vatican tour guides

Vatican Tours

Vatican City offers countless artistic and architectural treasures, and you’ll be able to make the m...

Our tours in Vatican

vatican tour guides

Pristine Sistine™ Early Entrance Small Group Vatican Tour

vatican tour guides

The Complete Vatican Tour with Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel & St. Peter’s Basilica

vatican tour guides

Rome in a Day Tour: Including Vatican, Colosseum & Historic Center

vatican tour guides

Pristine Sistine at Closing Time: Late Entry Vatican Tour

vatican tour guides

St. Peter’s Basilica from Top to Bottom with Dome Climb & Crypt

vatican tour guides

VIP Vatican Key Master’s Tour: Unlock the Sistine Chapel

vatican tour guides

Alone In The Vatican: Exclusive VIP Access Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel Tour

What to know about vatican from our local guides.

What should I not miss in the Vatican Museums?

The Vatican Museums house 70,000 of the world’s greatest artistic treasures, of which 20,000 are on display. From ancient Roman sculptures to Renaissance paintings, it would take days to discover it all, which is why we highly recommend booking a Vatican tour to help you make the most of your time at the museums.

A few of the collection’s undisputed highlights are:

  • The Sistine Chapel, adorned with Michelangelo’s legendary frescoes
  • The Raphael Rooms, which include the famous School of Athens
  • The Gallery of the Maps, perhaps the most famous of the Museums’ galleries adorned with 40 maps depicting the different regions of Italy
  • Laocoön and His Sons, an enigmatic masterpiece of ancient sculpture
  • The Belvedere Torso, which is said to have influenced the work of Michelangelo himself

Why is the Sistine Chapel so famous?

The Sistine Chapel is perhaps the most famous individual room in the entire world. This is in no small part due to the significant artistic masterpieces adorning its interior, with Michelangelo’s “The Last Judgment” and ceiling frescoes being the highlights.

Pope Sixtus IV, the chapel’s namesake, commissioned its construction in the late 15th century. Today, its best-known use is for the papal conclaves, the process through which a new pope is elected by the College of Cardinals. It also serves as the Pope’s own private chapel when he is at the Vatican.

Want to have the Sistine Chapel all to yourself, just like the Pope? Avoid the crowds on a VIP tour outside opening hours. For a truly once-in-a-lifetime experience, you can even accompany the Vatican Key Master himself as he opens the silent halls and galleries in the Vatican Museums early in the morning—including the Sistine Chapel.

What can I see inside St. Peter’s Basilica?

As the largest church in the world, St. Peter’s Basilica is itself a masterpiece of art and architecture. It houses some of the most significant religious art in the world, including Michelangelo’s moving Pietà sculpture and the Baldachin, Bernini’s massive bronze altar canopy.

Michelangelo was also the mastermind behind the famous dome crowning the basilica. Climbing the dome is a fantastic way to see not just the incredible mosaics lining the interior up close, but also to feast your eyes on spectacular views over Rome from the very top. Keep in mind that there are over 500 steps to get to the top of the dome from ground level, though an elevator is available to bypass approximately the first half. Underneath the Basilica, the Papal Crypts mark the final resting place of some of the most important Popes in Catholic history.

A guided tour of St. Peter’s Basilica will give you an up-close look at all of these treasures and more. Led by an expert art historian guide, you’ll see a side of the world’s most iconic church that few others get to experience.

Is it possible to get skip the line tickets for the Vatican?

The best and easiest way to ensure you skip the line at the Vatican is to book a guided tour . With no-wait access to the Vatican Museums and St. Peter’s Basilica, you’ll save precious hours of time that would have been spent in line. Plus, you'll be in the company of an insightful guide who can provide context on the innumerable masterpieces that can be hard to make sense of on your own.

What are the Vatican Museums’ opening hours?

The Vatican Museums are open Monday to Saturday from 9 am–6 pm. They tend to get more crowded the later in the day you go, so consider booking an early morning Vatican tour to get ahead of the crowds and ensure a more relaxed visit.

For an especially exclusive experience, consider joining the Vatican Key Master himself as he unlocks the silent halls, galleries, and even the Sistine Chapel first thing in the morning before the Museums open to the public. Accompanied by a small group of just 20 other people, the Key Master’s Tour is the most special way to experience the Vatican in total peace and quiet.

Don’t want to get up early? Another excellent option is to take a special access tour after closing time to wander the halls of the Vatican in peace—and have the Sistine Chapel all to yourself.

From May through October, the Vatican Museums offer extended opening hours until 10:30 pm on Fridays and 8 pm on Saturdays. Taking a night tour of the Vatican is a once-in-a-lifetime experience you won’t soon forget!

The Museums are closed most Sundays (except for the last Sunday of every month) and on certain public holidays.

What is the Vatican dress code?

The Vatican is a religious site, and official rules mandate that visitors dress appropriately or risk being turned away. All guests regardless of gender are required to keep their shoulders and knees covered. In warmer months, it’s useful to have a shawl, scarf, or light jacket handy to pull on when entering the Vatican if your outfit doesn’t meet the dress code standards. Additionally, hats are not allowed.

While the Vatican dress code doesn’t have any hard-and-fast rules regarding footwear, keep in mind that you’ll be doing a lot of walking on your Vatican tour. As long as you have comfortable shoes that are good for walking, you’re all set.

What are the best restaurants near the Vatican?

While there aren’t any restaurants within Vatican City itself, the surrounding Prati and Trionfale neighborhoods offer plenty of excellent options—particularly if you don’t mind walking a few blocks away (or further) from the Vatican walls. For a quick, on-the-go option, Anthony Bourdain-approved Bonci Pizzarium serves up some of the best pizza by the slice in Rome. In the mood for a sit-down meal after spending hours on your feet at the Vatican? Velavevodetto ai Quiriti—the Prati outpost of Testaccio icon Flavio al Velavevodetto—is perfect for home-cooked Roman classics.

Check out our popular Vatican articles

Pope John Paul II: The Man, the Pope, the Road to Sainthood

See Tours in Other Cities

Venice

Contact Information

walks logo

  • Help Center
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Cancellation Policy
  • Health & Safety
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Settings
  • Travel Agents

Vatican Guided Tour, Sistine Chapel, Vatican City, Vatican Museum Customized Private Tours, Official Travel Agency

  • Vatican Guided Tour

Rome by Night and Private tour of the Vatican Museum

  • Private Vatican Museums Tour + Colosseum at Night – Vatican Guided Tours

Sistine Chapel Private Tour – Official Vatican Museum Guided Tours and Tickets

  • Vatican Private Tour Guide | Official Vatican Private Tours and Tickets
  • Vatican Tours For Kids And Families Skip The Line Entry | Vatican Private Tours
  • Private Vatican City Tour For Kids and Treasure Hunt Experience
  • Vatican Early Entrance Tickets And Private Vatican Museum Guided Tour For Kids
  • Vatican tour with kids | Guided Tour of the Vatican by Night Tour for Families
  • Vatican Private Tour Pope’s Summer Residence From Rome
  • Private Sistine Chapel Tours And The Colosseum Arena Floor Vip Experience
  • Vatican Museum After Hours Private Tour With Aperitif – Vip Experience
  • Vatican Museum breakfast and tour | Early Private Tour Of The Vatican with Breakfast
  • Vatican Private Tours | Tour Of The Vatican City
  • Exclusive Tour of the Vatican-pope’s Summer Residence Gardens
  • Vatican Gardens private tour including Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel
  • Exclusive Vatican City Private Tour And The Best Of Rome In One Day
  • Vatican Museum By Night Private Guided Tour and Tickets
  • Private Vatican Museum Tours Exclusive Early Entrance
  • Vatican Private Guided Tours | Exclusive Guided Tour | Best Of The Vatican Museum
  • Express Private Sistine Chapel Tour and Vatican Highlights
  • Special Vatican Museum Guided Tour Cabinet Of The Masks
  • Vatican Tour – Small Group Tours
  • Vatican Gardens
  • Papal Audience and Vatican Group Tour
  • Catacombs Group Tour
  • Vatican and Colosseum Tours Semi-Private or Private guided Tours
  • Vatican City Early Access and Sistine Chapel Tour – Small Group or private tours
  • Early Vatican tours – Sistine Chapel early morning entrance and tour for Kids Small Group
  • Afternoon Vatican Museum Tour, Sistine Chapel Tours Small Group
  • Vatican Night Tour – Small Group Special VIP Entrance
  • Vatican Tour and Tickets – Best of the Vatican City Small Group Tour
  • Sistine Chapel Ceiling – Vatican Museums Immersive Tour – Michelangelo’s frescos
  • Semi-Private Sistine Chapel Early Entrance Vatican Tour
  • Sistine Chapel official Tour with Early Access and Private Express Tour of St Peter’s Basilica
  • Special Small Group Colosseum and Vatican Tour
  • Tour of the Arena Floor Colosseum Sistine Chapel Tour- VIP Entry
  • Special Semi-Private Vatican City Tour Up To 10 People
  • Vatican City Early Morning Tour Super Fast Track Colosseum’s Arena Tour
  • Semi-Private Tours – The Vatican City and Colosseum Tour Special Access to Arena
  • Papal Audience and Vatican Museums Tour
  • Rome Hop-on Hop-off Sightseeing Tour with Skip-the-line Colosseum
  • Papal Audience + Exclusive Visit to the Vatican and Sistine Chapel
  • Vatican Museum Disabled Access Skip-The-Line Guided Tour
  • Ancient Ostia Tour
  • Angels and demons
  • Borghese Gallery

Castel Gandolfo Papal Palace and Villas

  • Rome Catacombs Tour and Ancient Appian Way Private Tours
  • Colosseum Private Tours | Ancient Rome Guided Tours and Tickets of the Colosseum and Roman Forum
  • Ponza Island Tours | Day Trip From Rome To Ponza Island
  • Rome by Night escorted Tour | Private Tours Of Rome At Night VIP Chauffeured Service
  • Rome Shore Excursions | Rome Highlights Private Cruise Ship Excursion From Civitavecchia
  • Rome in one day Tour- Vatican Museum and Rome Private Tours in a day
  • Rome In 2 Days | Rome And Vatican City Private Tours In Two Days
  • Rome Walking Tour | Evening private walking guided Tours | A Stroll To Discover The Highlights Of The Eternal City
  • Tours of Tivoli Day Trip From Rome | Tivoli, Villa D’Este and Villa Adriana guided Tours And Tickets
  • Rome Hop-on Hop-off Bus Tour and Vatican Museum tour
  • Skip-the-line Colosseum & Vatican Museum Tour
  • VIP Tour Vatican Museum & More
  • Vatican Museum Group Tour & Rome Private Sightseeing
  • [email protected]

vatican tour guides

  • +39 0669348035
  • 08:30 AM - 8:30 PM Rome (IT) Local Time

vatican tour guides

VATICAN MUSEUM SPECIAL OFFERS

Vatican Guided Tour

VATICAN MUSEUM GROUP TOURS

vatican tour guides

VATICAN CITY PRIVATE TOURS

Vatican Guided Tour

TOURS OF THE  VATICAN MUSEUM  EXCLUSIVE TOURS

Best   tours, choose between our small group tours & private tours.

Vatican Guided Tour

View all Tours

Want us to tailor your next experience in Rome and the Vatican?

Groups-Small & Big Group Deals Private-Personalized Tour

Customized itineraries for special events! 

Latest  blog  news, vatican city information, events, and news.

Vatican Guided Tour

Rome Guido Reni in Rome Borghese Gallery

Rome Guido Reni, Private Tours in Rome Borghese Gallery The Sacred and Nature. The Guido ...

Michelangelo's Pieta, Pity ( Pietà di Michelangelo) St. Peter's Basilica Vatican City Rome, Official Private Guided Tours to Visit the Vatican Museum 

Michelangelo’s Pieta, Pity ( Pietà di Michelangelo) Official Tours St Peter’s Basilica Vatican City Rome

Michelangelo’s Pieta, Pity ( Pietà di Michelangelo) St Peter’s Basilica Vatican City Rome, Official Private ...

Vatican Guided Tour

Castel Sant’Angelo Rome Information to Visit the Tomb of Hadrian Official Guided Tours (Mausoleum of Hadrian)

Castel Sant’Angelo Rome Information to Visit the Tomb of Hadrian (Mausoleum of Hadrian) Rome Castel ...

Saint Peter's Square, Visit the Basilica of St Peter's, Vatican City private tours, Official Guided tours to discover the Holy See in Rome.

Saint Peter’s Square

Saint Peter’s Square, Visit the Basilica of St Peter’s, Vatican City private tours, Official Guided ...

Online Enquiry Form

vatican tour guides

The Catholic Traveler

  • Pilgrimages
  • Rome Day Tours
  • In the Media

Guided tours of the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel

vatican tour guides

The Catholic Traveler’s Guide to Rome is offered completely free to be sure you have the best pilgrimage experience – and is only possible because of my generous supporters. Please consider supporting my work through Patreon or Substack , or a one time tip through Venmo . 🤍

I think most people can get by touring the Vatican Museums on their own without a guide. Simply using an audio guide or a guide book is all most need. Here’s why…

Nearly 30,000 people visit the Vatican Museums each day.

30,000 people. Every day.

vatican tour guides

This looks miserable because it is miserable.

Some of the best works of art are housed in the Vatican Museums. There are some amazing private guides. Despite this, the biggest complaint I hear about visits to Rome is how miserable the Vatican Museums were.

Plus, admiring beautiful art is a very personal thing. If you go alone, you can go at your own pace. You can sit and enjoy a work of art. You can venture off the typical tourist itinerary – there’s a reason it’s Vatican Museum s and not Vatican Museum. There are lots of galleries in the Museums that most people never visit.

Go it alone

You can, and should, book a ticket to the Vatican Museums on their official website.

The Museums are nearly always packed, but later in the day the crowds start to thin out.

My favorite time to visit is during the Night Openings of the Vatican Museums . This is seasonal and a really cool and unique experience.

Another new(ish) option is to book breakfast at the Vatican Museums . You pay a little more, but get in before the crowds. If you go this route, go straight to the Sistine Chapel to enjoy it before the crowds. Then you can back track and visit the rest of the Museums.

Guided tours

If you feel you need a guided tour, you have tons and tons of options. I’ve listed some of the best here…

For a private guided tour, I recommend Agnes at Understanding Rome . She’s professional, fun, and engaging. You should let her know I sent you. You should also book early as she’s quite popular.

One of the best guides out there is Liz Lev . She’s often booked solid and also a bit more expensive than most other guides, but she’s worth the price. She’s a good friend, let her know I sent you.

If you have the means, I highly recommend becoming a Patron of the Arts for the Vatican Museums . The perks are amazing, the price probably isn’t as much as you’d expect, and the guides are excellent. In fact, the first time I took a Patron tour, my guide was the same woman who guided U.S. Presidents Clinton, Bush, and Obama – and it was just the two of us.

The official Vatican Museum tours are hit or miss. More often than not, it’s a miss. Once I had the Vatican assign an excellent guide to me. Once. Don’t get me wrong, there are a few great guides employed by the Museums, but you don’t get to pick.

What to avoid

Any of the big tour companies in Rome – especially if you are Catholic. I lived across the street from one of the biggest companies (even endorsed by the Vatican) for two years, I heard nonstop bashing of the Church. I currently live across from another one of the big ones, I don’t hear Church bashing every day, but the tours sound really lame.

Anyone who harasses you near the Vatican to “skip the line.” It’s a rip off. Just don’t.

Join my email list for travel tips, pilgrimage announcements, and stories from nearly 20 years of leading pilgrimages.

Click here to read the most recent newsletter.

  • Where to Stay
  • Where to Eat
  • Best Time to Visit Rome
  • Top 10 Tips for Rome
  • Bathrooms in Rome
  • What to Pack & What to Wear

Money Matters

Getting Around

Getting to Rome

  • Learn Italian
  • Can You Travel to Rome Right Now?
  • Italy Green Pass - do you need one?
  • Rome Coronavirus News & Updates
  • Rome & Vatican Tours
  • Italy Tours
  • Transfers & Transport
  • Sign up & get a FREE ebook  Subscribe Today!
  • Romewise Home Page
  • Rome Tourist Attractions
  • Visiting the Vatican

Visiting the Vatican - Top tips you need to know!

elyssa profile

By Elyssa Bernard

November 21, 2023

Planning on visiting the Vatican when you come to Rome?

Here's everything you need to know!

saint peter's basilica

Visiting the Vatican - everything you need to know

Here is what you really need to know about visiting the Vatican:

  • When to go ? (what time of year and time of day)
  • What to see ? (St. Peters Basilica and the Vatican Museums, and much more!)
  • Which should you visit first, the Vatican Museums (Sistine Chapel) or Saint Peter's Basilica ?
  • How to skip the lines for Saint Peter's Basilica ?
  • How to get tickets/skip the line to the Vatican museums ?
  • Can you just visit the Sistine Chapel ? 
  • Can you see the Sistine Chapel without crowds ?
  • How do you visit the Vatican Gardens ?
  • How do you visit St Peter's tomb ?
  • How to plan all your Vatican visits for your trip ?
  • How to get to the Vatican ?
  • Where to eat near the Vatican ?

The first time I came to Rome as an adult, I missed seeing the Sistine Chapel because I had no idea the Vatican Museums closed at 2pm (long before smartphones and Google, ahem.) 

It must have been a Free Sunday, when the Vatican Museums are open and free but with reduced hours.

Now that I live here, I go often to Saint Peter's Basilica , Saint Peter's Square , and the Vatican Museums .

I also helped thousands of our guests plan their visits in the 17 years we ran our B&B .

Based on years of first-hand experience, I know how to tell you what to do and what not to do.

You can avoid a stressful visit to the Vatican by reading my tips first!

vatican tour guides

QUICK FACTS ABOUT VISITING VATICAN CITY

  • You don't need a passport.
  • Vatican City is a separate state from Italy, with just over 500 residents.
  • The two main places to visit are Saint Peter's Basilica and the Vatican Museums (where the Sistine Chapel is.)
  • The pope is head of Vatican City.
  • The pope's church is not Saint Peter's Basilica. It is Saint John in Lateran.
  • You can visit the Vatican, and you can stay nearby, but you cannot sleep inside the Vatican.

Visiting the Vatican - When to go

queue at saint peters in summer

  • There really is no "best day" for visiting Vatican City, i.e. when there are fewer people. The Vatican is Rome's most popular tourist destination and is pretty much always busy. You might consider Tuesday or Thursday as your best bets. Dates around a weekend can be a bit busier, and on Wednesday there is (usually) the Papal Audience , meaning even more crowds.
  • In the mornings, many tour groups show up, including those offering early skip-the-line access. Also, people in general come early to try to "beat the line," so you may find the Vatican Museums much more crowded in the early morning than you expect, and  slightly less crowded in mid-afternoon.
  • St Peter’s Basilica and the Vatican Museums tend to be even more crowded on Saturdays , when Rome fills up with weekend visitors.
  • The Vatican Museum is closed Sundays, except for the last Sunday of every month , when they are free . This is the most crowded day you can imagine for visiting the Vatican Museums .
  • On Wednesdays (except for  July , when the pope generally takes a break ), the pope holds an audience at St Peter's Basilica . In warmer months, it will be in Saint Peter's Square . In colder months, or if it's raining , it will be in an auditorium-type hall just to the left of the basilica. This means that the whole area will be packed due to all the people who attend the papal audience , many of whom visit the Vatican Museums after the audience.
  • If you do visit Vatican City on a Wednesday , know that St Peter's Basilica will be closed until the papal audience is over (around 12-1pm.)
  • As for time of year, winter low season months are best if you want to be more relaxed and find smaller crowds . This means most of December ( except  December 8 , and Christmas through the Epiphany, January 6 ), January and February . Believe it or not, it's just as crowded at to visit Vatican City between Christmas and January 6 as it is during summer.
  • Here's  how and when to include visiting the Vatican in a 3-day itinerary in Rome .

saint peter's square on january 2

IMPORTANT TIP :

To visit St Peters Basilica and the Sistine Chapel, you must be properly dressed : no bare knees, midriffs or shoulders.

