The Getty Villa in Malibu, Los Angeles

I was totally surprised at the beauty and size of the museum. I have been driving by the museum many times never thinking to visist. What a mistake. Visiting friends suggested we try it and were pleasantly surprised. You need at least 1/2 day to see all and have a small snack. Enjoy it !

The Getty Villa is an extremely accurate reproduction of the Villa dei Papyri in Herculaneum. When originally built by J. Paul Getty (who died before it was completed), the ground floor housed Greek and Roman antiquities and the upper floor was home to various paintings and French decorative art which are now at the Getty on the Hill. Since the remodel and reopening in 2006, all of the museum's contents are Greek, Roman and Etruscan and include statuary, jewelry, artifacts, pottery and glassware. And they are wonderful to see, but to me the real jewel is the Villa itself, and the gardens. All of the landscaping and gardens are accurate recreations of a Roman garden of the 1st century CE. The herb garden (just stand and inhale) contains exactly the sort of herbs which would have been grown in a Roman garden. I love the symmetry of the architecture and the tromphe l'oeil paintings on the walls, and since the Villa is far from any roads, the wonderful silence broken by nothing but birdsong. It's a very peaceful place. Now the few negatives: I would consider the renovated Villa to be handicapped accessible, but not particularly handicapped friendly, especially if you were in a wheelchair or scooter and didn't have anyone to open heavy doors for you. There is more walking in from the parking than before, and it's a hot walk in direct sunlight. I was disappointed in the gift shop, which is small and doesn't carry much. I wish/hope they will expand it at some point, or at least get more interesting merchandise. I did not like the food options at the Villa when I visited a year ago. There were exactly two: the restaurant, and a cart which at that time sold only coffee and pastry. In my opinion, the restaurant is overpriced for what you receive, and the menu choices are few and on the 'trendy' side. Forget it if you want a simple sandwich made of simple ingredients, and when I was there the only option for children was pizza. I understand that the menu may have changed since then. That said, I could spend all day at the Villa, just drinking in its beauty. I will continue to come on a regular basis whenever I can get tickets. It's very, very worth the trip!

I took my parents and relatives visiting from afar here a few weeks ago. We had an absolutely wonderful time enjoying the architecture and the gallery. I highly recommend the garden and architect tour!

The Getty Villa in Pacific Palisades near Malibu is a time travel trip into Herculeaneum just before 79 A.D. and the explosion of Vesuvius. The art treasures are magnificent, but the real jewel is the building and the setting itself. You leave busy Los Angeles and step back to a relaxing villa in southern Italia with incredibly beautify marbles, mosaics, rooms, peristyle, garden. The old Villa (prior to 1996-2004 remodel) is still my very favorite because you entered through the peristyle and there was less parking garage utilitarian-ism, but hey, you'll like it. First love is always the best. Be sure to take one of the short guided tours which will give you some insights to what it's all about. The restaurant is also a must do. We were there shortly after the re-opening and it was great. Real Wine Glasses! Can it keep it up? Don't know. The price of entry is $5 for the parking only. JPGetty specified that there would be no entry fee to the museum. Guess the parking fee is a get around.. but certainly not exessive by any standard. Be sure to call several weeks (maybe days?) ahead of your visit to get the parking reservation. I think you can still get in if you take the proper city busses or correct Taxi's that give you a "transfer" to the Getty Villa. That's to satisfy the NIMBYs in the area that you're not parking on the street and making their life miserable. Understandable. As for the Getty Museum on the hill.... I was prepared to not like it since my first love of the Villa was so vibrant. Who IS this interloper? I was wrong. But that's another world.