Vatican City Tour: Art and Architecture Highlights

Uncover the art and architecture of Vatican City with an early morning tour of St. Peter’s Basilica and Underground Grottoes. Explore the stunning interiors, climb to the summit of the Dome for panoramic views, and discover the historic tombs of Popes and dignitaries.

Duration: 2 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • St. Peter’s Square - Enjoy an early morning tour with our local guide starting from the statuesque St. Peter’s Square all the way through the famous Basilica.
  • Cupola di San Pietro - Set foot on the summit of the majestic St. Peter’s Dome and get a 360 degree view of the city centre and its main archeological attactions such as the Colosseum…
What's Included
  • Guided Tour to the St. Peter’s Dome
  • Small groups of 15 person
  • Expert English speaking guide
  • Visit to the Papal Tombs
  • Access to St Peter’s Basilica and Square (no skip-the-line for the Basilica)
What's Not Included
  • Food and beverage
  • Hotel Pick up and Drop off
  • Gratuities
  • Skip-the-line access to Basilica and Dome
Additional Information

Embark on a journey through the striking art and structures of Vatican City. Explore famed locations such as St. Peter’s Square and Basilica early in the day to escape the flocks of visitors. Join your guide in Piazza della Città Leonina to delve deeper into the remarkable history of Vatican City. Marvel at the grandeur of the columns and stately…

Location
Piazza della Città Leonina, 5
Piazza della Città Leonina
• Please arrive at the meeting point 15 minutes before the activity starts • Our staff will be meeting you holding a “Loving Rome” flag and will be stationed at the “black tables” of Caffè Leonina (front row), situated beyond the white tables of the kiosk.
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
3.8
(25 Ratings)
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Ruby
Oct 5, 2025
My husband and I were... - My husband and I were very happy with the tour. Valerio was very knowledgeable and shared a lot of information. Highly recommended to join the tour.
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Felicia
Jul 29, 2025
Good choice - It was a really good time. Guide Valerio was very good and helpfull; he is so very dedicated; important informations, nice presentation! Also, he manage to facilitate us a good visit. It is much better to have a guide when visit!
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Sean_o
Oct 26, 2024
Very good highlight tour - My wife and I got very lucky and we were the only ones in this tour. The guide was very nice and gave us history and facts non stop. He was great. This tour though is not a skip the line tour, you stand in line with the guide. The guide though talks the whole time so we found it to be enjoyable. The top of the dome Was very good and afterwards the guide took us into the church and walked us around somewhat quickly on what I would all a highlight tour. I would recommend this tour to anyone.
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Lia_l
Jul 1, 2024
Packed full of history info and overall great experience - We had an amazing tour! From start to finish just taking everything in and learning about the history of these places was such a great experience.
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Lauren_skeels
Sep 30, 2025
Well worth visiting! - Our tour guide was very knowledgeable and the Papel tombs and St. Peters Basilica were amazing. The only downside was that we spent too long in St. Peters Square due to prayers inside the Basilica so found it a bit rushed and missed the Dome Climb due to another booking.
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Tina_g
May 19, 2024
Go early and be ready for lots of history! - Very memorable trip! GO EARLY! Without a skip the line ticket even with a guide, the line would have been unbearable at we not done the 7:30. Our guide gave interesting facts. I’d recommend looking things up before you go if you like history. There is so much information coming at you (which is so great for the best understanding) but had i known some things before i could have connected dots easier. Overall a must especially if you have a love for Peter! To visit where he died was emotional. To think about his declaration of Jesus to the end was just awe inspiring.
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Utdo
Apr 13, 2024
St. Peter's Basilica, dome ascent and papal tombs - Everything went well. The meeting point was easy to find. The tour guide told us a lot about the history of St. Peter's Basilica. Quick access to St. Peter's Basilica is relative...it can take some time at the security check. Once you were through that, things moved along more quickly.
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Deborah_s
Oct 19, 2025
Did not get the your we requested and paid for - This tour vender was not organized. They closed down and told us to GET IN LINE NEXT TO THE WALL!! 2 hours later we were told to go to the r d of the line. We went back to the meeting place and there was a guide there who was helping out. He took our tour in a different line and said we would move quickly because we were with a guide. It took 11/2 hrs. By then it was 5 pm. We were u able to go to the top of the dome and were unable to go to the crypts
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Rick_r
Aug 15, 2025
Tour time - Tour does not start at advertised time. We scheduled this tour at 3 pm since we had another tour scheduled at 5 for the Sistine Chappel. Others were being sold this tour to start 1/2 hour later. Thus we only got a tour to the first balcony. Countdown not walk up the steps, no time. We had to take off from the tour just to see the inside of St. Peter’s by ourselves. Never did make it to the papal tombs….this was a waste of our time and money..
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Ethan_c
Apr 25, 2025
Got cancelled - Never happened it got canceled and I’m going to need to get a refund because I didn’t get the service
Review provided by Viator
From $53
up to 15 guests
1 - Adult
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).