Rome

Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel & Saint Peter's Semi-private Tour

Badge of ExcellenceRome, Italy

VATICAN MUSEUMS SISTINE CHAPEL AND SAINT PETERS BASILICA SEMI PRIVATE TOUR

3 hours to 3 hours 30 minutes
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

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Overview

Maximize time during a visit to the Vatican Museums with a semi-private tour complete with skip-the-line access. Join a guide for a tour of the Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter’s Basilica with a group of 8 people maximum. Learn about Renaissance art and see masterpieces by artists including Raphael and Botticelli.

Skip the line with premium access tickets to the Vatican Museums
Discover the interior of St. Peter’s Basilica
See Michelangelo’s famous ceiling in the Sistine Chapel
Explore the Gallery of Maps and Gallery of the Tapestries

What's Included

All taxes, fees and handling charges
Professional guide
Guaranteed to skip the long lines
Small-group tour (up to 6-8 people)

Gratuities

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting point

Caffè Vaticano
viale, Viale Vaticano, 100, 00192 Roma RM, Italy
Your guide will be waiting for you outside of the Caffè Vaticano (right accross the entrance to the Vatican Museum). They will be holding a board with our logo.

End point

Saint Peter's Square
Piazza San Pietro, 00120 Città del Vaticano, Vatican City

What To Expect

Vatican Museums

1 hour 30 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Cortile della Pigna

20 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Sistine Chapel

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

St. Peter's Basilica

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

St. Peter's Square

20 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Not wheelchair accessible
Stroller accessible
Near public transportation
No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level

St. Peter’s Basilica is an active church and can be closed unexpectedly for liturgical ceremonies or unforeseen circumstances. If closed, the time inside the Vatican Museums will be extended;
Vatican Museums' Halls and Galleries can be closed unexpectedly for restoration or unforeseen circumstances. The itinerary will be adjusted accordingly;
Guests must be on time at the meeting point. In case of delays of more than 10 minutes you won't be able to access the Vatican Museums and join your group. No refund is due;
A dress code is required to enter the Vatican Museum and St. Peter's Basilica. No shorts or sleeveless tops allowed. Knees and shoulders MUST be covered for both men and women. You may risk refused entry if you fail to comply with these dress requirements;
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 8 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

Reviews

5.0

86 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travelers.

We perform checks on reviews

Showing 1-10 of 86 reviews

Excellent tour with an excellent guide!

Tom_B, Apr 2024

This was an excellent tour! Alessi, our guide was fabulous! Extremely knowledgeable. Answered every question no matter what the topic. He shown a lot of time with us explaining what÷would see and what to look for before each part of the tour. Alessi is an archeologist and knew the history of anything and everything. He spoke very good English. I told him he could probably host a National Gegraphic special on Vatican City, the museums & St. Petet's Basillica he was that knowledgeable. This was a great tour with a fantastic guide that you could tell loved what he did! Thank you so much Allessi for an excellent tour that exceeded it expectations!

Get Ready To Be Bored To Tears....

Bruce_G, Apr 2024

How exciting to visit the Vatican for the first time! The Museum, the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's Basilica! But by the time this tour was over, the excitement had vanished. After 2+ hours of arcane minutae about broken statues and the history of the construction and reconstruction of the site, we finally were ushered into the Sistine Chapel for a precious few minutes and then into the Basilica, again for too short of a time. No bathroom breaks, no where to sit at all, just a death march through the museum with hordes of others. Not recommended. You'd be better off just doing some historical research beforehand and buying a simple entrance ticket and seeing what you wanted to see.

Response from Host, Apr 2024

Dear Bruce, Thanks for your feedback. We are sorry you got bored. Normally experienced travellers reserve guided tours to get a deeper view of the sites they visit. And professional guides share their insights about the history and art of those sites, especially when it comes to centuries-old Museums and Churches. Considering your desires and needs, it sounds like any guided tour would have left you bored and unsatisfied. We wish you next time to be able to pick your most suitable solution. Best regards

Tour guide was great!

