Palazzo dei Conservatori

Palazzo dei Conservatori

Palazzo dei Conservatori
4.5
Architectural BuildingsArt MuseumsHistory Museums
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Top ways to experience Palazzo dei Conservatori and nearby attractions

The area
Address
Neighbourhood: Campitelli
How to get there
  • Fori Imperiali-Colosseo • 10 min walk
  • Colosseo • 10 min walk

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

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4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles79 reviews
Excellent
56
Very good
19
Average
4
Poor
0
Terrible
0

ginsengNewYork
New York City, NY1,314 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Sept 2021 • Solo
World class museum which I love visiting again and again. The collection is outstanding, and the setting quite impressive ( the 2 buildings are linked by an underground tunnel filled with beautiful artifacts). They just innovated with a multimedia presentation of the " Fasti Capitolini", huge marble calendars narrating the history of Rome from its origins to the dawn of the imperial age.
And, cherry on top of the cake, there is a huge terrace with a very nice café on the last floor, offering fabulous views of Rome!
Written 22 September 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Alessandro F
Milan, Italy32,682 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Nov 2019 • Solo
Before to became the Gemini of Palace Nuovo on the renovation of square by Michelangelo, this was a temple dedicated to Jupiter, the maximum.
Now is the main entrance of Museum Capitolini
Written 24 November 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Mairwen1
United Kingdom11,493 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
July 2023 • Couples
The 17th century Palazzo Conservatori is the home of the Capitoline Museum on Capitoline Hill. The collection is housed across both Palazzo dei Conservatori and Palazzo Novo but most of the famous highlights, from paintings by Caravaggio to the famous She-Wolf, are on the Palazzo dei Conservatori side.
Palazzo dei Conservatori is the best starting point for a museum visit and this is where the ticket office is located. We were walk-ins and bought our tickets at the door (€13). Surprisingly, there was no queue (we were there mid-week in the afternoon).
We started at the ground floor courtyard and immediately saw the colossal Constantine statue parts. The foot alone is incredible. People were having a lot of fun with photos beside the giant body parts.
The highlight is the large, glass-roofed, light-filled room that houses a collection of some of the world’s most famous statues that include the original Capitoline She-Wolf, Marcus Aurelius on Horseback, Lo Spinario, and Lion Attacking a Horse.
Upstairs, on the second floor, is the Picture Gallery. If you are on a mission to see all of Rome’s Caravaggios, there are 2 here (‘Fortune Teller’ and ‘St John the Baptist’). Having just come from seeing the original She-Wolf downstairs, I was drawn to Rubens’ version of the ancient story in the painting, ’Romulus and Remus’.
To leave the palazzo, you don’t go back out into the piazza. Instead, you go down into a subterranean tunnel that will lead you deep under the square and back up into the Palazzo Nuovo. Fantastic!
Overall, this the palazzo is just one part of a huge museum. With the best of intentions, it’s hard to see everything and it doesn’t help that the layout is confusing and becomes almost maze-like at times. I loved the museum but it would be better if you could spread it over more than one visit.
Written 16 May 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Brad
Hong Kong, China177,612 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2015 • Couples
The Palazzo dei Consevatori is a Renaissance style building located at Piazza del Campidoglio. Along with the adjacent Palazzo Nuovo building it forms the bulk of Musei Capitolini, which is one of the oldest museums in the world. The museum is open daily from 9.30am to 7.30pm and entry is €15 per person.

At the Palazzo dei Consevatori section of Musei Capitolini you can find a large collection of Roman antiquity and art spread over three floors. We particularly enjoy colossal head, foot and hand statue fragments of Constantine found in the courtyard as well as the Equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius (similar to the replica in the piazza in front of the museum), the fabled Capitoline She-wolf, Hercules and Boy with Thorn bronze statues.

You will also see the remains of the Temple of Jupiter, which was excavated upon this location. The ruins have been preserved and form part of the first floor exhibition space. Other important works include Bernini's Bust of Medusa, the wall frescos of the Conservators' Apartment rooms as well as the picture galleries on the second floor featuring the likes of Caravaggio, Reni, Garofalo and other Italian artists.

There is a lovely 3rd floor cafe and terrace affording views of the city. This is near the temporary exhibits which will have been included in your ticket price. Further, below the building is a tunnel linking to Palazzo Nouvo where you find more masterpieces and remarkable things to see.

Collectively the Musei Capitonlini is easily worth 3-4 hours of your time to browse the two main buildings. Palazzo dei Consevatori is where you purchase tickets and enter the museum. There is more exhibition space, halls and things to see here so you might want to allocate more time here and a bit less at Palazzo Nouvo.

Tip: Musei Capitolini is included with the Rome Pass, providing quicker access to those who intend to avail of this travel pass option during their visit to Rome.

