AMAZING tour experience!…read more We had a private 4-hour golf cart tour (highlights of all major attractions) which allowed us to see so many special places all over the city and from vantage points we would never have found on our own. Plus the golf cart was just fun whipping down random cobblestone streets and through crowds of people. It was a really special experience for us, and our tour guide was superb; very jocular and down to earth. As part of the tour our guide also got us into the pantheon for free and showed us around one of the local churches which had unique graphic illusions (as well as some creepy skulls/skeletons incorporated into the religious artwork). One of my favorite parts of the tour was stopping to check out Giardino degli Aranci (orange grove public square overlooking the city at night). Highly recommended.

AWESOME in every way! Our driver Matteo was absolutely…read morefantastic. Personable and knowledgeable, he was like an extension of our family, not just a tour guide. Do you want to see a lot of Rome in a short time? This is the way to do it!

We booked the "Private Borghese Gallery Tour with Hotel Pick-up and Drop-off" from Eyes of Rome on…read moreOctober 21, before the Omicron variant placed our present trip to Rome very much up in the air. Happily we were able to make it to Rome and to experience this wonderful, personalized tour of what I think is the greatest collection of treasures in Rome on December 26. We were picked up on-time at our hotel by the tour's driver who was well-informed and effective with regard to the current COVID protocols, helping us to ensure we had the appropriate type of mask required and our physical vaccination proof (we had assumed digital versions would suffice, but this is not currently the case in Rome or at least not for the Villa Borghese). Another tour operator probably wouldn't have checked for these items and we would have missed the entire experience. We were dropped off at the Villa Borghese and met immediately by our personal guide, Silvia, who greeted us warmly and immediately started setting the context of what we were about to see with the history of the Aurelian wall, Roman life in the 1600s, and the concept of the "villa suburbana," all of which is quite necessary for a full appreciation of the wonder that is the Galleria Borghese. She explained to us the relation of the Galleria's founder Cardinal Scipione Borghese and his position as the Cardinal Nephew to Pope Paul V, which gave him political power over the Papal States. Silvia told us of the original plan of the gardens and the vivarium, which housed species from all over the world- plants and birds respectively, which was foundational to understanding the art collection to come. For context, I have twice visited the Galleria Borghese in 1996 and 2010, but it was my husband's first visit to the Galleria and, in fact, to Rome. Our tour impressed, entertained, and satiated the curiosity of both of us equally- not an easy feat, for sure. We appreciated that Silvia structured the tour as much as possible as the Galleria was meant to be experienced (unwinding, if philosophically, the changes to the sequence of rooms necessitated by current COVID protocols). Silvia was knowledgeable, personable, funny, and very well-versed in the history of the Borghese family, the Papacy as related to it, and the artists (Bernini, Carvaggio, etc.) and their works featured in the museum. Among the highlights for us: *A very informative but also witty and humorous study comparing the depiction (and by extrapolation the characterization) of Venus painted with Cupid by two artists- Cranachi (il vecchio) and Brescianino, an eye-opening discussion about the differing regional attitudes toward women at the time *Revealing the technique but also the humanity of Caravaggio with a thorough education on the 'Madonna dei Palafrenieri.' Some of why the painting would have been a shocking portrayal of Mary, Jesus, and St. Anne may be obvious, but understanding all the details- Mary's plainly visible underskirt- contemporary of the artist's time, the wrinkled, withered portrayal of St. Anne (the Vatican chapel bearing her name being the intended destination for this work, where it was ultimately rejected), and the still-astounding use of light in darkness was extremely interesting and enriching to our experience *A 360-degree analysis of Bernini's Baroque masterpiece Apollo and Daphne (starting with Silvia ensuring we averted our eyes to view the sculpture first from the right-hand side, as intended by the artist himself prior to the statue being moved) gave us a complete understanding of this work. Viewing the sculpture- which I had seen before but never from the vantage point encouraged by our guide- this way gives the complete story of Daphne's encapsulation into the tree depicted here and Apollo's (non-)reaction. When the delicately carved, paper-thin tree bark was pointed out to us, you could almost feel the heartbeat that Apollo would have felt as his hand grasped it. I appreciated the details of the windswept hair turning into leaves, which also stemmed from her hands, and the roots emanating from her foot, details I had not really fully appreciated before. I would highly recommend Eyes of Rome and specifically our guide Silvia. I cannot enumerate with words how much more I appreciated the Galleria Borghese with her expert and naturally flowing guidance and historical context. We had a fantastic time that we will not soon forget.

