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Early Morning Vatican, Sistine, St. Peter's Semi or Private Tour | 3 hours 30 minutes

3109 Reviews | Rome
Special Offer
From $158.20 per person   $168.53 Save $10.33 Lowest Price Guarantee
Select Date and Travelers
You can select up to 15 travelers in total.
Adult (18-99) Minimum: 1, Maximum: 15
2
Child (3-17) Minimum: 0, Maximum: 15
0
Infant (0-2) Minimum: 0, Maximum: 15
0
Free Cancellation For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Private Tour
2 Adults x $628.90
$1,257.80
Approx Total
$1,257.80
Private Guide: Book this option for your own private group and enjoy a complete Vatican tour with a Private Guide for you only.
Shared Tour max 6 people
2 Adults x $156.70
$313.40
Approx Total
$313.40
Semi-Private Tour

Inclusions / Exclusions

  • Mobile ticket
  • Offered in: English
  • Skip the long ticket lines
  • Private Option of this tour is Available!
  • Tour in a Safe and Semi Private Group of 6 people
  • Learn from a Professional Local Expert Guide
  • Enjoy Early Morning Entrance to the Vatican Museums for a quieter experience
  • Food and drinks
  • Gratuities (optional)

Overview

Get early morning access into the Vatican Museums to admire countless works, and beautiful courtyards! Together with a truly small group of only 6 participants max, or in your very own private group, you will be able to avoid the big crowds and quietly enjoy these wonderful masterpieces. The Vatican Museums is on everyone’s Rome itinerary so you can imagine it gets quite full, quite quickly. This tour guarantees the personalized and intimate feel that is only possible with our truly small group size, or in your very own private group. We believe that having an intimate experience makes ALL the difference! With your expert local guide, make your way through the vastness of the Museums, with the greatest highlights of the Papal art collection, the Raphael Rooms, the Gallery of Tapestries, the Pinecone Courtyard, and of course the exceptional Sistine Chapel. Finish with the incredible Saint Peter's Basilica.

Meeting points

In front of Cafè Vaticano, right across the street from the Vatican Museum's Entrance. Your guide will be holding a LivTours sign. Please arrive 15 minutes before the start time.

End point

Open in Google Maps

Itinerary

  • Vatican Museums

    With the luxury of our truly small group size of 6 people max, or in the personalized intimacy of your very own private group, you will be guaranteed to get the very most out of your Vatican experience. This way you can easily navigate through the countless masterpieces with an expert guide, ask all the questions you wish, and have the guarantee of a personalized experience. We trust this makes ALL the difference! Walk through the heavily decorated Gallery of the Candelabras and enjoy the trompe l’oeil in the Gallery of the Tapestries. After you learn about the impressive Gallery of the Maps, continue to the exquisite Raphael Rooms. With your professional expert tour guide, you will be sure to see all the highlights as well as hidden gems! You will not only learn the fantastic history of the powerful Popes but will also delight in the bits of gossip and other little-known stories about life in Vatican City.

    2 hours

  • Stanze di Raffaello

    The Papal art collection at its best in the Raphael Rooms

    15 minutes

  • Sistine Chapel

    Enjoy a thorough explanation of the incredible masterpiece that is the Sistine Chapel and learn all about it from your professional expert guide before you actually enter the chapel. As it is a holy place, it is strictly forbidden to speak inside. That is why we guarantee you will learn all about it before you enter. Then, once inside, you will have time to take it all in and admire the breathtaking beauty of this world famous site in contemplative silence.

    15 minutes

  • St. Peter's Basilica

    Your comprehensive Vatican tour concludes with VIP entrance directly into St. Peter’s Basilica without standing in the long lines. Walking through the Basilica, you will learn all about the secrets of the magnificent and ornate decorations, sculptures, altars and chapels. Visit Michelangelo’s Pieta and walk down the main nave to admire the dome he designed that sits on top of the largest Catholic church in the world.

    45 minutes

Sample Menu

Additional Info

  • Public transportation options are available nearby
  • Suitable for all physical fitness levels
  • Occasionally the Basilica may be closed due to last minute private events outside of the tour operators control and often without notice. In these uncommon circumstances the tour will operate as usual and the time spent inside the basilica will be made up elsewhere on the tour. No refunds will be granted in the event the Basilica is closed
  • Starting in 2024, the Vatican Museums will discontinue early access for ALL tour providers, instead opening to the public at 8AM. This tour will then be offered as a first entrance experience, which we recommend for a less crowded, more personalized, and fully guided experience.
  • Vatican management maintains the right to delay the opening of the Sistine Chapel for religious reasons, in this case the guide will modify the itinerary and extend your visit of the museums to ensure you make the most of your time before access to the Sistine Chapel is permitted.
  • Please note St Peter's Basilica is closed on most Wednesday's. If you book during a day in which the Basilica is closed, your tour of the Vatican Museums will be extended to compensate the closure
  • Access to the Raphael Rooms is contingent upon crowd conditions, timing constraints, and guard-regulated routes. Including them may not always be feasible. In these cases, your tour guide will exercise discretion to adjust the itinerary, ensuring a high-quality experience.
  • As part of the 2025 Jubilee celebrations, St. Peter’s Basilica may experience unexpected partial or complete closures. In the rare event that the Basilica cannot be visited, rest assured that your tour experience will remain exceptional. Your guide will seamlessly adapt the itinerary to include alternative highlights, ensuring the full duration and quality of your tour. Please note that, in accordance with our Terms & Conditions agreed upon at the time of booking, partial or full refunds cannot be issued due to Basilica closures.
  • Not recommended for travelers with mobility issues

Free Cancellation

September 10100% refund
September 11No refund

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

  • For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
  • If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
  • Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.
  • Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.
  • This experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Reviews

4.9

3109 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews
  • 5 stars
    2939
  • 4 stars
    91
  • 3 stars
    42
  • 2 stars
    19
  • 1 star
    18

Reviews by TravelOne travelers

Showing 1-5 of 2939 reviews with 5 stars

A wonderful early morning Vatican tour

Published on Jan, 2025

Linda was a fabulous guide. We highly recommend her and Liv Tours through Viator. Communications were great and easy to follow. The tour was as described. Thank you Linda for a memorable morning.

The TOUR GUIDE made the trip!

Published on Jan, 2025

Massimo is an expert in all things Vatican! You won't see every single thing in the museum or the Basillica BUT you will see ALL of the important things. We highly recommend this tour and loved that it was early enough there were no crowds even in the Jubilee year!

Great tour of the “skip the line early morning Vatican City, Sistine Chapel and St Peter’s Basilica” tour

Published on Jan, 2025

Sarah was an excellent tour guide. Knowledgeable and fun personality that made the tour interesting, informative and very enjoyable. Would highly recommend doing the “early skip the line Vatican City, Sistine Chapel and St Peter’s Basilica” tour with her!

Great Early Morning Tour of Vatican with Serafina!

Published on Jan, 2025

My husband, adult daughter, and I participated in this tour with Serafina. Serafina was very friendly and provided us with a wealth of information that helped this to be one of the highlights of our trip. She gave everyone in our group ample time to see everything and was eager to give answers to questions. She was invested in making sure we all had a great tour. At the end of the tour she provided us with a list of nearby recommended restaurants. When booking the reservation, I did not put the correct name down for one of my family members and they team at Liv Tours was extremely helpful and quick at helping me correct this. I recommend this company and Serafine and would definitely book with them in the future!

Fantastic tour and guide

Published on Jan, 2025

Caterina was a fantastic tour guide! We learned so much from her and she kept the tour moving at a good pace. It truly made our experience at the Vatican!

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