We are proud to offer the least expensive Private Vatican Highlights Tour available! You will visit all of the must sees of the Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's Basilica on this 3 hour tour. Book with us and we assure you of "great fist class service with an exciting guide" who you can understand your needs. As this is truly a one-of-a-lifetime experience, its best to have a Private Vatican Tour so that you are not being rushed by a group tour and so that you can explore at your own pace. With more then 2000 years of Art, History and Religion, there is no better way to explore the Vatican than with our professional English speaking private guides.
From the operator’s live schedule on Viator, checked Oct 14.
We first visit the largest collection in the world, the Vatican Museums. In these museums we will see the Gallery of the Maps, Tapestries, Old Papal Apartments and the Rooms of Raffaele.
Once in the Sistine Chapel we get to enjoy the fruit of Michelangelo's intensive labor. Mainly the 'Creation of Man' on the ceiling, and the 'Last Judgement' on the alter wall.
Once in the Basilica we will get the chance to see the tombs of past Pope's, Michelangelo's Pieta, the central alter and baldachino designed by the famous architect Bramante. No visit to the Basilica would be complete without looking into the awe-inspiring dome, also built by Michelangelo.
The tour will finish looking over St Peter's Square with a full explanation of the piazza, the special markings throughout it, and the saints and martyrs looking over it.
Reviews collected by Viator and Tripadvisor
All sales are final. No refund is available for cancellations.
Private Vatican Highlights Tour - Skip The Line lasts about 3 hours. The itinerary has 4 stops.
Prices start at $574 per person for this Rome experience, booked through Viator with the price shown before checkout. There is 1 booking option, so the final price depends on the option you choose.
According to the operator’s current schedule, it runs on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, starting at 9:00 AM, 1:30 PM, and 2:00 PM.
All sales are final. No refund is available for cancellations.
The meeting point is The tour meets at the bottom of the stairs located on Via Tunisi. These stairs are directly across the street from the entrance of the Vatican Museums. The meeting point is at the bottom of the stairs, look for your guide holding a sign with your name, and/or a sign with Maximus Tours. Hotel pickup is not part of this experience.
The experience is available in EN.
It is a private experience: only your party takes part. Up to 15 travellers can book together.
Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
Wheelchair accessible All areas and surfaces are wheelchair accessible
Yes, bookings are confirmed instantly.
Travellers rate it 4.9 out of 5 across 49 reviews on Viator and Tripadvisor; it is run by Maximus Tours.
Reviews collected by Viator and Tripadvisor
Sarah was an excellent guide. She gave lots of detailed info in a fun and engaging way. She took good care of our small group in the large crowd. Would highly recommend.
Dear traveller Thank you so much for your kind review! We’re delighted to hear that Sarah made the tour informative, engaging, and enjoyable. We truly appreciate your recommendation!
We had a wonderful tour of the Vatican with Paola. She was very informative and thoughtful. She customized the tour for our group (one of whom was from Argentina and a huge fan of Pope Francis. She also showed us where our next stay would be, in Umbria, in the hall of maps). We enjoyed her insight and sense of humor--which was unruffled despite our missing the meet up point! Would highly recommend this tour.
Dear traveller Thank you so much for your lovely review! We're delighted to hear that you enjoyed your tour with Paola and appreciated her knowledge, humor, and thoughtful personal touches. Thank you for your kind recommendation—we hope to welcome you back to Rome again soon!
Today we had the absolute pleasure of touring the Vatican, the Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter’s Basilica with Maura, and I simply cannot praise her highly enough. From the moment we met her, she was warm, knowledgeable, patient, and incredibly professional. Travelling with my mum in a wheelchair can sometimes be challenging in busy places, but Maura made everything feel effortless. She guided us through the crowds with such care and consideration, ensuring Mum was included in every part of the experience and never felt rushed or left behind. What truly set Maura apart was her extraordinary knowledge. It seemed as though there wasn’t a question she couldn’t answer. Whether it was the history of the Vatican, the artists behind the incredible works around us, or the smallest details hidden in the ceilings and artwork, she knew it all instantly and explained everything in a way that was fascinating and easy to understand. My Aunt Mary is an artist and was captivated by the artwork throughout the tour. Maura’s ability to identify artists, explain techniques, and bring the stories behind the masterpieces to life added a whole new dimension to our visit. We learned so much and saw things we would never have noticed on our own. Maura didn’t just give us a tour; she gave us an experience. She brought history, art, faith, and culture to life with passion and enthusiasm, and she did it all while making our family feel genuinely cared for. We have travelled extensively and taken many guided tours over the years, and I can honestly say that Maura is one of the very best guides we have ever had. She is a credit to her profession and to your organisation. Thank you, Maura, for helping create such a special day and such wonderful memories for our family. We will be talking about this experience for years to come. Victoria, Patrick, Jennifer, Mary, Reagan & Eirinn 😘
Dear Erin Thank you so much for your wonderful review! We’re delighted to hear that Maura helped make your visit such a special and memorable experience for your family. It’s especially lovely to know that everyone felt well looked after and was able to fully enjoy the art, history, and atmosphere of the Vatican. We truly appreciate your kind words and will be sure to pass them on to Maura. Thank you for choosing us, and we’re so pleased to have been part of such a memorable day for your family.