Sandals and jeans are fine.

Be careful when wearing knee-length shorts and skirts; the opinions of the Vatican guards as to what is acceptable may vary.

You may wish to bring a sarong or wear the kinds of shorts that have attachable legs, such as hiking trousers .

In a pinch, you will find plenty of vendors just outside the Vatican, who sell t-shirts or scarves.

No matter what season you visit Rome, here are 4 things never to leave at home:

Hydro Flask 24 oz Standard Mouth with Flex Cap Stainless Steel Reusable Water Bottle Lupine - Vacuum Insulated, Dishwasher Safe, BPA-Free, Non-Toxic

Disclosure: If you make a purchase through a link on this page, I may receive a small commission - at no extra cost to you. Thank you for supporting my site!

Visiting the Vatican - What to see?

The main things to see when visiting the Vatican are  Saint Peter’s Basilica  and the  Vatican Museums .

You can see one and not the other, although v isiting both in a single day is very do-able.

Looking for Michelangelo's masterpieces?

Michelangelo’s Pietà is inside Saint Peter's Basilica.

Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel is inside the Vatican Museums.

Michelangelo's pietà

Just try not to plan any other big visit like another museum or archeological site like the Coloseum  for the day you visit the Vatican, as you will be pretty exhausted.

Do you really want to visit the Vatican and Colosseum in one day? Here's how!

Or take the stress out of it by taking this "Rome in a Day" Tour with Vatican, Colosseum & Historic Center.

To get the most out of your visit to the Colosseum, take a VIP Colosseum Underground Tour with Roman Forum & Palatine Hill.

St Peter's Basilica

Saint Peter’s Basilica  is a Renaissance-era church and by many standards, the world’s largest. 

The Vatican is a basilica but not a cathedral, as it does not have its own bishop.

st peters basilica central nave

The main cathedral of the “Bishop of Rome”, as the pope is called, is San Giovanni in Laterano , or Saint John in Lateran .

But the pope is head of Vatican City , where he resides.

It's a little confusing isn't it?

Anyway, just think of the Vatican as a huge church, with a lot to see inside.

Click here to read more about what exactly the Vatican is.

Click here to visit my dedicated page all about Saint Peter's Basilica and its history, and things to see and do there.

St Peter's Dome

It's very much worth  visiting the basilica's dome , but you should know it can get a little crowded up there, and there are a LOT of steps.

dome inside st peters

The first level is 231 steps, but there is an elevator option. ( Someone in a wheelchair or with walking difficulties can take the lift to this first level.)

The second portion is another 320 steps, with no elevator option.

The dome gets narrower as you go up, so you will be climbing this part single file, and with the roof slanting over your head.

I say this as someone with a close relative with vertigo: you may want to avoid climbing the dome at the Vatican if you suffer from vertigo or claustrophobia.

But if none of that is an issue, then do it!

You'll love the views from up there, both of the church and of the surrounding city.

Visit my dedicated page all about Saint Peter's dome and how to climb it.

Michelangelo’s Pieta

My favorite piece of art inside of  St Peter's Basilica  is Michelangelo’s Pietà .

Actually, it may be my favorite piece of art in the world.

An exaggeration?

I can't help it...just look at it:

michelangelo's pietà

It’s on your right as soon as you walk inside Saint Peter's Basilica.

When I visited it with my mom, she cried, saying “look at her face, it’s just about a mother’s love for her child."

Unfortunately, someone wielding an axe once attacked it, and it’s now behind glass.

But you can still see it very well.

And take note of Mary’s face.

It’s really special when you see it in person.

Michelangelo Tidbit :

This was one of Michelangelo’s first major works.

He made it when he was only 22.

He was not sure people would know he did it, so he snuck in late one night and carved his name (Michelangelo Buonarroti) on Mary’s sash.

The Pietà is the only sculpture Michelangelo ever signed (or needed to sign.)

Vatican Grottoes - The Tombs of the Popes

Inside Saint Peter's Basilica, you can go down one level and see the area where some of the popes are buried.

bernini's baldachino (canopy) inside saint peter's basilica

Saint Peter is said to be entombed just underneath the church .

This is why many popes are also buried here. 

It's quite interesting to visit the popes' tombs , called the Vatican Grottoes   - there is a lot of history down there.

Don't worry, it's not dark or claustrophobic.

On the contrary, it's a huge open space full of light and lots to see (no photos allowed.)

To visit the Vatican Grottoes, get up close to Bernini's Baldachin and look for the entrance nearby.

It's free to visit the Vatican Grottoes.

You should make sure you are done visiting the basilica or have a plan to go back up, because the normal route through the grottoes has you exit the basilica entirely.

Not to be confused with St. Peter's tomb

When people talk about visiting the Vatican grottoes, they are referring to a place where you can see the tombs of many popes (as I wrote above.)

But this is not the same as visiting the  Vatican Necropolis , where St. Peter is said to be buried.

A  visit to Saint Peter’s tomb , also referred to as a scavi  visit, is a special and wonderful thing to do, and I highly recommend it. (" Scavi " means "excavations".)

It is a delicate archeological site, and they only take 250 people in per day, in 12-person tours at a time, so you must  book way in advance . (No photos allowed.)

NEW FOR 2024!

The archeological area of the Vatican Necropolis of Via Triumphalis is now open for visitors.

This is an ancient Roman burial site that is within the Vatican walls and before now was very difficult to get access to.

You can only enter as part of an official Vatican tour group, and tickets need to be purchased through the official website .

This is an entirely separate visit, so you will not have access to either St Peter's Basilica or the Vatican Museums.

The Vatican Museums

The second major site to visit at the Vatican is the Vatican Museums.

Ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in Vatican museums

This is the part about Vatican City that will take most of your time and energy.

The Vatican Museum contains the world’s largest private art collection (and just imagine that much of the art they own is not even on display!)

They are called "museums" and not just singular "museum" because the museums were started in 1506 and have been added to many times over the centuries.

They now occupy many different buildings all connected to on another.

That's one reason there is so much to see!

You will see a lot of art inside the Vatican Museums, including paintings, sculptures, ancient artifacts, and much more.

I think the number one thing people want to see when they visit is the Sistine Chapel.

For more about the Vatican Museums and Sistine chapel, visit my dedicated pages:

  • Visiting the Sistine Chapel
  • Michelangelo and the Sistine Chapel
  • Visiting the Vatican Museums
  • Vatican Museums Must Sees
  • Vatican Museums Tickets
  • Vatican Museums Tours
  • Vatican Secret Rooms

fennel salad at sorpasso near the vatican

More things you will see at the Vatican:

Besides the two main sites - the museums (Sistine Chapel) and the basilica, there are more things you will see when you visit Vatican City.

Look for these as you walk around:

St. Peter's Square

It would be easy to take Saint Peter's Square, Piazza San Pietro in Italian, for granted.

After all, if you're beelining to get into the basilica, you might be focused on the security queues and wondering how long you will have to wait.

saint peter's square at dusk

But St. Peter's Square, also called Vatican Square, is worth visiting and enjoying by itself.

It's the only part of Vatican City you can visit without any tickets or queuing.

If you have very limited time , you may even decide that this is about as much as you want to see of Vatican City, since everything else involves queues and/or tickets plus an involved visit inside.

Click here to visit my page all about St. Peter's Square, its history, and what to see.

The Swiss Guard

You might spy one or more of the Swiss Guard at the gate to Vatican City.

swiss guard at vatican city

The Swiss Guard wear different outfits depending on their duties, but they are all dressed in costumes originally designed in the early 1500s (although not by Michelangelo, an urban myth.)

swiss guard at the vatican

The Swiss Guard have a specific duty to guard the pope's life and Saint Peter's Basilica.

They are the world's smallest army and they are very well trained.

You will not see the Swiss Guard at the Vatican Museums.

There, you will see Vatican Museums guards who dress in more modern attire.

The Leonine Walls

In the 9th century, Pope Leo IV had defensive walls built around Vatican City following the sacking by raiders of Old St. Peter's Basilica in 846.

You can still see those walls today in and around the Vatican, especially if you visit the Vatican Gardens .

leonine walls at the vatican

You can also see parts of these walls surrounding Saint Peter's Square on the side where the security gates are, and along the way from the Vatican to nearby Castel Sant'Angelo .

Click here to read a more detailed yet brief history of the Vatican.

For more Vatican history, check out these dedicated pages:

saint peter's square

The Vatican Post Office

Don't miss a visit to the Vatican Post Office if you want to mail any postcards. 

vatican post office

It's easier and more efficient than going to the Italian Post Office, and your mail will get there faster!

There is also a Vatican mailbox up on the roof ( Saint Peter's Dome ), and usually another post office in Saint Peter's Square .

More sites you can visit in Vatican City

Besides Saint Peter's Basilica and the Vatican Museums, there are some more sites you can visit in Vatican City.

You have to pay for these (and for the scavi and gardens, you must book in advance.)

You will find more details about each one on their respective dedicated pages:

  • Saint Peter's Tomb (Vatican Necropolis or Scavi )
  • Saint Peter's Dome
  • Vatican Gardens

Which to see first - The Vatican Museums/Sistine Chapel, or St. Peter's Basilica?

If you book a tour of the Vatican, usually this means taking a guided tour of the Vatican Museums , which ends with the Sistine Chapel .

Some tours include taking the shortcut from the Sistine Chapel into St Peters Basilica.

There has been some back and forth recently about whether the shortcut is available or not, but for now, it is once again the case that  you can only take the shortcut  from the Sistine Chapel to  St Peter's Basilica  if you are on a tour that  INCLUDES  the basilica.

The Vatican can, and does, change their mind frequently on this matter, so if it is important to you to be able to take this shortcut, I recommend booking a tour that ends in St Peter's Basilica to be on the safe side.

If you are on a tour that ends in the Basilica the decision is made for you.

But if you are taking a Vatican Museums tour that does not include the Basilica, or if you are visiting the Vatican Museums on your own, you'll have to decide what order to visit the museums and the basilica in, assuming you want to visit both on the same day, which many people do.

How long does it take to visit the Vatican Museums?

vatican museums pinecone courtyard

To  visit the Vatican Museums  (where the Sistine Chapel is),  you need a purchase a ticket  (unless you  come on the Free Sunday .)

Once inside, even if you go quickly, you will need about 2 hours for this this visit.

If you are not able to take the shortcut from the Sistine Chapel to Saint Peter's basilica, you will exit the museums where you entered them.

vatican museums entrance and exit

This is about a 15-20 minute walk from Saint Peter's Square and the entrance to the basilica.

Click here to see a map of Vatican City and how far apart the entrances of the Museums and the Basilica are  (it opens in a new window.)

St Peter's Basilica Shortcut

You can only take the shortcut from the Sistine Chapel to St Peter's Basilica if you are on a tour that INCLUDES the basilica.

The shortcut is open from 9:30 am - 5 or 5:30PM, and it's ONLY accessible to tour companies or private guides that you book OUTSIDE the Vatican Museums website.

The Vatican Museums does not have any ticket or tour that includes the shortcut.

This means that you won't have access to the shortcut during the  KeyMaster tour , the  Extra Time tour , or any other tour that does not specifically include the basilica.

If you book any tour of the Vatican Museums, you can check the details to see if it finishes in the  Sistine Chapel  or the basilica.

Click here to view a map of Vatican City  (it will open in a new page.)

How long does it take to visit Saint Peter's Basilica?

A visit inside Saint Peter's Basilica could take anywhere from 1-2 hours, not including the time you spend in line waiting to go through security (assuming you go through security in the front and do not take the shortcut from the Sistine Chapel.)

To visit Saint Peter's Basilica, you do not need (nor can you buy) tickets, as it's free to go inside.

But you do have to wait in the line for security, which is airport-style - there is an x-ray machine to put your items in and you will walk through a metal detector.

long lines at saint peter's basilica

And that can cause the queues to get pretty long.

Lately, the lines to get into Saint Peter's Basilica have been so long, they are looping back again around the square.

Wondering which tour to take of the Vatican Museums?

Visit my page about Vatican Museum tours to find out all the options!

If you book a Vatican Museums tour that does not allow you access to the Basilica, and/or you want to visit the Basilica separately, even on a different day, I'd suggest getting to Saint Peter's Basilica when it opens at 7 AM (if you want to avoid the line).

The lines are longest from about 10 AM - 5 PM, and in high season can be long throughout the day, even from 7 AM until closing!

Skipping the lines at Saint Peter's Basilica

The easiest way to skip the lines at Saint Peter's Basilica is to visit it using the shortcut from the Sistine Chapel (which currently is only available on booked museum tours that end in Saint Peter's Basilica).

There has been some back and forth recently about whether the shortcut is available or not, but for now, it is once again the case that  you can only take the shortcut  from  the Sistine Chapel to  St Peter's Basilica  if you are on a tour that  INCLUDES  the basilica.

As of now, you cannot do this  unless you are on a tour .

If you only plan to visit Saint Peter's Basilica , and not the museums, or you decide to visit these two sites separately, you can avoid the queues by following the tips in my video above:

  • Come when it opens at 7 AM
  • Come in Low Season
  • Book a visit to Saint Peter's tomb
  • Use the Pilgrims' entrance - reserved for prayer or attending mass or confession

Wondering where the bathrooms are at the Vatican?

Find out here .

Brief History of Vatican City eBook

The history of the Vatican stretches back thousands of years, and to know everything about this incredible micro-state would take a lifetime to learn.

With this eBook, discover the brief history of Vatican City - where it got its name, who built the basilica, where the Popes are buried and more!

Topics covered include:

  • Details about the Vatican's origin , going back to the time of Ancient Rome
  • The role important artists such as Michelangelo played in the creation of the Vatican as we know it today 
  • How the Vatican came to be an independent city state within the boundaries of Rome

What else is included in this Brief History of Vatican City e-book?

  • 50+ pages of information covering all areas of the Vatican's history
  • Dozens of stunning and original photos showcasing the Vatican
  • Insightful diagrams and drawings to help illustrate the more detailed elements of the Vatican's history
  • + much more!

brief history of vatican city ebook

Look inside:

brief history of vatican city preview

Only $8.99!

colosseum

Skipping the line to get into the Vatican Museums

This may be the number 1 question I get about visiting Rome - How to skip the line for the Vatican Museums?

It's quite simple:

  • You can pre-purchase tickets to the Vatican Museums through the Vatican's website . This means that you will not have to stand in the line waiting to buy tickets. You will, however, have to wait in a very short line of others like you, who have pre-booked tickets and have to pick them up. (The tickets you purchase in advance are more of a voucher, and they must be converted into physical paper tickets to enter the museums.) You also still need to go through security as everyone does. So you do not entirely skip the line, but your line will be much shorter.
  • You can pre-purchase tickets to the Vatican Museums through a ticket reseller . There is usually a small surcharge for this but it can be worth it due to 1) Ease of use and/or 2) the possibility of finding tickets available here when tickets are not available on the Vatican Museums' website.
  • You can purchase an Omnia Pass  or Turbo Pass .  These will also get you a tour with a guide from the Vatican Museums, as above. It’s not as simple as it sounds and you will need to be careful to understand what you are getting into. Click here to go to my page about the Roma Pass and Omnia Pass  or to this page about other Rome City Passes for more details about these passes.
  • You can  book a tour of the Vatican Museums , either with a tour company or with the Vatican Museums themselves.  Your entry tickets are included in the tour, so you only have to go through the security line.
  • If you book a visit to the Vatican Gardens , skip-the-line tickets to the Vatican Museums are included!
  • I do not recommend this at all, but if you have not booked tickets, and they are sold out online, and you find yourself arriving at the Vatican Museums, you will ALWAYS find touts selling you a skip-the-line ticket or tour. I don't recommend it because you cannot be sure they are legit, and if they are, you have no idea what kind of tour you are getting. I also just can't stand, in principle, to be so bombarded by these guys every time I am within a mile of Vatican City. But it can be a good option if it's your last recourse and the lines are crazy long. Just be aware that  only licensed tour guides may give tours inside Vatican City .

vatican tour guides

Visiting the Vatican Museums with a Guide

visiting the vatican with a tour

Most Vatican City tourism consists primarily of a visit inside the Vatican Museums, which always includes  the Sistine Chapel .

Some tours also include a visit or even a tour inside Saint Peter's Basilica.

You may expect a guided tour of the Vatican Museums and Basilica to last roughly three hours total.

To find out about the many different kinds of tours you can book, visit my page about Vatican Museum Tours , which breaks down your options between group tours, early access tours, semi-private tours and more.

Can you just see the Sistine Chapel?

No, you cannot just see the Sistine Chapel .

To see the Sistine Chapel , you must go through the entire Vatican Museums, which can take at least 2 hours if you tour it and see the highlights .

The Sistine Chapel is at the very end. 

last judgement inside sistine chapel

That said, if you are interested in an "Express Tour" of the Sistine Chapel, you can book this tour that skips the line then beelines to the Sistine Chapel and finishes in Saint Peter's Basilica .

This tour is only 1 hour and 45 minutes and does not include a tour of the rest of the Vatican Museums.

You do still have to walk through them, but the focus of the tour will be the Sistine Chapel and Saint Peter's Basilica.

(If you are really pressed for time, you could peel off once you get to the basilica and just not finish the tour.)

is it worth taking the time to explore the museums?

I really do believe that visiting the Vatican museums  is absolutely worth doing in its entirety, even if you really only wanted to see the Sistine Chapel.

The  rest of the museums   are truly wonderful.

You have the Raphael rooms, the maps gallery, the floor-to-ceiling tapestries, papal apartments, Etruscan art, and  so much more.

Click here to visit my page about the top 10 Vatican Museums must-sees.

Raphael's "School of Athens" in the Vatican Museums

I highly suggest  taking a tour  to visit the museums. 

They will take care of getting your tickets.

But if you go your own without a tour, you could get the audio guide, or follow my instructions here for the best way to visit the Vatican Museums .

And you will have to book your tickets on your own .

If you are heading to the Vatican in the morning, as I said above, I suggest you visit Saint Peter’s Basilica first, and the museums later, because the queues for Saint Peter's Basilica have gotten so long (sometimes it's a 1-2 hour wait to get in!)

If you decide to go to the Vatican Museums first, just make sure to leave enough time to stand in line to visit Saint Peter's so that you get inside while there is still some daylight, so you can enjoy the sun coming through all the stained glass.

saint peter's basilica inside with rays of light

Here's a great Vatican Highlights Tour with St. Peter’s Dome Climb

Can you see the Sistine Chapel without the crowds?

Perhaps the easiest way to see the Sistine Chapel with fewer crowds is to come in really low season .

But we hardly have a low season anymore in Rome, and even when we do, somehow the Vatican is always still crowded.

So how can you see the Sistine Chapel without the crowds?

It is possible!

With the below tours, you will have a VIP, exclusive experience, and you'll get to enjoy the Sistine Chapel almost alone :

Open the Vatican Museums with the Key Master

On this exclusive tour with Walks of Italy , you will have true VIP access to the Vatican museums - literally accompanying the guard who opens all the doors to get the museums ready for visits.

You will accompany the Vatican Museums Key Master as you walk through the museums, turning on the lights, even inside the Sistine Chapel!