Alessandro is a fantastic guide! So knowledgeable and fun. I can't recommend him and and this tour…read morecompany enough for a hypogeum tour of the Colosseum.

December 7, 2024…read more OMGosh! ooh My gosh! This was an out of body experience... to think of all the people that have walked this chapel in the last 550 years is mind boggling Beyond beautiful art... it was God's place

Such a beautiful and spiritual experience. The line was ridiculous, paying for a skip-the-line tour…read morethrough Viator was priceless. The architecture of the building was so unique, I could not believe the structural details. The life-sized art work inside was created using mostly ancient marble, brass and stone. The carvings of the statues were pristine. There were beautiful pictorial carpets hung on the wall where different scenes were woven into the tapestry. The paintings on the ceiling were like brushstrokes from heaven. I have never seen anything more beautiful. The time attention and detail that went into creating each piece is truly astounding. My experience was breathtaking and some of the scenes moved me to tears.

A visit here was scheduled for our 25-person study abroad class and it couldn't have a more perfect…read moreexperience for the entire group. Chef Andrea and his wife, Erica, were delightful hosts. The students split up with some making pasta and the others preparing the ingredients for the fried pizza dough with fresh tomatoes, the meat sauce for the pasta and the tiramisu. The quality was first rate. The small restaurant was maxed out with our 25, but we never felt crowded. If you need an evening event with your group you should definitely have it here. The walls were filled with artwork provided by all the different collegiate groups that come here. Our students loved it!

Such a fun experience. This was my first cooking class ever. Chef Andrea made the class…read moreunforgettable. We went with friends and had a blast cooking. After cooking we had a dinner with what we cooked. Awesome wine served at dinner too. I've already told my wife that we are getting a class every time we go to Rome. But only with Chef Andrea!!

We booked a golf cart tour with Carlotta Ciciotti. She was very intelligent, took her to time with…read moreus, which included 2 kids age 3 and 5. I was surprised at how she was able to keep them engaged. She showed us all around Rome, took amazing pictures, took us to a coffee shop and got the kids gelato. She even took us to an Armenian Church in Rome. That was very special. I HIGHLY recommend her!!! THANK You Carlotta

I booked a Colosseum guided tour through LivTours for my family during a long planned trip to Rome,…read moremeant to celebrate my son's graduation from Lehigh University and my daughter's high school graduation. Instead of a memory to celebrate, we left with one none of us will forget for the wrong reasons. LivTours guides do not give guests individual paper tickets. The guide holds all admission on an electronic ticket and hands each guest a small sticker as the only proof of entry. On an extremely hot day, my sticker came loose. Our guide walked ahead with two other guests to the bookshop and, by her own account, only glanced back and saw our group heading toward the exit. She never confirmed we actually made it out and never checked that each of us still had proof of admission. When I reached the exit checkpoint, staff asked for my ticket. I had none, because LivTours never gave me one. I was told it was illegal to be in that area without a valid ticket, pulled aside, and questioned. The police were called. I stood there while my wife and children watched and had to step in to try to help me. My wife eventually pulled up our purchase receipt on her phone, and that is the only reason I was allowed to leave. LivTours admitted in writing that the guide saw our group heading toward the exit and left without confirming we made it out. She did not secure our exit. She did not check that everyone in the group actually cleared the checkpoint before she walked off with two other guests to the bookshop. Making sure a group actually exits a controlled site, not just watching them walk in that general direction, is a basic responsibility of a tour guide, especially one holding the only ticket that gives that group the right to be there in the first place. As an African American man in a foreign country, being publicly stopped, questioned, and detained by police in front of my family was humiliating in a way that is hard to put into words. This was supposed to be a trip celebrating my children's accomplishments. Instead they watched their father get pulled aside like a criminal because a tour guide walked away without making sure we had what we needed to leave. A LivTours representative called me shortly after and told me directly that a refund would be issued. Weeks later, after I put the complaint in writing, LivTours reversed course completely. They now claim the tour was "completed as planned" and that the incident was outside their control. Their own emails contradict that. They admit their guide saw us walking toward the exit and left without confirming we got out safely. They admit they do not provide physical tickets to guests. Those two facts together are exactly why this happened, and it happened because of how LivTours operates, not because of anything my family did. I would not recommend LivTours for any tour requiring facility exit past a checkpoint. Ask directly whether you will receive an individual physical ticket before you book, and get it in writing. Reggie