Our Vatican tour with Tatiana was absolutely incredible from start to finish and was the highlight of our trip to Rome. We met Tatiana in front of the entrance and she took us right in through the private group area, avoiding very long lines. She is an art historian and incredibly knowledgeable about everything in the museums/chapel/basilica. She made sure to point out very interesting details about famous parts of the museum and pointed out very special items that we surely would have overlooked without her. We have traveled extensively and done many tours, and this is definitely one of the best tours we have ever had. Her breadth of knowledge and concise and clear explanations were fantastic. I would definitely recommend Tatiana and Maximus tours for this amazing experience at the Vatican.
Dear traveller Thank you so much for your incredible review! We’re absolutely delighted to hear that your tour with Tatiana was such a highlight of your trip to Rome. It’s wonderful to know that her knowledge and attention to detail made the experience so special and helped you discover pieces you might otherwise have missed. Your kind words truly mean a lot to us, especially coming from such experienced travelers. We sincerely appreciate your recommendation and hope to welcome you again on a future visit!
Fabulous tour ,Cristina our guide was so knowledgeable...we were lucky enough to be a very small party ..would highly recommend
Dear Tony Thank you for your lovely review! We’re delighted to hear that you enjoyed the tour and that Cristiana’s knowledge made it such a great experience. We truly appreciate your recommendation!
So so worth having a private guide! We visited in June and it was during the Jubilee so there were a lot of people there but with our guide we really didn't mind. We told her what we liked the most and she took us to special sections that had a lot of those items. We had as much time as we wanted in Sistine Chapel and she was really good at explaining things in more detail to my teenagers. We contemplated going with a group of 20 but I am so happy we went with a private tour, definitely worth it!
Dear traveller Thank you so much for your lovely review! We’re delighted to hear that your private tour made such a difference, especially during the busy Jubilee period. It’s wonderful to know your guide tailored the experience to your interests and helped bring the Sistine Chapel to life for your teenagers. We truly appreciate your recommendation and are so glad you felt the private tour was worth it!
My cousin and I attended the semi-private 3.5 hour tour of the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel. Our tour guide, Maura, was wonderful and provided both an informative and entertaining experience. I would highly recommend this tour to anyone visiting!
Dear traveller Thank you for your lovely review! We're so glad to hear that you and your cousin enjoyed the semi-private tour and that Maura made the experience both informative and fun. We really appreciate your recommendation!
Directions were very clear to meet our tour guide. Paola was a wonderful guide who walked us thru the entry way and thru security with no issues. She told us enough to make us take notice of important stuff in the Sistine Chapel. Most guides try to show how smart and knowledgeable they are by inundating you with a million factoids but not Paola. She learned what we like to see and took us to those art pieces. We didn’t see everything (thankfully!) and were able to see the sculptures that we wanted to see. She saw that we were dragging and allowed us to sit for a bit while she explained the Easter eggs found in the Sistine Chapel. She also gave us a bit of history behind Michelangelo and Raphael! We strongly recommend Maximus Tours due to their white glove service and tailoring the tour to your likes.
Dear traveller Thank you so much for sharing your experience! We’re so glad to hear that Paola made your visit enjoyable and tailored the tour to your interests. It’s great to know everything went smoothly from start to finish and that you appreciated her thoughtful approach. We truly appreciate your kind recommendation!
Paola was Sensational! She was Sassy, Smart and a Great Sense of Humour and Style when educating us on the stories of The Vatican! Superstar Tour Guide ..!
Dear traveller Thank you for your wonderful feedback! We’re so glad to hear you enjoyed your tour with Paola and appreciated her energy and style. We’ll be sure to share your kind words with her!
Highly recommend this tour. The Vatican museum can be highly overwhelming since there is so much to see. Our guide gave made sure we saw the highlights of the museum as well the Sistine Chapel and Saint Peter’s Basilica and Square. We can always go back if we want to spend more time in the museum but this was perfect for the limited time we were visiting Rome.
Dear Elizabeth Thank you so much for your kind words and recommendation! We’re glad to hear you enjoyed the highlights of the Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter’s. It’s wonderful that the tour fit so well with your time in Rome, and we’d be happy to welcome you back anytime!
| Tour | Duration | Rating | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Private Vatican Highlights Tour - Skip The Line | 3 hours | 4.9 (49) | $574 | |
 Skip-the-Line Vatican, Sistine Chapel & St. Peter's | Small Group | 3 hours | 4.9 (8,395) | $113 | View |
 Skip the Line: Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel Tour + Basilica | 1–3 hours | 4.7 (6,534) | $40 | View |
 Skip-the-line Private: Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel&St Peter's | 3 hours | 4.9 (212) | $404 | View |
 Private Vatican Highlights Guided Tour with Sistine Chapel | 3h 15min | 5.0 (1,720) | $285 | View |
 Exclusive First Access Vatican Tour with Skip the Line Basilica | 2h 30min | 4.9 (314) | $163 | View |
 Skip the Line Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel Entry Tickets | 1–3 hours | 4.7 (740) | $40 | View |