Watch my video to see what it's like:

How to plan all your Vatican trips during your stay

The typical way of visiting the Vatican is to spend half a day seeing the  Vatican Museums  and  Saint Peter's Basilica .

These are both easy to fit into a typical  3-day visit to Rome .

The perfect 3-day itinerary in Rome

Trying to figure out how to organize your visit to Rome? I've got the perfect 3-day itinerary for first-time visitors (or those who have not been here in a while.) It works for a 2.5 day visit as well.

In my 3-day itinerary, you'll see all the major must-see Rome attractions like the Vatican , Colosseum , Trevi Fountain , Pantheon , Piazza Navona , Spanish Steps , Castel Sant'Angelo , and much more.

And if you have more time, or want suggestions for extra/other things to do, you'll find that there too.

Visit my page with the best 3-day itinerary in Rome for first-timers .

vatican museums spiral staircase

I have found that often when people can get tickets to special things at the Vatican, like St Peters tomb (the Vatican Necropolis, or scavi ), the Papal Audience , or the Vatican Gardens , they often want to also visit the Vatican Museums on the same day.

Here's my advice for visiting Vatican City when you want to see more than just the Vatican Museums:

Including the Papal Audience

How to visit the vatican museums and attend the papal audience.

Papal Audience tickets  are not difficult to come by, and since it's "in the morning", many visitors assume it would be a good idea to go to the Vatican Museums right after the audience.

pope francis greets the crowds

I don't agree.

If you are really short on time, then, you CAN go to the Vatican Museums after the Papal Audience.

It's just that this is going to make for a pretty exhausting day.

To go to the Papal audience, you need to get there by 8am to get a decent spot, let alone a seat.

The audience begins around 9:30 AM and finishes around noon.

You'll probably want to grab at least a snack or lunch somewhere in there .

This means going inside the museums from about 2 PM once you have made your way to the Vatican Museum entrance.

If you also visit St. Peter's Basilica after the museums (which is typical), that is a 3-4 hour visit.

And a very long day. (Also, if you want to climb the dome , you likely won't get there in time.)

My suggestion?

If you can break these visits up over two days, I would.

Attend the Papal Audience and then go inside Saint Peter's Basilica (and climb the dome if you want.)

Then on a separate day, visit the Vatican Museums and see the Sistine Chapel.

rome pantheon

Including a visit to the Scavi (St Peter's tomb)

How to visit the vatican museums and also take a scavi tour.

At the end of the  scavi  tour (St. Peter's tomb), you wind up inside  Saint Peter's basilica .

So you will already see that.

You could also  climb St. Peter's dome  if you have time and energy.

St. Peter's Dome inside

Visiting the Vatican Museums takes easily 2.5 - 3 hours, and that does not include the time it takes GETTING there once you leave the basilica.

If you are coming to the museums from St. Peter's basilica, you need to factor in about 15-20 minutes' walk to the Vatican museums entrance.

This is after you've already done a 1.5 hour scavi tour, and spent time walking around one of the largest churches in the world.

So as you can see, adding the Vatican Museums makes it a pretty exhausting day.

If you need to do it all in one day, make sure to book your scavi tour first, then book your museums visit with at least 4 hours between visits.

Break this up over two days.

Book the scavi tour.

You have no control over when they will grant you tickets, so if you are lucky enough to get them, you can then book other things around that. 

Plan to see St. Peter's basilica (and climb the dome) on this day.

Then, book your Vatican Museums visit for another day. 

HOW TO VISIT ST PETERS TOMB, THE VATICAN MUSEUMS (SISTINE CHAPEL), AND ATTEND THE PAPAL AUDIENCE

You are definitely going to need two days.

First book the scavi visit  which is never on a Wednesday mornings anyway (the Papal Audience is on Wednesdays.)

Plan to  visit St Peter's Basilica  after that, since you will come out into the basilica after the tour anyway.

If you want to  climb St Peter's dome , you will do it on this day.

This is a pretty long and full day by itself.

st peters basilica

Then, once you get your  Papal Audience tickets , book your tickets or tour of the Vatican Museums for after the audience (even if I said above I discourage doing all this in one day, at least if you don't include the basilica it's a little less tiring).

This will be a very full and long day also.

Ready to plan your trip?

book your train

Including a visit to the Vatican Gardens

If you want to visit the vatican gardens and visit the scavi (st. peter's tomb).

TWO Vatican Gardens

On this page, I'm referring to the gardens inside Vatican City , i.e. directly behind Saint Peter's Basilica.

There are ALSO papal gardens at the Pope's summer residence, the Apostolic palace at Castel Gandolfo.

To learn more about the gardens at Castel Gandolfo and how to visit them (it's easy!), visit my dedicated page here.

If you are able to get tickets to St. Peter's tomb ( scavi ) and also the Vatican Gardens , congratulations!

Here's how to include visiting the Vatican Museums and St. Peter's basilica as well.

vatican gardens turtle fountain

First book the scavi visit .

Then book the Vatican Gardens tour on a different day, and plan to visit the Vatican Museums right after the gardens, as it's included in your ticket price with the gardens.

Visit St. Peter's Basilica after the scavi, again, on a different day from the Gardens/Museums.

If you want to do it all - visit the Vatican Museums, vatican gardens, papal audience, scavi tour and st peter's basilica and dome

How you plan your days fitting in these visits will depend on two things  - the Papal audience , which is always Wednesday morning 10am - 12pm (although you need to get there by no later than 8am); and the time of your scavi booking (which depends on the scavi office - you cannot control this).

Once you get those two bookings, the next difficult booking to get is for the Vatican Gardens . 

vatican gardens and vista of st. peter's basilica

So book that one around the Papal Audience and scavi tour.

Note that tours of the Vatican Gardens are at 9am or 11am.

They are also not held on the morning of the Papal Audience.

I'd suggest you spread this over 3 days.

Or, to fit this into two (intense) days, try to do the scavi tour after the Papal audience, if you can get scavi tickets for the afternoon.

Then book the Vatican Gardens, Vatican Museums , and St. Peter's Basilica on a separate day.

(And climb St. Peter's dome once you are inside St. Peter's basilica if you like.)

How to Get to Vatican City

You have several options for how to get to the Vatican.

But the most important factor to consider is what you are visiting first.

Click here to see a Google map showing where the different entrances are for the Vatican Museums, Saint Peter's Square, and the scavi entrance . It will open in a new window.

How to get to the Vatican Museums

The Vatican Museums entrance is on Viale Vaticano .

If you plan to take a taxi , just tell the driver "Vatican Museums".

Visiting the Vatican Museums and arriving by Metro

Otherwise, the most common way to get there is by Metro.

Rome's metro red line A has two stops, equidistant from the entrance to the museums (about a 10-12 minute walk): Ottaviano and Cipro .

Ottaviano metro stop in rome

The Ottaviano metro stop is the first one you will come to if you are coming from Rome's center.

When you emerge from the metro station, you just need to follow the crowd towards Vatican City.

Once you see Michelangelo's bastions (walls), follow them to the right and you will come to the entrance of the Vatican Museums.

If you are visiting the Vatican museums from the opposite direction, or if you forget to get off at Ottaviano, or, better yet, if you want to get off at the next stop to get some fabulous pizza by the slice from Bonci's Pizzarium, then you will get off at Cipro stop. 

bonci pizza

However, from this stop, you cannot see the same stream of people, nor can you immediately see the Vatican City walls, so you will need to navigate a little bit to find the walls.

Once you see the walls, follow them until you come to the entrance.

Visiting the Vatican Museums and Arriving by Bus

Another option for arriving at the entrance of the Vatican museums is to take a bus or buses.

Many buses will get you pretty close to the entrance of the Vatican museums.

These include the 492, 49, 23, and the 81.

How to Get to Saint Peter's Basilica and Square

The entrance to St. Peter's Basilica is on Saint Peter's Square .

This is about a 15-20 minute walk from the Vatican Museums, so if you are not visiting the Vatican Museums (or not visiting them first), and want to go directly to the basilica, you can still take the metro, but make sure to get off at Ottaviano, not Cipro.

From Ottaviano metro stop, St. Peter's Square is about a 10-15 minute walk .

Follow the crowds, but at the walls, do not make a right towards the museums, just keep going straight. 

Buses that arrive closest to St. Peter's Square include the 40 and the 64.

How to get to the Scavi/St Peter's Tomb

If you are visiting the Vatican for an appointment to see St. Peter's tomb, the fastest and easiest way to arrive is by taxi .

They can drop you right in front of the entrance where you need to go, which is at the Swiss Guard, to the left of the basilica as you face it.

If you take a bus, get the 64, as it drops you about a block away.

To take the metro , make sure to get off at Ottaviano, and give yourself about 20 minutes' walking time from there to get the the entrance of St. Peter's tomb.

Where to Eat Near the Vatican

There is no place to eat inside St Peter's Basilica or in St Peter's Square (there is a tiny snack bar on the roof of the basilica, which you can only access if you climb the dome .)

There are some cafés and fast-food options inside the Vatican Museums.

There are also fun dining options you can book, and combine with your visit to the Museums.

Otherwise, visit my page about lots of options for eating breakfast, lunch, dinner and aperitivo near the Vatican . 

Want to  share this page on Pinterest ? Pin it here!

Top tips for visiting the Vatican, by Romewise

Get your 100%  free  Rome trip planner now!

Simply sign-up today for our free newsletter and get the Romewise Quick Start guide to Rome:

We are committed to respecting your data. Click for our Privacy Policy .

Comments? Questions? Suggestions?

Please come over to the private Romewise Facebook group and join in the conversation.

You will often find me there, happy to answer your questions / comments!

You will also meet other Rome lovers and experts, too.

What are you waiting for?

Come join in the fun !

RomewiseRWCSidebarAd

Read here about our sponsorship policy

Top attractions and tours

colosseum

  • Colosseum - Don't miss visiting Rome's most iconic monument
  • Vatican Museums - This is where the Sistine Chapel is
  • Pantheon - Book ahead and skip the line
  • Galleria Borghese - You'll need to book ahead for one of Rome's best museums
  • Castel Sant'Angelo - See Rome's history through its architecture
  • Rome City Pass - A great way to make your Rome visits easier

Disclosure : If you make a purchase through a link on this page, I may receive a small commission - at no extra cost to you. Thank you for supporting my site!

rome top 10 tips

New to Romewise? Start Here

Get the most out of Romewise

Coming To Rome?

Weather in Rome

Accommodation

Already in Rome?

Things to Do

Home    |    About Me    |    Privacy Policy    |    Legal Disclaimer    |    Affiliate Disclosure    |   Contact Me

Copyright © 2009-2024 by Elyssa Bernard, Romewise.com | All Rights Reserved.

  • 2024 TRAVEL UPDATE
  • Work with us
  • Beyond Bologna
  • Regions of Italy
  • Travel books
  • Best group tours
  • Itineraries
  • Accommodation guide
  • Italian phrases for travel
  • Rocket Italian review: 2024 update
  • Ultimate Italy Travel Planner
  • City Planners
  • Essential Guides
  • Italy themed gift ideas
  • Trip planning services

Best Vatican tours: Sistine Chapel, Vatican Museums and St Peter’s Basilica

This article may contain compensated links. See our full disclosure here

Touring the Vatican is one of the top things to do in Rome. But deciding which tour to choose can be overwhelming. We’re here to help you find the best Vatican tour for your trip.

Article contents

Summary of recommended tours

We’ve provided a complete analysis of the best Vatican tours available in this article. This includes dates and times available, duration and other useful information. Here is a summary if you’re the kind of person who wants quick answers.

Best standard tours

  • Take Walks – Skip the line Vatican highlights tour (small groups uo to 20 people)
  • Liv Tours – Skip the line Highlights of the Vatican tour (small groups up to 6 people – 5% off with code – UntoldItaly)
  • CityWonders – Skip the line tour of the Vatican (larger groups)
  • Vatican official – Standard Vatican tour (provided by the museums – historic focus)

5% discount on small group tours with Liv Tours. Discount applied at checkout when you click this link  or use code ‘UntoldItaly’

Best early access tours (beat the crowds).

  • Take Walks – Pristine Sistine tour (small group and early access from 7.15am)
  • Liv Tours – Early Morning Vatican Tour (very small group with early access from 7.30am)
  • Take Walks – VIP Key Masters Tour (open the Sistine Chapel at 6.00am – small group tour)

What to see on a Vatican tour

First, let’s clear up exactly what ‘the Vatican’ is so you can decide which parts you wish to tour. The Vatican is in fact an independent city state within Rome ruled by the Pope – the head of the Catholic church. It is the smallest country on Earth with an area of 0.44 square kilometers and population of just 1,000.

The main areas to visit inside the Vatican City are:

  • St Peter’s Basilica including cupola (dome), tombs and square – more info
  • Vatican Museums including the Sistine Chapel – the world’s greatest art collection with works by Raphael, Giotto, Caravaggio and of course Michelangelo
  • Vatican Gardens – arguably the most beautiful gardens in Rome with stunning views of St Peters, grottoes and lawns

Most Vatican tours will include visiting both St Peters and the Vatican Museums as part of their package. The gardens can only be accessed by a separate tour usually combined with a tour of the Vatican Museums (but not St Peters).

Why take a tour of the Vatican Museums and St Peters

There are two main reasons to join a tour of the Vatican – experience and convenience.

With over 6 million visitors a year, the Vatican Museums and St Peters are among the most popular attractions in Rome and the world. And rightly so. Their collection of art is mind boggling in scale and value. And the historical importance of the buildings is almost unparalleled.

Unless you are a highly educated art historian, there is no way you will know what to look for among all the glitz and walls dripping with priceless paintings. And unfortunately, the information provided by the museums is disappointing.

Visit with a guide and they will be able to point out the most important pieces and their symbolism and significance. Not to mention the major events that have taken place between those walls.

You will spend at least 2 – 3 hours visiting the Vatican no matter how you approach your visit. This is because it takes that amount of time to move through the buildings. That being the case, it makes sense to have an expert guide you through the highlights.

Tours start in the Vatican Museums skipping the long lines for tickets and use a special entrance to St Peter’s from the Sistine Chapel to avoid the separate lines for the Basilica. So if you are not on a tour or have not pre-purchased tickets you will need to line up twice to see both main areas of the Vatican.

Prefer to visit without a guide?

Make sure you buy skip the line tickets prior to your visit to avoid waiting in lines – around 2-3 hours during peak periods.

You can buy tickets for the Vatican Museums on the official site here or if you are having trouble using the site or they are sold out you can buy Vatican  Museums skip the line tickets with authorized ticket seller GetYourGuide here .

St Peter’s is a separate entrance. Buy tickets to skip the line at St Peter’s here .

What to look for in a tour of the Vatican

By law, all guides operating in the Vatican must hold a license that can only be obtained by a very strict examination process. So you know that any guide you tour with will have a thorough knowledge of the details, dates, and facts of the art and buildings you visit.

Your choice really comes down to timing, group size, inclusions, length and style and price of tour. Generally, the size and length of tour will determine the price, however, you also pay extra for exclusive experiences.

  • Timing – early morning and evening tours are available and are strictly limited so you will have fewer crowds to contend with
  • Group size – if budget allows, try to book a tour with a group size less than 20. Any more than this and you’ll be struggling to hear (despite headsets) or engage with your guide
  • Inclusions and itinerary  – basic and express tours of the Vatican focus on the highlights of the Vatican Museums (Sistine Chapel, Gallery of Maps, Michelangelo’s masterpieces, Pinacoteca Courtyard) plus St Peter’s interior. Longer tours will take you to the Underground Crypts, the Carriage Pavilion and Nero’s bath
  • Length – the shortest tours available are around 2 hours and you can also join full day tours of the Vatican.
  • Budget – basic tours start at around €20 for large group tours while you can pay between €300 – €500 for a private tour of the Vatican

Worth Noting

  • We have not found a tour that includes visiting St Peter’s dome. If you want to ascend the dome you will need to buy a ticket at the basilica office at the conclusion of your tour
  • If you find yourself waiting in line for tickets and wishing you had booked a tour, please do not join one of those offered by the scammers that work the crowd. They are not recommended – expensive and basically just entry tickets (if that!)

The best Vatican tour companies

Here are some of the most popular operators and our assessment of how they differ. There are literally hundreds of tour operators working in the Vatican so we have chosen the best for different types of travelers.

  • Take Walks – working closely in partnership with the Vatican Museums to create unique and engaging experiences for English speaking visitors, the Take Walks offerings Pristine Sistine and VIP Key Masters tours are outstanding 
  • Vatican official tours – The Vatican Museums tours are generally the least expensive option but note that group sizes start at 16 people. Expect a focus on religious history and the church. Their Art and Faith tours are focused on the relationship between art and religion in the context of the history of the Catholic Church in Rome – view all official Vatican tours
  • Liv Tours – this Rome based company is known for their very small group and private tours and knowledgeable guides who are expert at adjusting tours for their guests’ interest and knowledge level – view all Liv Tours Vatican tours PLUS 5% off with code ‘UntoldItaly’ 
  • Withlocals – very reasonably priced private tours. Choose your own guide and itinerary from the experienced licensed professionals at Withlocals. They offer several different Vatican itineraries you can choose from or adapt – view all Withlocals Vatican tours

Best Vatican tours

We chose the best small and larger group tours of the Vatican offered by the tour companies mentioned above. We used our own experience and cross checked this with ratings on tours on TripAdvisor, GetYourGuide and other media. This is updated on an ongoing basis so we can bring you the best tours available.

Please note – all tours mentioned include the Vatican Museums and St Peters. If you are visiting on a Wednesday, your tour group will not be able to enter the basilica due to the weekly Papal Address. In this case, the tour will include additional galleries of the museums.

If you are looking for a private Vatican tour please skip forward to the section below.

Standard tours of the Vatican

Most tour operators offer a standard 2 – 3 hour Vatican tour that includes highlights of the Vatican Museums, the Sistine chapel and St Peter’s. These tours start at the same time the museums are open to the general public.

Your tour includes skip the line for tickets and have a dedicated guide escorting you and explaining the art and history.  But, there is no escaping the crowds, unfortunately. You will however be able to use the group entrance into St Peter’s avoiding a half hour walk back to the main entrance and line for the basilica.

Early morning Vatican tours

We think that early access tours are the best way to experience the Vatican. You can see the priceless artwork in relative solitude as you pay a premium to enter without the crowds. If these tours are within budget then we strongly suggest choosing the earliest tour available.

The Vatican Museums allow a very limited number of people each day in to the galleries at 6:00am with the “ clavigero ” or key keeper of the Museums. You can join this unforgettable tour led by the wonderful team at Take Walks – more info and booking instructions here . Note – this applies to the museums only and does not include access to St Peter’s.

LISTEN: to our Vatican Museums Tips & Highlights podcast episode with Take Walks co-founder Stephen Oddo

Complete Vatican tours

If you’re an art and history lover it is fair to say that 2-3 hours will barely scratch the surface of the 54 galleries and 20,000 works on display. These early start tours ensure you see the highlights as well as some of the lesser known treasures in the museums such as Nero’s bath, the Borgia apartments, Pinacoteca Vaticana and 16th century double helix Bramante staircase which inspired the modern version of the same name. Visit the Vatican Museums ticket office to learn about openings of special galleries and sections of the Museums.

Family friendly tour of the Vatican

Do you want to take the whole family to tour the Vatican Museums? We suggest giving this a lot of consideration especially if you have very young children. They will need to do a lot of walking, often in hot and stuffy rooms and remain silent in the Sistine Chapel.

If you do decide to go, booking a family friendly tour is a great idea. Your tour will be tailored to the interests of children and your guide will assist in keeping your kids entertained so you can enjoy the experience too.

