Capitoline Museums skip-the-line guided tour

Meet your guide at Piazza del Campidoglio under the Marco Aurelio statue and start your amazing journey in the history of this fabulous complex, Capitoline Hill, Capitoline Museum and St Mary of Aracoeli Basilica.

A visit to the famous Capitoline Hill is a must-do in Rome. Your professional guide will tell you how the building of the Capitoline began.

Created with the criteria of a project by Michelangelo, this is the first square of modern Rome and it rises on the Capitol Hill (Capitolium), where there used to be a village and several temples dedicated to the Roman deities. Pope Paul III asked Michelangelo to lay out the square. Today, the famous Piazza del Campidoglio still shows a wonderful stylistic unity.

Next, step into the Santa Maria in Ara Coeli which was built on the ruins of the Tempio di Giunone Moneta in the VI century B.C. and it raises on the highest peak of the Campidoglio Hill. Its name comes from a legend according to which a sibyl supposedly forecasted to Augusto the advent of God’s son, saying 'Haec est ara filii Dei'. Reach the top and take in the wonderful view over the city of Rome with the domes of Sant'Andrea della Valle and world-famous St Peter's Basilica.

• Please cover shoulders and knees when you enter the Basilica of St Mary of Aracoeli