# Villa Medici, Rome > Villa Medici is a Renaissance villa on the Pincian Hill, two minutes from the top of the Spanish Steps, and home to the French Academy in Rome since the early 19th century. You get in with a ticket: a guided tour of the gardens and frescoed rooms takes about 90 minutes. The terrace out front, with its view over Rome, is free. Web page: https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/villa-medici - City: [Rome](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome), Italy - YesGo score: 38/100 (Yes, if nearby) - Time on site: 1 h 30 min - With kids: Fine with kids - Entry: Paid; tours and tickets online - Opening hours: Tuesday to Sunday, closed Monday - Guided tour: About 90 minutes, gardens and rooms - Free: Terrace and fountain out front, with a view - Website: villamedici.it — tickets and schedule - Location: Pincian Hill, 2 minutes from the top of the Spanish Steps - Coordinates: 41.90827, 12.48252 - Facts checked: 10.11.2026 ## Key facts - **1576** — Cardinal Ferdinando de' Medici bought the villa (source: English Wikipedia) - **Ammannati** — the architect who completed its rebuilding (source: English Wikipedia) - **1803** — the French Academy in Rome moved in (source: English Wikipedia) - **Prix de Rome** — winners lived here, including Berlioz, Bizet and Debussy (source: English Wikipedia) - **Zucchi** — Jacopo Zucchi painted the cardinal's studiolo with birds (source: English Wikipedia) ## A short history Building began in the mid-16th century for Cardinal Ricci, and in **1576** the villa was bought by Cardinal **Ferdinando de' Medici**, son of the Grand Duke of Tuscany. **Bartolomeo Ammannati** remodelled it, and the cardinal assembled one of Rome's finest collections of ancient sculpture. When Ferdinando became Grand Duke and returned to Florence, many pieces — the famous lions and the Niobid group among them — eventually followed. In **1803** Napoleon moved the **French Academy in Rome** here. Ever since, fellows — artists, composers, writers — have lived and worked at the villa. **Prix de Rome** winners **Berlioz**, **Bizet** and **Debussy** all stayed, and the painter **Ingres** served as director. ## The façade and gardens From the street the villa is plain and white, with two belvedere towers; from the garden it's another building entirely. The **garden façade** is studded with **ancient reliefs**, garlands and medallions set into the wall like an open-air museum, with statue copies in front and formal **gardens** of clipped hedges, umbrella pines and avenues beyond. The grounds cover about seven hectares, with a bosco of small groves, an artificial mound called Parnassus with a view of the city, and a pavilion holding casts of the Niobid group. Spring and early summer are loveliest, when roses and wisteria bloom and St Peter's dome shows above the trees. ## The cardinal's studiolo The surprise inside is **Cardinal Ferdinando's studiolo**, a small study in a garden pavilion. Around 1577 **Jacopo Zucchi** painted its walls and vault as a **pergola**, with dozens of birds perched and flying among the leaves, so precisely drawn that birdwatchers can name the species. Tours usually also visit the state apartments restored in the 20th century by the painter **Balthus**, then the Academy's director. ## What to see - **Garden façade** — covered in ancient reliefs and medallions. - **The gardens** — hedges, pines and avenues. - **The cardinal's studiolo** — Jacopo Zucchi's painted birds. - **Parnassus mound** — a view over Rome to St Peter's. - **Cardinal's apartments** — the state rooms. - **Terrace and fountain** out front — free, with a view of the domes. > **A free view at the gate** Even without a ticket, walk to the terrace in front of the villa: by the fountain under the holm oaks you look out over the domes of the centre to St Peter's, best at sunset. It's two minutes from Trinità dei Monti and the top of the Spanish Steps, and five from the Pincio terrace. ## How to get there 1. Metro line A to **Spagna**, then climb the [Spanish Steps](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/spanish-steps) and turn left for 2 minutes. 2. From Spagna station a lift brings you up to Viale della Trinità dei Monti. 3. From the [Pincio terrace](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/pincio), 5 minutes along the avenue. 