Withlocals offer a fun scavenger hunt in the Vatican designed especially for families. This is a great way to introduce your children to the history and stories behind this precious art collection.

Special Vatican tours

Evening vatican museum tours.

During the summer months the Vatican Museums open from 19:00pm to 23:00pm on Friday evenings. With limited numbers allowed into the galleries you can enjoy them without the crowds and in the cooler night air. This exclusive experience will no doubt be a highlight of your trip to Rome.

Note – this experience does not include visiting St Peter’s basilica so you would need to go there separately

Recommended night vatican tours

  • Vatican Museums official [group size up to 30]  – click for info
  • Take Walks [group size max 15] at 19:30pm – click for details

Claim your 5% discount on small group tours with Liv Tours.   Click here and use code ‘UntoldItaly’

Vatican Garden Tours

The Papal gardens are among the finest in Europe that are centuries old. A stroll through the gardens reveals sculptures, fountains and stunning views of the basilica. They are an oasis away from the chaos of the city beyond.

A tour of the gardens will help you appreciate the history and stories behind the many works of art within the gardens and their significance to the Catholic church. There is a replica of the sacred Lourdes grotto in France as well as monuments and statues collected by and dedicated to former popes.

An advantage of doing a tour of the gardens is that it also includes admission to the Vatican Museums. And yes, you skip the lines. No tour is provided in the museums, however.

Vatican Scavi tours

If you have a particular interest in Christianity and history, there could be no bigger thrill to see what is said to be the tomb of St Peter the apostle, deep below the basilica that bears his name. Only 250 people per day are allowed into this sacred area as part of escorted 90 minute tours run by the Vatican. Tour groups are small with only 12 people visiting the excavation site and tomb.

You need to book this tour months in advance by following the instructions on the official Vatican excavations office page . Please note – children under 15 years may not go on this tour. You may not take photos on the tour.

Private Vatican tours

Would you prefer a fully private tour of the Vatican Museums? Private tours are a great way to enjoy the Vatican at your own pace and to see those things you really want to see. Starting at around €350, they can also be more cost effective if you are traveling in a larger group. We recommend Withlocals and Liv Tours for private Vatican tours.

Useful information for visiting the Vatican

Both the Vatican Museums and St Peter’s basilica are religious sites. Men and women should cover knees and shoulders as a sign of respect. You may be refused entry if you are not suitably attired.

During the hot Roman summers you might like to bring a light shawl or scarf as an alternative to wearing clothing that covers your shoulders.

Tours are not offered on Sundays when the museums are either closed or open to the public for free admission.

Tour itineraries do not include St Peter’s basilica on Wednesday due to the usual Papal audience in the piazza.

The best day to do a standard Vatican tour is probably Tuesday when you avoid the extended long weekend European visitors.

If you want to do an early morning tour choose from Monday, Tuesday, Thursday or Saturday.

Night tours of the Vatican are only available on Fridays from April to October.

Yes, it is a condition of entry that all people entering the Vatican Museums and St Peters pass security checks. Don’t worry, these lines move quickly

Yes, cloakroom facilities are found near the entrance to the Vatican Museums and there is a separate cloakroom for St Peters. Both are free of charge

Yes, you can take photos (without flash) in most areas except the Sistine Chapel where photography of any kind is not allowed. Flash photography is forbidden in all areas as it may damage the artwork

Planning a trip to Italy?

We love travel in Italy and sharing our knowledge. Read our Italy trip planning guide or join our FREE Italy travel planning community . Our 115,000+ members are happy to answer questions about your itinerary, how to get from place to place, the best places to stay and fun things to do.

Sign up for our news and podcast updates where we share mini guides, tips, exclusive deals and more and we'll send you our Italy Trip Planning Checklist to say grazie ! >> click here to subscribe

Italy City Guides

Latest italy travel podcasts and articles, episode #214: rome’s best kept secrets – explore the eternal city with liv tours, how to buy tickets for the borghese gallery rome, episode #201: beyond the colosseum – hidden secrets of rome, how to buy tickets for the vatican museums, how to buy tickets for the colosseum in rome, 11 top hotels near the pantheon, rome, best hotels in trastevere rome [2024 edition], 11 incredible hotels near the colosseum, rome.

Please share if you found this article useful

Vatican Tours

Despite being a religious state, Vatican City isn’t exclusively for followers of the Catholic faith. In fact, this small country offers a treasure trove of historic buildings and a rich cultural heritage that will captivate tourists and art enthusiasts alike.

Situated right in the heart of Rome, the Vatican is a foreign state with some strict entry rules, and due to its popularity, it remains bustling with visitors all year round.

The Vatican City: the Smallest Country in The World

The Vatican isn’t just the smallest country in the world. This tiny State, with a population of less than 500 inhabitants, is renowned as the famous headquarters of the Catholic religion and the home of the Pope.

You have two options to explore the Vatican: you can visit it during a self-guided tour or join a guided tour of the Vatican. Personally, I’d recommend the latter, even if you happen to be a permanent resident of Rome. And now, let me explain why.

Are Guided Tours of the Vatican Worth it?

In a nutshell… yes. While it’s possible to explore the Vatican Museums and St. Peter’s Basilica on your own, a guided tour can truly make a difference.

Why Opt for a Vatican Guided Tour

  • A guided tour typically covers all the main attractions of the Vatican in a well-organised single tour of a few hours.
  • The Vatican Museums are truly vast and filled with exquisite artworks. In fact, they’re so extensive that attempting to visit them independently can be overwhelming. With a guided tour, you can focus on the essential highlights without running the risk of getting tired before you’re even halfway through the visit.
  • Even with a skip-the-line tour, queues for the Vatican Museums can be incredibly long. Choosing a guided tour with authorised tour operators can be a smart solution, as it grants you access through partner-exclusive entrances.
  • Exploring the Vatican with professional guides allows you to discover fascinating anecdotes and insights that you wouldn’t come across during a self-guided visit.

Types of Vatican Tours

There are several options for visiting the Vatican. Let’s explore them.

Guided Tours of the Vatican

As I mentioned earlier, a guided tour is definitely the best way to make the most of your visit to the Vatican. I’ve tried visiting the Vatican on my own multiple times, and having an expert guide by your side can truly make a difference. These tours usually start at a meeting point in the area.

Group Tours of the Vatican

This is the most common type of tour. Many tour operators offer tours in small groups, so following your guide and moving around the Vatican Museums is not complicated at all. Besides, if you ever feel like breaking away from the group, you can always rejoin them and continue at your own pace.

Private Tours of the Vatican

This is a decidedly luxury option. The price of a private Vatican tour is higher than a group tour. The advantages? You’ll have the guide entirely at your disposal. Moreover, many private Vatican tours include pick-up and drop-off at your hotel or apartment.

Vatican Early Opening Tours

Among the various guided tours, both private and group, there are some that grant access to the Vatican Museums at their early opening. As I’ve mentioned before, the Vatican is one of the major tourist attractions in Rome, and there’s often a very long queue to get in.

So, if you want to see them without the typical crowd that fills them, I recommend booking one of the Vatican’s early opening tours. You’ll literally be the first to step inside the Museums and the Sistine Chapel, and your visit will have a whole different feel.

Self-guided Tours of the Vatican

If you’re on a budget, you can still visit the Vatican by purchasing an entrance ticket to the Vatican Museums without a guide. However, this option may entail waiting in line at the entrance for as long as 3 or 4 hours. The same goes if you decide to visit only St. Peter’s Basilica, which doesn’t require an entrance ticket.

Skip-The-Line Tours of the Vatican

Let me tell you: skip-the-line tickets for the Vatican are worth every penny of their price.

In the past, I worked for a tour operator, and for work-related reasons, I visited the Vatican several times with a skip-the-line service. I can assure you that if you choose the right tour operator, you won’t even wait for 5 minutes at the entrance. You’ll bypass the long queue that starts from Via Leone IV and goes all the way to the Vatican ticket office. And you’ll thank me for recommending this type of tour.

After-Hours Tours of the Vatican

From April to October, the Vatican stays open on Friday evenings. So, if you wish, you can opt for one of the enchanting evening tours of the Vatican offered by tour operators. Not only will you see the Vatican in a completely different light, but you’ll also avoid sightseeing during the hottest hours of the day.

Tours of the Pontifical Villas of Castel Gandolfo

Castel Gandolfo is a delightful town on the shores of its namesake lake, located about 24 kilometres southeast of Rome. It’s been the summer retreat for the Pope for centuries.

And now, you have the fantastic opportunity to join a tour of the Pontifical Villas, where you can travel to Castel Gandolfo and explore the beautiful gardens and historic residences that belong to the Vatican, just outside the confines of Vatican City itself.

These tours are typically available during the summer months, and you can easily reach Castel Gandolfo by train from the Vatican Museums. Once there, you’ll be guided through the extensive gardens and the Apostolic Palace, which serves as the official residence for the Pope during his stay at Castel Gandolfo.

Major Attractions in Vatican City

There’s so much to see within Vatican City, and it’s an incredible place to explore.

What to See Inside St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican

Inside St. Peter’s Basilica , you’ll have the chance to visit:

  • Bernini ‘s stunning colonnade in St. Peter’s Square
  • The magnificent Baldacchino, a work of art by both Bernini and Borromini
  • Michelangelo’s breathtaking Pietà , located in the right nave of the Basilica
  • The lid of Emperor Hadrian’s sarcophagus
  • The tomb of Pope Alexander VII, crafted by Bernini
  • Michelangelo ‘s iconic Dome
  • The Vatican Grottoes: the final resting place of the Popes and St. Peter himself.

What to See Inside the Vatican Museums

Now, when you venture into the Vatican Museums, make sure you don’t miss out on these incredible sights:

  • The Tapestry Room, filled with intricate and awe-inspiring tapestries
  • The Pinacoteca, which houses masterpieces by Giotto, Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, the Perugino, and Caravaggio
  • The Pio-Clementino Museum, dedicated to statuary, where you’ll find the impressive Laocoön sculpture group
  • The Gallery of Maps
  • Raffaello’s Rooms, including the famous ‘School of Athens’ fresco
  • The magnificent Spiral Staircase
  • The Sistine Chapel
  • the Vatican Museum Gardens

Time Needed to Tour the Vatican

Most guided tours at the Vatican run for a standard 2 to 3 hours, giving you an overview of the Vatican Museums, the Sistine Chapel, and the iconic St. Peter’s Basilica. These tours usually start early in the morning or early in the afternoon, leaving you plenty of time to enjoy the place.

Of course, nothing is stopping you from entering the Museums when they first open and spending the entire day delving into the wonderful art collections they hold.

Dress Code for the Vatican 

The Vatican is a religious site, and although it attracts many tourists, it does have a conservative dress code. It’s really important to respect this dress code if you want to be allowed entry. Many foreign visitors are disappointed each year when they’re turned away due to inappropriate attire, and I don’t want you to be one of these.

To enter the Vatican, it’s important to:

  • Avoid short skirts and shorts
  • Cover your shoulders and arms
  • Steer clear of plunging necklines and cropped tops
  • Remove hats before entering
  • Wear anything that might offend Catholic morals or decency
  • Cover any tattoos you might have

I know it gets scorching hot in Rome during the summer, but it’s crucial to adhere to these rules. My advice for the hot months is to wear a long dress or lightweight suit, or perhaps bring a light jacket to cover your arms and shoulders before entering. You can show off your sexiest outfit after you’ve completed the visit.

Tip: By dressing respectfully, you’ll ensure a smooth visit to the Vatican and demonstrate your appreciation for the sacredness of the place. 

Tips For a Great Vatican Experience

And here we are at the end of this guide to Vatican tours. I’ll share a few extra tips that might come in handy in addition to what’s already been mentioned.

  • Make sure to visit the Vatican early in the day – you can’t imagine how crowded it can get.
  • Only book guided tours from professional authorised tour operators.
  • Always double-check the opening times, especially around religious dates and events throughout the year.
  • Purchase your ticket several weeks in advance, as they often sell out quickly.
  • Upon entering the Vatican, you’ll go through a security check with a metal detector, similar to airport security. Be sure to read the rules on the official Vatican website . Among other things, you can’t bring knives, scissors, umbrellas, or cameras with you, and even things like tripods and selfie sticks are not allowed.
  • Once inside the Sistine Chapel, remember not to take any photos or videos – it’s strictly prohibited, and the security personnel may ask you to delete any shots you’ve taken in front of them.
  • Accessing the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel requires payment, but on the last Sunday of each month, you can enjoy free admission to both the museums and the Vatican Gardens from opening until 12:30 PM. Visiting St. Peter’s Basilica alone is, instead, always free, so you can still marvel at its grandeur without any cost. Happy exploring.

Vatican Tours

Vatican Tours

Exclusive access and expert guides.

Experience the wonders of Vatican City with our expert-guided Vatican Tours. Discover the history, art, and culture of the world's smallest country through our exclusive access and skip-the-line privileges. Book your Vatican Tour today and make your visit to Rome unforgettable.

Get In Faster

Get in earlier, our best selling vatican tours.

Beautiful Facade of the St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican City

Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel & St. Peter's Basilica Small Group Tour

St. Peter's Basilica facade and Colosseum Arena on a sunny day

Full-Day Combo: Complete Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel & Colosseum Tour

Explore more of the vatican city with our range of guided tours.

Early morning in the Vatican Museums with Breakfast at the Pinecone Yard

Exclusive Breakfast at the Vatican with Tour of the Museums, Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter’s Basilica

The Last Judgment Fresco in the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican City

Semi-Private Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel & St. Peter's Basilica Tour

Man holding Vatican ticket in Raphael Rooms

Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel Skip-the-line Entrance Tickets with Optional Audio Guide

View of the St Peter Dome and the Interior of St Peter Basilica

St. Peter’s Basilica Tour with Dome Climb & Papal Crypts

Sistine Chapel Last Judgement Fresco by Michelangelo

Sistine Chapel First Entry Experience with Vatican Museums

Pope Francis on a Papal Audience in St. Peter's Square in the Vatican

Papal Audience Experience with Pope Francis

Our guests at the vatican.

Tag us on social media or use #citywonderstours to showcase your Vatican experience!

Experience the Best of Vatican City with Our Award-Winning Guided Tours

With almost 20 years of experience and 2 million guests hosted, we have developed a reputation for providing top-of-the-line services to our guests. In fact, in 2019, TripAdvisor awarded our Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel & St. Peter’s Basilica Tour as the Number One Traveler Choice Tour in the world.

Our passionate team of expert guides, including art-historians, sculpture-lovers, and history buffs, will take you through the countless masterpieces of this living museum. Our mission is to ensure that you benefit from their inside knowledge and make the most of your once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Choose from our specially designed private tour, exclusive after-hours tour, or early morning Vatican Museums tour to make the memories you want. All of our tours are renowned for their stories and the hidden details we find to create something extra for our guests.

Explore the Vatican with our guided tours, or use Vatican City tickets to tour around at your own pace. Let us make your Vatican dream come to life.

Small Groups Discover the Vatican with our expert guides who will easily wisk you around the Museums avoiding the crowds thanks to our small groups.

20 Years of Experience We’ve guided more than 2 million people through the Vatican.

25k 5-Star Reviews We’re the highest rated, best-loved Vatican tour operator, and our reviews prove it!

Recommended for The Vatican

Recommended vatican posts.

ABOUT CONTACT US

  • Destinations
  • Itineraries
  • US National Parks

How to Visit the Vatican Museums & St. Peter’s Basilica in 2024

Julie Last updated: January 26, 2024 Italy 25 Comments

Vatican Museums St Peters Basilica Rome

If you are planning your first trip to Rome, then most likely a visit to Vatican City is on your to-do list. In this guide, we cover what you need to know about how to visit the Vatican Museums, the Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter’s Basilica, including what to do when you are here, the best time of day to plan your visit, and whether or not it is worth it to take a tour.

Planning a visit to the Vatican may sound complicated. With multiple places to visit within Vatican City, multiple tickets to purchase, and tales of long lines and massive crowds, you may be wondering what is the best way to visit Vatican City and actually enjoy your visit.

With proper planning, you can avoid the long ticket lines and have a great experience at the Vatican Museums and St. Peter’s Basilica.

We will also let you know about several “secret” rooms within the Vatican Museums . These special rooms are pricey additions to a standard tour of the Vatican but worth it for those who want to go deeper into the Vatican Museums and see some places that other visitors skip (and most likely don’t even know about).

Let’s get started.

Table of Contents

Interesting Facts about Vatican City

Vatican City is the smallest country in the world. In 1929, it became independent from Italy by the signing of the Lateran Treaty. It is only 49 hectares (121 acres) with a population of just under 500 people. This city state is ruled by the Pope.

Note: Even though Vatican City is a separate country, you do not need to bring your passport.

There are three big sites to visit in Vatican City: the Vatican Museums, the Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter’s Basilica.

On a visit to Vatican City, you will visit these sites as two different sections. The Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel are visited on one ticket. You will enter the Sistine Chapel through the Vatican Museums, so if you only want to see the Sistine Chapel, you will have to walk through the Vatican Museums first.

St. Peter’s Basilica and St. Peter’s Square is the second area you will visit. It is free to enter St. Peter’s Basilica but there is a line to get through security, and from mid-morning through mid-afternoon, this line can be enormous.

In St. Peter’s Basilica, you have the option to climb to the dome for an additional fee. This is worth it and you get one of the best views of Rome from the top of the dome.

How to Visit Vatican City

We are breaking up Vatican City into two different sections: the Vatican Museums (which includes the Sistine Chapel) and St. Peter’s Basilica. These each have their own entrance ticket and security line. You can visit them together on the same day or on two separate days. It may sound odd to break them up into two different days, but there are some advantages to doing this, which we will get to later.

Before diving into things to do at each area, there are a few important things to know first:

Audience with the Pope: Every Wednesday morning, if the Pope is in town, he will hold an audience in St. Peter’s Square, starting at 9:30 am. On Wednesdays, St. Peter’s Basilica does not open until 12:30 pm. The Vatican Museums tend to be less crowded on Wednesday mornings as well, according to our guide.

St. Peter’s Basilica: It is free to enter St. Peter’s Basilica so you do not need a ticket. However, you will go through security to enter the basilica and this queue can be very long, with waiting times over an hour. Go early in the morning or late in the day to avoid this long wait.

Getting from Vatican City to St. Peter’s Basilica: To get from Vatican City to St. Peter’s Basilica, you will have to exit the Vatican Museums and walk 20 minutes to St. Peter’s Basilica. There is a short cut from the Sistine Chapel to St. Peter’s Basilica, but this is reserved for select tour groups. If you take one of these select tours, it can save you a LOT of time (you will avoid the 20 minute walk plus the wait in line, which can be an hour or longer on some days). 

Below is a map of Vatican City with the walking route from the Vatican Museums to St. Peter’s Basilica.

How to Use This Map: Click the tab in the top left hand corner of the map to view the layers (points of interest and the walking route). You can click the check marks to hide or show layers. If you click the icons on the map, you can get more information about each point of interest.   If you click the star next to the title of the map, this map will be added to your Google Maps account. To view it on your phone or computer, open Google Maps, click the menu button, go to “Your Places,” click Maps, and you will see this map on your list.

Things to Do in the Vatican Museums

The Vatican Museums are enormous. These museums display the massive collection of art that was amassed by the Catholic Church. There are 70,000 works of art on display in roughly 2,000 rooms of this maze of a museum. It would take years to see everything here.

On a visit to the Vatican Museums, there are a few notable rooms and statues to see, as well as the Sistine Chapel.

For the best experience, we recommend taking a tour. On our first visit here, we wandered around on our own and got very little out of the experience. More recently, we took a tour and it was well worth it.

