Rome.us
  • TAXI FARES CALCULATOR
  • BOOK PRIVATE TOUR
  • ABOUT US
  • TIPS
    • How to Choose a Hotel in Rome
    • Tickets to Vatican museums
    • Rome Three Day Itinerary
    • 2025 Pilgrims of Hope Jubilee
    • Rainy Days in Rome
    • Buying a Sim Card in Italy
    • Renting a Car in Rome
    • Apps for Tourists
    • Souvenirs from Rome
    • Free Things to Do
    • Unusual Things to do
    • Public Transport
    • Shopping
    • Instagram
    • ASK US
    • Pinterest
  • WHERE TO STAY
    • Hotels with Best Views
    • Hotels near Termini
    • Hotels near the Colloseum
    • Hotels near Navona Square
    • 3 Star Hotels
    • 4 Star Hotels
    • 5 Star Hotels
    • Apartments For Rent
    • Best Hostels
  • WHAT TO SEE
    • Colosseum
    • Pantheon
    • Borghese Gallery
    • Roman Forum
    • Trevi Fountain
    • Spanish Steps
    • Castel Sant’Angelo
    • Navona Square
    • Ancient Sites and Ruins
    • Caravaggio’s Paintings
    • Churches
    • Galleries and Museums
    • Parks and Gardens
    • Squares and Fountains
    • Hills
  • VATICAN CITY
    • St Peter’s Basilica
    • Sistine Chapel
    • Vatican Museums
    • Raphael’s Rooms
    • Michelangelo’s Pieta
    • St Peters Dome
    • St Peter’s Square
    • Vatican Gardens
    • Vatican Military
    • Swiss Guard
  • DAY TRIPS
    • To Tivoli
    • To Ostia Antica
    • Beaches near Rome
    • To Alberobello
  • WEATHER: WHAT TO WEAR?
    • January
    • February
    • March
    • April
    • May
    • June
    • July
    • August
    • September
    • October
    • November
    • December
  • HOW TO GET
    • Fiumicino Airport
    • Ciampino Airport
    • Termini Railway Station
    • To Venice
    • To Florence
    • To Ostia Antica
    • To Naples
    • To Milan
    • To Pisa
    • To Siena
  • WHERE TO EAT
    • Famous Roman Dishes
    • Best Pizza Places
    • Best Pasta Places
    • Local Italian Food
    • Best Gelato Places
    • Best Rooftop Bars
  • NEIGHBORHOODS
    • Campo Marzio
    • Jewish Ghetto Quarters
    • Quartiere Coppedè
    • Monti
    • Sant’Eustachio
    • Trastevere
    • Trevi
  • EMPERORS
    • Good Emperors
    • Marcus Aurelius
    • Gaius Julius Caesar
    • Nero
    • Octavian Augustus
    • Caligula
    • Hadrian
    • Vespasian
    • Commodus
    • Trajan
Home / Hills of Rome /

Pincian Hill

Written by: Artur Jakucewicz

Pincian Hill Rome Guide
Tip You can reach Pincian hill either by climbing the stairs on Piazza del Popolo or walk through Villa Borghese by following the signs towards the Pincian terrace.
Address Viale Gabriele D'Annunzio, Roma

Pincian Hill (Pincio) rises immediately north of the Quirinal Hill. Although it is not counted among the legendary Seven Hills of Rome, the Pincio remains one of the city’s most beloved viewpoints.

Contents

Toggle
  • History
    • Modern Era
  • What to See and How to Visit
    • Piazza del Popolo
    • Borghese Gallery
    • Trinità dei Monti – Church Above the Spanish Steps
    • Villa Medici
    • Fontana di Villa Medici – Cannon-Ball Fountain
    • Pincio Terrace – Villa Borghese Viewpoint
    • Water Clock of the Pincio
    • Propilei Neoclassici – Monumental Gates of Villa Borghese
    • Statua Enrico e Giovanni Cairoli – Hidden Risorgimento Drama
    • Porta Pinciana – Gateway to the Pincio
  • Nearby Attractions

History

In antiquity, the Pincio lay outside Rome’s original boundaries; only with Emperor Aurelian’s defensive walls (3rd century AD) was it brought within the city. Its modern name honours the Pincii, the powerful family that owned the ridge in the 4th century. Lush private gardens once covered the slopes, earning it the nickname Collis Hortulorum—the “Hill of Little Gardens.”

Ancient writers record that the ashes of Emperor Nero were interred in the Domitii family tomb on the hill’s flank.

