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

Roma, Italy
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From $75.53

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Up to 24 hours in advance.
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  • 3 hours (approx.)
  • Mobile ticket
  • Offered in: English

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Overview

Discover the Vatican on a group tour of the Sistine Chapel and the Vatican Museums with an expert guide. Navigate the vast complex of rooms, artwork, and history with a guide, who brings the ancient collection to life. Skip all the entrance lines to explore halls such as the Gallery of the Maps; step inside the Sistine Chapel to admire ‘The Creation of Adam’ by Michelangelo and finish your tour visiting St. Peter's Basilica. Choose from several departures, or upgrade to a small-group tour.
  • Enjoy the Vatican highlights including the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter’s Basilica
  • Choose from several different departure times, or upgrade to a small-group tour
  • Audio headsets are provided to make sure you can hear your guide clearly
  • Avoid long queues with skip-the-line entrance tickets

Why Travelers Choose This Tour

“Skip the line” with this tour means using a special entrance to bypass even the fast-track line.

What's Included

  • Reserved Priority Access to the Vatican Museums
  • Guided visit of St. Peter’s Basilica (If Option Selected)
  • Access to the Sistine Chapel
  • Audio headsets so you can always hear your guide
  • Small groups of 20 people or less
  • Gratuities
  • Hotel pickup and drop-off

Meeting And Pickup

Meeting point

  • Via Tunisi, 4
    Via Tunisi, 4, 00192 Roma RM, Italy

    Meeting point: At the bottom of the steps across the street from the Entrance of the Vatican Museums. The steps are located right next to Caffè Vaticano on the corner of Viale Vaticano and Via Tunisi. The closest Metro stop is Line A (Ottaviano – Musei Vaticani).

End point

  • St. Peter's Basilica
    Piazza San Pietro, 00120 Città del Vaticano, Vatican City

What To Expect

Vatican tours with skip-the-line access are sought-after, so even the fast-track lines are long. This experience includes admission through a special entrance, so there are no lines whatsoever. Follow your guide directly inside the vast collection of private artwork that is the Vatican Museums.

Walk through the Gallery of the Maps and Gallery of Tapestries as you listen to tales of Vatican intrigue. Gaze at artifacts such as timeworn yet fascinating Italian maps, and admire the sculptures and candelabras of the Gallery of Candelabras. Stop for photos in front of the Pigna statue in the Pinecone Courtyard, designed by Donato Bramante.

Step inside the Sistine Chapel—the pope’s personal place of worship and a highlight of any Vatican trip. Stand beneath Michelangelo’s 'The Creation of Adam,' which cloaks the ceiling, and admire 'The Last Judgement,' his colorful mural that adorns a wall.

After your Sistine Chapel visit, continue to St. Peter’s Basilica, the symbolic heart of the Catholic church. Learn about its history and see more Vatican art including Michelangelo’s 'La Pietà,' which was sculpted when the maestro was only 24 years old. Gaze at the baldachino by Bernini, and then say goodbye to your guide in St. Peter’s Square.

Keep in mind that St. Peter's Basilica and St. Peter's Square might be unavailable on Wednesdays due to the weekly Papal Audience. As an alternative, enjoy an extended itinerary within the Vatican Museums, which still includes the Sistine Chapel and Raphael's Rooms. If you want to make sure that St. Peter's Basilica and Square are included in your tour, don't select Wednesday as your travel date.

If you want to enhance your Vatican experience, select one of the following experiences:

Small-Group Tour in the morning: Enter the Vatican Museums as soon as it opens, before the other lines enter. Your tour is limited to 10 people for personal attention and information about the Vatican’s must-see sights.

Tour in the evening: Explore the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel after the doors close to the general public. A visit to St. Peter’s Basilica is not included.

Vatican Museums

2 hours • Admission Ticket Included

Sistine Chapel

20 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

St. Peter's Basilica

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

St. Peter's Square

3 hours • Admission Ticket Free

Additional Info

  • Confirmation will be received at time of booking
  • We regret that we are unable to accommodate guests with wheelchairs or any impairments requiring special assistance. We are also unable to accommodate strollers or baby carriages on our group tours.
  • Avoid bringing large purses, bags, or backpacks on your tour
  • We may experience delays in getting through mandatory security checks when entering these venues
  • Not wheelchair accessible
  • Near public transportation
  • No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
  • Saint Peter’s Basilica is subject to last-minute closures for religious ceremonies. When this occurs, we're happy to offer customers an extended tour of the Vatican Museums. While we endeavour to tell tour groups ahead of time if there are any planned disruptions to the Basilica's opening hours, this is not always possible and in these cases we are unable to provide refunds or discounts.
  • Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
  • On Wednesdays, due to the Papal Audiences, access to St Peter's Basilica is not possible until 1pm
  • This tour/activity will have a maximum of 20 travelers

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

  • For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
  • If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
  • Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.
  • Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.
  • This experience requires a minimum number of travelers. If it’s canceled because the minimum isn’t met, you’ll be offered a different date/experience or a full refund.

