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Morning Access to Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel: Quiet, Informative Tour with Small Group
4.5
1,029 Ratings
Roma
Experience a quiet and informative tour of the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel with early morning access. Be among the first visitors to admire Michelangelo’s masterpiece and learn fascinating stories about its creation.
Duration:
1 hour, 30 minutes
Cancellation:
1 day
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Highlights
- Vatican City - Indulge in the exclusive First Entry Experience at the Vatican Museums, where you’ll have the privilege of admiring the Sistine Chapel at its absolute best
- Vatican Museums - En route to the Sistine Chapel, marvel at the phenomenal art collections throughout the various galleries of the Vatican Museums. Your guide will highlight the most iconic pieces, ensuring an unforgettable exploration of the Vatican’s treasures.
- Sistine Chapel - Upon reaching the Sistine Chapel, relish the opportunity to immerse yourself in its beauty. Unlike the crowded afternoons, you’ll now have ample time and space to truly appreciate this remarkable space. Critics hail Michelangelo’s frescoes as unparalleled in scale, technical skill, and composition. Witness the awe-inspiring “Creation of Adam” and the majestic “The Last Judgment” up close, experiencing these 15th-century masterpieces in a way that’s intimate and unforgettable.
What's Included
- First Entrance into the Vatican Museums
- Expert, English-speaking guide
- Small group of 12 people or less
- Entrance Tickets and Reservation Fees
- First Entry Experience to the Sistine Chapel
What's Not Included
- Gratuities
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
Additional Information
Experience the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel first thing in the day before it gets crowded. Led by your passionate guide, swiftly bypass the extensive galleries bloated with tapestries, sculptures, and frescoes straight to the crown jewel, the Sistine Chapel. By making this Michelangelo’s marvel the initial official stop of your tour, you’ll get there before most of the people have even managed to find a map! You, along with your exclusive group of no more than 12 persons, will be left in awe by the brilliance of this Renaissance epoch giant while your guide unveils the stories and specifics of its inception.
- A dress code is required to enter places of worship and selected museums. 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
- St Peter’s Basilica, the grottos and the dome: After the tour, you may visit these attractions on your own. Your tour will end at the front of St Peter’s Basilica, which is a very convenient location to leave for lunch, visit the Vatican bookstore, visit the Vatican post office, enter St Peter’s Basilica, continue to the grottos below St Peter’s or climb to the dome. Your tour guide will be happy to point you in the right direction!
- Please note: Due to the current circumstances and regulations, the Vatican currently opens at 8:30am instead of 8:00am. However, by arriving at the line 30 minutes before the doors open, you will be one of the first visitors to enter the Sistine Chapel and enjoy the Museums in peace before the crowds arrive.
Location
Via Tunisi, 4
Via Tunisi
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).
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.5
(1029 Ratings)
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Cherylgreene
Sep 26, 2024
Vatican - Tour guide was really wonderful and knowledgeable. We thought we were going directly to the chapel but we just had a regular tour of the museum leading up to the chapel, It was crowded at 9 but amazing!
Review provided by Viator
Katherine_h
Sep 2, 2024
Great experience! - Great experience, amazing tour guide and learned a lot of new information about the art within the Sistine chapel and Vatican! Will recommend this company especially if you want to get a tour and have time to explore the rest of the museum on your own as well!
Review provided by Viator
692calandrat
Sep 1, 2024
Great tour guide! - Christian was an amazing tour guide! I enjoyed this tour tremendously. Christian navigated the Vatican Museums seamlessly by getting priority skip the line entry to the museum and basilica.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Torid8
Aug 12, 2024
Do not skip this tour! 100/10 worth it. - I definitely recommend this first entry tour. While it was very busy and crowded while trying to enter, the process was pretty seamless and we were able to get in very quickly. Guiliano our guide was extremely knowledgeable about the art and exhibits we passed. He mentioned his studies in fine arts and museum management which made it a very pleasant experience to hear all about the different art, artists, and techniques. The actual Sistine Chapel is like nothing I've ever seen in my life. I highly recommend this tour. It was busy in the chapel, but not so jam packed you couldn't move. This first entry was definitely worth it in my opinion.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Waynej938
Jul 20, 2024
Vatican - The tour was very well done. The guide (Paula H) was knowledgeable about the art peices and provided great insights into the highlights of the Vatican art collections. I would recommend this tour to anyone who is enthusiastic about art, the painting are amazing... don't just let me tell you, go see for yourself!!!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Forestw309
Jul 5, 2024
Cosimo! - We were very lucky to have the opportunity of touring with Cosimo he was so enthusiastic and valued curiosity my experience at the Vatican was greatly improved by his guidance. Thank you Cosimo!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Susan_n
Jul 15, 2024
We booked a tour but spent too much time outside waiting to get in... - Disappointed that our tour was scheduled for 8:00 am (early entry) It was to be an hour and a half tour. We did not even get inside to see our glimpse our first paintings until 9:10. Far too much explaining about "what we would see" without actually seeing anything. We needed to get to the airport, so we were in the Sistine chapel for about 6 minutes. Very disappointing!!
Review provided by Viator
Kimberly_a
Sep 29, 2024
Tour guide canceled at the last minute - We arrived for our tour and found out that our guide had canceled. We were given the option of a full refund or a self-guided tour. We didn’t have any other time available, so we did the tour on our own.
Review provided by Viator
Andre_d
Jul 6, 2024
Very disappointing :( - It had all the elements to be a memorable experience, first entry, skip the line, guide, Vatican museum and Sistine Chappel, but it was disappointing at least .
The guide speeded the group up through all the visit, Sid that we,d be able to return and stay on the museum for the day, left us 25 minutes on scorching sun telling us about the Sistine chappel while the museum and Sistine chappel got really crowded and left us before the Sistine chappel.
The result: after leaving the Sistine chappel we could never go back to the museum, citywindera support answered us 8 (eight) hour later and denied any form of compensation .
My advice: book it directly with the Museo Vatican Website, pay half the price and enjoy the place at your own time and rhythm.
Citywonders support wasn’t useful nor was Viator’s customer service . They just denied my complain without explaining why and said that it was rejected by the operator . Utterly useless.
Review provided by Viator
Anthony_w
Jul 4, 2024
Cancelled - Tour cancelled with no warning
No notification of refund
We were given fast track entry tickets
Also St Peter’s was closed and no notification.
Review provided by Viator