Modern Era

Today, the Pincio embraces several renowned villas and crowns the sweeping Piazza del Popolo. Between 1802 and 1814, Napoleon commissioned French architect Giuseppe Valadier to redesign the entire area, blending formal terraces with the natural contours of the hillside. Valadier completed Piazza del Popolo in 1816, creating the elegant ensemble visitors enjoy today.

What to See and How to Visit

The highlights below fit comfortably into a half-day. Begin your exploration through one of three classic approaches:

  1. Piazza del Popolo ▶︎ Valadier Staircase ▶︎ Pincio Terrace ▶︎ Villa Borghese – the quickest route to the sunset lookout.
  2. Spanish Steps ▶︎ Trinità dei Monti ▶︎ Villa Medici ▶︎ Villa Borghese – panoramic city views on your left as you walk the ridge.
  3. Piazza Barberini ▶︎ Via Veneto ▶︎ Porta Pinciana ▶︎ Villa Borghese – a gentle uphill stroll through Rome’s Belle Époque quarter.

Piazza del Popolo

Pope Sixtus V commissioned the first major redesign of the “People’s Square.”

Piazza del Popolo and twin churches in Rome, Italy

Three great streets radiate southward from the square:

  • Via del Corso – Rome’s main shopping artery
  • Via di Ripetta
  • Via del Babuino – leading straight to the Spanish Steps

The 24-metre Flaminio Obelisk is at the center, brought from the Circus Maximus in 1589; the red-granite monolith is more than 3,400 years old. To the north rises Porta del Popolo, once the principal gateway for travellers arriving via the Via Flaminia. On the south side, twin Baroque churches—Santa Maria dei Miracoli and Santa Maria in Montesanto—frame the entrance to Via del Corso. The east side hosts Valadier’s monumental staircase up to the Pincio Terrace, Rome’s finest sunset balcony.

Address: Piazza del Popolo

Borghese Gallery

Housed inside the 17th-century Villa Borghese, the Borghese Gallery preserves one of the world’s most significant private art collections.

The Borghese Gallery and Museum

Cardinal Scipione Borghese, nephew of Pope Paul V, commissioned the villa from Flemish architect Giovanni Vasanzio and filled it with works by Bernini, Caravaggio, Titian, Raphael and others. Pietro Bernini’s landscaping later transformed the surrounding vineyard into the 80-hectare park Romans cherish today.

Website: borghese.gallery

Trinità dei Monti – Church Above the Spanish Steps

Commissioned by King Louis XII of France in 1502 and crowned with its twin bell-towers in the late 16th century, Trinità dei Monti presides over the Spanish Steps beside the Sallustian Obelisk.

Trinità dei Monti Church Above the Spanish Steps

Inside, don’t miss Daniele da Volterra’s celebrated “Deposition” and the anamorphic frescoes that spring to life from a single viewpoint. Step outside for postcard-perfect views down Via Condotti to St Peter’s dome.

Villa Medici

Ferdinando de’ Medici purchased this Renaissance palace in 1576.

Villa Medici on Pincian Hill

Since 1803 the complex has hosted the French Academy in Rome, transferred here on Napoleon’s orders so that young artists could immerse themselves in classical antiquity. The villa is open to the public on guided tours and rewards visitors with enchanting gardens and sweeping city views.

Address: Viale della Trinità dei Monti 1

Fontana di Villa Medici – Cannon-Ball Fountain

Created in 1589 by architect Annibale Lippi for Cardinal Ferdinando de’ Medici, this understated octagonal fountain re-uses an ancient red-granite basin perched on a baluster within a shallow pool.

Fontana di Villa Medici

A stray cannon-shot fired from Castel Sant’Angelo in the 19th century supposedly lodged in its rim, earning the nickname “Fontana della Palla di Cannone.”

Sheltered by pines just outside Villa Medici’s entrance, it offers a quiet pause before you continue into the gardens or toward the Spanish Steps.

Pincio Terrace – Villa Borghese Viewpoint

Pincio Terrace crowns the hillside just above Piazza del Popolo and is widely considered Rome’s finest sunset balcony.

Pincio Terrace Sunrise Views of Rome

From this balustraded lookout you can trace the Tiber’s curve, pick out St Peter’s dome and watch the city’s rooftops glow gold at dusk. A gentle five-minute stroll through Villa Borghese brings you here.

Water Clock of the Pincio

Hydro-chronometer Water Clock of the Pincio

Tucked beside a lily pond along Viale dell’Obelisco stands the Water Clock of the Pincio—a quirky 1867 hydro-chronometer designed by Dominican friar Gian Battista Embriaco and engineer Gioacchino Ersoch. Propelled entirely by flowing water, its exposed gears still tick away the hours, delighting passers-by with a slice of 19th-century ingenuity.

