Rome: Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel Tickets & Guided Tour

Your experience

Highlights

• Make a wealthy history discovery tour by being able to visit three of the most famous tourist attractions and skipping the long lines. Learn all about the masterpieces that make this small country home as you walk through galleries filled with art from artists like Michelangelo and Raphael, and listen to your guide tell fascinating stories. Moreover, there are many halls in these museums which captivate tourists so much, especially frescoes made by such great painters as Raphael or Michelangelo!

Full description

The Vatican Museums are visited with a special emphasis on the unique and vast papal art collections, where there is also an opportunity to explore them together with an experienced guide. For those who already have priority entrance tickets, there will be no need to stand in line. Right upon arrival, your guide will give you tickets and headsets so that during the tour you can always hear what they say, even in more crowded places or with less important information, so we don’t all have to stop walking just to hear better. Later, on the Terrace roof walkway, it’s possible to take wonderful photos of St. Peter's Dome along with some of its historical background and construction details, and then enter inside the beautiful Basilica.Once you step out of the museum, you will end up in the place known as Pinecone Courtyard. It received this name because there is a huge bronze pine cone, which was made 13 feet tall and created back in the 1st century B.C. The large sculptures that are works of art from ancient Rome’s Pio-Clementino Museum will be your focus after taking a deep breath of fresh air, namely Laocoon and his sons, who have been very famous for centuries.This object, I believe, was discovered in the early 1500s and might have had some role in influencing Michelangelo Buonarroti’s later work. Later on, during your walk through time, you will also come across the Torso del Belvedere and The Round Hall with beautiful floor mosaics.In order to reach the Sistine Chapel, you should not neglect to visit the Tapestries Galleries and Maps Galleries, which will lead you through about 120 meters. Once you are inside the Sistine Chapel, you have enough time to admire the amazing frescoes painted by Michelangelo. When we queued up outside St. Peter's Basilica, our guide had already regaled us with some interesting nuggets about ‘The Last Judgment’ as soon as we walked in.While it took him a good eight years to craft this masterpiece, he meticulously marked down myriad nuances that might have slipped past the eyes of a lesser artist. By no means should you miss a chance to feast your eyes on an architectural wonder, which is an undoubtedly awe-inspiring cathedral that can keep you engaged for the whole day!The Pietà is a famous sculpture by Michelangelo displayed in St. Peter’s Basilica, and along with the Sistine Chapel, it stands as one of the greatest achievements in Michelangelo’s career. Another masterpiece by Bernini can be found in this Basilica, namely the Baldacchino, while on the ground floor, you have an opportunity to observe all the tombs of popes through different ages.

Includes

• Accelerated access tickets allow you to skip lines and experience an easy and smooth process to enter the venue.
• Guide
• Headset
• Help Upon Arrival

Not includes

• To enter St. Peter’s Basilica and be led around by an expert throughout your visit, it is always recommended to get a guide who can be relied upon.

What to bring

• One needs to present an identification card and a passport in order to disclose their identity.

Not allowed

• Animals are forbidden to enter, and no intoxicating drugs or alcohol can be taken within.

Know before you go

• To maintain safety and security, all visitors will have to pass through an airport-type security check.