A trip out to Tivoli, just east of Rome, makes for a perfect and relaxing day, when you need a little rest from extensive sightseeing in the city. Tivoli itself is a very pleasant town, perched on a hill but its main claim to fame lies in its country villas, Hadrian’s Villa and theVilla d’Este. The emperor Hadrian was very well travelled and when he decided to build a country villa, he was greatly influenced by some of the spectacular sights he’d seen on his travels. The result was probably the largest and most sumptuous villa in the Roman Empire and by any standards, it is huge and covers an area that would normally be occupied by a small town. The site became a sort of retirement home for Hadrian, from 135 AD until his death three years later.Here you will see the remains of peaceful and romantic gardens, pools, a theatre and baths, which were of course an essential part of any Roman villa.From here, you will visit the stunning Villa d’Este, built for CardinalIppolito d’Este in the mid-16th century. Its gardens and fountains are legendary but the restored ground floor apartments have some stunning frescoes.