4. From [Villa Borghese](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/villa-borghese), 15 minutes' walk across the Pincio. ## Getting inside The gardens and some rooms are seen on **guided tours** that run on a schedule in Italian, French and English, in small groups. Tickets are sold at **villamedici.it** and at the desk, but popular times sell out in season. The Academy also hosts contemporary art **exhibitions**, concerts and film screenings — check the website. The villa usually closes on Mondays, and there's a café with a terrace inside. ## Is Villa Medici worth it? Yes, if you've done the big museums and want somewhere calm and beautiful: these are among Rome's finest gardens, and few visitors expect the bird-filled studiolo. Short on time? The free terrace out front is right on the way from the Spanish Steps to the Pincio and Villa Borghese. ## Before you go Tick off what's ready — your ticks are saved in this browser. - [ ] Book a tour online - [ ] Check it isn't a Monday - [ ] Comfortable shoes — gravel paths - [ ] Climb Parnassus for the view - [ ] Catch the sunset from the front terrace ## Rome's palaces: compare and choose Palaces and villas in Rome rated by YesGo. - [Vittoriano](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/vittoriano) — YesGo score 61/100 (Yes, go) · 1 h · Terraces free; lift ≈ €12–18 - [Palatine Hill](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/palatine-hill) — YesGo score 54/100 (Yes, go) · 1 h 30 min · ≈ €18 with Colosseum - [Piazza Venezia](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/piazza-venezia) — YesGo score 53/100 (Yes, go) · 20 min · Free - [Quirinal Palace](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/quirinal-palace) — YesGo score 50/100 (Yes, go) · 1 h 15 min · Square free; tours by booking - [Domus Aurea](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/domus-aurea) — YesGo score 49/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 15 min · ≈ €18, with VR ≈ €26 - [Galleria Borghese](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/galleria-borghese) — YesGo score 45/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 2 h · ≈ €18 - [Capitoline Museums](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/capitoline-museums) — YesGo score 43/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 2 h 30 min · ≈ €15–19.50 - [Galleria Doria Pamphilj](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/doria-pamphilj) — YesGo score 39/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 30 min · ≈ €16–18 - [Palazzo Farnese](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/palazzo-farnese) — YesGo score 39/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 15 min · Paid, booking only - [Villa Medici](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/villa-medici) — YesGo score 38/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 30 min · Paid, scheduled tours - [Palazzo Barberini](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/palazzo-barberini) — YesGo score 37/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 2 h · ≈ €15 - [Villa Farnesina](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/villa-farnesina) — YesGo score 37/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · ≈ €12 - [Villa d'Este](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/villa-deste) — YesGo score 29/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 2 h · ≈ €15 - [Hadrian's Villa](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/hadrians-villa) — YesGo score 29/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 3 h · ≈ €12–15 ## Spanish Steps to Villa Borghese Up the Spanish Steps, Villa Medici, the Pincio terrace and on into the Villa Borghese park. 1. [Spanish Steps](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/spanish-steps) — YesGo score 62/100 (Yes, go) · 20 min · Free 2. [Villa Medici](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/villa-medici) — YesGo score 38/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 30 min · Paid, scheduled tours 3. [Pincio](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/pincio) — YesGo score 43/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 40 min · Free 4. [Villa Borghese](https://yesgo.io/italy/rome/villa-borghese) — YesGo score 48/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 30 min · Free ## Don't mix it up Villa Medici on the Pincio isn't one of the Medici villas around Florence (Castello, Petraia, Poggio a Caiano), nor neighbouring Villa Borghese. The Rome villa belongs to France. ## Tips - Tickets at villamedici.it. - Usually closed on Mondays. - The front terrace is free. - The Spanish Steps and Pincio are next door. ## Questions ### Where is Villa Medici? On the Pincian Hill, two minutes from the top of the Spanish Steps. ### How do I visit Villa Medici? On a guided tour or with a ticket, sold at villamedici.it and at the desk. ### What is Villa Medici today? The French Academy in Rome, with resident fellows, exhibitions and concerts. ### When is Villa Medici closed? Usually on Mondays. ### Who lived at Villa Medici? Cardinal Ferdinando de' Medici, and later Academy fellows such as Berlioz, Bizet and Debussy. ## How we checked History, gardens and rooms from English Wikipedia. Tour prices and schedule weren't confirmed — hence the 'checking' badge. ## Sources - English Wikipedia, Villa Medici - Official website villamedici.it --- This is the Markdown version of a YesGo page for AI assistants. Quote the web page link above, not this file.