We are going to be in Rome for three days in early June on the way back from a cruise and looking for ideas on tours. We both really want to do the same things: the Vatican (including the museums and the crypts), the Colosseum, the Pantheon. and a couple of other places. Ideally, we'd take a tour of the above one of the days and then be on our own to visit other sites the other two days. I've looked through a couple of forums here for ideas, but wanted to see if others think a private tour guide would be "better" for the above than a scheduled tour. Thank you.
Posted by
Forest Grove, OR
11359 posts
A private guide is a wonderful treat and good use of your time if the budget allows. They will cater to your timeframes and interests. My recommendation is Sonia Tavoletta [email protected]. We’ve been on tours with her twice and many on this forum also recommend her. Going rate is, BTW, €80 per hour.
Posted by
Pacific Northwest
2625 posts
Here's a second vote for Sonia Tavoletta. She's great! We did two half day tours with her last year.
Posted by
Gulf Coast, usa
1161 posts
Another vote for Sonia! Our group used her this past October and she was wonderful and very informative!
Posted by
Los Angeles
723 posts
...the Vatican (including the museums and the crypts), the Colosseum, the Pantheon. and a couple of other places. Ideally, we'd take a tour of the above one of the days...
Please keep in mind that to do both St. Peter's and the museums at the Vatican would easily take at least five hours - add even more time for the crypts. You may be on overload at the end - perhaps the Colosseum and the rest would be more enjoyable on a second day.
Posted by
55 posts
We used Agnes Crawford from Understanding Rome. She is English but married to a Roman and has lived there for circa forty years.
She brought the Colosseum and the Roman Forum to life for us and I highly recommend her services.
Posted by
21 posts
In 2019, we were very satisfied with Walks of Italy (small group) and The Roman Guy for the Vatican and the Colosseum package. They are both recommended by RS Guide. It would be best to take these two sights on two different dates because of its length and the heat.
Posted by
NYC
8 posts
We just used CrisRomanGuide (www.crisromanguide.com) for a tour of the Vatican and were very happy with the tour!
Posted by
New Jersey
23 posts
We did Colosseum and Vatican tours through LivTours and enjoyed both very much. The Vatican was private, and LivTours was "semi-private" but we were 6 so it was only our group anyway. After this experience, I really don't think my family would have done well on the larger tours, so I'm glad we didn't go that route. I think my kids especially would have tuned out if a guide wasn't speaking directly to them.
The Vatican guide was especially helpful just in navigating the museums, which were overwhelming and crowded. She also provided really interesting context about both papal history and art history!