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St Peter’s Basilica Tour: History, Art, and Views
4.6
1,643 Ratings
Roma
Embark on an unforgettable adventure to Vatican City with a guided tour of St. Peter’s Basilica and Cupola. Enjoy a delicious breakfast before climbing the Cupola for breathtaking views and explore the awe-inspiring Basilica with an expert guide.
Duration:
3 hours
Cancellation:
1 day
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Highlights
- St. Peter’s Square - Start your journey near St Peter’s Square by meeting your tour guide at Borgo Santo Spirito 17 (Al San Michele)
- Fontane di Piazza San Pietro - Head towards the Square, where you’ll catch a glimpse of the Bernini Fountain, which influenced the design of fountains across Europe
- Obelisk of St Peter’s Square - Look up at the Vatican Obelisk, the centre of the Square and an ancient Egyptian monument made of red granite
- St. Peter’s Basilica - Journey into St Peter’s Basilica, one of the holiest sites in Christianity, with your guide sharing its history and hidden secrets
- Cupola di San Pietro - Take the elevator up to the dome carefully designed by Michelangelo, where you can climb 300 steps to the top and enjoy the scenic view of the surrounding city
- St. Peter’s Basilica - Finish your tour inside the Basilica, with an option to continue enjoying the Basilica at your own pace
What's Included
- Complimentary breakfast
- Headsets
- Live tour of St Peter’s Basilica and the cupola
- Entry to the cupola by elevator
- Professional guide
- Complimentary audio guide of the Basilica and Papal Tombs
What's Not Included
- Access to the Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel
- Skip-the-line access
Additional Information
Experience the magnificent St Peter’s Basilica on a tour led by a professional and friendly guide.
Start your journey near the heart of Vatican City at Borgo Santo Spirito 17 (Al San Michele), where you’ll meet your friendly guide who will escort you to the Basilica.
Take in 2000 years of history with delicate mosaics, elaborate architecture, papal tombs and intricate sculptures before ascending up to see Michelangelo’s cupola – the crowning dome. Keep an eye out for the chance to take a scenic snap from the very top of the eternal city.
Finish off your tour inside the Basilica, where you can chat with your guide or continue exploring the iconic site.
- Entry to the Vatican adheres to a strict dress code: shoulders and knees must be covered, low-cut or sleeveless tops and shorts are not permitted for both men and women. Visitors that do not adhere to the dress code could be denied entry to the Vatican
- Entry to the Vatican requires passing through a security check. During high season, queues for security can take up to 150 minutes
- Meet your guide at Borgo Santo Spirito 17 (Al San Michele), where you can enjoy a complimentary breakfast
- The visit inside St Peter’s Basilica and the cupola will be led by a tour guide
- The papal tombs can be explored independently via a digital tour
- After the elevator ride towards the Cupola, there will be a 300-step climb to reach the very top
Location
Borgo Santo Spirito, 17
Borgo Santo Spirito
Meet your guide at Borgo Santo Spirito 17 (Al San Michele) and enjoy a complimentary breakfast before you are escorted to the Basilica for your tour.
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.6
(1643 Ratings)
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L7173nnraya
Jul 19, 2024
Tour of Basilica - Serena was very knowledgeable and distracted us from the long line by giving us more facts about the Basilica. Be prepared for lots of steps, but amazing views!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Len_c
Jun 19, 2024
Very Knowledgeable and Entertaining! - My wife and I had an amazing experience with John touring the Vatican Museum! He was very knowledgeable and entertaining!! I would highly recommend!
Review provided by Viator
Diana_w
Jun 13, 2024
Worth the tour - We had a great tour guide. She was fun and very informative. We really enjoyed this tour. The tour was definitely worth the price.
Review provided by Viator
David_k
Jun 11, 2024
St Pietro - Rome - Excellent tour. Just had to spend 45 min in security checkpoint starting 9 am.
Later dozens of people arrive.
Review provided by Viator
Nicole_b
Jun 9, 2024
Great experience! - The tour was very well organized. Our guide Marco had great knowledge an made the tour a very good experience.
The view from the top was amazing and we can only recommend it. Well done!
Review provided by Viator
Tracy
Jun 7, 2024
Efficient and informative and welcoming - From the outset guide was friendly funny and extremely informative. Great time span. Guide used the down time in lines to even exposing a lot
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Alyssa_w
Jun 16, 2024
Morning Trip, St Peter’s Basilica Dome - Appreciate the entrance time, to avoid afternoon lines, and the breakfast. This is self guided via an app, but still good to book if looking for last minute basilica tickets!
Review provided by Viator
Maggie_r
Jul 8, 2024
Rather disappointing and expensive. - There was a poor level of info given by guide about features seen, especially as we stood for so long in queue and needed distraction. People should have been given option to climb to Dome via stairs earlier as this would have reduced size of queue and therefore waiting time often in full sun. Also time to enjoy the Dome before being ushered up to next level. Guide did well in a very crowded basilica to show us highlights.
Review provided by Viator
Michael_b
Jul 1, 2024
Over described, under delivered tour - From the desciption, we were to get an audio guide, complementary breakfast, headsets, live tour and professional guide. Received none of these except for a complementary water/juice at the meeting point. Could have easily done the entire "tour" on our own. When asked for a refund, the tour company refused. Viator reimbursed us for 30% of the cost. Appreciate the 30% but expect Viator to vet these tour companies so we don't have to. Only Viator booking we've ever not loved.
Review provided by Viator
Marybeth_p
Jun 20, 2024
Not a guided tour! - There was no guided tour! The guide got us in and left. There were no headsets provided. We were asked to down load an app to listen to an audio recording, we didn’t bring headsets because we thought they would be provided. This is just a skip the line ticket which I could have done on my own. Complete waste of money!
Review provided by Viator
