Private Highlights Vatican Guided Tour

Important Notice: Jubilee Year 2025
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.

LivTours Private Highlights Vatican Guided Tour allows you to take the opportunity to thoroughly explore the Vatican Museums, including the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter’s Basilica*, at your own pace with your own private LivTours guide. Exploring the highlight of one of the world’s largest and most important art collections with a knowledgeable guide and priority access makes for an unforgettable experience.  The luxury of a private tour is that you have direct access to your guide, allowing you to ask questions and receive individual and exclusive attention. Your private guide will be happy to tailor your Vatican visit to suit your preferences.

• Enjoy priority entrance to the Vatican Museum on this exclusive private tour
• Revel in the luxury of a customized tour with a private expert guide by your side
• Explore the art collection, including Michelangelo’s masterpiece, the Sistine Chapel
• Admire famous works of art by Michelangelo, Raphael & other Renaissance greats
• Marvel at the 96 foot tall bronze canopy over the main altar in St Peter’s Basilica
• Upgrade your tour to get access to a Vatican Secret Room exclusive to LivTours

Your LivTours Private Highlights Vatican Guided Tour starts by entering through the Vatican’s VIP entrance and skipping the often long lines and start your tour without any delay. Once inside, embark on an exclusive journey through the Papal Palace highlights, including the vast collection of Greek & Roman statues. Marvel at the stunning Laocoön and the inspiring Apollo Belvedere. With your private guide, discover the fascinating stories behind these masterpieces as you explore this charming courtyard.

Your private LivTours tour guide will weave together the fascinating history adding in the little-known stories about the Popes and the artists who walked these lavish hallways. Soak up the intriguing gossip that only a private tour guide can provide. After a thorough visit of the museums, your tour continues to the Sistine Chapel. This stunning room is home to one of the most important examples of Michelangelo’s artistic greatness. Take your time to admire the top to bottom details of this absolutely breathtaking room.

The last stop on your private Vatican tour is the stunning St. Peter’s Basilica*.  You will enjoy skipping another long line as your guide shares with you the masterpieces of the largest and most ornate church in the world. This magnificent tour promises to teach, entertain, and give you new insights into the wonderful art and history in Vatican City.

UPGRADE YOUR TOUR & UNLOCK A VATICAN SECRET ROOM
LivTours is a proud Vatican Museums Collaborator, which allows us access to hidden rooms of the Vatican which very few visitors get to see.

Guests of the Early Morning Vatican Tour can upgrade to add on a visit to the Bramante Staircase. The Bramante Staircase is one of the most iconic sites of the Vatican Museums, so get your cameras ready! Your private guide will lead you to this Renaissance staircase designed by Donato Bramante for Pope Julius II. Its double-helix formation gives it a stunning visual effect. This is an exclusive secret room, closed off to the general public

• Skip-the-line to the Vatican Museums
• Pinecone Courtyard
• Octagonal Courtyard
• Muses Room
• Round Room
• Greek Cross Room
• Gallery of Tapestries
• Gallery of Candelabra
• Gallery of Maps
• Raphael Rooms*
• Sistine Chapel
• Borgia Apartments
• Saint Peter's Basilica*

• *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
• *St. Peter’s Basilica is an active church and can be closed unexpectedly for liturgical ceremonies. If closed, your guide will provide a revised itinerary including more of the Vatican Museums. No compensation is granted in these circumstances.
• *St. Peter’s Basilica is an active church and can be closed unexpectedly for liturgical ceremonies. If closed, the time inside the Vatican Museums will be extended. On Wednesday mornings the Holy Father is having his weekly audience in Saint Peter’s Square and due to security, Saint Peter’s Basilica is closed. If you book an early morning tour on a Wednesday, we can therefore not guarantee access to the Basilica.
• Important Notice Jubilee Year 2025: As part of the 2025 Jubilee celebrations, from December 24th, 2024 to January 6th, 2026, 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.
• Places of worship have strict dress code requirements for entry. All participants are required to have shoulders and knees covered (no tank tops or short dresses) to enter.
• There is no photography allowed in some or all areas of this tour.
• Please be aware that the Sistine Chapel is a Holy Place and talking during your visit inside is strictly forbidden, therefore your guide will give you an explanation of the Sistine Chapel beforehand during your tour, in order to give you a comprehensive explanation before entering the chapel.
• Backpacks are not permitted in the Museum.
• Offered in: English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, and Italian. Please specify under “Additional notes” if you wish to book the tour in a language other than English.
•  Everyone in your group, regardless of age, needs a government issued ID to enter the Vatican Museums.
• Guests with mobility concerns should contact us at booking@livtours.com as soon as possible, as the itinerary may need to be adjusted to accommodate specific needs.

When you book a LivTours Private Tour or Experience, you are guaranteed a dedicated, expert guide that allows you the flexibility to start your tour at a time which is convenient for you, making planning easy. Our private tours ensure that you will get a tailored experience to meet all your needs so we go at your pace, perfect for families with younger children, elderly, or individuals with accessibility needs. Please be advised that all private tours begin at a base price starting at two people*. Prices are inclusive of entry tickets where applicable. *Some Ferrari private experiences are inclusive of one person only.

Make your experience even more unique by upgrading your LivTours experience. Please note: add-ons are non refundable.

Sistine Chapel Closures

Starting April 28th, the Sistine Chapel will be closed for the Papal Conclave, the traditional process of electing a new Pope. The Conclave begins May 7th and has no fixed end date, though the Chapel is expected to reopen by mid-May.

During this time, LivTours Vatican tours will follow a special itinerary featuring additional highlights from the Vatican Museums. We’ll continue to update our guests as new information becomes available.

By selecting Choose Dates Later / Buy as Gift at booking, any tour can be purchased without fixed dates. This is the perfect option if you want to purchase your tour as a gift for a loved one, or if you are in the pre-planning phase of your vacation. After booking, you will receive a Travel Voucher Code and full instructions on how to schedule your tours when ready. Once your travel plans are confirmed, you can easily use the Travel Voucher Code on the LivTours website to formally schedule your tours. You can find out more here.