A villa perches over the town above ornamental gardens, its flat-fronted façade like an expensive stage set. It’s the 16th-century Villa Aldobrandini , designed by Giacomo della Porta and built by Carlo Maderno; it’s closed to the public, but you can visit the impressive gardens . These are a fine example of an early Italian Baroque garden, with the palace as the focal point, set dramatically into the wooded hill. Water features in the garden were designed by Orazio Olivieri, though many of the fountains no longer function.
Also worth a visit in Frascati, sharing the stable building with the tourist office, is the new Museo Tuscolano with artfully lit republican and imperial artefacts and interesting models of Tuscolo villas.
However, villas and views are all very well, but most people come to Frascati for the food and fresh white wine. You can pick up a porchetta panini (sandwich made of pork roasted with herbs) from one of the stands that do a brisk weekend trade around Piazza del Mercato, or head to the cantinas that dot the town, which usually sell porchetta, olives, salami and cheeses plus jugs of wine.
