Prices, booking fee and who pays what
The gallery's ticket page lists a €16 full ticket and a compulsory €2 reservation fee on every ticket category (checked 8 October 2026). The price can rise while a temporary exhibition is on, because exhibitions are part of the same route and the same ticket.
| Visitor | Ticket | Booking fee | You pay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adult | €16 | €2 | €18 |
| Adult, 17:45 slot | €11 | €2 | €13 |
| Aged 18–25 (EU rules, see below) | €2 | €2 | €4 |
| Under 18 | Free | €2 | €2 |
| Child aged 5 or under | Free | Exempt | €0 |
| Visitor with a disability, plus one companion | Free | Exempt | €0 |
The €2 youth price is valid up to the day of your 25th birthday. The Italian version of the page places it beside a condition: valid for EU citizens, citizens of non-EU countries with reciprocity, and holders of an Italian residence permit. That matches the Ministry of Culture's national rule for 18-to-25s. Under-18s enter free under the same national rules, but still need a booked slot.
For two adults and children aged 12 and 4, the total is €38: €18 + €18 + €2 for the 12-year-old, and nothing for the 4-year-old, who is exempt from the fee but still needs a reserved ticket. One purchase is limited to five tickets. If you book a free ticket, bring proof of your eligibility; without it, the free ticket is cancelled and you must buy a full one if any are left.
The time slots
Entry is controlled and happens only at the start of each hour. The visit page gives these shifts, each for up to 180 people (checked 8 October 2026):
| Enter | Leave |
|---|---|
| 9:00 | 11:00 |
| 10:00 | 12:00 |
| 11:00 | 13:00 |
| 12:00 | 14:00 |
| 13:00 | 15:00 |
| 14:00 | 16:00 |
| 15:00 | 17:00 |
| 16:00 | 18:00 |
| 17:00 | 19:00 |
| 17:45 | 19:00 |
The gallery opens Tuesday to Sunday from 9:00 to 19:00, so it is closed on Mondays, and also on 25 December and 1 January. The ticket office opens at 8:30 and closes an hour before the museum.
Because entry is by shift, there is no skip-the-line ticket, and the gallery says so. A queue forms just before each hour, but it moves quickly. Resellers charging extra for "fast-track" entry cannot get you in sooner, and the gallery accepts no responsibility for tickets sold above the official price.
How to book
The official channels are listed in the gallery's Info & FAQ:
- the Buy button on the official website, which opens the gallery's ticketing partner;
- the call centre on +39 06 32810, Monday to Friday 9:30–18:00;
- the ticket office at the museum, which also sells tickets for later dates and the last-minute tickets described below.
Tickets cannot be changed or refunded, so check the date and slot before you pay.
Free first Sundays and other free days
On institutional free days, including the first Sunday of each month, 25 April, 2 June and 4 November, entry is free but you still pay the €2 fee and must book. Tickets for these days go on sale 10 days before, and no last-minute tickets are sold. The next free days in 2026 are Sunday 1 November, Wednesday 4 November and Sunday 6 December, so their tickets open on 22 October, 25 October and 26 November respectively.
If every slot is sold out
The gallery keeps a small number of last-minute tickets at the ticket office. According to its FAQ, they go on sale from 20 minutes past each hour, give a 1 hour 30 minute visit, and the last one is at 17:50 with one hour inside. You can buy at most two per person, waiting can be long and nothing is guaranteed. At the same desk you can always buy for the next available date.
Bags, cloakroom and getting there
Only small bags and pouches up to 21 x 15 cm may go into the rooms. Medium and large bags, backpacks, shopping bags and luggage must go into the cloakroom, which takes only cabin-size trolleys and only while space lasts. Do not arrive with a large suitcase on your way to or from the station.
The gallery is inside Villa Borghese; the nearest park entrance is on Via Pinciana. From the Spagna metro station, the gallery's directions say to take line A one stop to Barberini, then:
- bus 52, 53, 63 or 83 to the Pinciana/Museo Borghese stop, or
- bus 61 or 160 to the S.Paolo del Brasile stop.
From Flaminio (line A), buses 61, 89, 160, 490 and 495 go to S.Paolo del Brasile. From Termini, buses 92 and 910 go to Pinciana/Museo Borghese. There are taxi stands on Via Pinciana and on Via Vittorio Veneto by Villa Borghese. For fares and tapping in, see Rome metro and bus tickets.
The Borghese is one of several timed tickets you may be juggling. The Pantheon sells named, timed tickets on a different platform: see Pantheon tickets and booking. The Colosseum sells named tickets with their own booking window: see what each Colosseum ticket covers.