Villa d'Este

12/07/2024 (friday), no problems to enter. No queues. Tickets 12€ for adults, kids for free. Good experience, really beautiful. Plenty of shades. Possible to go for a walk with a stroller, but sometimes you will need some help with stairs, so better not to go alone with baby. It is normal parking place near villa, costs 2€/hr. Do not leave your car in tiny streets where parking is not allowed.

Beautiful place to visit, amazing gardens and fountains, would definitely recommend. Can be hard walking back up from the garden terraces so would recommend some good walking shoes. Would visit again. Can easily buy tickets at the entrance. Free for children, adults €25 each, well worth it. Went in the evening so no waiting time to enter. 1.5 hours is plenty of time for a visit.

A wonderful place that combines architecture, landscaping, gardening and hydraulic works in a place. The water works, the fountains, the trees, the playfulness with water make it a wonderful expression of Renaissance wisdom. I understand how this place can influence and inspire water works, fountains and gardening in future palaces and mansions in Europe afterwards. Also a cool place to enjoy coolness in hot summer!

Villa d'Este is like stepping into a fairytale garden straight out of a Renaissance painting! I visited this stunning villa while exploring Tivoli, and let me tell you, it blew me away. The gardens are absolutely breathtaking, with lush greenery, trickling fountains, and intricate statues at every turn. Plus, the grandeur of the villa itself is something else – you can practically feel the history seeping through the walls. Whether you're into history, architecture, or just looking for a peaceful escape from the city, Villa d'Este has got you covered.

This place is recommended for anyone seeking a magical experience in Italy. Whether you're a history buff, a garden enthusiast, or just someone who appreciates beauty in all its forms, a visit to Villa d'Este is an absolute must-do. Trust me, you won't regret spending a day wandering through these enchanting gardens and soaking in the beauty and history of this incredible UNESCO World Heritage site.

An incredible garden and wonderland of amazing fountains. The villa is beautifully frescoed in room after room but the sculptures, grottos and technical ingenuity of the C16 designers and hydraulic engineers in the gardens is mind-blowing.

So, this was an amazing trip to Tivoli 1 to 1 1/2 hour outside of Rome, depending on traffic .Visiting Villa d'Este is well worth it.
The castle itself is not so spectacular, but the garden you will be blowing away with the water works and the craftsmanship.

The garden is absolutely delightful, with excellent planning and design, and it offers a stunning view from the outlook platform. Unfortunately, the foundations were closed during our visit. It would be better if more attention were given to plant maintenance.

The service from the receptionist was okay.

This is a place with visiting. Just over an hour drive from Rome. The villa has rooms with frescos. But the best is the stunning gardens. The fountains are amazing several different waterfalls and water features to see. Well worth it.

Stunning views with plenty of fountains! Worth to visit, ticket is 15€ per adult and free for kids. We spent couple of hours in a great place!

We were in Rome for 2 weeks for Christmas and the New Year. During our visit, we had the opportunity to be blessed by Pope Francis during his Christmas Day speech. Although I am not a Christian and we do not understand Latin at all, it was such a rare experience that it inspired us anyway.

Experiences like this made me realize that traveling is less about touristy spots and more about finding unique things that you can't find anywhere else. 10 years ago, for example, I had watched a show on Netflix about the most magnificent gardens in Europe. As someone who loves nature, I never thought I would have the chance to actually visit a place like Villa d'Este.

Like many tourists from Asia, I was not even aware that this place existed. When I saw the magnificent water fountains and statues, I immediately recognized that it was the place I saw on the show. I'd call it 'the hidden jade of Rome' as it's the most beautiful garden I have ever seen yet only 1% of tourists ever get to see it, perhaps because it takes some time to travel to.

While visiting the Vatican or the Colosseum is amazing, there's simply nothing like discovering something that you didn't quite expect.

- Fang

My visit to Villa d'Este at Tivoli was enchanting! Visit was on the first Sunday of April which is a special day, where the entrance was free same as all other museums in Italy. Therefore, with free entrance there were more visitors as expected. Depending on the season, flowers in the gardens have just started to bloom and the weather was perfect. Brief descriptions are available of all objects and places. Facilities are available for differently-abled people as well. Vending machines are available for snacks. Attraction is also animal friendly. Villa d'Este offers a truly unforgettable experience. I highly recommend a visit to Villa d'Este for anyone seeking a glimpse into Italy's rich cultural heritage and a moment of respite from the hustle and bustle of modern life. It's a place where history and nature converge in perfect harmony.

