The Forum, the political, commercial and judicial center of the ancient city, has undergone immense transformations over the centuries. We will explore its many complex layers of history: from the foundation of Rome and the Republican era to the fall of the Roman Empire, from the complete abandonment of the Forum to Michelangelo’s Renaissance, to the dramatic modifications during the Savoy monarchy and Mussolini’s Fascist regime. Only then can we understand the archeological remains in the present day.

The transformations of the Campo Marzio (“Field of Mars”) will take you on a journey through the urban and artistic fabric of this ancient district, which is the only area of Rome to have been inhabited for over 2,000 years. Beginning with Imperial Rome, we will discover the Stadium of Domitian, the Temple of Isis and Serapis, the Pantheon and the Temple of Hadrian. We will then arrive at the splendors of the Baroque and their theatrical staging: Piazza Navona, Sant’Ivo alla Sapienza, and Piazza Sant'Ignazio. Our grand finale will be the Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps.These sites and their stories will shed light on the metamorphosis of the heart of Rome in its 2,000 years of history.

The Vatican Museums represent one of the largest art collections visible in
 
Rome today. Here we will explore the origins and the re-foundation of the new seat of the Papacy, built over the tomb of St. Peter himself, to then become the home of the pope’s private art collection and, eventually, a public museum.
Along the route you will discover the treasures of classical statuary such as the Apollo Belvedere, the Laocoon, and the Belvedere Torso, which all paved the way for the Renaissance splendor of the revolutionary Raphael Rooms and the sublime Sistine Chapel.

St. Peter's Basilica is the largest church in the world, with a total area of 23,000 square meters. The major architects of the time worked on its construction, which took more than a century (1506-1626), including Bramante, Michelangelo, Raphael, Bernini and Borromini. It was built to replace the ancient Constantinian basilica (4th century), which stood on the burial site of St. Peter. In the chapels there are excellent works such as the Pietà by Michelangelo, the funeral monuments created by Bernini, Canova and Pollaiolo, the Tabernacle of the Blessed Sacrament by the genius of the Baroque. In the centre, under the dome, stands the Baldacchino by Bernini, right in front of the dazzling reliquary of the Chair of St. Peter. The exterior is scenically defined by the square and the colonnade, a synthesis of the projects of Michelangelo and Bernini. On the façade stands the monumental dome, made up of two superimposed caps, created by Michelangelo and Giacomo Della Porta.

The history of these villas spans two millennia: in antiquity, Alba Longa stood here, a sacred city founded by Julo (“ancestor” of Emperor Augustus) and home to Romulus and Remus. A small thread therefore links the history of this place of delights for emperors, nobles and Popes, from Emperor Domitian (81-96 AD) all the way up to the current Pontiff. The current Pontifical Villas span an area of 55 hectares from the town of Castel Gandolfo to Albano, and were formed as the Pope's private summer residence in 1930 out of the union of the Villa del Moro, Villa Cybo and Villa Barberini into one single territory. Attached to the property is a farm and the ruins of Domitian’s palace: the vaults of the buildings, a cryptoporticus, and theater, along with fountains and hundreds of species of plants, all enliven the atmosphere of the park. In addition to the garden,it is possible to visit the Gallery of Papal Portraits located in the Apostolic Palace.

Built in 123 AD as a mausoleum for Emperor Hadrian and his family, Castel Sant'Angelo has had an unusual destiny in the historical-artistic landscape of the capital. While all the other monuments from the Roman era have either been reduced to ruins or used as quarries to recycle old materials for new buildings, Castel Sant’Angelo has stood strong in Rome for almost two thousand years. From a funerary monument to a fortified outpost, from a dark and terrible prison to a splendid Renaissance residence that sees Michelangelo active within its walls, from a Risorgimento prison to arrive
finally at the 20th century with its role as a museum. Castel Sant'Angelo embodies in its mighty walls and sumptuous frescoed rooms the ability of the Eternal City to inextricably link the past with the present.