Excellent tour. I didn’t get the tour guides name but she was fantastic. Lots of great information and we didn’t feel rushed. Beating the queues made a huge difference and we thoroughly recommend this company.

We enjoyed the visit to the Borghese Gallery. There are no places to sit and rest. So you will be on your feet the whole time. So our self guided tour was perfect for us. Obtaining the tickets was disconcerting. We were to meet a person dressed in a white and blue uniform. Wrong! We waited, and there was no person. There was a person with a blue flag with white writing on it. To me, they looked like a regular tour guide with a group. We went over and inquired and correctly guessed because there was more than one. The bathroom was clean but had poor air movement. The cafeteria had good tasting food and pastries. We were able to relax. Because of the rain that day, we did not tour the gardens. Their train that gives a quick tour had stopped running. It is worth the money and time if you like art and one of a kind collection.

The person to take ticket vouchers didn’t show up at the meeting point. After a complicated and stressful phone call, we found her seated about 40 meters away from the meeting point designated on the voucher. I want a refund: —Joe Haney/1-703-507-8606

What an experience!! Our your guide Marta was so amazing. Not only did she do the tour but she gave us insight into many other aspects of the tour. She made sure that everyone was always by her and was able to hear her. Her English was impeccable!!

The tour operator delivered the tickets & we went to the gallery as promised in skip the line. The review scoring reflects the venue not the operator. Expect to check any bags of size & no liquids allowed with you. They make this process simple for drop off & pickup. The frescos on the ceiling are amazing & the sculpture is good with Bernini especially represented. Overall size of the gallery is fairly small and they mixed in an exhibit of a contemporary artist in some spaces which was jarring. This was a specific destination this trip as we had not been able to fit in on prior trips. The whole visit took less than 2 hours & we did not rush, but kept looking for more of the collection. Overall I would have visited the Vatican Museum instead with my time & I love Italian Renaissance art.

This tour was a very nice way to spend our Sunday afternoon. We enjoyed seeing all the artwork in the Borghese Gallery as well as spending some time in the gardens.

Marta made it look easy, navigating through the extreme heat and the endless crowds. I would not have done this tour alone, would have run from the crowd but then listening to contents she was providing, made it quite interesting.

Marta is a great guide! Very knowledgeable, thoughtful and fun! The tour is definitely much more than worth it. I learned a lot and had a great time.

Great organisation and great tour! Our appointment was at 12pm. Everything went punctual. Our guide was Polina - she did an amazing job!! Very sympathetic, smart and sharp, we felt that all the informations she gave us were exactly those you'd be interested in. Nothing was too much or too less. She was attentive and cared for the group.

We made a reservation for mid afternoon to allow for a late flight, long wait at airport etc, but we got in early and went to the museum ahead of our reservation. They were wonderful in letting us in early. The museum was under construction in front and several galleries were closed. It was still wonderful! Well worth the trip if you’re interested in art. We went to the Palazzo Barberini next as the two museums offered a reduced price if you went to the Borghese first and Barberini second. Worth it for the Berninis and Caravaggios alone!

Tour was advertised as no lines with tour guide and full access. It was a scam did not have any access to anywhere else then the basic admission and had to wait on lines. Unable to hear any information / history regarding the colosseum. Will no longer trust trip advisor for tours.

I’m honestly giving this 5 stars just because of our excellent tour guide Marta! We couldn’t find tickets on the Vatican site so we decided to use once upon a time tour. Was a little worried at first but tbh prices seemed fair when I compared it to other tours online. But honestly this review is for Marta! She is an AMAZING tour guide! If you ever want to tour the Vatican with this company I will always recommend you to ask for Marta! She is super sweet and knows so much of the history of the Vatican! She was funny, kind, and took very good care of the group. So grateful that we got her as our tour guide. Thank you Marta!

Let me cut to the chase - BUY ADULT TICKETS FOR THE KIDS TOO. We booked our tour 2 months ahead of time and found out that children under 15 (I believe) were free. However, the children still need to have a ticket and when we got there for our tour, the children's tickets were gone. When we tried to get tickets, the person at the desk rudely said "NO" and turned to another customer on the opposite side of the counter. Not wanting my grandchildren to miss the experience, my wife and I didn't go in, so that the other 5 family members could attend. From my perspective, the outside of the building was nice, though there was some renovation going on.

When we arrived at the arranged meeting point we were told that our booking was unavailable. The excellent staff at “Once Upon a Time” tours organised a tour with another operator. I guess some operators cannot be trusted.

This was a total rip off! The person just handed us timed tickets that were face value. No introduction or tour of site was provided. These were at least 4x the ticket value. Half the museum was closed for remodeling and the museum was selling tickets at a reduced price for those not buying through this company!!! Don’t use them!!!