Due to a restriction on Vatican tickets, early booking is strongly encouraged, and there is a cancellation deadline of 75 days before the call for this tour.
Explore the Eternal City on this panoramic tour, taking in many of the city’s most meaningful monuments, and study the treasures contained within the Vatican. You’ll see the Pyramid of Cestius and the ruins of the great Circus Maximus, site of thrilling chariot races. View the Forum, the Arch of Constantine and the Colosseum, symbol of the power of Imperial Rome. Pass the gorgeous Piazza del Popolo, the lovely Villa Borghese gardens, the Aurelian Walls, built to defend Rome against Barbarians, and Piazza Venezia, dominated by the impressive monument to King Victor Emmanuel II.
Enjoy free time for lunch on your own and visit the spectacular Vatican Museums, beginning in the magical Pine Cone Courtyard. Walk through the Gallery of the Candelabra, the Gallery of Tapestries and Gallery of Geographical Maps, arriving at the magnificent Sistine Chapel. Here, you’ll behold the brilliantly restored Michelangelo frescoes of the Genesis and Last Judgment as well as other priceless masterpieces adorning the hallowed walls. Enter Christendom’s largest sanctuary, Saint Peter’s Basilica, and admire the high altar where the pope celebrates mass, the splendid gilt and bronze throne in the apse and the intensely stirring Pietà, one of Michelangelo’s most revered works.