Rome-best Vatican tour company

[tricmurr]

We are going to Rome in May and would like to book a tour to get the best experience out of the Vatican. We will only be in the city for 2 days so I would like to maximize our time there.

 

Any suggestions...

 

Regards and many thanks in advance!

[CruiserBruce]

Well, the first problem is how many people have used more than one company to tour in Italy to compare? Probably not many. However, if you read down the board, you will see MANY threads on tour vendors, including the huge thread on the wonderful Rome in Limo, an excellent operation. If you look on TripAdvisor, which does seek to "rank" services like tour vendors, you will find the ratings very high on Rome in Limo.

 

But to simplify things, you don't need a tour vendor to tour the Vatican, you either need to do extensive research, in order to "guide" your own tour, or hire a guide. Guided tours can be arranged through the Vatican (group size is medium) or a hire a guide through someone like Rome in Limo, in which case the tour size will be whatever you set it for.

 

Personally, I would recommend a private guide.

Edited January 6, 2016 by CruiserBruce

[mrobstad]

Easy question.....Rome in Limo. Do a search on Cruise Critic. All A+!!! From personal experience....A+....price is per 8 passenger van, so get 8 people and it's under $100 each.

[cruisemom42]

By "the Vatican" do you mean just the museum, or also the basilica?

 

Unlike many posters, I actually have toured the Vatican many times in many different ways from large group tour to large shore excursion, small private tour, official Vatican tour and on my own. :D

 

What defines 'best' for you? Is it access to the museum before/after hours? The Vatican offers special "after hours" tours sometimes, you have to check for their availability through the official Vatican museum site: http://biglietteriamusei.vatican.va/musei/tickets/do?action=booking&codiceTipoVisita=163&step=2.

 

Some private tour agencies used to offer early access to the Vatican museum also, I'm not sure if they still do. If so, they can get you in about an hour ahead of the regular opening.

 

Or does 'best' mean the guides that provide the most informative tours? If you are looking for a small group (not more than 6 people) tour with guides that really know their stuff, I can recommend Context Tours -- they offer several different Vatican tours that you can consider.

 

Or does 'best' just mean getting in to see the greatest number of 'must see' highlights in the least amount of time? :rolleyes: If so, many different agencies can provide decent guided tours of the museum (in about 2 hours) or museum + St Peters (about 3 hours).

Edited January 6, 2016 by cruisemom42

[euro cruiser]

Just to be clear, Rome in Limo is a private car service, not a guide for the Vatican (museums or basilica). They can hire a guide for you, however.

[mrobstad]

Thanks, euro. I still think it's their best option.

[LEtue]

I have used Walks of Italy and Context and both were very good. So there are 2 options for you to check out :)

 

Enjoy Rome!

[tricmurr]

Thank you everyone.

 

I think we are going to look into a tour guide with Rome in Limo for the day. They said they will take you through the Vatican so long as you purchase your entrance fees. This company seems to be highly recommended.

[hawkshoe]

We used Rome-in-Limo for a 1 day tour of Rome and the Vatican. They were wonderful. I highly recommend using them and having them book a private guide of the Vatican. I don't think we could have seen half as much had we not had the guide.

[TMS9539]

We used Through Eternity tours when we were in Rome. It was hands down the best tour I've ever taken, anywhere. If I remember correctly, our guide was working on an advanced degree in history. He knew so many fun details that really brought history to life for us. We took the longer tour - I think 5 or 6 hours, which included a break for lunch. Afterwards we climbed the dome of St. Peter's for fabulous views. There is not enough time to do this if you're only in Rome for a day on a cruise ship, but if you are staying in Rome a few days I can't recommend this tour highly enough. This is not a driving tour, so we did have to take a cab to meet the guide at the Vatican. I don't remember the details but they were very detailed in the directions and we had no problems finding our guide. This was definitely the highlight of our trip to Rome. http://www.througheternity.com

[kkbay]

For a great tour, contact the Vatican and arrange a tour of the Scavi, which will bring you down to the streets of Rome from the year 63AD. They only let in 15 at a time and you have to book ahead. You can actually tour St Peter's Basilica yourself with a good guidebook, such as Rick Steves. Be sure to get the most current one, as the Vatican tends to move things around. Personally, if I only had two days in Rome, I would contact Rome in Limo and let them sort things out for me. I've been to Rome three times for a total of about 10 days, and there's still more I would like to see.

[lakeliving501]

Linda,

 

Did you use Walks of Italy for Rome tour? If so, would you mind sharing which one? I'm considering the Rome in a Day or Pristine Sistine.

 

Ellen

[kacurl]

so upon doing research for the Vatican tours I read that on Wednesdays the Basilica as well as the Square could be closed if the pope is having a papal audience. my question is if we did do the wed and it was closed is there a long line to enter the basilica like the museum were we to come back the next day just to see that?? thanks cathy