Russell_H, Apr 2024

Our guide was professional, well spoken and definitely well educated. Enjoyed the tour and she made our adventure great!

Lucky in Vatican

Per_R, Apr 2024

Rich was fantastic! My daughter and I were the only ones who showed up so we got a private tour. Rich knew everything and answered all our questions, and considering he knew I had an art history background, he allowed us to linger where wanted to and see pieces that were not usually first on a tour (the Caravaggio is incredible!). Skipping the lines with such an experienced, native American speaker guide was quite a gift. Hope you are lucky enough to get Rich.

Just okay tour guide

Valerie_L, Mar 2024

While the museum was great, our guide was mediocre. She kept telling us how long the lines were without a guided tour. She did not tell us much about the art but instead more about how the entryway to the museum changed over time. It was odd. She was well meaning and kind but not full of relevant information.

Response from Host, Apr 2024

Hi Valerie, Thank your for taking the time to write your review. We're constantly trying to improve our services, so your input is valuable. We'll look closely at what you've said and see how we can improve things. On another note, this is the first time in many years we have received a negative feedback about the guide who led your Vatican Semi-private tour. Best regards

Our tour guide was very knowledgeable and was very helpful with information we asked for.it was a very good day and we a

Christine_M, Mar 2024

It had always been a dream of ours to see Rome.Myself and my husband can now knock another trip off our bucket list.

Great tour!

Christopher_G, Feb 2024

Alessio did a great tour. Loved the small group and skip the line. He had great understanding and explanation of so much with our limited time.

Response from Host, Mar 2024

Thank you so much for your feedback! We look forward to having you in Rome again

Great small group tour option - well worth it

Maria_P, Feb 2024

Alessio was our guide and he was very good. Knowledgeable and friendly throughout the tour and answered all questions that our small group had for him. He ensured that he showed us key sights during our tour and we had ample time to take pictures throughout. Glad we did this semi-private tour because it was good for us versus being in the large group tours so we were able to move around more easily through the attractions versus the larger groups we saw around. This quicker and easier movement made the difference of giving us more time to stop and see things and take pictures without having to feel the rush of running to catch-up with the tour guide in the large groups. Cost more of course for this smaller tour but it’s money well spent for us.

Response from Host, Feb 2024

Hi Maria, thank you again for choosing our company. We are glad you got along well with Alessio and enjoyed our small group option. Best regards

Professor tour guide

Minnie_H, Jan 2024

VERY knowledgeable tour guide. He even brought text books and iPad to educate us! It was like having a professor as our guide. We learned a lot, maybe more than I wanted to lol. Definitely recommend tour since Vatican is HUGE and skipping the lines is a MAJOR plus. There's so much to see that having someone create an itinerary was helpful. The only thing we didn't get to do was climb the Basilica dome (was not included tho). After our 3 hour tour we were fine not walking any more:)

Response from Host, Feb 2024

Hi Minnie, we are grateful you took the time to leave us a review. Your feedback helps us to improve service for everyone. Look forward to seeing you back in Rome soon!

Great Tour

Don_H, Jan 2024

Was a great tour. Our guide was very knowledgble. The Vatican was very crowded and hard to keep track of our guide and sometimes hard to hear. Appreciated the initial overview, would have been better if we could sit for that part as there was quite a bit of information to cover. All in all an excellent tour thanks!

Response from Host, Feb 2024

Hi Don, Thanks a lot for your sincere and helpful feedback. We'll do our best to keep improving our service. All the best from Rome!

Unbelievable Private Tour

Brenda_M, Nov 2023

Best decision to do a skip the line at the Vatican. Roberta was our guide and she was great! Loved we skipped the line with a small group of six easy to get through the crowds and didn’t have to wait in long lines. Would definitely book this tour with Roberta and recommend anyone who wants the perfect afternoon private tour.

Response from Host, Nov 2023

Grazie, Brenda! So glad you enjoyed your Vatican experience at its best. We look forward to seeing you back in Rome

Experience of a lifetime

Lisa_K, Nov 2023

Roberta!! She was an amazing tour guide very knowledgeable of the Vatican. Booking private tour was perfect..

