facilities: There is a multi-storey car park the near Rocca Pia a few hundred meters from Villa d’Este and another parking lot in Piazza Garibaldi (both subject to a parking fee).
BY BUS
from Rome: Take the subway, Metro B, and get off at the station of Ponte Mammolo, then take the Co.Tra.L. bus via Prenestina or via Tiburtina or via motorway (preferable) to Tivoli. Get off at the Largo delle Nazioni Unite stop (near Piazza Garibaldi) and proceed on foot for a short distance.
BY RAIL
from Stazione Termini or from Stazione Tiburtina until reaching the railway station of Tivoli. Now proceed on foot following the directions for Villa d’Este
Visiting Rules
- Saturday, Sunday and public holidays reservations required
- Palace tour itinerary
- Garden tour itinenary
- Preventive measures to contain the spread of Covid-19
- Covid-19 self-certification