Traveler Photos

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Traveler Tips

Arrive early since it is a bit difficult to locate the tour guide to check in.
Bring water with you as you won’t find any inside.
Don’t go on a Wednesday because the Pope will be doing mass and it supposedly gets really crowded.

Reviews

4.5
28,272 reviews
Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews
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Reviews by Viator travelers.
Showing 1-10 of 28,272 reviews
If you are going to do one tour, this is a must!
Tatiana_B, Jun 2023
The Sistine chapel alone is worth the tour. The pictures you have seen all your life do not do justice for the real thing! The tour is excellent and Nicola was an amazing tour guide! He was so passionate about the Sistine Chapel and the Vatican that his enthusiasm was contagious. We had a great time! I highly recommend the tour as the place is packed and the tour guide provides so much information that you forget that you are always surrounded by hundreds of people.
We enjoyed the tour very...
Katie_M, Jun 2023
We enjoyed the tour very much! The Vatican museum and Sistine Chapel were extremely crowded, but our tour guide was excellent!
Don’t do the guided tour. Just buy tickets and walk on your own.
Anthony_M, Jun 2023
You spend the majority of your time being quickly herded through rooms. Our tour guide was really not good.
Highly recommended!
Judith_S, Jun 2023
It was a very impressive tour. Our guide, Oscar, was very knowledgeable and welcoming! He should be rated a 5! The tour was very crowded, which detracted a bit from the overall experience.
Experience was not worth it
arorarajeev, Jun 2023
Highly overpriced tour. Would recommend to go with self guided tour offered at the ticket window at Vatican entrance instead.
Terrible guide
Mary_m, Jun 2023
Our tour guide was terribly unqualified and unorganized. She didn’t appear to know anything about the processes of getting the tour into the Vatican, nor did she appear to have any knowledge of the Catholic Church. The group was far too big and she didn’t allow any time to look at the art.
Vatican
Miles_C, Jun 2023
Wow! We have been dreaming of seeing the Vatican and all it’s beauty! Elisa was so nice and knowledgeable..we should of had two days to see all of the rooms, art and details! Blessed to have seen this beautiful place!
Easy and simple
Shiloh_P, Jun 2023
Exactly what we wanted. We had a great time and we’re shown exactly as described. Would recommend! 😄😄
Magnificent
Joseph_L, Jun 2023
The massive collections of unfathomable art! The wonderfully overwhelming preservation of such a vast collection.
Get reputable tour
Brian_G, Jun 2023
Great guide but tour too any people. Would liked to have seen more. Tour operator said we were getting a refund cause two guides cancelled.
Too crowded to enjoy
Sherri_W, Jun 2023
The Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel are overly crowded. Our tour guide did well with keeping our group together but it was so crowded that we felt like a herd of sheep moving along so quickly. There wasn’t time for picture’s because you had to keep moving or get ran over. I’m not blaming the tour guide because it’s not her fault it was that crowded but it just wasn’t enjoyable. Maybe it was the time of day that we went. Our tour time was 2:35p - 5:00p. Also, it was extremely hot because there’s no AC and a lot of body heat. In regards to our tour guide, she was knowledgeable and she spoke clearly but she seemed rushed too which didn’t make things any better.
Sadly no Basillica
David_F, Jun 2023
We went on a wed morning when the Basilica is closed yet we were charged full Price. ?? It’s closed every Wed morning so this shud be on the website as a heads up. The guide was good, glad I visited and great to beat the queue
Not great experience at all!
Rachael_K, Jun 2023
The tour turned into an utter nightmare, the tour of the museums was fine, although far too many people were in there at one time. We could hardly hear our guide through the headset given. We arrived at the Sistine chapel to be herded along and couldn't enjoy it at all. As it was a Wednesday we couldn't go to the Basilica until 1pm so we waited at the back of the chapel for the door to open. A security guard tried to usher people out another door but instead of our guide insisting that we had tickets to the Basilica we then went out the other door knowing that the Vatican museum is a one way system which meant we literally went back to the start and had to pretty much run round the whole 2 hours of museums trying desperately to follow our guide but with double the amount of people that were there the first time round. This totally ruined our whole experience of the Vatican, it was just a joke. Then when we finally went through the open door in the chapel to go to the Basilica our tour guide asked us to hand in the headsets and that was the last we saw of her. The group was meant to be small but there was 22 of us and the whole experience was certainly not what I expected!
Excellent tour
Joy_H, Jun 2023
Standing in the Sistine Chapel in absolute awe of the ceiling and walls. I have seen photos of it all my life but to be standing under it- seeing it in person- is a totally different experience.
So much to see!
Christine_C, Jun 2023
