Available languages
3 hours 30 minutes
Mobile ticket
Meet at our comfortable offices less than a block from the museum entrance. Join our small group Vatican tour in the early morning with a top-notch tour guide and get the earliest entrance available to the museums, Sistine Chapel & Raphael Rooms. In a small group, you will be able to discover with no rush the extraordinary abundance of history and art.
Your guide will tour you through these corridors and halls, pointing out the exhibits on display. Once through, the Sistine Chapel awaits you.
The finale of our early entry Vatican tours culminates in St. Peter’s Basilica. Majestic and inspired, it is the perfect place to come full circle on the morning’s itinerary. Feast your eyes on Michelangelo’s Pietà and admire the stunning interior of the dome he designed, as well as Bernini’s massive bronze baldachin sitting over the Pope’s private alter directly above St. Peter’s tomb and other little-known details that can only be spotted when inside!
Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
Public transportation options are available nearby
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
MEETING POINT IS VIA SANTAMAURA 14B, What A Life Tours
Under 18s aged 0-6 must book as "Child", under 18s aged 7-17 must book as "Youth". This is the age they will be on the day of the tour with us. Failure to book correctly will mean we cannot get your child inside the museums.
The ticket is valid only for the date and time reserved. We are unable to accommodate late arrivals due to a time entrance of the Vatican Museums tour voucher. Missed tours or tickets due to late arrivals are non-refundable. Please allow extra time to reach the meeting point as Rome's streets can be confusing. Meeting time is 15 minutes before the start time of the tour.
A dress code is required to enter places of worship and selected museums. No shorts or sleeveless tops allowed. ALL participants MUST cover their knees and shoulders. You may risk refused entry if you fail to comply with these dress requirements.
While the Vatican Museums are equipped with elevators for wheelchair access, they are not conveniently located on the group tour route and only give access to specific sections of the Museums. As a result, we cannot accommodate wheelchairs/walkers on this tour.
Please remember to bring with you a valid ID document for all participants.
We cannot accommodate service animals.
Please notice that we are not responsible for the number of visitors the Vatican Museums allow inside.
Large umbrellas are not permitted, please leave these at your accommodation.
No pictures, videos, or even speaking is allowed in the Sistine Chapel.
We recommend that you bring your own headphones as the ones provided by the Vatican have a single earpiece only, and you may prefer to use both earbuds to hear the guide better.
St. Peter's Basilica is an active parish and therefore subject to last-minute closures due to mass or other religious events. In these cases, we will offer an extended tour of the Vatican Museums (including areas normally not part of the tour). Please note that 2025 is the Jubilee year, closures of St. Peter's Basilica can happen anytime without further notice. No refunds are recognized for unexpected closures.
Powerbanks are not permitted inside the museums, please leave these at your accommodations.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Meet your guide at our comfortable offices near the Museums' entrance
Skip-the-line access to St. Peter’s Basilica
Headsets to hear the guide
Entry to the Sistine Chapel
Small group
Expert English-speaking tour guide
3.5-hour guided tour
Early entrance guaranteed
Hotel pickup and drop-off
The activity starts directly at our office located conveniently very close to the Museums' entrance.
Vatican Museums
The Vatican Museums feature many works of art that belonged to the different Popes and are full of artistic beauty. Here is a glimpse of some of the most beautiful things to see in the Vatican Museums. Rooms and Galleries of the Vatican Museums, as the Greek Cross Room, the Gallery of Maps, the Gallery of Tapestries, Raphael Rooms and much more! From a relatively small collection of statues brought in by Julius II, it grew into a gigantic museum to a point that nobody even knows how many items are kept in the vaults and galleries of the Vatican.
Duration: 3 hours: Admire the amazing Vatican Pinacoteca in this Wednesday's Special itinerary.
Museums & Sistine Chapel: Please note this tour does not include St. Peter's Basilica but will go to the marvelous Pinacoteca instead.
Before the Crowds Early Entry: EXCLUSIONS:
-St.Peter's Basilica
2,027 reviews
Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor
Sierra L,
Sep 5, 2025
- Viator
We had a great time with Zinzia. She was incredibly knowledgeable and funny which made the tour even better. We learned so much and would definitely recommend this tour to anyone who wants to visit the Vatican.
Kevin d,
Aug 27, 2025
- Viator
Love the tour and guide (Jeanette)was good. Amazing things to see. Avoiding the lines was the only way to start the tour. So many things to see and without the guide would miss a lot
Erin M,
Aug 15, 2025
- Viator
The tour was amazing and the guides were able to provide us with a lot of the history. I received notification of our meeting spot prior to the tour, which included a photo of the spot which made it very easy. Tour of the Colosseum was a bit shorter then anticipated but the evening tour was awesome and there were no crowds.
Crystal A,
Aug 10, 2025
- Viator
There's no way to learn everything about the Vatican Museums and St. Peter's Basilica in one trip to Rome but the three hours that we spent with our tour guide gave some history and some perspective that was welcome! This is a great way to spend 3 hours!
Brad R,
Aug 4, 2025
- Viator
Excellent tour of Vatican museum and St Peter’s - even in busy Jubilee year, our guide swiftly got us to the highlights of the museum - Apollo Belvedere, Raphael’s school of Athens and the Sistine chapel. Definitely a highlight of my time in Rome
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