Tours › Vatican
Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel & St Peter's Basilica Guided Tour
From €48 per person
- Duration
- 3 hours
- Group size
- Up to 20 people
- Entry
- Skip the line
- Guide
- GBITESDEFR
The Museums, the Chapel and the Basilica, without queueing twice
This is the full Vatican morning. You meet your guide at our office on Via Germanico, a few minutes from the Museums entrance, and go in on a reserved slot while the queue along the wall is still moving. Inside, a group of no more than twenty follows the route through the courtyards, the Pio-Clementine sculptures, the Gallery of Tapestries and the Gallery of Maps, and arrives at the Sistine Chapel already knowing what to look for, which matters because inside the Chapel there is no talking and no explaining.
From the Chapel the group uses the internal passage through to St Peter's Basilica. That passage is the reason to take a guided tour rather than a ticket: on your own you would leave the Museums, walk around the walls and join the security queue in the square, which on a busy day costs an hour. The tour ends inside the Basilica, so when your guide says goodbye you are already in, and you can stay as long as you like.
At a glance
- Duration
- About 3 hours
- Group size
- Up to 20 people
- Languages
- English, Italian, Spanish, German, French
- Entry
- Skip the line at the Museums, internal passage to St Peter's
- Meeting point
- Our office, Via Germanico 8 - be there 25 minutes before the start time
- Where it ends
- Inside St Peter's Basilica, where you can stay on as long as you like
- Cancellation
- Free up to 24 hours before the start time
- Best for
- First-time visitors who want the Museums, the Chapel and the Basilica in one morning
Highlights
- Skip the ticket line at the Vatican Museums with a licensed guide
- The Gallery of Maps, the Gallery of Tapestries and the Pio-Clementine sculptures
- Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel, explained before you go in, where silence is required
- St Peter's Basilica through the internal passage, with no second queue in the square
- The tour ends inside the Basilica: stay as long as you want after the guide leaves
What’s included
- Guided tour with a licensed guide in the language you book
- Skip-the-line admission to the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel
- Entry to St Peter's Basilica through the internal passage
- Radio headsets for the whole visit
- WiFi, restrooms, refreshments and phone charging at our office before you set off
Not included
- The climb to the dome of St Peter's, which is never part of this tour
- The Vatican Gardens and the necropolis under the Basilica
- Food and drinks
- Hotel pick-up and drop-off
- Gratuities
Itinerary
Meeting pointOur office, Via Germanico 8
Start indoors, a few minutes from the Museums entrance. You are checked in, handed your radio headset and introduced to your guide, and there are restrooms, WiFi, refreshments and phone charging before you set off. Come 25 minutes before the start time: the Museums hold reserved slots to the minute, and a group that leaves late does not get let in late. Bring a valid ID or passport for everyone, because it is checked again at the entrance to St Peter's.
1Vatican MuseumsCourtyards, sculpture and the papal collections
You go in on a reserved entry and start where the popes started collecting: the Pio-Clementine courtyards, with the Laocoon and the Apollo Belvedere, the sculptures that taught Renaissance artists what antiquity looked like. Your guide explains how a private papal collection turned into one of the largest museums on earth, and sets up the two names you are walking towards, Raphael and Michelangelo, while you are still somewhere you can hear and be heard.
2Gallery of MapsForty frescoed views of sixteenth-century Italy
The long gallery with the gilded ceiling is the one everybody photographs, and it is worth knowing what it actually is: forty topographical maps of the Italian regions, painted in the 1580s from surveys by a Dominican mathematician, so accurate that you can still find towns on them. It is also the last stretch before the Chapel, which is where your guide finishes the explanation of the ceiling.
3Sistine ChapelMichelangelo's ceiling and the Last Judgment
Inside the Chapel there is no commentary, no photography and silence is requested, which is why everything you need was said in the gallery outside. You stand under the ceiling Michelangelo painted between 1508 and 1512 and in front of the Last Judgment he came back to paint twenty-five years later, and you look rather than listen. It is still, for most people, the part of the day they remember.
4St Peter's BasilicaThe largest church in the world
From the Chapel the group takes the internal passage straight through to the Basilica, skipping the security queue in the square. Inside, your guide takes you to Michelangelo's Pieta, carved when he was twenty-four, to Bernini's baldachin over the papal altar, and up the nave where the floor markings show how the great cathedrals of the world would fit inside this one. The tour ends here, so you are free to stay.
