--- title: Special First Entry Vatican Museums Small Group Tour lang: en type: tour city: Rome country: Italy price: 59 currency: EUR price_unit: per_person availability: bookable rating: 4.79 reviews: 33 duration_minutes: 120 languages: [en, it, es] rank_in_category: 79 of 138 (Vatican, Sistine Chapel & St Peter's Tours) schedule_checked: 2026-09-12 data_updated: 2026-10-12 canonical: https://guidekin.com/italy/rome/tours/special-first-entry-vatican-museums-small-group-tour/ --- # Special First Entry Vatican Museums Small Group Tour **Guidekin's take:** First entry to the Museums an hour before the public in a group of up to twenty, with the Sistine Chapel explained in the queue because commentary is banned inside, at a price that undercuts most early access tours. Early skip the line access, guide and headsets are included at €59 per person, pickup and tips are not. No St Peter's on this one. In our comparison: #79 of 138 in Vatican, Sistine Chapel & St Peter's Tours, by rating weighted by review volume (table below). ## Overview VIP First Entry Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel, beat the crowd and access one hour prior the opening to the general public. At 7:30 am you will access to the priority with your friendly professional guide and line to enter the museums at 8:00am, in the meantime your guide will introduce you the Sistine Chapel as explanation are not permitted inside, you will learn about Michelangelo and his amazing frescoes of the Creation of the World and Last Judgement painted in the 1500s for two Popes! Your itinerary includes the most important Vatican galleries such as Gallery of Tapestries, Gallery of Maps and Gallery of the Candelabra. This experience will continue to the the Raphael Rooms once the apartment of the Pope Julius II. You will learn about Raphael and Michelangelo and the famous rivalry among them. This is an unmissable chance to visit the Vatican Museums early in the morning in a sharing with an expert licensed guide who will make your visit a memorable experience. ## Before you book - Meeting point: Meeting place is at our office located… - Starts 07:30: one departure a day - Children from €52: ages 6 to 17 - Non-refundable: no free cancellation **Pickup:** No hotel pickup: everyone meets at the start point ## Key facts - Price: from €59 per person - Duration: 2h - Rating: 4.79/5 from 33 reviews (collected from Guidekin & Viator & Tripadvisor) - Operator: Italy Wonders SRLS - Group: Shared tour - Guide languages: English, Italian, Spanish - Start times: 07:30 - Booking: Instant confirmation, mobile ticket - Price checked on Viator: 2026-09-12 ## Reviews 4.79 from 33 ratings on Guidekin, Viator & Tripadvisor. 94% of ratings with a star breakdown are 4 or 5 stars: 31 of 33. - 5 stars: 30 (91%) - 4 stars: 1 (3%) - 3 stars: 1 (3%) - 2 stars: 0 (0%) - 1 star: 1 (3%) ## What's included - Headsets to hear the guide clearly - Professional guide for 2.5 hours - Early skip the line access ## Not included - Gratuities - Hotel pickup and drop-off ## Itinerary 1. **Vatican City** (pass by, no stop) - The Vatican City State, also known simply as the Vatican, became independent from Italy with the Lateran Treaty (1929), and it is a distinct territory under "full ownership, exclusive dominion, and sovereign authority and jurisdiction" of the Holy See, itself a sovereign... 2. **Vatican Museums** (30m; admission included) - Your tour will start by visiting the Vatican Museums and Upper Galleries, including the one of the Maps, Tapestries, and Candelabra. 3. **Vatican Museums** (30m; admission included) - Apollo of Belvedere, Laocoon, Nero's Bathtub 4. **Vatican Museums** (40m; admission included) - Raphael rooms 5. **Sistine Chapel** (10m; admission included) - After the Vatican Museums, you will visit Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel with the Frescoes that he painted in the 1500s for the Pope Julius II and Paul III. ## Schedule - Runs: Tue - Departures: 07:30 - Schedule last checked: 2026-09-12 - These are published departures, not a live seat count; availability is confirmed at checkout. ## Cancellation All sales are final. No refund is available for cancellations. ## Meeting point Meeting place is at our office located in Via Vespasiano 28. By Metro, (Line A), get off at Ottaviano. Ottaviano metro stop is only 10 minutes walk to our office. Please note: St. Peter's square is not the Vatican Museums meeting point. Map: https://www.google.com/maps/place/?q=place_id:ChIJVTOmamFgLxMRAz5Om9umi0M ## Good to know - Public transportation options are available nearby - Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health - Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness - A dress code is required to enter places of worship and selected museums. No shorts or sleeveless tops allowed. Knees and shoulders MUST be covered for both men and women. You may risk refused entry if you fail to comply with these dress requirements - St Peter's Basilica is not included - A current valid passport or ID document is required on the day of the tour for children under 18 as proof of age - This group is up to 20 travelers or less. - Please note: if you arrive late you mights lose the entrance at the Vatican Museums - Please note that, for disabled visitors with certified invalidity of more than 74%, the Vatican Museums offers free entry that is extended to a companion for visitors who are not self-sufficient. To benefit from this, make sure you mention it at the time of booking so that our staff may handle your request. - Please show up 10 minutes before the tour to do the check in - Please note that you will be asked a full refundable 10 euros deposit at the meeting point in order to ensure all the radios are given back to the guide or our staff. Once you return the radios you will be refunded your 10 euros. If you don't give back the radios you will be charged 30 euros for each of them. Booking asks for: dates of birth ## Compared with other Vatican, Sistine Chapel & St Peter's Tours | Tour | Price | Duration | Rating | Group | |---|---|---|---|---| | **This tour · #79 of 138** | €59 | 2h | 4.79 (33) | shared | | [Private Vatican Highlights Guided Tour with Sistine Chapel](/italy/rome/tours/private-vatican-highlights-guided-tour-with-sistine-chapel/?format=md) | €250 | 3h 15m | 4.99 (1713) | private | | [Rome: Complete Early Morning Vatican Tour / Small Group](/italy/rome/tours/rome-complete-early-morning-vatican-tour-small-group/?format=md) | €99 | 3h 30m | 4.94 (2821) | shared | | [Express Early Morning Sistine Chapel Tour with Max 6 People](/italy/rome/tours/express-early-morning-sistine-chapel-tour-with-max-6-people/?format=md) | €148 | 2h | 4.98 (513) | shared | Ranked #79 of 138 in Vatican, Sistine Chapel & St Peter's Tours by Guidekin score (rating weighted by review volume). Prices here run from €8 to €4913, median €136; typical length 3h. 57 of 138 are private. Figures are live from the tour cards; the rubric is our handpicked set, not the whole market. Full list: https://guidekin.com/italy/rome/vatican-tours/?format=md ## More in Rome - All Rome tours: https://guidekin.com/italy/rome/?format=md - This page as HTML: https://guidekin.com/italy/rome/tours/special-first-entry-vatican-museums-small-group-tour/ Filters, the full catalogue and the URL contract for this city: https://guidekin.com/italy/rome/?format=md