Exclusive First Access Vatican Tour with Skip the Line Basilica
- 2h 30m
- Skip the line
- Free cancellation up to 24h before
- Guided in English
Highlights
Start your day with first access to the Vatican Museums—no waiting in line, no crowds. Join a small group tour with a knowledgeable, English-speaking guide and explore the Vatican’s most iconic masterpieces before the rush begins. Choose between two group sizes—intimate (up to 10 guests) or group (up to 20 guests)—for the experience that suits you best. Your expert guide will lead you through the galleries with engaging stories and insights, revealing the legends, symbolism, and history behind the treasures of the Museums. At the tour’s grand finale, step into the awe-inspiring Sistine Chapel and witness Michelangelo’s masterpieces, including The Creation of Adam and The Last Judgment. Now ALWAYS included: skip-the-line access from the Vatican Museums directly into St. Peter’s Basilica. While this access does not include a guided tour, it allows you to bypass the long lines and enter the Basilica at your own pace.
Inclusions
What's included
- Early morning first-access entry to the Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel
- Access to the Gallery of Maps & Raphael's Rooms
- Professional headsets to hear the guide clearly
- Professional & Passionate English-speaking Guide
- Skip the Line entry to St. Peter's Basilica
- Skip the Line Access to the Vatican Museums & St. Peter's Basilica
What's not
- Gratuities
- Hotel Pick up & Drop off
Itinerary
Visit the Vatican Museums with fast entry, in the first available access of the day.
This courtyard gets its name from the enormous bronze Pinecone sculpture that dominates it. Don't miss Alfredo Pomodoro's famous Sphere within Sphere while you are here. Ask your guide to give it a spin for you!
Don't miss Arnaldo Pomodoro's Sphere within a Sphere. Variations of this sculpture can be found in many settings around the world. Ask your guide to give it a spin for you!
The most famous wing of the Vatican Museums, the Pio Clementino museum contains much of the Museum's most important highlights. Your guide will take you through the Room of the Animals, where you can spot the life-like statues of fauna from around the world. Head to the Octagonal Courtyard where a small fountain trickles in the background of famous statues like the Laocoonte and Apollo Belvedere. Don't forget to look at the Candelabra Gallery - master painters decorated these ceilings to create the illusion of a 3D effect centuries ago!
Head with your guide to the Gallery of the Maps and get a perspective of the world how it was five centuries ago. These exquisitely detailed, hand-painted giant maps are a favorite of the Vatican Museums. See if you can find the Italian cities you have visited, or spot the nod to Christopher Columbus' journey to the Americas.
Raphael painted these rooms with incredible frescoes, originally meant for the private rooms of Pope Julius II.
No guides are able to speak inside the Sistine Chapel. However, your guide will prepare you in advance for your free time inside so you'll know what to look for.
Your visit ends close to where it began, after the spiral staircase at the entrance to the Vatican Museums.
When option is selected, access is provided to St Peter's Basilica, skipping the lines. A tour is not provided inside the Basilica, only access. Your visit will end at the steps of St. Peter's Square with an introduction made by your guide after which you will be on your own to continue exploring.
Only for options that explicitly include St. Peter's Basilica: Your tour will include access to St. Peter's Basilica through a special exit from the Sistine Chapel, allowing you to bypass the usual long entry lines. Please note that this access does not include a guided tour inside the Basilica.
Visit to Vatican Museums - Vatican City
Cancellation
Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the experience starts, for a full refund.
Reviews
4.9
- 5291
- 415
- 35
- 21
- 12
Ratings come from 314 reviews collected by our booking partner. They are travellers' own words, in the order they were written — never reordered to flatter the experience.
Know before you go
- Meeting point
- Plan on arriving to our meeting point at least 15 minutes in advance of your selected departure time. Meet our representative on the steps at Via Tunisi, located at the corner with Via Sebastiano Veniero. Be on the lookout for the color bright green of our logo.
- Pickup
- Everyone meets at the starting point; there is no pickup.
- Ticket type
- Mobile or paper ticket accepted
- Group size
- Up to 20 travellers
- Operated by
- EcoArt Travel
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- Due to the Jubilee, some monuments may be under restoration. Please pay attention to any messages we may send regarding potential changes.
- Children 6 and under are entitled to free access to the Vatican Museums (with proof of age)
- Children aged 7-18 are entitled to a reduced entry fee (see tour and ticket pricing) and must provide proof of age.
- Children under 18 must be accompanied by an adult.
- 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.
- Check-in is 15 minutes prior to the booked start time. Tickets are time sensitive and we cannot accomodate late arrivals.
How it compares in Rome
- Its from-price is close to the median of the 8352 experiences we list in Rome.
- Its length is typical for the group.
- By number of reviews it ranks 310 of 8352.
- The operator lists free cancellation on it.
About Rome
Rome layers nearly three thousand years of history into one walkable city, from the Colosseum and Forum to Baroque piazzas and Vatican art.
Ancient Rome is still in plain sight. The Colosseum, the Roman Forum and the Palatine Hill sit together at the city's heart, the Pantheon still stands with its open oculus, and fragments of temples and aqueducts turn up between apartment blocks. Across the Tiber, Vatican City holds St Peter's Basilica, the Vatican Museums and Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel ceiling.
Top-ranked sights in Rome: Colosseum, Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel.
Special offers in Rome
Was/now prices come from the operator, never from us.
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