Katie F.

Katie and the Eyes of Rome team are the best! From the moment we booked we were well informed and updated with all details! Katie is incredible, she is able to organize the time to enable a thorough understanding of the work of art, the artist, what was happening at the time, and so many small details. We learned so much and especially how to appreciate the city and know how to understand the art, architecture, and symbols around the city. Priceless!!!! If you have a chance to work with Katie you will not be disappointed. We are already looking forward to our next visit to Rome and have selected the next set of tours with her.

Katie was an amazing guide. She gave us great insights into the vast collection held at the museum, the Sistine Chapel, and the Basilica. I’d highly recommend it.

Katie was probably the best tour guide I’ve ever had. Excellent in all areas, willing to answer questions, and extremely personable. Highly recommend her!

We opted for a private tour with hotel pickup of the Vatican Museums and St. Peter’s Basilica. It was our first full day in Rome and we slept right through our alarm! We are a larger family with four children ages 13-11-8-8. Katie was our guide and from the moment we met her, we knew it was going to be a fantastic day. She was patient and kind and understanding. This was the first time our kids had experienced jet lag or Europe for that matter. Katie rolled right along with it. It was evident that Katie was knowledgeable and extremely passionate about the history and information she was presenting. She picked out special nuggets of information that children would find interesting and they did! I have several photos of them listening intently to Katie while she shows them different sculptures and works of art. It was an eye-opening and wondrous experience for them and we are so grateful that Katie set the tone she did. We had FOUR more tours after Rome and they did so well! In fact a few times they asked each other who their favorite guide was and it was always unanimously Katie. But she didn’t just relate to kids - she related so well with my husband and I. A really good guide curates a tour based on their audience and knows when to tweak things midway through. When there was a delay in the doors opening to St. Peter’s from the Sistine chapel, Katie rolled with it and so did we. This tour was by far the best tour of Rome I have ever personally experienced. She brought the artwork to life through superior storytelling and forged a connection with her guests in a way that many people cannot achieve. Never in my wildest dreams did I think a group of kids would choose the Vatican as their favorite tour after a total of five tours in 12 days but they sure did. I truly cannot sing her praises enough. Next time we find ourselves in Rome, I will reserve her for the entire stay! She is one of those people you meet in a city thousands of miles away from home that you simply never forget. This was a 5-star tour in every way!

My wife and I took a tour with Katie & and it was incredible! Katie was super easy to get along with, was extremely knowledgeable, and lovingly answered all of my questions (I ask a lot of them). Having a private guide is a must when it comes to these sites. We were able to avoid large crowds and lines and had easy, personalized access to everything we wanted to see. 10/10 recommend!

Our family of four (with two sons, ages 20 and 22) had the absolute pleasure of spending an unforgettable day in Rome with Katie as our private tour guide — and we can’t recommend her and Eyes of Rome highly enough. Katie led us through the Vatican Museums, the Sistine Chapel, St. Peter’s Basilica, the Roman Forum, and the Colosseum with such incredible knowledge, energy, and warmth. From the very beginning, it was clear we were in the best hands. Her deep understanding of history and art was remarkable, but what truly set her apart was the way she brought everything to life — every story felt like a natural conversation, not a lecture. Even our sons, who can be hard to impress, were totally engaged and fascinated from start to finish. Katie also thoughtfully arranged a stop at a delicious local restaurant for lunch, which gave us a perfect break and a taste of authentic Roman cuisine. The hardest part of the entire experience? Saying goodbye at the end of the day. She made Rome come alive in a way we never expected, and it felt like leaving a friend behind. This was hands-down the best private tour we’ve ever taken — worth every penny. If you’re looking for a guide who is knowledgeable, personable, and passionate, Katie is the one. Highest praise and heartfelt thanks for an unforgettable experience!

Top top top experience with Eyes of Rome tour. Special call out to Katie who was our private tour guide. She was informative and so very personable. My husband and I had such a wonderful time with her. She was patient in explaining the history and was so full of stories. We loved every minute of it. Thank you to Eyes of Rome and to Katiw

We toured the Forum and Colosseum with Katie F. and she was so amazing! She didn't just point things out, it was like touring with a Roman history professor. She was so knowledgeable and fun to be with, the time just flew by. We did the Belvedere tour of the top of the Colosseum and it was simply breathtaking! We will definitely book with Eyes of Rome and Katie again!!

We did a private Forum and Colosseum (Belvedere level) tour with Katie and it was such a great experience! She is is friendly and knowledgeable, it was like touring with a Roman history professor. We also did a Vatican private tour with Elisa D. and she was equally as friendly and knowledgeable about everything Vatican. We learned so much history from both of these tours. All in all, this is a top level tour company and we will definitely recommend them to anyone we know visiting Italy! We would absolutely use them again the next time we visit Rome!

