Vatican Tour: Skip-the-line Access to Sistine Chapel and St Peter's Basilica

Experience the best of the Vatican with our skip-the-line tour, offering multiple start times throughout the day. Marvel at the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter’s Basilica with a knowledgeable guide.

Duration: 3 hours
Cancellation: 1 day learn more
Highlights
  • Vatican City - Meet your guide at a selected location in Vatican city, from where your guided tour will start!
  • Vatican Museums - Experience the best of the Vatican City with our Highlights of the Vatican Museums tour. Skip the line and delve into the treasures of this holy place, guided by an expert who will reveal the secrets behind the stunning artworks and artifacts.

Follow your guide through the Candelabra Gallery, Gallery of the Tapestries, and Gallery of Maps, marvelling at the ancient Greek and Roman statues, Flemish tapestries, and detailed maps of Italy.

In the Pio-Clementino Museum, home to some of the world’s most famous sculptures, you’ll see Laocoön and His Sons, the Belvedere Torso, and the magnificent sarcophagus of St. Helen, mother of Constantine.

Next, enter the Raphael Rooms and immerse yourself in the Renaissance era of amazing art and literature. See the rooms frescoed by Raphael and admire his most famous work, The School of Athens, as your guide shares insights into the artist’s life and influences.

  • Sphere within a Sphere - Before entering the museums, join our guide on a brisk walk through the Pinecone Courtyard. Here you’ll see the famous ‘’Sphere within a Sphere’’ sculpture.
  • Sistine Chapel - Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel
    One of the most iconic experiences in Vatican City is visiting the Sistine Chapel, and once you step inside, you’ll understand why. It’s no wonder that this masterpiece is revered as one of the greatest works of art in Western civilization. Since the chapel is a sacred place of worship, speaking is not allowed inside, and your guide won’t be able to provide commentary while you’re there. But fear not, they’ll provide commentary before entering ensuring that you’re fully prepared to take in all the wonders of the Sistine Chapel.

To gain entry into the Sistine Chapel, both men and women must ensure that their knees and shoulders are covered. Failure to comply might result in the Vatican denying entry to religious sites. We understand that the Roman summers can be scorching, so a great alternative is to bring a shawl, scarf, or sweater with you. Get ready to be spellbound by the sheer grandeur of the Sistine Chapel!

  • St. Peter’s Basilica - St. Peter’s Basilica - (Except on Wednesdays!)

The last stop of your tour brings you to St. Peter’s Basilica. Accompanied by your guide, you’ll enter through a dedicated corridor for groups, granting swift access to the basilica skipping the long queues that often appear on the square. Inside, you’ll have the opportunity to witness the Vatican’s most esteemed church, believed to house the remains of St. Peter himself. Your guide will introduce you to the cathedral before you enter to explore on your own, allowing you all the time you need to take in the beauty of this religious site.

Admire the architecture and art, including Michelangelo’s La Pietà and Bernini’s Baldacchino, and bask in the peaceful atmosphere of this spiritual sanctuary.

Please note that St. Peter’s Basilica is closed on Wednesdays for the Papal Audience and can occasionally experience other unexpected closures. If this happens, your guide will make up the time at other areas within the Vatican.

What's Included
  • Maximum Group Size of 20
  • Passionate English-Speaking Guide
  • Marvel at The Last Judgement
  • Skip-the-line Entry to St. Peter’s Church
  • Visit to the Raphael Rooms and Borgia Apartments
  • Visit Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel
  • Skip-the-line Tickets to the Vatican Museums
  • Guided Tour of the Vatican Museums
What's Not Included
  • Hotel Pick Up / Drop Off
  • Food & Beverages
  • Gratuities
Additional Information

Are you searching for a Vatican tour that lets you bypass the queue, but struggling to find one that fits your schedule? Fear not, as we have the perfect solution! Our Small Group Vatican tour offers multiple start times throughout the day, at a fantastic price point.

In addition to accommodating your schedule, this small-group tour promises an unforgettable experience with a highly knowledgeable guide.

Alongside an expert guide, you’ll journey through the Vatican Museums, marvel at the breath-taking Sistine Chapel, explore the stunning Raphael Rooms, and visit the awe-inspiring St. Peter’s Basilica, guaranteeing an all-in-one experience!