My parents and I used Rome City Tours on oct 25 to visit the colosseum,forum and palentine hill. We…read morehad an excellent tour guide named Ferdinando. He was at the assigned place at the exact time. He had a world of information to tell us and made it fun to hear about it all. We were very satisfied with rome city tours and would rate it with an excellent rating. We will use them again in the future. Sheri Storey

Federica Dal Palu is a former art history professor and native Roman. The four hours we spent…read morewalking around Rome with her were not only a blast, but really set the tone and opened our eyes for the 8 days we spent in Italy. She is knowledgeable, funny, and easy going. I was particularly impressed by her ability to impart detailed historical facts, fun trivia and global insights so effortlessly. My daughter and I have reflected that we are surprised by how much we remember that we learned that day. We are not particularly tour loving travelers (I am easily annoyed when I listen to other tour guides droning their spiels!) but this was a wonderful treat. Federica will make suggestions (see her website) but is also able to really switch it up in the moment to make it the most meaningful tour FOR YOU. She clearly enjoys sharing her city and I could not recommend booking a tour with her more enthusiastically!

Jean batiste est le meilleur ! Il est un excellent conteur, drôle et très inclusif…read more Il connaît tout de l'histoire de Rome, cetait inspirant! Je conseille a tout le monde de reserver.

We had Daniele V as our tour guide and he was great! We did a 3 hour tour starting at 10am. He…read moreeasily guided us through and was very knowledgeable on all the stops. It went by quickly and we saw many great things along the way! We did the add on Basilica and we got to skip the lines and go straight in with our tour guide. Overall great experience!

We went last night! It was so much fun!! It was a great way to see the city. I've been on this…read moretour before but this time I hosted my best friend's daughter. She loved it!! Ricardo and Marco were wonderful guides... super informative, nice and funny. We not only had a good time but felt like we made new friends.

We loved scooteroma. The planning was so easy and the tour guides were all extremely fantastic!!…read more Four of us did a 3 hour tour and we saw what felt like the whole of Rome. We thought we may want to drive but it's actually so fun to ride behind a local and hear them talk about a city they love so so so much. This was my absolute favorite thing to do in Rome and a memory I will treasure forever. The fellas were all so lovely and kind! I could not recommend this business more!

We just finished Chef In a day's market visit and cooking class. What an amazing experience. We…read moremade beautiful Italian food from scratch. Chef Federico and his staff made it fun, entertaining, and left us confident that we could make these recipes at home. Chef Federico is the real deal. he is professionally trained, he went to culinary school, and he is a real working Chef. Warning, don't be fooled by imposters. Make sure you choose a school taught by real culinary professionals like Chef Federico. We had the best time, Enjoy. Your new friends Tom & Sandy Ps, our adult Culinary School joined us for the class and loved it.

Amazing and unique experience! Strongly recommending this to anyone visiting Italy. My husband and…read moreI thoroughly enjoyed it - from the market tour to cooking and eating all the meals we helped prepare. Chef Alessandri is very professional and entertaining. We learned a lot from ingredients selection to cooking techniques plus making pasta and mother sauce from scratch. Kudos to his sous chefs as well who were efficiently working alongside us all. Don't miss this experience. You won't regret it. Definitely one of the highlights of our trip. Thank you, Chef!