We took two tours with Eyes of Rome: Vatican and Colosseum. They were fantastic. The guides Katie and Marta were very knowledgeable. Highly recommend.

My wife and I recently visited Rome and one of our tours was the Roman Colosseum. Our tour guide was Katie Farrar.The highlight of our trip for me was the Colosseum,and it was made possible because of Katie. Her knowledge of the Colosseum was extraordinary,and her personality was both charming and pleasant. During the whole tour I felt like I was walking through the Colosseum with a life long friend. Thanks Katie for an unforgetable experience.

Our tour guide Katie is a historian who is very knowledgeable and friendly. She explained the details with pictures and old photos from her iPad made the Colosseum and Roman Forum live again. We had a most wonderful time and experience. Best value for money.

This was one of my favorite tours. Katie Farrah was our guide, and she was so knowledgeable. She took the time to explain Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel frescos so when we went in, we could easily follow the work. It was spectacular. I felt so close to heaven in that chapel. We went on to St. Peter’s Basilica and saw the Pieta and what a beautiful basilica it was. We thoroughly enjoyed this tour. Do not hesitate.

Our guide, Katie, was excellent! It was a very hot day and she took good care of us all while giving us great info about the sites. She had great stories and pictures and diagrams of what we were seeing. It really made history come alive for our kids (and us). I am still amazed about some of what we learned about the excavation of these sites. Highly recommend!

We took a private tour of the Colosseum and Forum with Katie Farrar. Our tour was in English; Katie is a native English speaker and also fluent in Italian. She was a phenomenal tour guide, and we highly recommend her. I’m sure it would be awe-inspiring to go to these historical sites even without a guide, but Katie made the experience so much more educational, insightful, and memorable. She shared critical historical context that put the ruins in perspective, and she adeptly answered our many questions. It was incredible to be able to ask a deeply knowledgeable guide about such a wide range of topics and to trust that we were getting accurate, nuanced answers. Katie brought an iPad with images that helped visualize what these sites would have looked like nearly two thousand years ago; that was a nice touch that helped further bring things to life. Katie also has a wonderful energy. She is clearly so passionate about these topics, and her genuine enthusiasm is contagious. If everyone had a history teacher with Katie’s knowledge and passion, we’d have many more students excited about the subject! She was also calm, patient, and accommodating to our needs, as we had our toddler with us. Arranging everything with Eyes of Rome was seamless, and their staff couldn’t have been kinder or easier to work with. We would love to take more tours with Eyes of Rome (and Katie in particular!) in the future and recommend them without hesitation.

There are simply not words to explain how amazing our tour with Katie was! Her knowledge, passion and love for everything we visited help to make this such a special day for us. Not only was she able to bring the historic landmarks to life, but she also talked with us about current life in Italy and was happy to answer ALL of our questions - both historical and current. The time absolutely flew by! Definitely do this tour, and DEFINITELY ASK FOR KATIE!

This tour was incredible. Katie our guide was exceptional knowledgeable and really customized the tour based on what we wanted to see. Pick up from the hotel was seamless. Massimo was early and after was willing to drop us off anywhere in Rome! He even recommended a restaurant, drove by to show us where it was and made us a reservation! Here's to exceptional service.

We booked with Eyes of Rome for the Private Colosseum and Private Vatican Tours. We did the tours on separate days. It was great to skip all the long lines and walk right into both places. We had Katie as our guide and she was AMAZING. Very knowledgable and super friendly. Katie made our first Italy experience extra special. Eyes of Rome did not disappoint…. From email communication before our trip to picking us up at our hotel. Highly recommend Eyes of Rome for your tour booking and Katie as your guide.

My adult daughter and I had a tour of the Colosseum and Roman Forum with Katie Farrar. She was an excellent and engaging guide with wide ranging knowledge. The information was pitched at the right level for us and very interesting. It was the highlight of our trip to Rome. She also provided us with some great recommendations.

Katie was an EXCELLENT guide for our tour of Ancient Rome (Colosseum & Ruins)! Personally, she’s just delightful and super chill. Sometimes, on a tour, you feel like you’re sticking out like a sore thumb, not so with Katie! In fact, it felt a lot like simply walking around with a friend who just happens to be an expert on ancient Rome! On that note, she is extremely knowledgeable and shared her knowledge in a casual way versus droning on about every obscure historical fact about every statue and ruin (like some tour guides do). My wife and I were both incredibly impressed with Katie and I cannot imagine a better guide. In fact, we tried our best to do another tour (the catacombs) with her but unfortunately, did not have the time ☹. However, we are referring Katie to all our friends and family traveling to Rome in the future. Request Katie specifically – you will be VERY happy you did!