Tim and I took an early morning tour, which allows you to see at least some of the rooms with low crowds. Plus, with a knowledgeable guide, you learn a lot about the history and artwork.

We will get into recommended tours later in this guide, but first, here are the main things to see in the Vatican Museums, plus a few “secret” rooms you can add on to your visit.

Entry into the Vatican Museums

The entrance into the Vatican Museums is on the north side of the museums, on Viale Vaticano. Here is the spot on Google Maps.

Some tours meet across the street from this spot, but you should double check this when you book your tour.

Make sure you book your tickets in advance or are on some sort of tour. The ticket line to enter the Vatican Museums can be enormous…up to a 3 hour wait at the busiest times. If you can’t make your reservation in advance, for example tickets are sold out on the day you want to visit, then you can purchase an entry ticket on GetYourGuide.

You will enter the Vatican Museums, go through security, and if you have a large bag or backpack, you will have to put it in a locker. Show your ticket and then enter the museums. You will ride an escalator or walk the top of the spiral walkway to the main level.

This list of things to do in Vatican Museum is located in order, as you will see them on the one-way walking route through the museums. You will follow the signs from room to room until you reach the Sistine Chapel.

The Pinacoteca

In its 18 rooms, the Pinacoteca displays artworks by Raphael, Leonardo, Caravaggio, and Perugino and many other artists. It is accessible from the hallway at the top of the escalator and the Pinecone Courtyard.

This is optional. Some tours include it, some don’t. There is so much to see in the Vatican Museums and this section of the museum is only worth it for those with lots of time and a big interest in art.

Pinecone Courtyard (Pigna Courtyard)

The entrance to the Pinecone Courtyard is near the top of the escalator. There are a few things to see here, including the dome of St. Peter’s Basilica, the sculpture of the “Sphere with Sphere” by Arnaldo Pomodoro, and the bronze pinecone that gives this courtyard its name. Michelangelo designed the steps that lead up to the pinecone.

Vatican Museums Pinecone Courtyard | How to visit the Vatican Museums and St. Peter's Basilica

Pinecone Courtyard | How to visit the Vatican Museums

Sphere with Sphere | How to visit the Vatican Museums and St. Peter's Basilica

“Sphere with Sphere” by Arnaldo Pomodoro

Vatican Museums Pinecone

The bronze pinecone

Hall of Statues

From the Pinecone Courtyard, enter the museums. If you are looking at the bronze pinecone, the entrance into the museums is up the stairs to your right. Once inside, look to your right down the very long hall filled with statues and busts. Don’t spend too much time here because there are many better things to see.

Hall of Statues | How to visit the Vatican Museums and St. Peter's Basilica

Hall of Statues | How to visit the Vatican Museums

Octagonal Courtyard

In this open courtyard sits some of the most important sculptures in the Vatican Museums.

The Laocoön Group is a sculpture of a Trojan priest and his two sons that were attacked by serpents. This artwork dates back to the first century AD.

Laocoön Group | How to visit the Vatican Museums and St. Peter's Basilica

Laocoön Group

More statues sit around the courtyard as well as one of the baths from ancient times.

Octagonal Courtyard Vatican

Ancient bath in the Octagonal Courtyard | How to visit the Vatican Museums

Room of the Animals

This room is usually closed off, but you can still see the artwork from behind the rope. The name gives it away, but the Room of the Animals is filled with exquisitely carved statues of various animals.

Room of the Animals Vatican | How to visit the Vatican Museums and St. Peter's Basilica

Room of the Animals | How to visit the Vatican Museums

Cabinet of Masks

The Cabinet of Masks is an add-on to a standard ticket into the Vatican Museums and can only be visited with a guide. Sometimes it is referred to as the Vatican’s “secret chamber.”

To get here, you will walk through the Room of the Animals and past the Gallery of Statues.

The Cabinet of Masks is a small room that contains several very important sculptures and historic pieces. On the floor is a tiled mosaic from the villa of Emperor Hadrian in Tripoli. You can see the painting of the “Marriage of Bacchus and Ariadne” and sculptures of Paris and Venus.

Cabinet of Masks | How to visit the Vatican Museums and St. Peter's Basilica

Cabinet of Masks | How to visit the Vatican Museums

Cabinet of Masks Mosaic Floor

The mosaic floor from Hadrian’s Villa

It may seem a little out of place, but you can also see what is called the “Dung Chair.” This rose marble chair has a hole in the center of it. Legend has it that it was used to assess whether the newly elected pope was male or female. The pope would sit on this chair and undergo an examination.

Dung Chair

The Dung Chair

Before you go, take a look outside through the window. You look out to a terrace and can see a portion of the Rome skyline.

Cabinet of Masks Terrace

Cabinet of Masks Terrace

Gallery of Statues

This beautiful room is another “secret room” in the Vatican. It is filled with sculptures, baths from ancient times, and has an elaborately painted ceiling. You can see this room as you walk from the Room of the Animals to the Cabinet of Masks, if you included the Cabinet of Masks on your tour of the Vatican.

Vatican Museum Statues | How to visit the Vatican Museums and St. Peter's Basilica

Gallery of Statues | How to visit the Vatican Museums

The Belvedere Torso

The Belvedere Torso is in the Room of the Muses, which you will enter after walking past the Room of the Animals. This statue is important in that it had a big influence on Michelangelo’s art and the muscularity of the men in his statues and paintings.

Belvedere Torso | How to visit the Vatican Museums and St. Peter's Basilica

Belvedere Torso | How to visit the Vatican Museums

The Round Room

Sitting in the center of the Round Room is Nero’s bathtub, which stood in his golden house, also called the Domus Aurea. The Domus Aurea is in Rome and can be visited on a tour.

Galleria della Candelabra

After passing through a few more rooms, you will walk up a flight of stairs and come to the Galleria della Candelabra. This was once an open terrace that was lit with candles. It was enclosed in the 18th century. The floor and ceiling are beautiful.

Galleria della Candelabra

Galleria della Candelabra | How to visit the Vatican Museums

Gallery of the Tapestries

Galleria della Candelabra leads into the Gallery of the Tapestries, a long hallway where the walls are covered with tapestries that tell the story about the life of Urban VIII, the birth of Jesus, the Transfiguration, the Resurrection, and the massacre of the innocents. These tapestries date back to the 1500’s and it took 9 years to complete one tapestry.

Tapestry in the Vatican

One of the tapestries in the Gallery of the Tapestries

Gallery of the Tapestries

Gallery of the Tapestries | How to visit the Vatican Museums

Gallery of the Maps

This is one of the most famous rooms in the Vatican Museums. On the walls are maps commissioned by Pope Gregory XIII in the late 1500’s. There are 40 maps on the walls, all maps of Italy with a small portion of southern France. The ceiling was painted in the 1600’s by Giralamo Muziano and Cesare Nebbia.

Gallery of the Maps | How to visit the Vatican Museums and St. Peter's Basilica

Gallery of the Maps | How to visit the Vatican Museums

Raphael Rooms or Sistine Chapel?

Once you exit the Gallery of Maps, you have a choice to make. You can go left to visit the Raphael Rooms and then visit the Sistine Chapel. Or you can turn right and immediately go to the Sistine Chapel. But once you visit the Sistine Chapel, you will not be allowed to enter the Raphael Rooms.

The Raphael Rooms are gorgeous and well worth the few extra minutes. These rooms are one of our favorite things to see in the Vatican Museums.

Room of the Immaculate Conception

If you choose to go to the Raphael Rooms, you will first walk through the Room of the Immaculate Conception. The frescoes that cover the walls and ceiling in this room are rather recent, painted in the 19th century by Francesco Podesti. These frescoes portray scenes from the proclamation of the Dogma of the Immaculate Conception by Pope Pius IX.

Room of the Immaculate Conception

Room of the Immaculate Conception | How to visit the Vatican Museums

The Raphael Rooms

The Raphael Rooms were the apartments of Julius II. It took Raphael 16 years to paint these rooms, from 1508 to 1520. He died before they were completed, so the paintings were finished by his students.

There are several rooms filled with frescoes, the most famous being the Room of the Segnatura (Stanza della Segnatura). This room eventually became the place where Papal documents were signed, which gives this room its name ( segnatura means signing).

The most important fresco is The School of Athens. Plato and Aristotle are searching for truth. Plato, the man with the orange robe who is carrying a book, was painted with the face of Leonardo da Vinci.

The School of Athens Vatican Museums | How to visit the Vatican Museums and St. Peter's Basilica

The School of Athens | How to visit the Vatican Museums

As you walk through the remaining rooms, you will see more paintings, including The Fire in the Borgo and The Battle of Ostia.

Raphael Rooms

The Fire in the Borgo | How to visit the Vatican Museums

The Sistine Chapel

To get from the Raphael Rooms to the Sistine Chapel, you will walk through the Borgio Apartments and the Museum of Modern Art.

The Sistine Chapel was built between 1473 and 1481. It gets its name because it was commissioned by Pope Sixtus IV. When it was completed, the ceiling was painted blue and covered with stars.

The frescoes on the walls were painted by Botticelli, Perugino, and other famous artists. They are Renaissance masterpieces, but Michelangelo would later come and steal the show by painting the ceiling.

In 1508, Michelangelo began painting the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. Until this time, he had only been a sculptor with no real experience painting frescoes. It took him four years to complete the ceiling and has become one of the most important Renaissance artworks. He also returned to paint The Last Judgement, a fresco on the wall behind the altar.

Sistine Chapel

Ceiling of the Sistine Chapel | Sergii Figurnyi/shutterstock.com

Photos are not allowed inside of the Sistine Chapel (we purchased the photo above from shutterstock.com ). This is strictly enforced. You are also not permitted to speak while in this room. It can be hot and crowded. If you take an early morning tour, you will get this experience with fewer people, which makes it much more pleasant (we’ve been here when it was wall to wall people and with just a few other visitors).

PRO TRAVEL TIP: On our most recent visit, we took an early morning tour of the Vatican Museums. We had the option to go right to the Sistine Chapel first, to see it with just a few people. Our guide said that wasn’t worth it…it’s better to tour the other rooms with lower crowds than to see the Sistine Chapel right at opening time. In the Sistine Chapel, most of the time you are looking up, and since you can’t take photos, there’s no rush to get here from a photography standpoint. We visited the Sistine Chapel at 10 am and there were a handful of people here, but it did not feel overly crowded.

Exiting the Sistine Chapel

There is a door that leads to a passageway that connects the Sistine Chapel directly to St. Peter’s Basilica. Only certain tour groups are allowed to take this exit.

The main exit leads you to a long hallway that takes you back towards the entrance of the Vatican Museums. You will collect your things, if you put anything into storage, and then exit the Vatican Museums. You will walk down the modern Bramante Staircase, which is a double helix ramp and one of the most photographed places within the Vatican Museums.

Our photo was taken first thing in the morning, at the start of our early morning Vatican tour.

Vatican Staircase | How to visit the Vatican Museums and St. Peter's Basilica

The modern Bramante Staircase

The Bramante Staircase

The original Bramante Staircase was built in 1505 by Donato Bramante as a double helix. Its purpose was to allow people and animals to ascend to the Belvedere palace of Pope Innocent VIII.

The design of the modern staircase, which is also a double helix and how visitors exit the museum, was inspired by the original Bramante Staircase.

It is believed that Michelangelo lived in the room at the top of the these stairs.

Bramante Staircase | How to visit the Vatican Museums and St. Peter's Basilica

The original Bramante Staircase

Seeing the Bramante Staircase can only be done with a guide and is limited to just a few people per day. It’s also a very pricey add-on to the Vatican Museums (about €350 per person).

We did this to get the full experience of the Vatican Museums, and to be able to write this guide. Paying that kind of money to see just one sight within the Vatican Museums is not something many people would consider doing. However, it is one of the most interesting things that we saw in the Vatican, we were the only ones here, and could walk up and down the ramp and take as many photos as we liked.

Here are a few more photos.

Bramante Staircase Photo

You also get a nice view of Rome while visiting the Bramante Staircase.

About the Tour We Took

We booked the Private Morning Vatican Tour with Secret Room by LivItaly Tours (€589) and added on the Bramante Staircase (€375). To do this, we spent a huge amount of money, (€850 in 2022), and prices have gone up since we did this (it costs about €964). We also paid full price for this tour. We don’t ask for discounts and don’t make it known that we run this travel website, so we can get the same experience as everyone else.

Most people wouldn’t consider spending this amount of money to tour the Vatican. Mainly we did it so we could write this guide to the Vatican Museums.

And for most people, I don’t think it’s worth it. You really have to have an interest in the Bramante Staircase and the Cabinet of Masks for this to be worth what you pay.

This tour only included the Vatican Museums and it lasted about 4 hours (from 7:30 am to 11:30 am).

However, an early morning tour is absolutely worth it. Our first visit to the Vatican Museums was midday in July. This place was mobbed. We couldn’t wait to get out of the museums and did not enjoy our visit. On an early morning tour there are far fewer people and you get a much better experience.

If you want to take an early morning tour, but without the secret rooms, this tour with LivItaly uses the tunnel between the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter’s Basilica, which saves you a lot of time.

Italy Travel Guide Rome

Getting from the Vatican Museums to St. Peter’s Square

From the exit of the Vatican Museums to St. Peter’s Square, it is a 1 km walk that takes about 15 minutes. You will walk around the outskirts of Vatican City and then enter St. Peter’s Square.

If you are hungry, Alice Pizza is just a very short detour off of this walking route. You can get pizza al taglio. It’s cheap, it’s fast, and the pizza is great. Our Vatican Museums guide recommended this restaurant to us and it was a perfect, quick lunch spot. For more recommendations on where to eat in the area, check out our Rome Restaurant Guide. These restaurants are also marked on the map above.

Things to Do at St. Peter’s Basilica

St. peter’s square.

This is the square that sits in front of St. Peter’s Basilica. It was designed by Bernini between 1656 and 1667.

Sitting in the center of St. Peter’s Square is the Vatican Obelisk, which is an Egyptian obelisk made of red granite, as well as two fountains, the Maderno Fountain and the Bernini Fountain. Flanking the square are 284 Doric columns and 88 pilasters.

For the grandest entrance into St. Peter’s Square, walk up Via della Conciliazione.

St. Peters Square

St. Peter’s Square | How to visit the Vatican

The entrance into St. Peter’s Basilica is located on this square (to the right of the basilica). You can enter the basilica as early as 7 am. The line generally forms starting at 8 am and by 9 am snakes its way across St. Peter’s Square.

Entering St. Peter’s Basilica

The entrance into St. Peter’s Basilica is on the right side of the square, near the Maderno Fountain. You will go through security, similar to what you do at an airport, at this location.

There is no fast-track or skip-the-line ticket to bypass the security line. Everyone must go through the security check to enter the basilica, whether you are visiting independently or are on a guided tour. However, there are a few select tours that take an underground tunnel from the Vatican Museums directly into St. Peter’s Basilica, like this one, which skips the security line.

St. Peter’s Basilica is open from 7 am to 7 pm. For the shortest wait in line, get here by 8:30 am.

On our visit in September 2022, at 7:30 am, there was a 10-minute wait to get through security and enter the basilica. When we left, at 8:30 am, there was no line and no waiting time. We returned to the area on the same day at 10:30 am. The line was massive and I estimate that people were waiting at least 45 minutes to get through the security check.

Once past the security check, you will walk right into the basilica. Since it is free to visit and you do not need a ticket, there is no line to enter the basilica once past security.

St Peters Basilica | How to visit the Vatican Museums and St. Peter's Basilica

St. Peter’s Basilica

Inside of St. Peter’s Basilica

St. Peter’s Basilica is the largest church in the world. The inside is awe inspiring. Michelangelo, Gian Lorenzo Bernini, and Donato Bramante all played a part in designing and decorating the basilica. Once inside, there are a few things to make sure you see.

The dome. Modeled after the dome of the Pantheon and Brunelleschi’s dome of the Florence Cathedral , the dome of St. Peter’s Basilica was designed by Michelangelo. You can climb the dome for views over Rome, and we’ll get to this soon.

St Peters Basilica Dome

The dome and the top of the Baldacchino

The Papal Altar & the Baldacchino. The Papal altar sits below the dome. The Baldacchino is the four-legged structure that covers the Papal altar. It was designed by Bernini. The columns are bronze and then decorated with gold accents.

The Baldacchino

The Baldacchino | How to visit the Vatican

St. Peter’s Chair. St. Peter’s Chair, also called the Throne of Saint Peter, is a wooden throne that was used by Saint Peter. Gian Lorenzo Bernini sculpted the ornate bronze casing that surrounds it.

St Peters Chair Vatican | How to visit the Vatican Museums and St. Peter's Basilica

St Peter’s Chair

La Pietà. Michelangelo was only 23 years old when he carved this statue. It is one of the most famous statues in the world and bears his signature across Maria’s chest.

The Pieta

La Pietà | PhotoFires/shutterstock.com

Graves of the Popes. There are several popes that are buried on the main level of the basilica and you can see their graves, including John XXIII and St. John Paul II.

Vatican Grottoes. The grottoes are the Papal tombs that sit underneath of St. Peter’s Basilica. This is the final resting place for over 90 popes and dignitaries. You can visit the grottoes independently or on a tour. The grottoes do not open until 9:30 am, but you can enter earlier on special tours. Note: Multiple online sources list the opening at 7 am, even the official website. During our visit here in 2022, the staff member at the entry to the grottoes told us that they do not open until 9:30 am. Keep this in mind if you plan to enter the basilica early in the morning.

Vatican Grottoes Entrance

Vatican Grottoes Entrance

The Treasury Museum. This museum, which is located inside of the basilica, contains artifacts collected over the centuries, including a plaster cast of Michelangelo’s Pietà. Photos inside of the museum are not allowed and there is a small fee to enter. We did this but only think it is worthwhile for those with an interest in the history of the basilica and Catholic Church.

List of Popes

List of the popes near the entrance into the Treasury Museum

The Dome of St. Peter’s Basilica

For one of the most iconic views of Rome, climb to the top of the dome. There are two ways to do this.

  • Climb 551 steps to the top of the dome: €8
  • Take the elevator to the terrace, climb 320 steps to the top: €10

You can purchase your tickets inside of St. Peter’s Basilica at the ticket kiosk. The dome is open from 8 am to 6 pm April through September and 8 am to 4:45 pm October through March. There can be a line for this as well, so get here early to save time.

St Peters Square Rome Italy | How to visit the Vatican Museums and St. Peter's Basilica

The view from the dome | How to visit the Vatican

Audience with the Pope

On Wednesdays at 9:30 am, the Pope holds a general audience in St. Peter’s Square (if he is in Rome). Tickets are free but need to be reserved in advance. Click here for full details.

How to Get to Vatican City

If you have plans to tour the Vatican Museums, take the metro to the Ottaviano station and from here it is a 5-minute walk to the entrance into the museums. You can also take a taxi or Uber to the Vatican Museums entrance.

If you are going to St. Peter’s Square first, take the metro to the Ottaviano station and from here it is a 12-minute walk to St. Peter’s Square. For a more dramatic entrance, take a taxi or Uber to Piazza Pia and walk up Via della Conciliazione to St. Peter’s Square (about a 10-minute walk).

How Much Does it Cost to visit Vatican City?

Vatican Museums: €20 plus €5 reservation fee

Tours to add on the Cabinet of Masks and the original Bramante Staircase are extra and this exact cost depends on the tour that you take.

There is free entry into the Vatican Museums on the last Sunday of the month (expect larger than normal crowds).

St. Peter’s Basilica: Free

Dome of St. Peter’s Basilica: €8 – €10

When are the Vatican Museums & St. Peter’s Basilica Open?

