Does Rick Steves Italy tours no longer go into the Sistine Chapel or Roman Colosseum?

It isn’t so much that Rick Steves has changed as the ticketing procedures and policies for these locations have changed. Tour operators are no longer guaranteed tickets for particular dates and times in many cases. Some will still sell tickets for tours in hopes that they can get the tickets needed. If they don’t, last minute cancellations happen, particularly for portions of the colosseum.

I don’t presume to speak for Rick Steves Europe but my best educated guess is that if they can’t consistently provide a positive quality group experience at a location they change the plan to a location where they can.

Individual ticketing for the colosseum assures tour members that want to go there in their free time that they will have entrance tickets.

That is my current best guess.

Here’s the discussion in the forum when the notice first went out from the RS office.

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/tours/email-important-news-about-your-best-of-europe-in-21-days-tour

Yep, that previous discussion Jean helpfully linked will explain a lot of the reasons for the changes. Additionally, the Vatican capped the size of group tours at 20 for the Vatican Museums, and the RS tour sizes can exceed that number, That would mean splitting the group and trying to hire 2 guides instead of just one (guides in Italy must be licensed, and those licenses involve rigorous study and tests). As well, the "highlights" route/Sistine has become crowded during high and shoulder seasons to the point of misery, and practically all former "early entry" tours are no more: tours are admitted no earlier than the general public. All.of that probably ( I'm guessing) contributed to the decision to take it off the itinerary.

In general, things in Rome have probably changed a lot since a tour years ago. Same is likely true for Venice and Florence as well, most specifically in overcrowding of most-visited areas and attractions.

We did the Rome tour about 5 years ago. We did go to the Vatican museum/Sistine/St. Peters and our group was split and we had a guide for each group. I was so happy to have a guide go through the jam packed Vatican Museum.

We had a guide with is to go through the Colosseum and forum. It was great to have a guide in the forum, probably not necessary for the Colosseum.

You might want to call and chat with someone in the RS office.

Here is additional information from RS on the website:

https://www.ricksteves.com/tours/italy/groups-visiting-the-vatican-colosseum

The Vatican Museums and Colosseum are world-renowned sights drawing huge crowds of visitors. Due to the overcrowding and unreliable availability for group reservations, our tours don't visit the inside of either sight as a group.

Colosseum
Our local guide walks the group around the outside of the Colosseum, explaining the significance and engineering of this ancient wonder. We also take an in-depth walking tour in the more enjoyable and less crowded Roman Forum, the true heart of ancient Rome.

Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel
As a group, we visit Vatican City where a local expert will introduce us to the world’s smallest country, and the greatest church in Christendom: the awe-inspiring St. Peter's Basilica, home to Michelangelo's sublime Pietà.

If you would like to go inside the Colosseum and/or the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel, we encourage you to do so during your free time in Rome (or pre-/post-tour). Below you'll find our recommendations on when to visit and how to get reservations for each of the affected tours (this information is also available under Pre-tour Planning in your account.

Our free Rick Steves Audio Europe app also has great self-guided tours of both the Colosseum and Vatican Museums. Before you leave for your tour, we recommend downloading the app from the App Store (Apple phones) or Google Play (Android phones) and adding the Colosseum and Vatican Museums audio tours to your playlist.

Thank you for your understanding as we navigate overcrowding and group restrictions in the ever-changing tourism industry. We are always dedicated to bringing you the best experiences that Europe has to offer!

For example:
Best of Venice, Florence & Rome in 10 Days

Visiting the Vatican Museums/Sistine Chapel and Colosseum

We recommend booking tickets two months prior to the date you prefer to visit. Please note tickets may sell out quickly from the official site. Here are the best days and times to visit either or both sites based on your tour itinerary:

Day 8 at 11:00 a.m. or later for Vatican Museums

Day 9 at 1:30 p.m. or later for the Colosseum

Day 10 when the tour is over after breakfast

Post-tour if you're adding extra days

Please note: The Vatican Museums is closed most Sundays and may also close for special events and holidays. It's a good idea to check The Vatican Museums calendar before making reservations.

I think the last paragraph explains the situation on why RS had to change their itinerary.

“Thank you for your understanding as we navigate overcrowding and group restrictions in the ever-changing tourism industry. We are always dedicated to bringing you the best experiences that Europe has to offer!”

We toured with RS years ago when these were still included, so I understand your surprise. Back then the Colosseum was mildly crowded, but the Vatican was frighteningly jammed in the hallways. It’s gotten worse. We had a 1st time Rome visitor with us in 2019 and booked the Vatican for the end of the day (3:00 p.m). It was blissfully uncrowded as we walked behind the majority. We hired a guide (Sonia Tavoletta) and with fewer crowds we were able to move quickly. By the time we finished and moved on to St. Peter’s Basilica, it was practically empty.

My first trip to Rome was in May 2001. I just looked back at photos from that trip. The Vatican Museum, the Coliseum, and the forum were pretty much deserted. Fast forward to the present. We were on the Rick Steves Rome city tour the first week of December 2023. I could not believe how crowded everything was in the off season! We did get to tour the Vatican Museum and the Coliseum but it was pretty much shoulder to shoulder. Our Coliseum guide mentioned how difficult it is now to get tickets so I’m not surprised at the change.

We went on back to back tours a year ago. First was Venice,Florence,Rome then the seven day Rome tour. The Vatican Museum was so crowded we got nothing out of it. It was too crowded to really see anything. And you literally could not move from side to side to see what was each side of the room. We had been told it was crowded, but I can only compare it to a major sports stadium emptying out after a game and everyone leaves at once. The Sistine chapel was nice, but very crowded too. Trying to look directly overhead while standing up was hard todo for very long. On the Rome tour we could have gone back for a similar tour but opted out and chose to go back to the Roman Forum. While it was nice to check all these off my list I would do the inside of the Colosseum and St Peter’s.

We did the Heart of Italy tour this past September and went into both those places. Which tour are you looking at? It might be best to contact the tour office directly.

Its too bad that its a walk by instead of being part of the tour to go in as a group to the Colosseum,Sistine
Chapel and Vatican museums.

My wife and I were on the Venice Florence Rome RS tour last year in April 2023. The Vatican Museum, Sistine Chapel and Colosseum were all part of the scheduled itinerary and thankfully so. If they are no longer included, I would advise to plan, plan, plan well ahead. These attractions were beaming with tourists and long lines when we were there...so convenient to have scheduled times, tickets and an awesome guide in advance.