Tip: The Musei Capitolini museum website provides details pages for the various floors, rooms and subjects available to be seen. It is well worth researching online beforehand so you know what you want to see and what areas of the museum you should target prior to arriving. This will help you maximise your time here if you are only able to make a short visit.
Written 2 June 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Al E
Haverhill, MA193 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Sept 2012 • Couples
We visited the Capitoline Museums (both the Palazzo dei Conservatori and the Palazzo Nuovo) the second week of September 2012.. As noted in the other review the staff here aren't very helpful, but it's still worth a visit. This is the oldest museum in the world (1471). When we went they had a special exhibit (Lux in Arcana - a display of numerous "secret" papers from the Vatican) which took up a considerable number of rooms and required the relocation of certain pieces (such as the famous She Wolf) to other parts of the museum. This special exhibit was running only until the middle of September so the museum should be back to normal.

As noted by the previous reviewer there are many interesting pieces here, both inside the museums and outside in the court yards.

I would suggest the audio guides as there are many pieces numbered and they provide considerable information on what you are looking at. And be sure to pick up the brochure with the maps in them.

Some practical advice:

Security:
Standard metal detector and bag X-Ray, however you can take your belongings with you, no lockers needed.

Audio guides:
Believe it or not you need to ask for the headphones, even though they don't work without them. We went into the first courtyard and turned on the audio device. Unlike other audio guides we had used (i.e. Vatican Museum, Borghese Gallery, etc.) there was no sound from either mine or my partners'. Then we noticed another couple who had headphones. We asked them (luckily they were English) where they got the headphones and they told us back at the ticket office where they got the audio guides. They too had to go back for the headphones!
So back we went and picked up the headphones. No apologies from the staff who failed to give them to us in the first place.
So back into the museum for the second time. We toured all three of the floors of the museum and my audio guide battery died. So it was back down to the ticket office for a replacement and we entered the museum again for the third time. Note there is a small button on the side of the audio guide which turns off power (like a sleep mode on computers). There's no explanation anywhere on how this works but use it in between exhibits and you should be OK battery wise.

Cafeteria :
We decided to have lunch at the Museum before going into the next building. The cafeteria is located on the third floor (well, really the 4th - more on that later) but all entrances to it from the museum have been blocked off! I stared at the map and could not figure out how to get there. Finally we asked one of the staff and she directed us to an elevator which is supposed to be used for handicapped visitors. It seems this was the only way to the cafeteria! I got us a couple of panini's and water while my partner got us a table outside. It was a beautiful day and the view from the terrace is breathtaking. When I came out with the lunch a waiter yelled at me that we couldn't eat outside because we had done "self service", and the tables outside were reserved for those who were being waited on. I did find a sign later stating that, but it probably should be put inside where you order the food (a completely different experience I won't bother detailing).

The underground tunnel:
After lunch we found our way back to the elevator and walked across the plaza to the other museum (Palazzo Nuovo). Just like the previous reviewer we couldn't find the entrance, only the exit. We asked the guard at the exit and he said the entrance was via the other building, but "underground". So, back into the museum for the 4th time (by now they weren't even screening us) Looking back at the map we found the entrance to be at the end of the "Tabularium" in the basement of the Palazzo dei Conservatori. You'll find a set of stairs which will bring you up into the Palazzo Nuovo. Note the Palazzo dei Conservatori has 5 floors, or "Etages". I'm not sure if it's just to add to the confusion or not but they are numbered (beginning at the bottom) as: -1, 0, 1, 2, and 3. So Etage 3 is really the 5th floor. Got it?
and the Palazzo Nuovo has three floors, -1, 0, and 1. Again, without the map you'll be lost.

Is it worth it? Yes. There are many fine pieces of art to be seen here. However, allow yourself at least 3-4 hours to see it all, including about 30 minutes of "wandering around lost".
Written 15 September 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

pldj m
185 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Nov 2019 • Couples
You have to go to visit this Museum if you are in Roma. Big and have lots of master piece of arts. Need longer time to spend inside to see those statues, too.
Written 25 October 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Sharie D
7 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2019
We visited this museum in the afternoon and it was so quiet plus the open windows in the second part offered spectacular views across the forum with the sun coming down it was brilliant - free cloak room friendly staff.
Written 19 October 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Deb L
New Carlisle, IN17 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Sept 2016 • Couples
Entrance area for the excellent Museum Capitolini. Connects the museum buildings. We came from the Circus Maximus, taking the backstreets with a gradual climb up the hill, enjoying peeks into the Roman Forum along the way. Very good views overlooking the forum toward the basilica of Constantine from the edges of the piazza
Written 22 September 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Fabholsguru
Bournemouth, UK25 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Sept 2016 • Couples
If you aren't really a museum fan then try this! Amongst some of the most stunning and gigantic sculptures from Ancient Rome you will also find some great art, an amazing building and at the top a fantastic view of Rome and St.Peters basilica.
Written 5 September 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Borzov
Rijeka, Croatia5,290 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2016 • Solo
The largest exhibition hall in the Capitoline Museum complex was built in the 15th century and refurbished in the 17th century. The new facade was designed by Michelangelo, and completed by Giacomo Della Porta. The name came from the Conservatives (I Conservatori di Roma), the three judges who formed the Roman magistrate. The highlights of the museum collection are the bronze statue of the Lupa Capitolina, Bernini’s Medusa and chunks of the massive statue of Constantine (head, hand and foot).
Written 9 May 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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Palazzo dei Conservatori - All You MUST Know Before You Go (2024)

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