Response from Host, Nov 2023

Hi Lisa! We are so glad to read your enthusiastic feedback. Thank you! It's been a pleasure working with you and we look forward to seeing you back in Rome soon

The Sistine Chapel....

Marlene_A, Nov 2023

The Sistine Chapel. Third trip there. Third time's a charm. Cristina, our guide, made this a great experience.

Response from Host, Nov 2023

Grazie mille, Marlene. We look forward to your fourth visit then!

Smaller private tour of Vatican, Sistine Chapel, and Basilica well worth it!

Richard_M, Oct 2023

Maria was outstanding for our private tour of Vatican, Sistine Chapel, and St Peter’s Basilica. She shared a ton of info of all area, sculptures, and art, and history. We bypassed a lot of the crowds, and didn’t feel rushed. We were very happy not to be in a larger group, led like-cattle tour. Worth the extra cost for smaller private tour.

Response from Host, Nov 2023

Hi Richard! We keep our tours private or semi-private to give our guests as much attention as possible. We are so happy and proud to read your kind review. Thank you!

Knowledgeable Guide But Not Easy To Follow

Edward_F, Oct 2023

Alesio is very knowledgeable and clearly has a passion for the art and history of the Vatican Museo. But he really is not cut out for guiding a group - he is soft spoken, which would be fine in a quiet place; the Vatican is a mob scene and very loud. He walked far ahead of our small group, which consisted of me and my wife, and a family of four with two small children who wandered around and were disruptive. No microphone or headsets. No flag. It was a challenge keeping up. But his information was incredible and helpful, if it could be heard and understood. I liked Allesio but the tour was not as good as we had hoped. I wish we knew in advance there would be a family with small children; we likely would have gone with a different guide.

Response from Host, Nov 2023

Hi Edward, Thanks for your feedback. We're constantly trying to improve our services, so your input is valuable. We'll look closely at what you've said and see how we can improve things. On another note, we are sorry you did not get along well with the other people in your semi private tour. We'd suggest you consider a private tour for next visit. Best regards

Our guide made the day!!!

Richard_D, Oct 2023

Our guide was fantastic. She had so much knowledge that contributed to making the one reservation we wanted the most help with a reality. Her easy style and willingness to get out in front allowed us to capture the full essence of each area we visited. I noted, many people in other groups listening to our leader. Noting how she positioned us for good photos was also very important.

Response from Host, Jan 2024

Grazie, Richard! All members of our team do their best to make every single tour an unforgettable experience for our guests. We are proud of your words

Excellent tour!

Debbie_D, Aug 2023

Alexandra, our guide, was very knowledgeable and had a great sense of humor! Loved having a semi private tour with all the attention we were given to ask questions and interact with our guide and the other participants. Would highly recommend!

Response from Host, Nov 2023

Hi Debbie, thank you so much for your review! We're glad that you enjoyed the tour. Look forward to hearing soon!

Tour of the Vatican museums, the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter’s Basilica with Marta was perfect!

Jan_W, Aug 2023

We had a wonderful tour. Marta was a great guide and she gave us a very memorable tour. We learned a lot and really enjoyed her stories. It was perfect!

Response from Host, Jan 2024

Hi Jan, we are so glad to read your enthusiastic feedback. Thank you and see you soon!

Perfection!

Jody_V, Jul 2023

Our guide was excellent. She was so knowledgeable and friendly. She made our experience wonderful and our size of the group was just right.

Response from Host, Nov 2023

Perfect tour...for a perfect guest! Thank you so much

Very good semi private tour

Cathy_M, Jul 2023

Our guide was passionate and knowledgable. With so much to see, he showed us and spoke about the most relevant points. We liked that we were in a small semi - private tour which made the experience more personal. We found our guide hard to hear as he spoke softly and as we were in a very noisy environment with so many other visitors that day, we would have appreciated ear pieces to hear him more clearly.

Response from Host, Dec 2023

We are grateful that you took the time to leave us a review. Your feedback helps us to improve service for everyone. Look forward to seeing you back in Rome soon!

Likely to Sell Out