Vatican Museums: Monday to Saturday 9 am to 6 pm; Sunday 9 am to 2 pm; the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel can close for special events so check the official website before you go.

St. Peter’s Basilica: October through March 7 am to 6:30 pm; April through September 7 am to 7 pm; on Wednesdays when the Pope is in town, St. Peter’s Basilica does not open until 12:30 pm

Dome of St. Peter’s Basilica: October through March 8 am to 4:45 pm; April through September 8 am to 6 pm; get updated hours here

Best Time of Day to Visit the Vatican Museums & St. Peter’s Basilica

The best time of day to visit the Vatican Museums is early in the morning, ideally on an early morning tour. These early morning tour groups enter the Vatican Museums at 8 am, one hour before general entry begins. This gives you enough time to explore some of the rooms with low crowds and get to the Sistine Chapel before it gets very crowded. Just be aware that there are quite a few early morning tours, so you won’t have the museums all to yourself.

Wednesday mornings are another great time to visit the Vatican Museums. If the Pope is holding an audience in St. Peter’s Square, visitation tends to be lower at the Vatican Museums.

The best time of day to visit St. Peter’s Basilica is in the morning, arriving by 8 am. This avoids the long line to get through security, plus you can be one of the first people to the top of the dome. Late afternoon is another nice time to visit St. Peter’s Basilica, but you could have limited time, depending on how late you arrive.

Tours of Vatican City

There are a lot of tours of Vatican City. Some just include the Vatican Museums and others include both the Vatican Museums and St. Peter’s Basilica.

If you only need an entrance ticket into the Vatican Museums, you can buy one via GetYourGuide. This has the advantage of being able to cancel your reservation up to 24 hours in advance and get a full refund.

This early morning small group tour of the Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter’s Basilica gets great reviews and uses the same tour group we used (LivItaly Tours).

This very highly rated tour includes the Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, and a tour of St. Peter’s Basilica.

On this tour, visit the Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, and climb the dome of St. Peter’s Basilica.

What We Did

We have visited Vatican City three times.

The first time was during the month of July. We had tickets to enter the Vatican Museums, so we skipped the line, but inside, we faced the largest crowds we have probably seen in a museum. It was wall-to-wall people. Tyler and Kara were kids at the time and counting down the minutes until we could exit the museums. That afternoon, we visited St. Peter’s Basilica, and since it was later in the day, had low crowds and a fantastic experience.

Our second visit was in September 2022. On one morning, Tim and I visited St. Peter’s Basilica, getting here at 7:30 am. Crowds were very low and again, we had a great experience at the Basilica.

On the following day, we took an early morning private tour of the Vatican Museums. It was awesome, not only to have lighter crowds this time of day, but to also tour the museums with a guide. There is a lot to see and you won’t get much out of your visit if you wander around without a guide. At least consider getting the audio guide but a tour guide is even better.

We split our visit into two separate days, to visit both the Vatican Museums and St. Peter’s Basilica early in the morning. It may seem like a hassle to get to this area twice, but it’s the best way to tour both places with fewer people.

St Peters Basilica

St Peter’s Basilica

Helpful Tips for Visiting the Vatican Museums

Purchase your Vatican Museums ticket online in advance. To avoid waiting in an extremely long ticket line, purchase your ticket online in advance . If tickets are sold out, then purchase your ticket though GetYourGuide.

Beware of people selling skip-the-line tickets into St. Peter’s Basilica. You’ll see these guys in St. Peter’s Square and along Via della Conciliazione. These are just overpriced tours of the Vatican Museum that also include St. Peter’s Basilica.

Dress Code. Cover your knees and shoulders. This goes for men and for women. You could get turned away if you are not wearing appropriate clothing.

Beware of pickpockets. With big crowds comes the possibility of pickpocketing. While walking through the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel, beware of pickpockets.

Wednesdays can be good or bad, depending on what you want to get out of this experience. Crowds are light in the Vatican Museums when the Pope holds an audience. But you will not be able to enter St. Peter’s Basilica until 12:30 pm, so it could make your visit to Vatican City longer.

Consider splitting your visit into two separate days. To visit both St. Peter’s Basilica and the Vatican Museums first thing in the morning, split your visit into two days.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do you need a guide for the Vatican Museums?

No, you do not need a guide and you do not need to take a tour of the Vatican Museums. You can visit the museums independently and have the option to use the audio guide.

Should you take a tour of Vatican City?

Tours offer several advantages over visiting Vatican City on your own. With a guide, you will learn about the various rooms, artwork, and the history of the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter’s Basilica with a knowledgeable guide. Some tours give you early morning access, to stay ahead of the crowds, or include secret rooms within the Vatican Museums. To get the most out of your visit, a tour of Vatican City is worth it.

What is the best day of the week to visit the Vatican Museums?

Wednesday mornings, when the Pope holds an audience in St. Peter’s Square, is the best time to tour the Vatican Museums, since they are less crowded during this time.

Can you go directly from the Vatican Museums into St. Peter’s Basilica?

There is a tunnel between the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter’s Basilica but only select tours can do this. If you are not on a tour, you will have to exit the museums and walk about 20 minutes to St. Peter’s Square.

Is the Sistine Chapel worth it?

The Sistine Chapel is one of the most important pieces of Renaissance artwork. The ceiling was painted by Michelangelo and the frescoes that cover the walls were painted by Botticelli, Michelangelo, Rosselli, and other famous Renaissance painters. A visit to the Sistine Chapel is worth it, even if you aren’t a big art aficionado. Just be prepared for large crowds, because this is one of the most popular places to visit in Vatican City.

More Information for Your Trip to Rome

For a full list of things to do in Rome, check out our article Best Things to Do in Rome. For the best viewpoints of Rome’s famous landmarks, take a look at our article Best Views of Rome.

Learn how to plan your time with our One Day in Rome Itinerary , 2 Day Rome Itinerary,   3 Day Rome Itinerary and 4 Day Rome Itinerary.

In our article How to Visit the Colosseum, we cover everything you need to know, from ticket types, things to do at the Colosseum, if a guided tour is worth it, how much it will cost and how to have the best experience.

For advice on where to eat, read our guide about Where to Eat in Rome, that has restaurant recommendations near the Colosseum, Vatican City, and the historic heart of Rome, plus some great rooftop restaurants. We also have a guide to the Best Rooftop Bars in Rome.

Get recommendations on where to stay in Rome in our Rome Hotel Guide.

If you have any questions about how to visit the Vatican Museums or St. Peter’s Basilica, or if you want to share your experience, let us know in the comment section below.

More Information for Your Trip to Italy

ITALY ITINERARIES: If you are just beginning to plan your Italy itinerary, take a look at our 10 Days in Italy Itinerary for five different ways to spend 10 days in Italy. We also have a detailed 10 day itinerary that includes Rome, Florence, the Cinque Terre, and Venice and a 10 day southern Italy itinerary that includes the Amalfi Coast, Matera and Puglia.

VENICE: Learn more about Venice in our article Best Things to Do in Venice. We also have guides about How to Visit St. Mark’s Basilica, where to get the Best Views of Venice, and how to spend Two Days in Venice.

FLORENCE: If you are planning your first visit to Florence, don’t miss our guide to the 10 Best Things to Do in Florence. We also have a guide about how to visit the Florence Cathedral and related sites, the best rooftop bars in Florence and the best viewpoints in Florence.

TUSCAN HILL TOWNS: Check out our detailed guides to Siena , Montepulciano , Pienza , Montalcino , San Quirico d’Orcia , San Gimignano , Monteriggioni , Lucca , Volterra , Arezzo, and Cortona. For a full list of things to do, read our article Best Things to Do in Tuscany.

PUGLIA: Read about 15 beautiful places to visit in Puglia and the best things to do in Alberobello. We also have a guide to the best things to do on the Gargano Peninsula and how to spend one day in Vieste.

We have TONS more information about Italy in our Italy Travel Guide, including Rome, Florence, Venice, Tuscany, the Dolomites, the Amalfi Coast, the Cinque Terre, and Puglia.

Vatican Museums St Peters Basilica Rome

Note: This post contains affiliate links. When you make a purchase using one of these affiliate links, we get paid a small commission at no extra cost to you.

All rights reserved © Earth Trekkers. Republishing this article and/or any of its contents (text, photography, etc.), in whole or in part, is strictly prohibited.

Related Posts

St Peters Square

Comments 25

Avatar for Chris

We only have two days in Rome and we want to see the Pope on Wednesday morning and tour the Vatican Museum after. We get to Rome on Tuesday noon, and would like to tour St Peter’s Basilica in the afternoon from 4pm. How much time do you need to tour and climb the dome in St. Peter’s Basilica? Do you think it is a wise idea?

Avatar for Julie

Yes, you can visit the basilica the day you get into Rome but it would be get there earlier (3 pm). It can be busy mid-afternoon so you could be waiting in line for some time (anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour, maybe more depending on the time of year). If you booked 1 pm Vatican Museum tickets on Wednesday, spent 2 there, you could potentially do the basilica afterwards. On the quickest of visits, it takes about an hour to see the inside of the basilica and climb the dome. 2 hours is better if you don’t want to feel like you are in a race, plus gives you contingency time if there is a line to climb the dome. The dome is only open until 4:45 pm, so make sure you do this first, regardless of the day you plan to visit, and take into account the time it could take to wait in line to enter St. Peter’s Basilica. So, if you arrive at 4 pm, you might not be able to do the dome climb if there is a line to enter the basilica. Cheers, Julie

The St. Peter’s Basilica website says the dome closes at 6pm. We may be able to do it just to climb the dome on Tuesday late afternoon. Then on Wednesday, the Vatican Museum and then the Basilica (this time excluding the dome).

Thanks Julie.

Avatar for Melissa

Thank you for your amazingly helpful guides!! Do you think it is feasible to see St Peter’s Basilica first, and then walk over to the Vatican (with reservations) and do the Vatican Museum second? If not paying for a tour, it seems like it would make sense to get to the Basilica early to avoid long lines, and reserve regular tickets for the Vatican late morning. I realize it would be a little crowded, but may save money/time. Any tips/thoughts about this approach?

Hello Melissa. Yes, this is a great way to visit the basilica and Vatican Museums (in fact, one of our Rome itineraries has people doing it this way). You can click that link to see our itinerary and a nice way to spend the rest of the day. Cheers, Julie

thank you! Very helpful. Your website and itineraries are so great!!

Avatar for Matt

I have a photography lighting question for the St. Peter’s Basilica Dome. It seems like the standard advice is to do the dome climb early in the morning, but wouldn’t the view of Rome be very backlit in the morning? It seems like your “The view from the dome” photo was taken in the afternoon. Do you have a photo from your morning visit? I’m going in November, so I don’t think the sun will be very high by 8:30am-ish. Thank you!

Yes, you are correct, our photo was taken mid-afternoon in July, from our first visit to St. Peter’s Basilica. In the morning, you will be looking towards the sun (you will be facing directly east). On our most recent visit, we did not climb the dome, since we had already done that in the past. But having been to St. Peter’s Basilica and Square in the morning, the sun is shining from the east, so I don’t think the morning would be a good time for photos from the dome. Later that morning (about 10 am) I took photos from Castel Sant’Angelo and my east facing photos were terrible. Cheers, Julie

Thank you for your insight! I have one more question about doing the St. Peter’s dome climb on a Sunday. I previously assumed that Sunday would be a bad time to visit due to religious events/crowds, but now that I think about it, I only hear about avoiding Wednesday mornings. Do you see any issues with attempting to visit St. Peter’s on a Sunday morning?

To add to my confusion, the official website for the Basilica does not mention the Basilica nor the dome being closed on Wednesday mornings. I wouldn’t have known to avoid Wednesdays if I just looked at the official website.

As far as I know, and from everything I’ve read online, St. Peter’s Basilica remains open on Sunday mornings (our visits were on weekdays), so I don’t see any potential issues visiting at this time. But yes, Wednesdays can be bad, but only when the Pope holds mass and is in town, and that schedule may be released for the next month or two, just to double check if it will have an impact on your visit. Cheers, Julie

Avatar for Fred

Thank you for sharing such valuable information with the online world! I’m building our whole visit on your itineraries and tips. What I wonder, however, are the links to GetYourGuide website. Each link brings me to the general page for Rome, but nothing specific. I would really like to book a tour that you did! Thank you!

The tour that we did was a private tour through LivItaly and we added on the Cabinet of Masks and the Bramante Staircase. It cost us about 975 euros per person, which is a huge fee, but we paid that in order to visit the “secret rooms” of the Vatican to write this guide. I don’t think that’s worth it for most people, but you can look around on the LivItaly website or use this GetYourGuide link to a small group early morning tour with LivItaly which is a similar experience at a much more reasonable price, just without the special rooms. Cheers, Julie

Avatar for Barbara Harrick

We want to see the Vatican Museums, Sistene Chapel and St Peter’s on a tour BUT want to make sure we end up at the Vatican gift shop before exiting.

Any suggestions? Thank you!

If you take the tunnel from the Vatican Museums to St. Peters you might not see the gift shop. If this is the case, let your guide know at the start of the tour and maybe they can help you add this in. But if you exit the Vatican Museums at the main exit (onto the street) you will go past the gift shop, if I remember correctly. Cheers, Julie

Avatar for Veranika

Thank you for such an informative guide! Can you please confirm this is the tour you recommend with the tunnel b/w Vatican Museum and St. Basilica: ‘Vatican Early Entrance Skip-the-Line Small Group Tour’ (by LivItalyTour with 46 reviews). The link takes me to getyourguide Vatican tours general page, and I wanted to make sure I’ve selected the correct tour. Thank you!

That link is to the small group early morning tour of the Vatican by LivItaly that we highly recommend. However, we did a different tour, in order to be able to write this guide. We took a private early morning tour by LivItaly and included the Bramante Staircase and the Cabinet of Masks. This private tour runs about 450 euros per person and the Staircase and Cabinet of Masks are additional charges (for a total of 920 euros per person). This can only be booked on the Liv Italy website and here is the link. We did it to be able to write this guide but ordinarily wouldn’t pay that much for a tour, and most people wouldn’t either, since it is very expensive. However, the link that you are referring to is a more affordable option of what we did. It’s a small group tour, so the price is a lot cheaper, but it’s with the same tour company (which is fantastic) and you get the early entrance. But you won’t see the Bramante Staircase and Cabinet of Masks unless you pay the money for the private tour and additional rooms. Cheers, Julie

That makes a lot of sense – thank you!

Best, Veranika

Avatar for Aimee

Your guides are always so helpful! I’ve never used ‘ get your guide’ before… from the link you shared, from the overview I dont see ‘tunnel included’ but should I assume if it covers ” ROME: Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel & Basilica Tour” that it includes the tunnel? Also trying to understand, there are 2 separate lines, one for tickets and one for security check & even if you have a ticket for a tour, you still have to wait in security check line, correct? For my current itinerary I’m thinking an afternoon tour might be easier for us, but I also don’t want to waste hours in lines if possible

Hello Aimee. Yes, there will be two separate lines. If you have a ticket, you will skip the ticket line but still have to go through the security line. In general, the security line isn’t too bad in most cases. As for the tunnel, check the “Full Description” of the tour you are looking at to see if it includes the tunnel. Unfortunately, in some cases, even this isn’t clear. For example, for the early morning tour we took , there is a statement that the tunnel is not yet open. However, I reached out directly to this tour company in February and they confirmed that the tunnel is open, so the GetYourGuide text has not yet been updated. If you want to play it safe, took a look at the tours on the LivItaly website and potentially make your reservation there, plus you can send them an email with any questions you have and they tend to respond quickly. Cheers, Julie

If we plan a tour on a Wednesday it sounds as though we would have to do Vatican museums first, then St. Peter’s Basilica. Early morning is not an option on those days, correct? Or is the Pope not always doing audiences on Wednesday- would the LivItaly tour options reflect that ?

You can do an early tour of the Vatican Museums on Wednesday (that’s when we toured the Museums, as they are generally less crowded that day) but you will not be able to enter St. Peter’s Basilica until the afternoon. We returned to the area on a different morning to visit St. Peter’s Basilica. It’s a bit of a hassle, getting there twice in one week, but this allowed us to do both the museums and the basilica in the morning. If you don’t want to do it that way, have lunch nearby after you tour the museums, and then visit St. Peter’s Basilica that afternoon. There may be a line, I’m not sure how long it would be, and that would also depend on the time of the year. And also, the Pope does not hold an audience every Wednesday, so you can check the schedule using the link we provide in this guide. Cheers, Julie

Avatar for Kelli

Can you tell me any of the history of the Corredor between the Sistine chapel and St. Peter’s Square? I’ve scoured the Internet and all I can find is that it used to be reserved for the use of the popes. My tour guide took us through this short cut And I wanted to know more about it but I can’t find anything on the Internet. Thank you so much!

From what I know, it was a shortcut to be used to get from the Sistine Chapel/Vatican Museums into St. Peter’s Basilica. I don’t know if it has any other historical importance other than that. The corridor wasn’t open during our visit (it closed to tourists for a few years after COVID and just reopened right after our visit) so we never heard the history about it from our guide. Cheers, Julie

Avatar for Karen

This is fabulous summary with very relevant details that answered so many of my questions. I appreciate your time in putting all of this together in one place!

Leave A Comment Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Save my name and email in this browser for the next time I comment.

Sign me up for the monthly newsletter!

The 7 Best Vatican Tours ⛪ [2024 Reviews]

Taking a guided tour of the vatican museums is the best way to appreciate the magnificent artwork and galleries.

The Vatican, formally the Vatican Museums, is a sprawling network of museums, secret rooms, galleries, and more.

These top rated guided Vatican tours will show you some of the most significant artifacts and works of art the Vatican museum has to offer.

A guided tour will help you learn more about the artwork and give you opportunities to see and experience more than you could on your own.

So mark the Vatican off your bucket list with one of these tours!

Best Vatican Guided Tours

Be sure to see our reviews of Tours of Wineries & Vineyards , Rome Catacomb Tours and Tours of the Borghese Gallery .

Quick Answer: The 7 Best Rated Vatican Tours From Rome

  • Vatican City: Private Vatican Tour, Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel and Vatican Basilica
  • Sistine Chapel and St. Peter’s Basilica: Early Morning Tour
  • Vatican and Colosseum Combo Tour: Don’t Wait in Line to See the Best of Rome
  • Entire Vatican Tour: Treasures of the Sistine Chapel
  • Private Vatican Tour Museum and Sistine Chapel
  • Vatican: Early Entry to Museums, Sistine Chapel & St Peter’s
  • Rome: Entire Vatican Museums Tour and St. Peter’s Dome Climb

Vatican Tour Reviews

1. vatican city: private vatican tour, vatican museums, sistine chapel and vatican basilica.

  • Departure Location : Viale Vaticano, 100, 00192 Roma RM
  • Return Location : Saint Peter’s Square
  • Departure Time : Various
  • Estimated Duration : 3 hours
  • Includes : Vatican Museums, Rooms of Rafael and Sistine Chapel Private Tour, skip-the-line tickets

The crowds at the Vatican, as well as the Sistine Chapel, can be a bit overwhelming. This private Vatican tour will take you on a guided and informational walk through many of the most popular attraction stops at the Vatican.

Not only will you be able to see the Sistine Chapel, but also Rafael’s Rooms and the Chiaramonti Gallery, as well as several other famous sites.

Because your tour guide is taking you and your group on a private skip-the-line tour of the Museums and the Sistine Chapel, there may be some flexibility in what you see and when.

You’ll also be able to ask questions of your guide. Your ticket to this private tour also includes the ability to skip the long lines commonly seen at the Vatican.

This tour will bring you through the Pinecone Courtyard where you will see the bust of Augustus, dating back to the 1 st -century A.D. Other Roman sculptures and historical artifacts are also on display.

