vatican-tour-guide

vatican

Visiting the Vatican, inside the Vatican information and a tour booking service from renowned Rome tour guide Dara McCarthy.

I have worked in Trinity College Dublin, the the Vatican, Rome City, Glasnevin Cemetery and the General Post Office in Dublin and I work for Rick Steves in Dublin, throughout Ireland and Italy.

vatican tour guide

Vatican Tour I organise private tours of the Vatican including the Sistine Chapel, Vatican Museums and Saint Peter’s Basilica.

I gave tours of the Vatican for almost five years. In that time, I took over 40,000 people through the site and can be considered an expert on its history, art and how to navigate it.

I have a degree in History and I was an official authorised tour guide for the Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel and St. Peter’s Basilica.

Having worked in the Vatican, I can give you practical information on how to navigate it correctly, ensuring that you make the most of your time there, see the things you want to see, find seats (which are scarce in the Vatican) and bathrooms with no lines, while avoiding crowds and the afternoon heat.


vatican tour

vatican toursI offer a a tour guide service where you can book one of my licensed tour guide friends living in Rome if you wish to take a tour of the Vatican. This service is cheaper than booking through a company as I do not have their overheads, you are assured skip-the-line tickets to the site and a fluent English-speaking tour guide who has positive tour reviews and gives you breaks for bathrooms and coffee during the tour.

I can also provide you with a private car and driver to collect you from Rome’s Airport or Civitavecchia Port and bring you to your hotel or the Vatican and return you there when you leave Rome.

The side menu lists the various parts of the Vatican so you can decide what you would like to see on your tour or visit.


where is vatican city?

where is vatican city The Vatican is a walled country about the size of a village or city suburb on the left or West bank of the Tiber in Rome. About half of the site is open to the public such as the Sistine Chapel, St. Peter’s Basilica, the Raphael Rooms, the Vatican Museums, the Papal Tombs and St. Peter’s Dome.

The rest of the site is not open to the public or requires special permission to access.
It is a one-way system with choices on the way. In order to see the Sistine Chapel you have to go through the Vatican Museums so all tours and all visitors start there.

Once inside the Vatican Museums you can choose to see the Raphael Rooms as they are not compulsory, and you can decide to see St. Peter’s Basilica, the Papal Tombs and St. Peter’s Dome which are all in the same building connected to the museums.


vatican museum Tickets

vatican museum tickets I only use skip-the-line tickets for the Vatican. These allow us to skip the two lines: one for the Vatican Museums where the Sistine Chapel is, and the other for St. Peter’s Basilica.

For the Museums and Chapel in the morning, the line can be two hours long and for the Basilica it can be an hour on average, so people who don’t use express tickets to skip the line can be waiting up to three hours if they are unlucky.

With skip-the-line tickets you just walk straight in with the guide.


vatican museum

vatican museum Once inside the Vatican Museums you have a choice as to what you want to see and how much time you want to spend in there.

Thirty minutes of the Vatican Museums are compulsory in order to see the Sistine Chapel; you have to go through them. This short itinerary is only available in the mornings until 11.30/12 noon at which point it is closed off.

After midday you have to go through 90 minutes of the Pio Clementine museums before you can see the chapel.
This longer tour route is difficult during the summer as the Vatican is not air conditioned, is usually crowded and Rome gets hot from 11am to 4pm. I strongly recommend going to the Vatican in the morning if you can.

The Raphael Rooms are optional at all times and are at the end of the museums; they take about 30/40 minutes to do as you have to go through the Borgia Apartments and Modern Art Gallery before you can see the chapel.


Visiting the Vatican

visiting the vatican The Vatican Museums, dating from the 1500s to 1800s, are not designed like a modern museum complex. It is not air conditioned, there is hardly anywhere to sit down and there are very few bathrooms or places to get drinks or food. Accordingly, I use guides who look after your comfort at all times, taking you to bathrooms and cafes hidden from general public view, ensuring you have water or can top up at the fountain (it’s not holy water) and grab a seat when they become available.

You should visit the Vatican in the morning on your first rested day in Rome, so the day after you arrive from a long-haul flight. It is NOT a good idea to arrive in Rome jet-lagged and take an afternoon Vatican tour on the same day. You should also make sure the Vatican is the only big cultural excursion you do that day. Some light afternoon walking about is fine but many people try and do another tour in the same day which is exhausting.

All of your knees and shoulders should be covered, so long shorts are fine so long as they cover all of your knees, and t-shirts are fine so long as all of your shoulders are covered; as a religious state it has a conservative dress code.

You can bring water with you and it is a good idea as only three rooms in the museums are air conditioned out of fifty. Bottled drinks are fine. Cans, other open items or food are not allowed.

Photos are allowed everywhere except the Sistine Chapel where no photography, no filming whatsoever is allowed at all. Flash is allowed downstairs in the Museums, which is all sculpture, but forbidden upstairs, so it’s just easier to turn flash off your camera before you go in. It is bright, you won’t need it anyway, the guide will remind of of the photo policy you on the day.


My Vatican Tour reviews: Vatican Tour

Rated 5.0/5 based on a selection 10 customer reviews out of thousands.

  • Dara was an Excellent Tour Guide

    We thoroughly enjoyed our tour of the Vatican and felt that we obtained a lot more information than we would have done on our own. Dara was an excellent tour guide who was well informed and able to deliver the information in an enjoyable way.
    5/5 Stars
  • Dara's Tour was Fantastic.

    Dara's tour was fantastic. He made 2000 years of history much more fun than expected. I would certainly take his tour again when I next visit Rome. I learned so much and had a great time. Thanks!
    5/5 Stars
  • By Far the Best I have Ever Experienced

    Having travelled a great deal, I have been on many tours in many places, but this tour was by far the best I have ever experienced! Dara delivered a lot of information in a quick and witty way. I am so glad we didn't try to visit the Vatican without a tour. Thanks so much for a wonderful day!
    5/5 Stars
  • Great Tour!

    Dara was excellent! Thank you for such a great tour!
    5/5 Stars
  • Easy to Understand

    Dara was a good guide and seemed to know what he was talking about, plus he was easy to understand.
    5/5 Stars
  • Excellent Tour

    It was an excellent tour. Would recommend it to anyone who was going to Rome.
    5/5 Stars
  • Take the Tour

    Take the tour, even if you will do it on your own later.
    5/5 Stars
  • Worth every penny.

    Worth every penny.
    5/5 Stars
  • Excellent Work

    Our tour guide was very informative and knew the history of all the statues and art paintings and frescoes on the walls and ceilings. We are very glad we took this guided tour. We would not have known what we were looking at. Excellent work to Vatican tour and guide. Thanks!
    5/5 Stars
  • Wonderful Job

    Dara did a wonderful job. I wish we would have had him as our tour guide the entire time we were in Rome. He made the tour wonderfully entertaining and very educational. He placed just enough detail in the explanation to teach us but not bore us. He did an outstanding job. Thank you Dara!
    5/5 Stars