Sistine Chapel Early Morning Access

About this activity

  • time-forward_15911935 Duration

    2.5 hours
  • queue-alt_15044408 Skip the ticket line

    1
  • guide_13794414 Live tour guide

    English
  • document-signed_15399607 Cancellation policy

    This activity is non-refundable

Highlights

  • Discover the wonders of the Vatican Museums with an expert guide
  • Be among the first visitors of the Sistine Chapel and Saint Peter's Basilica
  • Get more interaction with your tour guide thanks to the small tour group size
  • Learn the secrets behind the works from an art expert

Your experience

The Vatican Museums, among the world’s top five most visited ones take us through this incredible combination of art – work of the greatest masters: Raphael, Michelangelo, Botticelli, and other important painters of the Italian Renaissance.

Your visit starts through those courtyards and galleries that are famous because of their tapestries, and geographic maps of that time.

Enter Pope Julius II’s private apartment and watch it painted by Raphael’s genius.

After this artistic feast – get ready for the chapel of Sistine: a place where Michelangelo’s nine years laboring are gathered; from the ceiling to the altar wall behind these Sistine Chapel’s altarpieces that almost no one looks at.

Stand into Saint Peter’s Basilica to see works like Michelangelo’s Piete and Bernini’s Canopy over the main altar piece.

A designated comendator will relate the interesting stories behind the works, enhancing your experience in a tight small-group setting.

All people must show a valid ID on the day of the tour; otherwise, they will not be allowed outside in the Museums.

What's Included
  • Professional art historian or Ph.D. archaeologist
  • Priority entry
  • Ticket fees
  • Sistine Chapel brochure
What's Excluded
  • Gratuities

Itinerary

Starting location:

Viale Vaticano, 100

2
Vatican Museums

Visit, Guided tour

3
Courtyard of the Pigna

Visit, Guided tour (15 minutes)

4
Museo Pio Clementino

Visit, Guided tour

5
Cortile Ottagono

Visit, Guided tour (15 minutes)

6
Gallery of the Candelabra

Visit, Guided tour (10 minutes)

7
Gallery of Tapestries

Visit, Guided tour (10 minutes)

8
Gallery of Maps, Vatican Museums

Visit, Guided tour (10 minutes)

9
Borgia Apartment

Visit, Guided tour (5 minutes)

10
Raphael Rooms

Visit, Guided tour (20 minutes)

11
Sistine Chapel

Visit, Guided tour (30 minutes)

12
Saint Peter's Square

Photo stop, Visit, Guided tour, Sightseeing (5 minutes)

13
St. Peter's Basilica

Visit, Guided tour (30 minutes)

Finish at:

St. Peter's Basilica

Meeting Point

To Remember

What to bring

  • Student card
  • Passport or ID card for children
  • ID card, copy accepted

Not allowed

  • Shorts
  • Luggage or large bags
  • Short skirts
  • Sleeveless shirts
  • Backpacks

Know before you go

  • Luggage, big umbrellas, and big backpacks are not permitted
  • Shoulders and knees must be covered
  • For people with mobility impairments requiring the use of a wheelchair, please contact the local partner so the itinerary can be customized to your needs on a private tour