We will be in Rome as part of the RS Heart of Italy tour in May. I am trying to decide on the best way to tour the Vatican museums since they are not included in our RS tour. I know I can book at guided tour with Walks of Italy, Through Eternity, etc. or even hire a private guide. I noticed when looking at booking tickets directly with the Vatican Museums that they offer guided tours. Has anyone ever done that? I am wondering what kind of experience I would be getting with a Vatican guide. Do they simply walk you through, or do they offer information about what I would be seeing? If they do the latter, I would assume they would be well prepared as they work for the museums. What are your experiences? Thank you for your help!
Posted by
alameda, ca, usa
2701 posts
I did an early morning guided tour through the Vatican Museum and it was wonderful--especially getting to be in the museum prior to opening, because after that it was chaos and even though I could have stayed all day on my own, I quickly left. The tour was 1 1/2 hours and the guide was extremely well-informed and very charming, explaining everything we were seeing and about the buildings as well. I felt I got to see and learn a lot, and would recommend going that route--I did not feel I needed a private guide and never looked into any other types of tours.
Posted by
Washington DC
28533 posts
I believe the Vatican no longer offers tours entering the Museums before they open to the public. I gather from reports since the opening time was changed to 8 AM that not everyone is willing to get up that early, so an 8 AM entry time may be considerably better than a 9 AM entry. Unfortunately, the Museums are nearly always quite crowded; it's just a matter of degree.