Afternoon Tour of the Vatican | Private Viewing Sistine Chapel

You inch about blindly, looking for foot-space as you try and manouvre yourself under one fresco and then on to another. And 2,000 other visitors are trying to do the same. I count as one of my blessings, to not have experienced the Sistine Chapel as I have described above, but instead, to have entered the chapel with only eight others, just as all other tourists were being ushered out."

About your tour

We can offer you an amazing VIP afternoon Tour of the Vatican which comes a very close to our After Hours experience, with private access to the Sistine Chapel.

The main highlight of the tour you will have 30 minutes inside the Sistine Chapel just for our group (max 15 people), where our guide will explain in detail this cavernous and vividly coloured painted chapel which to this day is considered one of man's greatest artistic achievements.

Happy hour included in the price - takes place after the tour. After the tour, you will experience a ‘Happy hour’ and be served at your table, within the Pinecone Courtyard at the Vatican Museums. You can relax after this exciting visit, and enjoy your drinks and snacks within the marvellous atmosphere of the Vatican Museums.

Top tour highlights

Highlight 1
Pine Cone Courtyard
The Pinecone Courtyard was originally part of the Cortile del Belvedere and designed by Donato Bramante. The famous Pigna (pine cone) once stood close to the Pantheon next to the Temple of Isis, and during the Middle Ages, it was moved to the Old St. Peter's Basilica before being moved again in 1608 to its current location.
highlight 2
Round Room and the Hall of the Muses
The Round Room takes its shape from the Pantheon, and has colossal statues on display around a 13 meter red porphyry basin, and also includes ancient mosaics on the floor. The Hall of the Muses shows ancient sculptures of Appolo and the Nine Muses dating back to the times of Hadrian, and originally discovered in the Villa of Cassius near Tivoli.
highlight 3
Gallery of the Candelabra and Chariot Room
The Gallery of Candelabra contains huge marble candelabra, consisting of an exhibition divided into six, and arranged under Pope Pius VI Braschi from 1785 to 1788. The Chariot Room contains a large marble Roman chariot with two horses, restored in 1788.
highlight 4
Gallery of Tapestries
The Gallery of the Tapestries includes Flemish tapestries by Pieter van Aelst's School in Brussels, originally displayed in the Sistine Chapel in 1531, and then arranged for the Vatican Museum gallery in 1838. The gallery also includes Roman works originally woven for Pope Urban VIII (Barberini).
highlight 5
Gallery of Maps
Based on drawings by Danti and commissioned by Pope Gregory XIII, the Gallery of the Maps displays 40 maps frescoed on the walls and was painted between 1580 and 1585.
highlight 6
The Sistine Chapel
The Sistine Chapel is part of the Apostolic Palace (the Pope's official residence), and its famous ceiling was painted by Michelangelo between 1508 and 1512, which depicts scenes from the Book of Genesis. This spectacular chapel also includes artworks by leading painters such as Sandro Botticelli, Domenico Ghirlandaio and Pietro Perugino, as well as large tapestries by Raphael.