KATIE gave us a fabulous tour! She is an expat and that actually made the tour very relaxing. She REALLY knows her stuff and you can tell it’s all still very interesting to her (even though she’s telling the same story all the time..haha!). We learned sooo much and the time flew by. And my hubby, who is a huge fan of this historic time, LOVED having someone to discuss all the “things” ;) We opted for a private tour which to us was worth it. We got picked up at our hotel, waited in zero lines, and got a more in depth personalized experience. That Colliseum and Forum require A LOT to digest and having a guide to ourselves made it enjoyable since it was done on our pace. Highly recommend! Great job Katie!

We have used Eyes of Rome and in particular their fabulous guide Katie for the past 8 years whenever we visit Rome. This trip she recommended this “the footsteps of Caravaggio tour” with the add on of a visit to a restoration studio. This was the experience of a lifetime. First the visit to the three churches with their Caravaggio paintings plus the wander through the back streets of Rome to view the apartment he rented (still in use!) made for a pleasant day. Katie’s knowledge of Caravaggio and his works and influence are mind expanding and well worth the morning walk through central Rome. The highlight was the visit to the restoration studio. WARNING This is very expensive but to us it was worth every euro. This studio had restored a Caravaggio. Their explanations and demonstrations on the painstaking work it takes to accomplish such a remarkable feat was again a lesson you would never get anywhere else. The amazing thing we have found about Katie and Eyes of Rome is their ease of transferring knowledge about your tour without overwhelming you with information. A tour well worth taking

One of my favorite tours ever was the Borghese Museum tour we took with Katie from EyesOfRome.

Huge thanks to Serena for a wonderful early morning tour of the Colosseum and Roman Forum on Monday. With our 6 and 3 year old in tow, this might have been a challenge, but Serena's hugely warm, friendly, enthusiastic, patient and understanding manner made it a delight for parents and children alike! Serena brought some fun activities for the kids, along with a gift of colouring pencils and all important sweets, which went down a treat and really helped the kids to engage with ancient Roman life (with a modern Haribo twist!)This really was a family friendly outing. Serena's experience meant we also avoided the worst of the crowds and tourist traps. Would love Serena to guide us again next time we're in Rome! She's lovely! Kate, Ben, George and Florence.

We took this tour as the second of 6 days of touring with Eyes of Rome in Rome and the adjacent areas. We extend the tour in advance by adding the Palatine Hill, the Hypogeum (or underground portion of the Colosseum), the Basilica di San Clemente and the Catacombs. The tour was scheduled to last six hours not including lunch. This was our second day touring with Katie. Katie wowed us on our customized City Walking tour and continued to amaze us on this tour. Katie was an Art History major who had gone to Rome on a Fulbright Fellowship and had never left. Katie changed the order of things to make them more efficient. We started out at the Basilica di San Clemente, which had an almost Byzantine looking apse. Like many churches in Rome, it was built on an older church which in turn was built on even older buildings. Portions of these have been excavated and are open via stairways. IMO, the older portion was even more interesting. We saw a mithraeum, a temple of the god Mithras that had been built into a private home. Katie took us to another room which had been the temporary home of Rome’s mint where we could hear running water (which was needed by the mint). After we left, Katie asked if we wanted to go into a nearby shopping mall, which made no sense until we saw that the basement wall included the subterranean water line leading to the mint. As you can tell from this aside, Katie knew the rest of the story and communicated it in an entertaining and informative way. We then walked past a portion of the old gladiator training grounds to the Colosseum for the Hypogeum tour. This was conducted by the Colosseum staff and not the Eyes of Rome guides. While the guide was good and informative, I was disappointed because the accessible area was so small relatively speaking. Due to time constraints we did not do the upper level of the tour and rejoined Katie. Personally, unless your dying to see the wood elevator, you should save your money and skip the Hypogeum. We then started climbing the Palatine Hill and toured the huge palace of Domitian. Katie told us about the now missing highly polished marble walls. We then toured the Farnese Gardens built on the northern portion of the hill with its fabulous views of the Forum. This to me showed ancient Rome at its best. By this time, we were hungry and Katie suggested we try Cavour 313 a wine bar/restaurant nearby. She accepted our invitation to join us but made it quite clear that it wasn’t necessary. I remember the food and wine were both good but I don’t remember enough to post a review. The price was moderate for 3 people with wine. At this point the only thing left was the catacombs. We took a taxi to the Catacombe di Santa Domitilla which was outside the old city limits. My wife and I knew not to expect bodies or skeletons like those in Paris, so the major thing to see were cutout shelfs in the wall. The number of small cutouts was a reminder of how many children never made it adulthood before the invention of vaccines and modern medicine in general. It was remarkable how well Katie knew the various passage ways pretty much like the back of her hand. She again told us a number of stories that kept our interest up. At this point my wife and I were pretty well toured out. Katie was going in a different direction but got us a cab using phone app to get us a cab and stayed around until it arrived After 2 days of touring, Katie and the Eyes of Rome exceeded our expectations in just about every way.