Both the Gallery of the Maps and the Gallery of the Tapestries offer beauty as well as the overwhelming sense of history located here.

Being able to take in the breathtaking details of both the Sistine Chapel and the Basilica of St. Peter is truly once-in-a-lifetime.

More Information & Tour Booking

100% refund for cancellations within 24 hours of tour experience, other rome experiences you may enjoy:, 2. sistine chapel and st. peter’s basilica: early morning tour.

  • Departure Location : Piazza della Città Leonina
  • Return Location : Piazza della Città Leonina
  • Departure Time : 7:30am
  • Includes : Guided tour of Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel and St. Peter’s Basilica , head sets

Before the crowds start to form for the day, you’ll be able to enjoy a walking tour through the Vatican Museums. With the VIP option, you will be given exclusive access and a private guided tour of the Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter’s Basilica.

Without the crowds elbowing you, you can take in the full majesty of the works of art and truly appreciate them. Your expert tour guide will tell you the background stories of the amazing sculptures and artwork of the Renaissance period.

Without the crowds, you’ll be guided through the various galleries, museums, and secret rooms of the Vatican. These are home to the vast collection of art and religious artifacts central to the culture of Italy and to the Catholic religion.

You will also see the Candelabra Gallery, Gallery of the Tapestries and the Gallery of Maps. These areas are seldom seen by most people but you will be able to stroll through them at a leisurely pace while hearing the background of all these treasures.

Search For Other Top Rated Rome Experiences You May Enjoy:

3. vatican and colosseum combo tour: don’t wait in line to see the best of rome.

  • Departure Location : Check with tour operator
  • Return Location : Original departure point
  • Departure Time : 9am
  • Estimated Duration : 10 hours
  • Includes : Professional guide, reserved Skip-the-Line Access to Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel & Raphael Rooms, Colosseum, Roman Forum and Palatine Hill, Audio headset

Early in the morning, you’ll meet at across the street from the Vatican next to the Caffè Vaticano. You will then cross the street and skip the line into the museum.

However, this not just a typical skip the line tour, you get to enter through the “Private Partner Entrance” that saves even more time!

The small group you will be with will have a guide tour by a Vatican expert who will give you insights and information that will not be found anywhere else.

You will of course see the Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel frescoes in addition to all the other treasures.

After the tour you will then have time to enjoy some of the delicious Italian food that Rome is known for. You will then meet your guide at the coliseum. Here you will again skip the lines, saving hours of waiting.

Once inside your guide will give you all the details of the Coliseum including it’s construction and use over the years.

After the coliseum you will then proceed to Palatine Hill and then finish up at The Forum. This full day tour takes you to some of the best that Rome has to offer!

Tour Information & Booking

4. entire vatican tour: treasures of the sistine chapel.

  • Departure Location : Via Sebastiano Veniero, 19, 00192 Roma
  • Return Location : Vatican Museums, 00120, Vatican City
  • Estimated Duration : 2.5 hours
  • Includes : Tour guide, Skip-the-Line Access to Vatican Museum, Sistine Chapel and Rooms of Raphael

During this relatively short tour of the Vatican, your guide will take you through some of the most popular and historically significant rooms in the Museums.

You’ll also hear about the history and the many legends surrounding the Sistine Chapel as you explore its interior.

However, most of those visiting Vatican don’t have access to the Vatacombs located under the Sistine Chapel. These Catacombs are home to many former popes and other historically significant figures.

Just a few of the things you will see on your tour through the Vatican Museums are Rafael’s Rooms as well as many ancient Roman and Greek artifacts housed in the Belvedere Courtyard.

You’ll learn the history of these important buildings, from the Sistine Chapel to St. Peter’s Basilica. Your guide will also give you a lesson on the Vatican State and the Swiss Guard.

This Vatican day tour from Rome is designed to focus on the art located here and the history of that art. You’ll also learn about how the art of ancient Rome influenced Western art as well as architecture.

Your tour guide is an expert art historian and will also be able to answer questions you may have along the way.

5. Private Vatican Tour Museum and Sistine Chapel

  • Departure Location : Vatican Museums
  • Return Location : Vatican Museums
  • Departure Time : 3:15pm
  • Estimated Duration : 2-3 hours
  • Includes : Expert tour guide, private tour of the Vatican museums, Sistine Chapel and Gallery of Maps

For most, a vacation to Rome is something that only happens once in a lifetime. Because of this, you may want to experience the Vatican, the Sistine Chapel, and other popular locations like no one else can.

On this VIP tour, you’ll have access to rooms in the Vatican Museums that aren’t usually available to the public.

While you’ll be able to see things inside the Vatican usually off-limits, such as the Niccoline Chapel or the Bramante Staircase, you’ll also have skip-the-line access to publicly available galleries such as Rafael’s Rooms.

However, you’ll also be able to visit the Sistine Chapel after it closes to the general public. On this private tour, you’ll be able to hear commentary from your experienced tour guide about the history and construction of the Chapel.

Commentary usually isn’t allowed in the Chapel which makes this a unique experience.

This VIP private guided Vatican tour is limited to just 15 people. This means you’ll have a personalized experience as you take in the beauty and wonders of one of the most historically significant places in the world.

After all, not very many visitors to the Vatican are able to experience the secret rooms and learn of the often-forgot history that resides in them.

6. Vatican: Early Entry to Museums, Sistine Chapel & St. Peter’s Tour

  • Duration : 3.5 hours
  • Departure : Via Santamaura 14B (Office What a Life Tours)
  • Departure Time :  8:00 AM
  • Includes : Skip-the-ticket-line ticket to the Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter’s Basilica, early entrance an hour before crowds, tour guide, admission and reservation fees

If I’d give any one tip to tourists going to the Vatican, it would be to book a tour that gives you skip-the-line access. The Vatican can get insanely busy, and the lines can take hours off of your day – oftentimes in the hot, humid Mediterranean heat.

The Vatican: Early Entry to Museums, Sistine Chapel & St. Peter’s Tour helps avoid all that, giving you premium access even before the crowds think of forming! This tour lasts 3.5 hours, but all of it is exploring and learning rather than waiting around in hopes of entering these amazing museums and structures.

Start out by meeting your guide at the tour offices, which are right next to the Vatican, itself. I immediately noticed that our guide was super friendly and more than happy to answer any questions we had, along with plenty of recommendations along the way.

Not to mention, this is a completely personalized experience rather than a boring, cookie-cutter tour that you could frankly get anywhere. The guide asked us about our specific interests and tailored our tour around them, so that everyone was happy and didn’t miss anything we wanted to see.

As the groups max out at just 12 participants, it’s easy to move through the hallways and see everything without fighting through a big crowd. This VIP experience took us through all the hidden gems and biggest tourist sites inside the Vatican, with the early morning tour. This consisted of the museums, the Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter’s Basilica.

The Sistine Chapel was even more breathtaking in person, and we learned everything from the history of the artwork to the structure, itself.

7. Rome: Entire Vatican Museums Tour and St. Peter’s Dome Climb

  • Duration : 5 hours
  • Departure : Either the Tiare Fountain and the Sebastiano Veniero 19
  • Departure Time : 8:00 AM
  • Includes : St. Peter’s Dome entry tickets, Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel skip-the-line entry tickets, guided tour

If the last tour caught your attention but you’re looking for something even more comprehensive, I have the perfect excursion for you. Lasting 5 hours, the Entire Vatican Museums Tour and St. Peter’s Dome Climb is what I’d recommend if it’s your first time in Rome and want to see a good portion of the most popular sites in the capital.

It’s so much more than the average Vatican tour – this time, you’re getting the VIP treatment. Right across from St. Peter’s Square, we met up with your expert guide who was very friendly and seemed to know just about everything there was to know about the area.

After a quick intro, he lead us into Vatican City and St. Peter’s Basilica before it even opens to the public! This itself was worth the money, considering I saw the queues later in the day and they were there for hours!

Once inside, we got to choose to go up the elevator or walk up to the terrace level of St. Peter’s (I recommend the latter, if you can!). Here, there are countless little mosaics, which our guide also told us fascinating stories about to further enrich the experience. Next, it’s to the summit for simply the best, most beautiful views of Rome I’ve ever seen.

Next, we head down deep into the Vatacombs, where the former popes lie, and where you’ll learn some rather dramatic and interesting stories behind what’s happened here. Next, is an educational tour of St. Peter’s Basilica, covering some of the most unbelievable Renaissance masterpieces in the world.

After a short break for some food, you’ll then skip the line to enter the Vatican Museums through 1,200 or so galleries. We did spend a good portion of the Chapel, and seeing the magic touch applied by Michelangelo in person definitely warranted the extra time here.

FAQs About Vatican Tours

What can i expect on a vatican tour.

A Vatican tour usually starts with a meeting point near the entrance of the Vatican Museums or at your hotel if you have arranged a pickup service. You will meet your guide who will give you your skip-the-line ticket and your headset if needed.

Then, you will enter the Vatican Museums and follow your guide through the vast collection of artworks that span from ancient times to modern times. You will see famous sculptures, paintings, tapestries, maps, and more.

The best part of any tour is the Sistine Chapel. Here you can take in the stunning frescoes by Michelangelo that depict scenes from the Bible. You will also learn about the secrets and stories behind this masterpiece.

Finally, you will visit St. Peter’s Basilica, where you will see the largest church in the world and its magnificent dome. You will also see the tomb of St. Peter, the Pietà by Michelangelo, and other artworks by Bernini and other artists.

How long do Vatican City tours last?

Vatican tours usually last two to four hours, depending on how much of the Vatican you want to see.

Why should I go on Vatican guided tour?

Going on a Vatican tour is one of the best ways to experience the vast museums of the Vatican. The Vatican is one the largest and most impressive collections of art in the world. A Vatican tour is more than just a sightseeing trip; it’s an enlightening journey!

Do I have to have a ticket to see the Vatican?

To visit the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel you do need a ticket. They are always crowded and must buy tickets in advance. We would recommend a guided tour with skip the line tickets. To see St. Peter’s Square or St. Peter’s Basilica you don’t need a ticket but you still have to go through a security check and follow a dress code.

How can I see the Pope?

The Pope holds a general mass on Wednesdays at 10 am in St. Peter’s Square or in the Paul VI Audience Hall. Where the mass is held depends on the weather and how many people are attending. You can request a free ticket from the Prefecture of the Papal Household or join a guided tour. The Pope also delivers an Angelus prayer on Sundays at noon from his window overlooking St. Peter’s Square. You don’t need a ticket for this.

What else can I do when visiting the Vatican?

Other than the Vatican Museums, the Sistine Chapel and St Peter’s Basilica there are some lesser-known but still interesting places in Vatican City. You can explore the Vatican Necropolis, this ancient cemetery lies below St. Peter’s Basilica and contains the tomb of St. Peter. You need to book this at least two months in advance. You can also climb up to the dome of St. Peter’s Basilica and see pretty amazing views of the city and the square. You can either take an elevator or stairs to reach the dome. There is a fee for both options.

Tips to enjoy your Vatican tour

Tip #1: dress appropriately for your visit to the vatican.

Because the Vatican Museums , as well as the Sistine Chapel, are religious places, you’ll need to dress appropriately.

Your shoulders, knees, and abdomen should be completely covered. Your clothes should not have inappropriate graphics or sayings. If security personnel believe you are dressed inappropriately, you won’t be allowed in. This is true even if you are on a private tour.

Tip #2: Plan Everything in Advance

There are millions of visitors to Rome and the Vatican every year. This means that some of the attractions you are looking forward to may be sold out or closed by the time you arrive.

The Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel are a great example of this. If you are traveling to Rome around the time of religious holidays, these attractions may be closed to the public as well as to guided tours.

While many guided tours have backup plans in the event a scheduled location is closed unexpectedly, you should research your trip to make sure the places you wish to visit should be open.

Tip #3: Choose a Tour of the Vatican

If you plan on visiting the Vatican Museums, the Sistine Chapel, St. Peter’s Basilica, and other popular places within Vatican City, purchasing a guided tour is a good idea.

The lines for general admission to many of these places can stretch for blocks and getting in may not be guaranteed. With a guided tour, like the ones we’ve reviewed above, you are guaranteed access so long as it isn’t closed for religious reasons. Plus, you will be able to skip the long lines.

Tip #4: Only Carry What You Need

While this is true wherever you are visiting within the city of Rome, it is especially true when visiting the Vatican. Large bags, umbrellas, camera tripods, and other cumbersome items aren’t allowed within the Vatican Museums and related locations.

You can store them in the cloakroom provided for free, but you may end up having to leave your tour early to retrieve them before closing time. It’s best to carry only what you need when touring the Vatican.

Tip #5: Visit on a Wednesday

If you’re looking forward to seeing the Pope and to the papal audience, you’ll want to plan your visit for a Wednesday. While there are occasional deviations from the Wednesday schedule, you’ll most likely be able to see the weekly message on that day. In fact, the Papal Audience and Vatican Museums tour we reviewed above guarantees you will see the Pope as part of the papal audience as long as he delivers his message on schedule.

What Can I See in One Day at the Vatican (A Sample Itinerary)

Of course you can’t see everything in the Vatican in a day but you can certainly hit the highlights. Lets take a look at what you can see in one day.

St. Peter’s Basilica: This stunning church is the largest in the world and is home to some amazing works of art. Check out Michelangelo’s “Pieta” and the altar before taking the elevator up to the top of the dome. Here you can get a bird’s eye view of the city. Trust me when I tell you, the view is absolutely it!

Vatican Museums : This gigantic collection of art galleries is the home to the most famous art in the world. Starting with the Sistine Chapel and the Raphael Rooms. You need to spend a few hours here as there is so much to see. Some of this time is going to be spent waiting, so factor that in.

Pro tip : Buy your tickets online well in advance so you can skip the long lines!

Lunch : By the time you are done with the Basilica and Sistine Chapel it will be time take a break from the crowds and have lunch at one of the local cafes or restaurant. Enjoy some Italian cuisine while admiring the architecture around you.

Papal Audience :  This weekly event is every Wednesday and gives you a chance to see the Pope and receive his blessing. This is something you won’t forget!

Pro tip : Be sure to arrive early to secure a spot, it’s one of the most popular things to do at the Vatican.

Further explore : After seeing the Pope, take time to explore some of the lesser known areas of the Vatican. Some of these areas are the Vatican Gardens or the Necropolis. These hidden gems will give you a glimpse of the history and culture of the city.

Tour Guides

The Private Tour of Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel is our Editors Choice with its combination of sites seen, tours guides and value.

Krysha Thayer

Related articles, the 5 best stonehenge tours from london [2024 reviews], the 5 best wine tours from florence [2024 reviews], the 5 best seine river dinner cruises [2024 reviews], the 7 best paris walking tours [2024 reviews].

The Advantages of Taking our Private Tours

These are the reasons why people choose us:

Skip-the long entrane lines

The Vatican is the most visited site in Rome. Booking in advance protects you from queuing and tickets unavailability

Private & Small Group is Better!

We stay away from large crowded groups. We like to tour with our pace, relax and concentration.

Top-rated Tour Guides

Our official Vatican Tour Guides are top-rated on Trip-Advisor

Service & Care

We organize your experience from a to z, and provide you transfers from airport, hotel, or anywhere in Rome

Vatican & Sistine Chapel Tours

Guided Tours and fast-access tickets of the Vatican, Sisine Chapel, Colosseum & much more...

Best of the Vatican Private Tour

  • Skip-the-lines
  • Official Local Guide

Everything you need to see in the Vatican in 1 full day. You will have lunch inside the museums.

Vatican and Sistine Chapel Half-day Tour

Our most popular guided tour of Vatican inluding the most significant sites: the Museums, the Sistine Chapel, the Rooms of Raphael, the Basilica of St. Peter.

Visit the grandest catholic church on earth and reahc the top of the dome to see the great panoramic view of Rome.

Book your Tour Now!

Contact us for more info and booking. You can also send us a whatsapp or facebook message to get in touch with us.

Vatican Museums

Where we are.

General information +39 06 69883145 [email protected] Office of the Directorate +39 06 69883332 [email protected]

Publications and Merchandising

vatican tour guides

Sculptures >

vatican tour guides

Publications >

vatican tour guides

Gift ideas >

vatican tour guides

Prints and Posters >

vatican tour guides

Accessories >

vatican tour guides

Home decor >

Follow us Menu

vatican tour guides

Social media

Support menu, patrons of the arts, choose your tour, aree tematiche, museums and vatican collections.

Museums and Vatican Collections

Vatican Gardens

Vatican Gardens

Papal Palace & Secret Garden of Castel Gandolfo

Papal Palace & Secret Garden of Castel Gandolfo

Tour itineraries for

Schools – education.

Schools – Education

Universities

Universities

Blind visitors

Blind visitors

Deaf visitors

Deaf visitors

Search Menu

Advanced search.

vatican tour guides

  • Tours & Activities
  • Places of Interest
  • Sent Requests

vatican tour guides

  • Terms of Service
  • Privacy Policy
  • Become a Partner
  • Manage your Listings
  • Vatican Shop

Vatican Museums offer special Lenten tours

SISTINE CHAPEL

RPBaiao | Shutterstock

During Lent, the Vatican Museums are offering a special series of guided tours exploring the rich artistic history of the Catholic Church , focusing on works depicting the Passion and Resurrection of Jesus Christ.

A thematic journey through artistic treasures

These tours take visitors on a thematic journey through the museums’ vast collections, beginning with early Christian sarcophagi decorated with scenes of Jesus’ death and resurrection . Visitors then move on to the Vatican’s Pinacoteca, where they’ll encounter masterpieces such as Caravaggio’s The Deposition , a powerful depiction of Christ’s lifeless body.

Continuing through the upper galleries, the tour culminates in the iconic Sistine Chapel, where Michelangelo’s “Last Judgment” embodies the triumph of Christian hope.

These tours are designed to be accessible and informative for all visitors , including families with children ages 6 and up. Tours are conducted in Italian or English and are fully accessible to people with sensory, motor and intellectual disabilities.

The Vatican Museums

The Vatican Museums are a treasure trove of art and history, showcasing the artistic heritage of the Catholic Church. Founded by Pope Julius II in the early 16th century, the museums boast an immense collection spanning more than 20 centuries of world history – from ancient sculptures and Renaissance masterpieces to modern works.

Highlights of the museums include the Pio Clementino Museum , with classical Roman and Greek sculptures; the Pinacoteca , with iconic paintings by Raphael and Caravaggio; and, of course, the Sistine Chapel , a masterpiece of Renaissance (and Manneristic) art adorned with frescoes by Michelangelo.

SISTINE CHAPEL

Enjoying your time on Aleteia?

Articles like these are sponsored free for every Catholic through the support of generous readers just like you.

Thanks to their partnership in our mission, we reach more than 20 million unique users per month!

Help us continue to bring the Gospel to people everywhere through uplifting and transformative Catholic news, stories, spirituality, and more.

Support Aleteia with a gift today!

Protect Your Trip »

The 9 best all-inclusive resorts for weddings.

Find the top spots for couples planning elopements and destination weddings.

Top All-Inclusive Resorts for Weddings

Bride and groom on the beach.

Getty Images

Bride and groom on the beach.

Planning your wedding at an all-inclusive resort can take a lot of the stress and planning work of your nuptials off your plate. After all, all-inclusive properties offer rooms for all your guests, as well as all the foods, drinks and amenities you will need for your big day. Many properties also have a wedding planner on-site, which can help you organize details like securing your marriage certificate and an officiant for the ceremony.

A variety of all-inclusive retreats have also introduced special packages to make hosting a wedding even more seamless. From the Florida Keys to the Caribbean, here are the top all-inclusive resorts offering enticing wedding packages that cover almost everything you could need.