Amazing place! Truly beautiful and relaxing with a gorgeous view over the city. Definitely worth to see!

Stunning! Beautiful lush gardens with tons of waterfalls and fountains hidden around almost every corner.. Stunning views over the surrounding countryside.. Ideal for a family day out but also perfect for something more romantic.. A taste of heaven just outside the eternal city! 🇮🇹

Absolutely spectacular place! Villa d'Este has many gorgeous fountains, sculptures, and also a great view of Tivoli. The whole place is super green and calm. I recommend spending around two hours here, villa is quite big and you certainly don't want to miss anything from what's there. Buying tickets in advance is not necessary but recommendable, and I also recommend to come in the morning (before 10-11am) since there is not so much people at that time.

It's pretty easy to find, if you know which bus stop to get off. Lots to explore, both the extensive gardens with more than 100 fountains and the villa itself. It's worth the trip to Tivoli. We went first thing in the morning to allow the opportunity to see the opera fountain play, as it only runs once every two hours. It is very relaxing despite all the steps.

What a lovely place to visit. Historical building with beautiful gardens together with magnificent water features. Has wonderful views overlooking the local area. Well worth a visit, get the train from Rome with the cost for 4 people,.only 12 euros.

Villa d'Este is a beautiful villa in Tivoli, with lots of greenery and fountains. A magical place worth visiting, you will enjoy it.

Incredible villa and grounds to explore and walk! So many great photo opt areas with the fountains and water falls plus the fact your on the side of a mountain with awesome views. Definitely worth trip from Rome to enjoy this place. Lots of walking to really enjoy gardens and features so getting there early is a perk before it gets crowded and hot.

Super romantic location with lots of history. Awesome paintings in all rooms. You can spend hours just watching those. The garden is also extremely impressive with all the water installations and fountains. A real green paradise with extraordinary garden architecture. Worth a visit any time!

Outstanding Universal Value
Brief synthesis

The palace and the gardens of Villa d’Este in Tivoli, in the centre of Italy, were laid out by Pirro Ligorio (1500-1583) on behalf of Cardinal Ippolito II d’Este of Ferrara (1509-1572), who, after being named governor of Tivoli in 1550, desired the realization of a palace adequate to his new status. The ensemble composed of the palace and gardens forms an uneven quadrilateral and covers an area of about 4.5 ha.

The Villa d’Este in Tivoli is one of the most remarkable and comprehensive illustrations of Renaissance culture at its most refined. Owing to its innovative design and the creativity and ingenuity of the architectural components in the gardens (fountains, ornamental basins, etc.), it is a true water garden and a unique example of an Italian 16th century garden. The Villa d’Este, one of the first giardini delle meraviglie, served as a model for and had a decisive influence on the development of gardens in Europe.

The plan of the villa is irregular because the architect was obliged to make use of certain parts of the previous monastic building. On the gardens’ side, the architecture of the palace is very simple: a long main body of three storeys, marked by bands, rows of windows, and side pavilions that barely jut out. This uniform facade is interrupted by an elegant loggia in the middle, with two levels and stair ramps. Starting in 1560 great efforts were made to supply the water needed for the numerous fountains that were intended to embellish the gardens. Once the water supply had been ensured and its flow made possible by the natural gravity created by the different levels of the garden, work started on constructing the fountains, ornamental basins, and grottoes and on laying out the landscape.

The Villa d’Este gardens stretch over two steep slopes, descending from the palace down to a flat terrace in the manner of an amphitheatre. The loggia of the palace marks the longitudinal and central axis of the gardens. Five main transversal axes become the central axis from the fixed point of view created by the villa, as each of these axes terminates in one of the gardens’ fountains. This arrangement of axes and modules was adopted to disguise the irregular outline of the gardens, to rectify by means of an optical illusion the relationship between the transversal and longitudinal dimensions, and to give the palace a central position, even though it is in fact out of alignment in relation to the whole.

The most striking effect is produced by the big cascade flowing out of a krater perched in the middle of the exedra. Jets of water were activated whenever unsuspecting people walked under the arcades. The Fontana del Bicchierone (Fountain of the Great Glass), built according to a design by Bernini (1660-61) was added to the decoration of the central longitudinal axis in the 17th century. This fountain is in the shape of a serrated chalice, from which a high jet of water falls into a conch shell. The gardens with the fountains, is a masterpiece of hydraulic engineering, both for the general layout of the plan and the complex system of distribution of water as well as for the many water plays with the introduction of the first hydraulic automatons ever built.