Good to know
- Meet at our office, Via Germanico 8, 25 minutes before the start time
- Dress code is enforced in the Sistine Chapel and the Basilica: shoulders and knees covered, for everyone
- Bring a valid ID or passport for every participant: it is checked again at the entrance to St Peter's
- On Wednesday mornings St Peter's is closed for the Papal Audience; the guide replaces it with the Raphael Rooms inside the Museums
- The climb to the dome is not included and cannot be added on the day
- Photography is not allowed in the Sistine Chapel, and silence is requested
- Weapons, sharp objects, glass bottles, aerosols, luggage and pets do not pass Vatican security
- There is a free cloakroom at the Museums for bags that are too large to carry
- Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start time; after that the booking cannot be refunded
- Arrive late and the group will already be inside: the Museums hold reserved slots to the minute
- The route is not suitable for wheelchair users; pushchairs are fine
Who this tour is for
This tour is for
- First-time visitors who want the Museums, the Sistine Chapel and St Peter's in a single morning
- Anyone who would rather not queue twice: the internal passage skips the line in the square entirely
- Travellers who want the Vatican explained in Italian, Spanish, German or French rather than English
- Visitors who want to stay on in the Basilica afterwards, since the tour ends inside it
Look elsewhere if
- Anyone whose priority is the Raphael Rooms: this tour reaches them only on Wednesday mornings, while the Museums-only tour covers them every day
- Visitors hoping to climb the dome, which is not included in any of our Vatican tours
- Wheelchair users: the route is not suitable, although pushchairs are fine
- Travellers who want to move at their own pace, who are better served by the skip-the-line ticket
Not sure which Vatican option to pick?
Frequently asked questions
Is St Peter's Basilica included, and do we queue for it?
It is included, and you do not queue. The group goes from the Sistine Chapel to the Basilica through the internal passage, which is reserved for guided groups. On your own you would have to leave the Museums, walk around the walls and join the security line in the square, which on a busy day is the longest wait of the whole visit.
What happens on Wednesday mornings?
St Peter's closes for the Papal Audience, so the Basilica is not part of the tour that morning. Instead the guide extends the visit inside the Museums and takes you through the Raphael Rooms, which are not part of the route on other days. The tour runs the same length; what changes is what you see.
Are the Raphael Rooms included?
Not normally. On this tour the time after the Sistine Chapel goes to St Peter's Basilica. The exception is Wednesday morning, when the Basilica is closed and the Raphael Rooms take its place. If the Raphael Rooms are what you are coming for, book the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel tour instead: it covers them every day.
Is the climb to the dome included?
No, and it cannot be added on the day. The dome has its own ticket and its own queue, and the climb is 551 steps, or 320 if you take the lift to the terrace first. If you want to do it, do it after the tour: you are already inside the Basilica when your guide leaves.
What is the dress code?
Shoulders and knees covered, for everyone, adults and children. It is enforced at the entrance to the Sistine Chapel and to St Peter's, and a scarf over bare shoulders is accepted. People are turned away for this every day, and a refused entry is not refunded.
Can I take photographs in the Sistine Chapel?
No. Photography and filming are forbidden inside the Chapel, and the custodians enforce it. You can photograph freely in the rest of the Museums and inside St Peter's Basilica.
How long does the tour last?
About three hours: roughly two inside the Museums, ending at the Sistine Chapel, and the rest in St Peter's Basilica. The Vatican Museums hold seven kilometres of galleries, so no tour sees everything; this one follows the route to the Chapel and explains what is on it.
Where does the tour end?
Inside St Peter's Basilica. Your guide says goodbye there, so you can stay as long as you like, walk the nave again, or go on to the dome or the square in your own time.
Which languages is the tour available in?
English, Italian, Spanish, German and French. Your guide speaks the language you book, so choose it before paying: a booking cannot be moved to another language afterwards.
Do children need a ticket?
Everyone in your party must be included in the booking, children and infants alike, because the Museums count heads against the reserved slot. Reduced and free rates apply by age, and the booking form shows which one applies to each person.
Do I need to book the Vatican Museums in advance?
In practice, yes. The Museums sell timed entry and the morning slots go days ahead in spring and summer. Arriving without a reservation usually means the long queue along the wall, and in high season it can mean not getting in at all that day.
What can I not bring through Vatican security?
Weapons, sharp objects, glass bottles, aerosols, large umbrellas, luggage and pets. Large bags have to go in the cloakroom, which is free, but that is another few minutes, so travelling light is worth it.
Can I cancel my booking?
Yes. Cancel up to 24 hours before the start time and you are refunded in full. Inside the last 24 hours the booking is non-refundable, because the Museums slots have already been issued in your names.
Is the site accessible for wheelchair users?
We do not recommend this tour for wheelchair users: the route through the Museums is long, with stairs and narrow passages, and the group keeps a steady pace. Pushchairs are fine. Write to us and we will tell you honestly what is workable.