Our first time in Rome, we decided to treat ourselves to a tour. We were extremely impressed with this one! Katie our guide was very knowledgeable and friendly.

This was our first time in Rome, we treated ourselves to a tour, we had the best experience with Katie Farrar. She met us at our hotel, and we toured the Vatican. She made our time very enjoyable! She was extremely knowable, and took the time to show us extra information about the Vatican. We highly recommend Katie!

We had an amazing time with our storyteller, Katie Farrar! With her formal education, and her amazing ability to educate, she was able to entertain our three teenagers with wild facts, interesting tidbits, and even some scandalous stories. Our kids thoroughly enjoyed the tour of the Vatican, Sistine Chapel and St. Peter’s Basilica with her. We highly recommend her tours and hope to see her again when we return!

Our trip was fantastic because Marta and Katie picked us up two mornings each, they both took the stress out of lines and times. They both adapted to our family members, each conversing with our grandchildren, their parents, and the grandparents informing, teaching, and guiding us thru our Roman experiences with memorable excellence. We wholeheartedly recommend them. Thank you, both. Aubrey and Carol Haigler

We had a private tour with tour guide Katie. It was an excellent tour. Besides being pleasant and helpful during the tour her knowledge of the subject and detail of the history was very enlightening. We enjoyed the tour and learned a lot.

I booked the Vatican tour to fill our first afternoon in Rome so we could stay awake. With 7 family members to please, Katie our guide was fantastic. Despite the Saturday crowds, Katie found nooks and spaces for us to see amazing pieces of history and art, thoroughly explaining the Sistine Chapel before we entered. St. Peter's was a highlight, even though everyone was tired. Katie did another great job a couple of days later at the Colosseum, which captivated all the kids' imagination and interest. We had one-way transfer included, so it was very convenient to have Katie meet us at our apartment instead of rushing to find a meeting place. This was the second time we have booked with this company, and it was worth every penny.

We decided to indulge ourselves and book a private tour and we are very happy that we did. We had a wonderful guide, Katie, who was very knowledgeable, patient and just a nice person to spend half a day with. Our tour was very informative and pleasant especially as we could move easily without being in a large tour group. We asked questions that were always nicely fielded by Katie with in depth answers. To top off the great tour after it was over, Katie recommended a place for lunch that wasn't overrun by tourists and provided us the best pasta during our whole visit to Rome. There is a reason the ratings are so high as the guides obviously love what they are doing and make it a great experience for the clients.

One thing we look forward to each time we are in Rome is a tour with the Eyes of Rome. We request Katie as our guide and we truly have enjoyed all of them. She tells the story of the meanings behind paintings, what life was like spending a day at the coliseum and how the locals spent time in the catacombs visiting with their deceased family members, and of course the Vatican. All truly interesting tours so far and it's easy to learn about and book tours on their site. We've recommended Eyes of Rome to several people.

My husband and I booked this tour as part of our two week vacation. Our guide Katie met us at our hotel and got us to the Colosseum with ease. I was nursing a sore hip and she adjusted our itinerary to make sure I was comfortable throughout the day. I can not say enough about how wonderful Katie was, sharing her vast knowledge of the history of this amazing site. She answered every question and did a beautiful job of helping us to envision what was happening in the arena and the forum in ancient times. This tour was special and worth every euro. Thanks Katie and Eyes of Rome for this incredible experience.

We spent a wonderful morning exploring and Learning about various works in the Villa Borghese with Katie Farrar. She was great with our three young boys - very knowledgeable and patient.

spent the afternoon with our three kids touring with Elisa - she made the tour approachable and fun for the kids. We enjoyed it so much we signed up for the villa borghese with Katie which was equally interesting and fun.

This was the 3rd tour we had done with Eyes of Rome as each time we come to Rome it's exciting to share new and interesting places with these highly professional guides Katie was our guide this time and her knowledge was remarkable Her pleasant and friendly nature added to the delightful and informative tour of the Catacombs Di Priscilla and Chiefs San Clemente We highly recommend this company

We loved our tour guide and storyteller, Katie! She's fantastic and personable and keeps her clients interested throughout entirety of tours. Can't recommend enough!

We hired a guide from Eyes of Rome for two tours and the guide (Katie) was excellent. We saw catacombs one day and Ostia Antica another day. It was worth spending more to have our own private, well-informed guide. Thanks also to the admin staff who were so quick at returning our email requests.