The Vatican Museum and St Peters Basilica are overwhelming don’t try to go there without a guide. Our guide (Iko sp?) was very knowledgeable. She had copies of Sistine Chapel and explained what we were about to see before we went in because loud talking is not permitted inside. We had plenty of time to see the chapel and she explained so much of the museum. It is very crowded, my only advice is to take a tour before they open to public if possible. It is a shocking amount of people crammed into one place.
Guide did not know what she was talking about.
Karen_P, Jun 2023
We were supposed to have a small group and there were over 30 of us. The guide said God banned Adam and Eve from eating from the Tree of Knowledge. NO!! It was the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil! Huge difference! She then said that Artemis was the Goddess of Fertility depicted in a statue. NO! That was Aphrodite, Artemis was the Goddess of Chastity. Please educate your guides!!!
Not semi private
realta_h, Jun 2023
Although this was a good experience we paid like €80 for a semiprivate tour and it ended up not being semiprivate because one of the guides was sick. Understandable but we were told we would get a partial refund that never happened. We also paid for Saint peters basilica to be guided but it wasn’t we had to do that part ourselves. Overall not what I expected or paid for
Good tour, poorly organized
Peter_A, Jun 2023
I would recommend a visit to the Vatican. I would recommend a different Tour Company. The tour guide was excellent, the pre-tour coordination was poor, not organized, not a planned effort. For a tour company with this much failure in their efforts was ridiculous.
Wonderful experience. Our...
Belinda_S, Jun 2023
Wonderful experience. Our guide was knowledgeable and provided key information about the art, artifacts and architecture.
Good tour
John_A, Jun 2023
David the tour guide was great. The tour ended up being a large group instead of a small group, but David handled it well. The Vatican Museums were very crowded, but we still saw and learned a lot. Very good tour!
This is misleading cheating tour- please fall prey to this scam
Swami_N, May 2023
First off the tour is misleading This is just tour of Vatican museum Sistine chapel and St Peters Basilica you have to do on your own without any help from tour operators This is cheating as the tour operator played no part in either Sistine chapel or the basilica
DISAPPOINTED
Linda_H, May 2023
We paid $132.44 to sign up for an eight-person (or less) tour - received a voice mail at 11:30 pm the night before when we were sleeping saying the tour had been cancelled. I had the option of rebooking a half hour earlier, which we did. We ended up having 20 people, and it was hard to keep the group together, one couple had two kids and a baby in a carriage, and they were always behind and we waited on them a lot. The tour guide was very nice, but she was stressed because of it, and It put us behind schedule. I feel that I am owed some money back from Viator since it was not the tour I had originally scheduled. Please give me a call so we can further discuss. Linda Hillyer, 859-468-5308.
Our travel agent booked...
Balwinder_K, May 2023
Our travel agent booked tour through this company and they messed up two meeting spots for tour for us. As result we missed one tour in Rome. Waisted our one day. In addition one of our tours in Florence pick up point was listed as in Rome .
Vatican overbooked
Phillip_B, May 2023
Rita our guide was very informative. What we did not like is that tours in general were overbooked and the skip the line portion of the museum and Sistine Chapel, we were not able to do because so many people were touring at the same time. It was not worth the money.
Excellent tour guide!
Nita_D, May 2023
Our guide did an excellent job of managing the crowds and explaining the history. Loved the Sistine chapel and Hall of Maps.
Can be crisper
Subhajit_B, May 2023
It was okay but we could have gotten more time to visit the Sistine Chapel and St Peter square the guide was quite knowledgeable
Guide ruined it
Shakeena_H, May 2023
The guide (the Bear) wasn't good. I've done this tour before when I visited Italy 11 years ago and he missed so many important things. He wasn't engaging at all. Stay away from this one.
Crowded but great!
kristi_m, May 2023
Our tour guide was great and so informative! She welcomed any and all questions and provided a wonderful history about the Vatican museum, Sistine Chapel, as well as St. Peter's Bascilia. The only thing I would make someone aware of (which is not the tour's fault) is the amount of people!!! You will be shoulder to shoulder with everyone and their cousin throughout your entire tour of the Vatican museum. Come prepared - enjoy!
Packed Shoulder to Shoulder
Katie_C, May 2023
The Vatican was very packed and took so much away from the experience. The guide was good, but we got lost several times. One of my friends had a panic attack with how insanly crowded it was. I would not go back to the Vatican again.
Don’t miss it!
Juan_A, May 2023
Our great tour guide Fabio began the tour by quickly learning the names of everyone in the group, at least 15 people! During the tour, he would then find moments to engage with each one by name and kept the group involved and engaged. So much amazing art and history! Don’t miss it!
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