The Vatican Museums at Dawn, An Early morning visit to The Sistine Chapel and St. Peter’s Basilica

The Vatican Museums at Dawn, An Early morning visit to The Sistine Chapel and St. Peter’s Basilica
From USD $131.00
  • Duration: 3 Hours (approx.)
  • Location: Rome
  • Product code: CF-VATD

This early morning semi private tour starts with no wait access, before the general public begins to queue for entry.   The Vatican’s well known art treasures are highlighted with the Sistine Chapel and St Peter’s Basilica. Guiding you will be an English-speaking art expert, whose knowledge illuminates the history behind these incomparable artworks.

What We Love About This Tour:

  • Taking in the artistic wonders of the Vatican Museums—including sumptuous ancient maps, tapestries, and sculpture

  • Gazing at Michelangelo’s masterworks: the frescoes of the Sistine Chapel

  • Marveling at St. Peter’s Basilica, with its spectacular dome, altar, chapels, and sculptures—including Michelangelo’s sublime Pietà

Starting out in the courtyard and moving on to the Museums, you’ll walk through cavernous galleries filled with ancient sculptures, ornate tapestries, beautifully preserved maps, and Etruscan antiquities. You’ll also visit Raphael’s Rooms, a quartet of sumptuous spaces whose walls and ceilings were completely covered in paintings by the 16th-century master.

The most famous frescoes in the world will greet you when you enter the jewel box that is the Sistine Chapel. Here, you’ll be surrounded by the stunning Michelangelo masterpieces that have adorned a million picture postcards—including the nine central panels of the chapel ceiling, each depicting a tale from Genesis (the most famous being The Creation of Adam).

Your final stop is St. Peter’s Basilica, it’s both one of the world’s largest churches, and one of its most sacred Catholic sites. The grand church building, with its soaring, statuary-topped travertine walls and parabolic dome, sits atop the very spot where St. Peter was buried. You’ll see the church’s baldacchino (a twining bronze canopy that shelters the papal altar); its chapels and elaborately painted, multi-domed ceiling; and, perhaps most stirring of all, Michelangelo’s remarkable Pietà—a sculptural depiction of the Virgin Mary cradling her dying son. 

IMPORTANT: The Basilica is closed on Wednesdays for the Papal Audience.

DEPARTURE

Everyday except Sunday at 7:30am 

DURATION

Approx. 3 hours

PERIOD

Year-round

LANGUAGE

English 

People on this tour: min 2 - max 12

What's Included in this tour: 

  • Special Early Morning Skip-the-Line access
  • The Sistine Chapel  & St Peter’s Basilica 
  • Expert, English-speaking tour guide
  • Semi Private groups of 12 people or less
  • All entrance tickets & reservation fees
  • Dedicated audio headsets so you don't miss a thing

Not Included:

  • Hotel pick-up and drop-off

  • Gratuities

Important to Know:

  • Please note that due to current Coronavirus, the Italian Government's directives and safety policies, all customers will be required to bring and wear it’s own mask during the entire visit. Temperature checks will also take place at tour venues; if your temperature is above 37.5°C you will unfortunately not be able to attend the tour.

  • Tour runs rain or shine.

  • Entrance to the Vatican Museums and Churches require a strict dress code.  We cannot be held responsible for denied entry due to improper dress.  

  • Please be sure to arrive at the tour departure point 20 minutes before the starting time. Guests arriving after departure cannot be accommodated, and missed tours or tickets will not be refunded.

  • Unfortunately, wheelchairs and strollers cannot be accommodated on this tour.

  • Please note that photography is prohibited inside The Sistine Chapel. Non-flash photography is permitted on all other parts of the tour.

  • Please note that St. Peter's Basilica is closed on Wednesdays and is also subject to last-minute closures for religious ceremonies. If this occurs, your group will instead be treated to an extended tour of the Vatican Museums. While we undertake to tell guests beforehand if there are any planned disruptions to the Basilica's opening hours, this is not always possible. In these cases, we are unable to provide refunds or discounts.

Important to Bring:

  • A small purse or camera bag only (no backpacks or large shoulder bags). Security checks at some sites restrict the size of bags that can be brought inside. 

  • Good walking shoes

SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS AND NOTES:

  • Please let us know in advance any special need or impaired mobility of the clients and we will do our best to accommodate them.

  • Even with the skip-the-line entrance, there is still a compulsory security check which may cause some delays in entering the museum.

    • Terms and conditions: 

  • You can cancel or modify your tour date and time up to 96 hours before arrival/ departure free of charge. If your tour modification is of greater value, you are subject to the price increase. 

  • Any cancellations made within 96 hours and no-shows are non-refundable.

  • Children under the age of 18 must be accompanied by at least one adult to join a tour or an activity.