  • 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
  • The Vatican generally quiets down again in the late afternoon, but there is a chance the museums may still be crowded while you are inside
  • You are advised to be ready at the meeting point up to 15 minutes ahead of the start time to ensure a prompt start. After leaving the meeting point, your guide will bring you inside the Vatican Museums. Since we have a strict entrance time, in case of delays and late arrivals, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to add you to the group. Depending on the size of your group, headphones may be used for some tours. In that case, headphones will be provided. However you may use your own earbuds if you wish
  • Please contact The Tour Guy to book a wheelchair accessible tour
Location
Viale Vaticano, 100
Viale Vaticano
Please arrive 10 minute early. Your friendly guide will meet you at the top of the big staircase between Tmark Hotel Vaticano and Caffé Vaticano, (Viale Vaticano, 100). A representative will be there holding a sign with "The Tour Guy" written on it.
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.5
(524 Ratings)
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Cindy_t
Aug 8, 2024
Must See The Vatican - The guide was very good at providing information and making sure that we had all the facts about the Vatican. She was pretty good about making sure we all kept up with her. This is a must see attraction in Rome!
Review provided by Viator
Aparjeet_n
Jul 16, 2024
Passionate guide made it a wonderful experience - This trip was wonderfully conducted. I think our guide’s name was Emilia. We took the 08:30 tour on Monday 15 July. She was passionate about the art, knowledgeable about the history and fairly well informed on architecture of the buildings. When she spoke about some art works, her eyes would light up. She explained many works of Michelangelo in great detail which made witnessing the Sistine chapel a much better experience. La Pieta is not on display for 3 months so she took us to an exact replica. The audio equipment they gave us was of good quality and we could hear the guide clearly. It was easy to reach the start point and locate the company representatives. They were quick to trace our bookings. The group was about 15 people. The guide made sure we stayed away from the hot summer Sun and pointed out to the washrooms wherever they were available and also to points where we could refill our water bottles.
Review provided by Viator
Christy_j
Jul 16, 2024
Overwhelmed with so much to see - Definitely worth the skipping the line . If you have a disabled card take it with you !!! Great tour , you see so much yet there is so much more to see . Our tour guide was great .
Review provided by Viator
Hash_a
Jul 15, 2024
Best day ever!!! - Absolutely wonderful!!! Our guide was so knowledgeable! Very approachable too! Great day! All in all was a lovely day out
Review provided by Viator
Janice_b
Jul 12, 2024
Excellent tour guide Maria - Our guide Maria was incredible. We had visited the Vatican before but never had an experience like this. Her knowledge, enthusiasm, passion and dedication to her profession was impeccable and refreshing.
Review provided by Viator
Bruna_n
Jul 30, 2024
Quick overview of the Vatican - Luciana was super as she really knew her art and history. Tour felt a bit rushed though. Wish we could have slowed down at certain points.
Review provided by Viator
Fna77
Jul 16, 2024
Quite Draining visit - This is my second Vatican visit. This tour was supposed to begin at 1:30 then got moved to 1:45. We didn’t get into the line at the door until 1:50 and the actual tour began at 2. Our tour guide was a nice lady but she wanted to “teach” us every detail in each step of the tour - from paintings to sculpture to architecture. After the first 45 minutes everyone was beginning to get rather drained and by and 90 minutes we were exhausted. We didn’t get to the Sistine chapel until almost 5 pm and tired. We finished with the guide and quickly visited the basilica next door and made our way out. My first tour was much more pleasant and enjoyable as the tour guide was very friendly and made great effort to entertain us throughout the tour unlike this time.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Garrett_r
Jul 31, 2024
Slow and Arduous - Extremely slow tour. Time to begin was 1:45p and we did not truly enter the Vatican until well after 2:30p. Guide focused on her interests and did not move at the desired pace of participants. She became irritated by our request to move quicker and seemed to slow down even more afterwards. Many groups moved past us during our visit. Our group did not arrive to St Peter’s Basilica until 5:30p and we were left too tired to explore the beautiful basilica. Unfortunately, the tour took so long we missed the opportunity to access the basilica dome.
Review provided by Viator
Danica_b
Jul 22, 2024
Experience with Viator - We booked through the Viator site for a tour of the Vatican, Sistine Chapel and St Peters which turned out to be with The Roman Guy tours. When we arrived we were not on their schedule. After several phone calls they were able to put us into a group later the same day. This change impacted our limited time in Rome and reduced the sites we were able to see. We were told the tour we purchased on aviator was not offered by The Roman Guy and therefore we paid for areas that were not covered. Given the cost of such an experience I was disappointed in Viators service.
Review provided by Viator
Song_h
Jul 23, 2024
Not worth it - Could not understand the tour guide; so it was pretty useless. Did a little better listening to other random guides.
Review provided by Viator
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up to 15 guests
1 Adult
September 2024
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