Read: The Most Romantic Weekend Getaways

Hard Rock Hotel & Casino: Punta Cana, Dominican Republic

Diamond Ocean View King Suite at Hard Rock Hotel Cancun.

Courtesy of Hard Rock Hotel Cancun

If you're looking for a large family-friendly resort for your all-inclusive dream wedding, the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic offers something for everyone. This expansive Punta Cana property features 1,775 rooms and suites next to a beautiful white sand beach with swaying palms and loungers for relaxation. The hotel has a supervised kids club to help give the adults in your party a break, and the Rockaway Bay water park boasts a couple dozen waterslides, plus a family pool and several bars. The resort even has its own casino with table games, slots and live poker with cash games every night of the week. Couples can relax knowing their entire party will be well fed and entertained, as there are nine restaurants and 23 different bars and lounges to choose from.

Whatever wedding package you choose – options span "Modern Enchantment" to "Lavish Daydream" – you'll get a wedding venue; seating, wine and cake for 32 guests; a soloist for the ceremony; an on-site wedding coordinator; and a complimentary honeymoon package, among other amenities. Hard Rock Hotel Punta Cana's "Wedding Group Benefits" give couples perks such as complimentary private functions, room upgrades and even complimentary nights. This resort is ideal for anything from a small wedding or elopement all the way up to a massive wedding with room for everyone.

Secrets Moxché Playa Del Carmen: Playa del Carmen, México

Secrets Moxché Playa Del Carmen is an adults-only all-inclusive resort , so it's best for the type of destination wedding where the kids are left at home. This property sits just a few miles from Playa del Carmen 's famous Quinta Avenida (Fifth Avenue), allowing for easy access to nightlife or special dinners out with the wedding party. This resort has 485 sumptuous suites, more than a dozen restaurants and bars, and plenty of the "Unlimited-Luxury" experience that Secrets resorts are known for.

Weddings are a big deal at Secrets Moxché Playa Del Carmen, and the resort offers numerous wedding packages and special offers as a result. Each package includes the expertise and assistance of an on-site wedding coordinator, as well as preparation of the wedding couple's ceremony attire, a nondenominational or symbolic ceremony, and more. Wedding flowers, special food and beverage packages, spa packages or discounts, and free anniversary nights can also be arranged.

Bungalows Key Largo: Florida Keys, Florida

A couple walking through Bungalows Key Largo resort.

Courtesy of Bungalows Key Largo

This all-inclusive Florida resort is considered one of the top romantic getaways in the state for good reason. If you're looking for Florida beach wedding packages and you want to book something all-inclusive, Bungalows Key Largo is your best bet. This all-inclusive Florida Keys resort is for adults only , so it's best for mature groups or destination weddings with adult children (ages 21 and up) only. That said, all meals including fine dining and premium drinks are covered in your stay – along with access to top-notch Florida Keys shoreline , pools and hot tubs and even use of kayaks, stand-up paddleboards, snorkel gear and water trikes.

The property consists of 135 stand-alone bungalows, and weddings here are geared to smaller affairs. Bungalows Key Largo offers special elopement packages, which come with a private ceremony with an officiant, a bridal bouquet, an hour of professional photography, in-room rose petals and Champagne on the big night, a romantic wedding dinner, and more.

Royalton Antigua: Antigua

Royalton Antigua offers all-inclusive luxury for groups of all ages. At this resort you'll find eight restaurants and five bars, kids and teens clubs, three swimming pools, an elegant spa, and a casino. This property in Antigua also features nearly 300 suites to accommodate all your guests, as well as overwater bungalows that are perfect for a betrothed couple who want to splurge.

Planning a luxury wedding at Royalton Antigua is a breeze due to the all-inclusive offerings of the resort and the abundance of wedding venues to choose from here. A variety of packages are available for a small elopement or destination wedding with up to 64 guests; you can customize your special day to get it exactly right. Couples can even enhance their nuptials with unique add-ons like a groom's in-room experience, a late-night food station or a one-of-a-kind welcome party with a signature cocktail.

Grand Fiesta Americana Coral Beach Cancún: Cancún, Mexico

Strawberries and champagne on a table in a suite at Grand Fiesta Americana Coral Beach Cancún.

Courtesy of Grand Fiesta Americana Coral Beach Cancún

The Grand Fiesta Americana Coral Beach Cancún All Inclusive Spa Resort offers 602 suites that can accommodate families and groups of all sizes. In fact, the wedding couple and their guests can relax and unwind in anything from ocean-view suites for two all the way up to oceanfront penthouses with three or four bedrooms and your own private pool. The all-inclusive resort boasts around a dozen unique restaurants and bars, including the AAA Five Diamond Le Basilic restaurant. Other standout features at the hotel include a supervised kids club, an elegant Gem Spa, sparkling pools and a stunning white sand beach.

Cancún is one of the most popular wedding destinations in this region of the world, partly because there are more than 120 cities worldwide with direct flights into Cancún International Airport. This Mexican locale is thus easy to reach for both the couple tying the knot and their guests from around the world. The Grand Fiesta Americana Coral Beach Cancún offers several wedding packages to suit groups of any size, each of which includes a symbolic wedding ceremony, a reception with a cake and exceptional added benefits to make your big day into the wedding of your dreams.

IBEROSTAR Selection Cancún: Cancún, Mexico

IBEROSTAR Selection Cancún is a five-star luxury property that's conveniently located less than 10 miles from the Cancún International Airport. This property offers direct access to stunning white sand beaches, 10 different pools, a golf course, its own nightclub, and six distinguished restaurants serving fresh and gourmet cuisine. Room options are diverse as well, making it easy for different groups in your party to book the lodging option they need. Suites and oceanfront villas are available at this adults-only resort, which provides a place for guests to escape and celebrate the big day.

Destination weddings at the beach are a focus of IBEROSTAR Selection Cancún. Visitors can plan any type of nuptials from basic to lavish, with the help of a wedding specialist. While the rooms and food are included in the all-inclusive rate, the resort can help you organize every detail of the ceremony, photo shoot, reception, music and more.

Hyatt Zilara Rose Hall: Montego Bay, Jamaica

Beach wedding ceremony setup at Hyatt Zilara Rose Hall Resort.

Courtesy of Hyatt

Hyatt Zilara Rose Hall is situated in Montego Bay, Jamaica , about a 5-mile ride from Sangster International Airport. This location is convenient for everyone in the party to reach, and the property itself is uniquely suited to host your entire crew while giving everyone some space. Hyatt Zilara Rose Hall is an adults-only resort, yet the connected Hyatt Ziva Rose Hall accepts guests of all ages. Wedding parties with multiple generations can thus book rooms at either property before joining together for the ceremony, reception and other wedding events. Hyatt Zilara guests can dine and enjoy amenities at both properties, too.

Hyatt Zilara features 344 rooms and suites, including lavish swim-up guest rooms and suites with private butler service. Guests can dine and drink at 16 different restaurants, cafes and bars across both resorts. You'll also get to enjoy the white sand beach, several sparkling pools and an on-site lazy river. Weddings are common here, with myriad venues spanning an oceanfront wedding gazebo to an elegant Sky Lounge and several ballrooms. All-inclusive weddings can accommodate up to 1,000 guests, and several distinct wedding packages are offered through the resort.

Sandals Ochi: Ocho Rios, Jamaica

Sandals properties are known for offering adults-only luxury in unbelievable beachfront settings, and Sandals Ochi is no exception. This new all-inclusive resort in Ocho Rios has everything you could want in an all-inclusive stay, from its own beach club to 11 different bars and 16 unique eateries. Everything is included here, from food and drink to PADI-certified scuba diving, green fees at the golf club, water sports and round-trip airport transfers. Weddings are even included in the rate for stays of three nights or longer.

The fact that this property is adults-only and geared to romance makes it ideal for a small wedding with a few couples, an elopement or even a long-awaited vow renewal. In fact, the property (and other Sandals resorts) offers specialized vow renewal packages for free when you book five rooms or more. Each wedding or vow renewal includes a personal planning team, a picturesque ceremony location, flowers for the bride and groom, a complimentary photo, a reception with a celebration cake and more. Couples can book romantic honeymoon suites or choose from luxurious villas with private pools.

Grand Palladium: Playa del Carmen, Mexico

The Grand Palladium resort complex in the Riviera Maya is a solid option for all-inclusive wedding packages that can fit in any budget. After all, this resort complex actually boasts four different properties, each at their own price point — the Grand Palladium Colonial Resort & Spa , the Grand Palladium Kantenah Resort & Spa , the Grand Palladium White Sand Resort & Spa and the adults-only TRS Yucatan Hotel . By booking a wedding at any of these resorts, you can make it easier for your guests to select a room option and property that fits their budget and family size the best. You may opt to splurge with a stay at the more luxurious Grand Palladium White Sand Resort & Spa or the adults-only TRS Yucatan Hotel with its private plunge pools and Jacuzzi suites.

Weddings are easy to plan at these Grand Palladium resorts in the Riviera Maya. Guests at the three family-friendly properties share all amenities; those staying at TRS Yucatan Hotel can also visit and use the amenities at all four properties. Wedding amenities and upgrades can include private check-in for the bride and groom, access to a dedicated wedding planner, special honeymoon arrangements, breakfast in bed for the wedding couple, a room upgrade (based on availability) and more. Several wedding packages with custom decor and tailored venues are also available.

You might also be interested in:

  • The Best Honeymoon Destinations
  • Romantic Hotels Worth a Stay
  • The Top Bachelorette Party Destinations
  • The Top Bachelor Party Destinations
  • The Top Garment Bags for Travel

Tags: Travel , All-Inclusive Vacations , Couples Vacations

World's Best Places To Visit

  • # 1 South Island, New Zealand
  • # 4 Bora Bora

If you make a purchase from our site, we may earn a commission. This does not affect the quality or independence of our editorial content.

You May Also Like

The best walking shoes for travel.

Catriona Kendall March 4, 2024

vatican tour guides

The 13 Best Las Vegas Tours

John Rodwan March 4, 2024

vatican tour guides

The Best Kids Luggage

Amanda Norcross March 1, 2024

vatican tour guides

Best Hoover Dam Tours from Las Vegas

Holly Johnson and Ann Henson March 1, 2024

vatican tour guides

Top Things to Do in Colorado

Leilani Osmundson Feb. 29, 2024

vatican tour guides

The 5 Best NYC Bus Tours for 2024

Holly Johnson and Marisa Méndez Feb. 29, 2024

vatican tour guides

Top Bachelor Party Destinations

Timothy J. Forster Feb. 29, 2024

vatican tour guides

The 8 Best Hollywood Tours

Gwen Pratesi and Ann Henson Feb. 28, 2024

vatican tour guides

Top Adults-Only Resorts in the Caribbean

Sharael Kolberg Feb. 28, 2024

vatican tour guides

The Best Statue of Liberty Tours

Lyn Mettler and Ann Henson Feb. 27, 2024

vatican tour guides

IMAGES

  1. Our Vatican City Guided Tours

    vatican tour guides

  2. Best of the Vatican Small Group Tour

    vatican tour guides

  3. Guided Vatican Tours

    vatican tour guides

  4. The Original Entire Vatican Tour & St. Peter's Dome Climb

    vatican tour guides

  5. Guided Vatican Tour with with Pick up at hotel and Skyp the Line Tickets

    vatican tour guides

  6. See The Unseen at Vatican with Tour Guided Service

    vatican tour guides

VIDEO

  1. Vatican City

  2. Tour of the Vatican Museums

  3. Vatican tour

  4. #vatican #vatican_city #blogger

  5. The Vatican Tour

  6. Vatican City 🇻🇦

COMMENTS

  1. Vatican Tours & Sistine Chapel Tours

    Explore the Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's Basilica with expert guides and skip-the-line access. Choose from a variety of tours, including early morning, night, VIP and food & wine options.

  2. Book the BEST Vatican Tours in Rome

    Book Vatican tours with The Roman Guy, a trusted tour operator with over a decade of experience and 1000s of 5-star reviews. Choose from various options to explore the Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, St. Peter's Basilica, and more with first-entry access and top-rated guides.

  3. Vatican Guided Tours

    Vatican Guided Tour is an official tour operator authorized by the Vatican to have privileged entrances - skip-the-line guided tours. Our staff and official and mother-tongue tour guides will offer you an unforgettable experience over the Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter's Basilica at the most competitive price. ...

  4. 5 Best Vatican Tours of 2024, According to Reviews

    The Roman Guy - Vatican After Hours Tour with Sistine Chapel. Price: Adults from $124; kids from $100. Duration: 2 hours. Instead of early entry, this tour offers after-hours access to the ...

  5. THE 10 BEST Vatican City Tours & Excursions

    Marianne was our fantastic guide for the 4.5 hours tour of Vatican museums, St Peters and the Dome. She was so knowledgeable and friendly, and found just the right balance so that we didn't feel we were missing anything important but didn't drag too long anywhere. Really great to miss the queues and especially to take the shortcut directly from ...

  6. Vatican Guided Tours: Explore Vatican City with Priority Access

    Vatican Guided Tour (Vatican Tours) is a licensed tour operator (official travel agency). Vatican guided tours and special events in the Vatican City, Holy See, Vatican Museum, Saint Peter's Basilica and St Peter's Tomb (Necropolis). We offer special Guided Tours, Sightseeing of the Vatican Museum, Sistine Chapel, Vatican Gardens, St Peter's Basilica, St Peter's Tomb, Vatican Grottoes ...

  7. Guided tours of the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel

    I think most people can get by touring the Vatican Museums on their own without a guide. Simply using an audio guide or a guide book is all most need. Here's why… Nearly 30,000 people visit the Vatican Museums each day. 30,000 people. Every day. Some of the best works of art are housed in

  8. Vatican Tours in Rome

    Raphael rooms (Vatican museums) Sistine Chapel - Michelangelo's Painting. Saint Peter's Basilica. All 4 Places. Uncover great artistic masterpieces of the Vatican on this tour specifically designed for visitors with limited time. Semi-Private VIP Vatican in a Day Tour: Experience Art and History as Never Before. $.

  9. Visiting the Vatican

    You may expect a guided tour of the Vatican Museums and Basilica to last roughly three hours total. To find out about the many different kinds of tours you can book, visit my page about Vatican Museum Tours , which breaks down your options between group tours, early access tours, semi-private tours and more.

  10. Best Vatican tours for the Sistine Chapel, Vatican Museums and St Peter's

    Liv Tours - Skip the line Highlights of the Vatican tour (small groups up to 6 people - 5% off with code - UntoldItaly) CityWonders - Skip the line tour of the Vatican (larger groups) Vatican official - Standard Vatican tour (provided by the museums - historic focus) 5% discount on small group tours with Liv Tours.

  11. Vatican Tours: Tips, Tours, and Must-See Attractions

    Time Needed to Tour the Vatican. Most guided tours at the Vatican run for a standard 2 to 3 hours, giving you an overview of the Vatican Museums, the Sistine Chapel, and the iconic St. Peter's Basilica. These tours usually start early in the morning or early in the afternoon, leaving you plenty of time to enjoy the place.

  12. Discover the Best Guided Tours of Vatican City

    Experience the Best of Vatican City with Our Award-Winning Guided Tours. With almost 20 years of experience and 2 million guests hosted, we have developed a reputation for providing top-of-the-line services to our guests. In fact, in 2019, TripAdvisor awarded our Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel & St. Peter's Basilica Tour as the Number One ...

  13. 2024 Skip-the-Line Tour of the Vatican, Sistine Chapel & St. Peter's

    Your tour begins in central Rome, where you greet your guide and—with skip-the-line ticket in hand—sail past the long lines that often form outside of the Vatican. Once inside, make a beeline for top Vatican attractions, such as the Gallery of Maps, Raphael's Rooms, and the indisputable main attraction: the Sistine Chapel, where ...

  14. Vatican Guided Tours

    Guided Tour (<30 Guests) of Vatican Museum & Sistine Chapel. Witness two astonishing landmarks, the Vatican Museum, and Sistine Chapel, by taking a 3-hour guided tour. Take a stroll around the museum and spot the world's largest collections of art, the Renaissance masterpieces, and classical sculptures.

  15. Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel Skip-the-Line Tour 2024

    This Vatican Museums Skip-the-Line Tour is a great choice for first-time visitors and travelers that prefer to bypass the long lines that the Vatican can attract. Skip the entrance lines with your tour group and then explore the highlights of the museums, including the Sistine Chapel and Raphael's Rooms, with a guide leading the way. Plus, this tour also gives you skip-the-line access to St ...

  16. How to Visit the Vatican Museums & St. Peter's Basilica in 2024

    Tours to add on the Cabinet of Masks and the original Bramante Staircase are extra and this exact cost depends on the tour that you take. There is free entry into the Vatican Museums on the last Sunday of the month (expect larger than normal crowds). St. Peter's Basilica: Free. Dome of St. Peter's Basilica: €8 - €10.

  17. The Best Vatican Tours To Take in 2024 and Why + Maps

    Purchase skip-the-line Vatican tickets. The Best Vatican Tours to Take and Why. Visiting the Vatican. 1. Privileged Entrance Vatican Tour with Sistine Chapel. Everyone knows the Vatican Museums are filled with crowds most of the day. That's why this Privileged Entrance Vatican Tour is ideal if you want to avoid the crowds and heat.

  18. The 7 Best Vatican Tours ⛪ [2024 Reviews]

    Best Vatican Guided Tours. Vatican City: Private Vatican Tour, Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel and Vatican Basilica. Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's Basilica: Early Morning Tour. Vatican and Colosseum Combo Tour: Don't Wait in Line to See the Best of Rome. Best Private Tour.

  19. Vatican Private Tour Guide

    Book your Tour Now! Contact us for more info and booking. You can also send us a whatsapp or facebook message to get in touch with us. Your local guide in the Vatican City. Intimate, fun, informative. Skip-the-line and visit the Vatican and the Sistine Chapel with our top-rated tours.

  20. Vatican Museums

    Free entry - Possibility of guided tours upon reservation. Days & Hours of closure > Navigazione info. Vatican Museums Openings/Closures 2024; Openings/Closures Papal Palace of Castel Gandolfo 2024; Calendar of Events; Where we are Viale Vaticano, 00165 Rome

  21. Vatican Tours with Local Private Tour Guides

    From. To. Take a Live Virtual Tour and explore the world from your home! View. Adventure / Active After Dark City Day Trip / Out of Town First Time Visitor Food and Wine Hiking and Walking Local Experience Museums / Culture Nature and Wildlife Religious Heritage Shopping Youth and Family Shore Excursions.

  22. Choose your tour

    Free entry - Possibility of guided tours upon reservation. ... Vatican Museums Openings/Closures 2024; Openings/Closures Papal Palace of Castel Gandolfo 2024; Calendar of Events; Where we are Viale Vaticano, 00165 Rome. Getting Here > Contact. General information +39 06 69883145 [email protected]

  23. Vatican Tours

    All 6 Places. Enter the Vatican Museums a full hour before the general public and experience the Sistine Chapel at a time later in the morning when it is least busy. Get inspired by the Vatican's ... more masterpiece. Semi-Private VIP Vatican in a Day Tour: Experience Art and History as Never Before. $.

  24. Vatican Museums offer special Lenten tours

    During Lent, the Vatican Museums are offering a special series of guided tours exploring the rich artistic history of the Catholic Church, focusing on works depicting the Passion and Resurrection ...

  25. The 9 Best All-Inclusive Resorts for Weddings

    Discover the best guided tours of this iconic national monument, plus how to see it on your own. Lyn Mettler and Ann Henson Feb. 27, 2024. The Best Vatican Tours.