Day Trip from Rome: Visit Castel Gandolfo and the Palazzo Pontificio
Hello my beautiful ladies and gents. It took a while, but at the end of January I finally treated myself to another day trip from Rome. In between exams and everything else, I felt like it was the perfect moment to get inspiration and, of course, take you along with me.
Castel Gandolfo has a little bit of everything, from beautiful nature to cute shops and restaurants, and of course the Palazzo Pontificio and its gardens, which I will tell you all about. In my opinion, Castel Gandolfo is the perfect budget friendly day trip from Rome, and after reading this article, you will understand why.
A short history of Castel Gandolfo
To start off with some basics, Castel Gandolfo is a town located about twenty five kilometres from Rome (or about fifteen and a half miles for my American readers, hi, I love you guys), in the Italian region of Lazio. It sits right on Lake Albano, a volcanic lake, and because the town is built on a hilltop, you get some really stunning panoramic views over the area.
It is safe to say that Castel Gandolfo is not very big. The main centre consists of just a few streets and one square, but it is incredibly charming. The most famous sight within the town’s boundaries is the Palazzo Pontificio, or in English the Apostolic Palace and its gardens. This palace has served as the summer residence and holiday retreat for most popes since the seventeenth century.
How to get to Castel Gandolfo
Travelling to Castel Gandolfo is very easy and, not unimportant, budget friendly. There are direct trains from Roma Termini to Castel Gandolfo that take around forty five minutes. A regional train ticket costs two euros and ten cents, and you will pay the same price for the return trip. Trains leave every hour, so you have plenty of flexibility to plan your day.
It is good to know that this train often leaves from platform twenty B at Termini. Platform twenty B is a normal platform, except for the fact that it is about three hundred metres further down than the other platforms. This means it adds a few extra minutes of walking and possibly a little sprint to catch your train, so I thought it was good to warn you about this in advance.
Train tickets can easily be bought through the Trenitalia app, which is my bestie at this point. You can pay with a credit card, PayPal, Google Pay, Satispay, Amazon Pay, or an online bank transfer. After paying, your ticket will appear in the app and will also be sent to your email. If the app does not work for you, there are plenty of ticket machines at Roma Termini where you can buy a physical ticket instead.
And if travelling to Termini station feels a bit overwhelming, I have written a public transport guide to Rome for beginners, so feel free to check that out if you need it.
What to do in Castel Gandolfo
Whilst Castel Gandolfo is not very big, there are still loads of things to do, and once you exit the station, the fun can start. From the station, it is good to know that you have to walk uphill for about ten minutes to reach the centre. It is very doable, but I can imagine it feels quite different in summer when it is almost forty degrees.
Explore the centre
One of my favourite parts of Castel Gandolfo is the many arts and crafts shops with beautifully made jewellery and other handmade items. Personally, I love necklaces and rings, and I definitely made a mental wishlist while walking past all the stores. They had lovely necklaces with dried flowers, for example, and one with a blue heart that I thought was so cute.
If you are more looking for a serene spot, the Chiesa di San Tommaso da Villanova is a beautiful church right on the main square. This church was designed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, one of the most famous architects and artists in Italy, and was constructed in the seventeenth century in the Baroque style. You can really see its characteristic features in the façade, the symmetry, and the decorative details, even though the church itself is quite small and intimate compared to some of the big Roman basilicas.
The Palazzo Pontificio
The main attraction in Castel Gandolfo is the Palazzo Pontificio, the papal palace. I booked my ticket in advance online, which I would definitely recommend, especially in high season, but you can also buy your ticket at the ticket office. If you do buy your ticket online, make sure to only purchase it from the official website of the Vatican Museums, since there are many fishy websites around that I personally would not really trust.
A ticket to the Palazzo Pontificio costs twelve euros, but since I am a student under twenty five, I paid the reduced price of only six euros. If you are a student under twenty five, it is good to know that this reduced price is often available at many museums in Rome, so this can save you quite a lot of money.
You can also add an audio guide to your visit for three euros, but personally I am not a big fan of it. I find a technological voice in my ear really takes me out of the fantasy, so I decided to skip this step. A visit to the palace starts with the entrance through the gardens, where you get a stunning view over the plains and Lake Albano. While I was there, I really appreciated the choice of location for the palace. I would have picked the exact same spot myself.
To be honest, it had been a long time since I visited a museum like this, but I really enjoyed it. You can walk through all the different rooms of the papal apartment, which are filled with beautiful decorations, art, and tapestries. Walking through some of the hallways made me feel like a character in Bridgerton, so if you are into that, I would definitely say let’s go.
Borgo Laudato Si’
Now, if you know me a little, yes, a museum makes me smile, but if you really want to make me happy, you bring me to a beautiful garden or nature park where I can read my book unbothered and in peace. Borgo Laudato Si’ is part of the Vatican gardens in Castel Gandolfo and is a special project created by the Vatican, focused on sustainability, nature, and education. It is not included in the price of your ticket to the Palazzo Pontificio and tickets need to be booked separately. The entrance is found on Via Massimo D’Azeglio, behind the entrance of the palace.
Since I just expressed my dislike for audio guides, imagine my slight disappointment when I found out I was not allowed to walk and roam freely through the gardens, but had to book a tour in one of those golf carts with an audio guide instead. There are tickets for a guided walking tour, but they only leave once or twice a day, so keep this in mind if you are like me and prefer to walk. In the spirit of curiosity, I decided to go anyway, because I could not resist seeing these famous gardens. I mean, if the usual visitor is the pope, it must be something, right?
Thinking back, I actually think this was my first time in one of those carts, and I must say it was a pleasant surprise. Since I was alone, I could sit in the front next to the driver, which also solved my audio guide problem, because I just started asking him questions in a great and comical mixture of Italian and English.
The tour takes around fifty minutes and brings you through all the different levels of the garden. At some points, you are allowed to get out of the cart to walk a little and take pictures, but most of the time you are being driven around. I really thought the gardens were stunning, even in winter. My tour guide said that his favourite time to be there is in May, so maybe I will go back there in spring.
My favourite part of the tour was the ancient trees. There is just something about them that makes me gravitate towards them, and in the future I would love to read more books to deepen my knowledge. A ticket for this tour at Borgo Laudato Si’ costs fifteen euros, but again I got a reduction for being a student under twenty five, so I paid ten euros. In the end, I had a great time, so I can highly recommend visiting these stunning gardens. Even in a golf cart, I think it is worth it.
Conclusion
As you might have guessed from this article, I really had a great time in Castel Gandolfo, and I would love to go back soon (maybe to buy that necklace). It is the perfect escape from the city after a busy week, although I do think that in high season it can get quite busy and crowded, so keep that in mind. If you need more inspiration for day trips from Rome, I have several more on my blog. And with that, I hope I can inspire you to discover all the amazing places around Rome.
