Guided tour in Rome vs going it on our own

Walks of Italy gets very good reviews for all the places you mentioned. I would take the early entry tour to the Vatican and St. Peter's, then on a different da take the Colosseum/Roman Forum tour.

You could also use audioguides, and go at your own pace, but the early entry to the Vatican Museums is one tour I would definitely book.

Our first time to the Sistine Chapel and the Vatican Museum, my husband and I shared earbuds and listened to Rick's podcast. As informative as it was, we found that we did not listen very closely. Two years later, we returned with friends who had never been, so we opted for the Walks of Italy tour and were amazed at the level of information we received. The group size was small and the guide kept the group moving with delightful stories.

We used Walks of Italy for the Underground Colosseum/Roman Forum tour too.

There are two places I always advise people to spring for a tour: The Vatican Museums (including the Sistine Chapel) and the Colosseum/Roman Forum/Palatine Hill complex. The Vatican because it is crowded and hard to weave your way to the highlights, much less know the significance of what you are looking at, and the Colosseo, et.al., because it is hard to picture and understand the sites and their history unless you bury your head in the guidebook.

For the Vatican, I recommend the Walks of Italy "Pristine Sistine" tour, which allows admittance prior to the general public in a small group of 12 people. I've been on this tour three times and sent countless visitors on it. It is terrific. (Closed Sundays, BTW.)

For the Colosseo, et.al., a private guide is superb. Try Sonia Tavoletta ([email protected]). She can tailor the tour to your likes. Three hours is a good amount of time, 4 if you are history fanatics.

We have taken three Walks of Italy tours, two in Florence and one in Rome. We only had an afternoon and evening in Rome before flying home and decided to take the Twilight Evening Stroll. We booked it after having such a positive experience with our Florence tours we had taken a few days before.

Here's the Pros of taking a tour, especially Walks of Italy Rome tours:
- Special Access You get to enter the site before the public and/or you have special access to areas not generally accessible.
- Skip the Ticket Line Your tickets are pre-purchased and provided to you. In Florence, we walked right into the Academie and Uffizi
- Expert Guides Our tour guides provided a rolling history lesson. I'm sure we could have gleaned similar information on our own, but our guides (Marco had a Master's degree in history) had the information extremely well organized.

Now, here's the cons:
- Lack of Flexibility Some of the Rome tours are lengthy and can chew up a substantial amount of the little time you have.
- Fast paced with a fair amount of walking We are in our '60's and had no trouble with the amount of walking required, but if you tire easily or have limited mobility, you might want to factor in the nonstop pace.
- Extra cost I did a quick check of the tours I'd like to take next time we go to Rome and came up with $400-$500 for two. If you're on a tight budget, this might be significant. On the other hand, this is your first trip and I think it would be well worth the expense.

We loved the fact that our Walks of Italy tours were small. Most tours have either a twelve or at most 20 person limit. There was never more than 12 of us and there were only 6 on the Uffizi tour.

When will you be going? We were there in December 2015. Our tour guide pointed out that Rome has gotten very crowded during high season. Taking tours may give you better access and save time.

Have a great trip!

I agree with the other, with such limited time I would do a guided tour and Walks of Italy is the BEST choice. With that being said, they do sell out fast due to the popularity and the small group size so I would book ASAP.