Private Tour of the Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel

Highlights

• Skip the long lines at the main sites of the Vatican City.
• Marvel at masterpieces of art in some of the 1,400 rooms of the Vatican Museums.
• See Michelangelo's famous "Creation of Adam" fresco in the Sistine Chapel.
• Admire the vaults, domes and art works of St. Peter's Basilica.

Previous Next

tour description

It’s all about you!

Explore the wonders of the smallest country in the world with your own private professional Vatican Guide. Choosing a private tour will give you the chance to have a more in-depth and unforgettable experience during your stay in the Eternal City. Your Private Tour Guide will be with you from start to finish, answer all your questions and even customize your tour to your preference!

Papal Art Collection & Vatican Galleries

Pass by the long lines and enter the Vatican Museums with your own private tour guide and priority entrance, giving you more time to explore the art and less time wasted on waiting. There you will start your amazing journey, almost like traveling back in time! Your very first stop will be the Pinacoteca Courtyard, an amazing open space area that will give you a breathtaking view and also the closest one of St Peter's Dome. Make your way to the Vatican's very first and also it's most complex museum: The Pio-Clementino Museum. Let your Private Tour Guide amaze you with the history behind the papal collection and tell you also fun facts that lay behind the most famous statues that are part of the Pio-Clementine Museums, such as the Apollo del Belvedere and the laocoön and his sons. Stroll down the Vatican Galleries discovering the ancient Greek and Roman sculptures in the Candelabra Gallery and the most beautiful decorated tapestries in the second gallery. The finest and longest Gallery will be the Map Gallery, immerse yourself in a full dimension covered with large paintings that illustrate the history of Italy's transcending borders up to its unification.

Raphael vs Michelangelo

On your Private Vatican Tour, your tour guide will make sure you get to see all the most famous masterpieces and that you don't skip the “musts”, keep in mind that the Vatican Museums have more than 1000 rooms inside so finding your way around would be pretty difficult without your private guide! One of the must-see is The Raphael Rooms, 4 entire rooms decorated with breathtaking frescoes painted by the genius of the Renaissance Raffaello Sanzio. Commissioned by Pope Julius II, Raphael totally redecorated the Pope's suite of apartments to let them become part of the most iconic frescoes of Italian art.

Another must, but maybe not so hard to miss, masterpiece inside the Vatican is the amazing Sistine Chapel, created by another genius of the Renaissance, Michelangelo Buonarroti. You will be filled with astonishment whilst your Private Vatican Guide explains the intriguing history behind the creation of Adam, the symbol of the marvelous ceiling and Michelangelo's conception of the end of humanity, The Last Judgment.

Saint Peter's Basilica Tour 

After, your Private Tour Guide will give you a special fast track entrance to St. Peter's Basilica, which means you won't have to wait in any kind of line! Marvel at the one and only statue signed by Michelangelo, La Pietà. Be amazed at the biggest church in the world and its beautiful architecture principally designated by the Renaissance's most famous artists such as Bernini, Bramante, and Michelangelo. Your private Tour Guide will take you to what lays underneath St. Peter's Basilica, over 100 tombs of the Popes, to not forget one of the most beloved Popes John Paul II. Your Private Tour will end on St Peter's square, surrounded by the beautiful Bernini's colonnade.

Know before you go

• Please note that proper attire is required to enter St.Peter's Basilica / Shoulders and knees must be covered.
• There will be an airport-style security check before you enter the Vatican Museums; please leave liquids and sharp items at home.
• Pick up & Drop off are available for this Tour