Propilei Neoclassici – Monumental Gates of Villa Borghese

Commissioned by Prince Camillo Borghese and completed by architect Luigi Canina in 1827-29, these twin neoclassical pavilions once formed the ceremonial gateway to Villa Borghese from Piazzale Flaminio.

Propilei Neoclassici entrance to Villa Borghese

Flanked by Corinthian columns and crowned with terracotta eagles, the Propilei echo the Propylaea of the Athenian Acropolis, marking the transition from bustling city streets to the park’s leafy avenues.

Statua Enrico e Giovanni Cairoli – Hidden Risorgimento Drama

This bronze group by sculptor Ercole Rosa (1883) captures Giovanni Cairoli, revolver raised, supporting his mortally wounded brother Enrico during their ill-fated 1867 raid on Villa Glori.

Statua Enrico e Giovanni Cairoli Pincian Hill Rome

Set back along Viale del Pincio, the monument is often overlooked, yet its raw dynamism and patriotic pathos embody the sacrifices that forged a unified Italy. Take a moment here to discover one of Rome’s most poignant—and least-noticed—memorials.

Address: at the start of Viale Adam Mickiewicz, beneath Terrazza del Belvedere

Porta Pinciana – Gateway to the Pincio

Built into the Aurelian Walls by Emperor Honorius around AD 402, Porta Pinciana once guarded the northern route into Rome along the ancient Via Pinciana.

Porta Pinciana on Pincian Hill

Known in the Middle Ages as Porta Turata (“walled-up gate”), it was reopened and flanked with side arches by Pope Pius IX in 1860. Legend has the disgraced general Belisarius begging for alms here; today the same modest arch ushers traffic toward Villa Borghese and chic Via Veneto.

Address: Via Vittorio Veneto 196

Nearby Attractions

Water Clock
2 min 300 ft 90 m
Pincio Terrace
5 min 820 ft 250 m
Santa Maria del Popolo
6 min 1050 ft 320 m
Piazza del Popolo
7 min 1180 ft 360 m
Villa Borghese Gardens
9 min 1480 ft 450 m
Trinita dei Monti Church
12 min 1900 ft 580 m
Spanish Steps
12 min 1940 ft 590 m
Fontana della Barcaccia
12 min 1970 ft 600 m
House of Monsters
13 min 2200 ft 670 m
Column of the Immaculate Conception
14 min 2300 ft 700 m

Author: Artur Jakucewicz

Artur Jakucewicz

I have lived in Rome for over 10 years and am glad to share my experience and knowledge. I love ancient history and architecture — author of travel guides in Italy for independent travelers.

Dive Deeper into Rome's Stories

Fiumicino Airport Terminal 3

22253 views

How to Get from Fiumicino Airport to Rome City Center

Visiting Sistine Chapel

933172 views

Sistine Chapel

Vatican Museums Guide

989087 views

The Vatican Museums

The Colosseum

108646 views

Colosseum

Visiting Pantheon in Rome

33711 views

Pantheon

Roman Forum in Rome Italy

25310 views

Roman Forum – Ultimate Guide for Antic History Lovers

What to See in Rome

26239 views

What to See in Rome – TOP 30 Tourist Attractions & Places

Hotels with best views in Rome

7536 views

Hotels with Best Views in Rome

Hotel Near The Colosseum in Rome

17550 views

Hotels Close to the Colosseum in Rome

Show more

About us

About us ROME.US Authors Kate Zusmann and Artur Jakucewicz
2025.We're Kate and Artur, a duo bound by our shared fascination with the Eternal City – Rome. Our paths, driven by a mutual passion for its timeless stories and architectural marvels, converged in a way we had never imagined.

Explore Rome

  • Shopping in Rome Ultimate Guide

    Where to Shop in Rome: Guide to the Best Shopping Streets

  • Colosseums in the world

    How many Roman Colosseums are there in the world?

  • Ostia Antica from Rome by Train

    How to get to Ostia Antica from Rome by Train?

  • velian hill

    Velian Hill

  • Best Vegetarian and Vegan Restaurants in Rome

    Best Vegetarian and Vegan Restaurants in Rome

Rome.us
  • social logo
  • social logo
  • social logo
  • social logo

This website uses cookies. For more info read the cookies policy

Rome.us © 2025. Created with love by Roman experts and guides.

  • Español
  • Deutsch
  • British English