Main attractions

St. Peter’s Basilica

St. Peter's Square

Vatican Museums

Sistine Chapel

Colosseum

Palatine Hill

Roman Forum

Best of Rome Private
This 6-hour tour tackles both of Rome’s must-see sites. Explore the vast collections of art on the way to the magnificent Sistine Chapel with skip the line entrance to the Vatican Museums.

From the Sistine Chapel, explore the expanse of St. Peter’s Square with spectacular views of St. Peter’s Basilica before being driven across the city to the ancient world’s most iconic amphitheater.

Enjoying skip-the-line entrance to the Colosseum, the knowledge of an expert guide will accompany this captivating experience that finishes with a stunning view over the Roman Forum.

Category
Art and Culture, Shore Excursion in Italy
Location
Port of Civitavecchia, Rome
Days
1
Staff
Licensed Guide
Duration
Up to 6 hours
Tour Type
Private
Highlights
City of Rome

Included

Licensed Local Guide
Walking Tour

Not Included

Admission fees
Beverages and meals
Gratuities and tips

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St. Peter’s Basilica

St. Peter’s Basilica is built upon the tomb of St Peter and situated in the Vatican City in St. Peter’s Square. This Basilica is one of the largest churches in the world and the imposing Dome designed by Michelangelo dominates the skyline of Rome. The new basilica took 120 years to complete starting from 1506 and many great architects were part of its design: Bramante, Raphael and Michelangelo are the most renowned. Once inside the nave the enormous size of the church becomes apparent. It is decorated with large monuments, many of which were created by the great artist Bernini. Among these the enormous bronze baldachin over the papal altar. But the most famous monument in the St. Peter's Basilica is the Pietà by Michelangelo, a marble sculpture of a young looking Mary holding the dead body of her son.

St. Peter's Square

St. Peter's Square (or Piazza San Pietro) was created in the seventeenth century by Bernini in Vatican City in the open space which lies before the homonymous St. Peter's Basilica. St. Peter's Square is bordered on two sides by semi-circular colonnades that consist of four rows of Doric columns. On top of these colonnades Bernini and his students placed 140 statues representing popes, martyrs, evangelists and other religious figures. In the center of the square stands an Egyptian obelisk, originally located in an other area of the Vatican City and then moved to its present location. St. Peter's Square creates a magnificent entry point to the St. Peter's Basilica, that borders the square to the west.

Vatican Museums

Vatican Museums are one of the most important art collections of the world. This vast collection of art, that spans more than two millennia, includes statues from Ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome, as well as Renaissance masterpieces by artists such as Raphael and Michelangelo. Do not lost the following art works! Laocoön sculpture, that depicts the Trojan priest Laocoön and his two sons being strangled by serpents. The four Raphael Rooms with amazing frescoes. Vatican Pinacoteca (Art Gallery) with masterpieces of Giotto, Raphael, Leonardo, Tiziano, Caravaggio and many others painters. The Gallery of Tapestries and the Geographical Maps. And above all the Sistine Chapel with a wonderful, completely frescoed ceiling that is beautifully crafted. Michelangelo’s incredible depiction of the nine central stories from the book of Genesis is surely one of humanity’s finest artistic achievements.

Sistine Chapel

The Sistine Chapel is the main attraction of the Vatican Museums. Although the walls of the Chapel are decorated with amazing frescoes by Botticelli, Perugino, Ghirlandaio and Cosimo Rosselli, including the Stories of Moses and the Stories of Jesus, you will be astonished by the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. Ceiling frescoes by Michelangelo include intricate depictions of Biblical scenes starting with the Creation of Light and ending with the Drunkenness of Noah at the altar. Michelangelo divided the ceiling into nine central sections painting classical architectural elements such as statues and pilasters. Around the biblical scenes he painted prophets and Sibyls, prophetesses from the antiquity. The lunettes show portraits of Jesus's ancestors and the four triangular pendentives in the corners show scenes from the Old Testament. The most renowned works of the Chapel are The Creation of Adam on the ceiling and The Last Judgement on the altar wall, both painted by Michelangelo.

Colosseum

The Colosseum, also known as the Flavian Amphitheatre, is maybe the main symbol of Rome. This imposing construction, that has almost 2,000 years of history and dates back to the Roman Empire, is the largest amphitheatre ever built. Emperors used the Colosseum for over 500 years, until the 6th century, to entertain the public with free games. Those games were a symbol of prestige and power and they were a way for an emperor to increase his popularity. It was used for exhibitions of exotic animals, executions of prisoners, recreations of battles and gladiator fights. After the 6th century the Colosseum was reused as housing, workshops, quarters for a religious order, a fortress, a quarry, and a Christian shrine. It has suffered lootings, earthquakes and even bombings during World War Two, but the Colosseum is still here and dominates the skyline of Rome.

Palatine Hill

The Palatine Hill is the most central of the seven hills of Rome. Inhabited since the 10th century B.C., it is considered to be the first nucleus of Rome. It stands 40 metres above the Roman Forum, looking down upon it on one side, and upon the Circus Maximus on the other. During the Republican Period Roman citizens belonging to the upper class settled in the Palatine Hill and built sumptuous palaces. Today the Palatine Hill is an archaeological site and only ruins remain. Among these ruins are Domus Flavia, House of Livia, House of Augustus, Farnese Gardens, Hippodrome of Domitian. The small Palatine museum contains sculptures, frescoes, mosaics and other objects belonging to the golden age of the Palatine Hill.

Roman Forum

The Roman Forum stands just under the Palatine Hill, between Piazza Venezia and the Colosseum. The Roman Forum was the hub of political and social activity of the Roman citizens, where religious and public life in ancient Rome took place. After the fall of the Empire, the Roman Forum was forgotten and little by little it was buried under the earth. It was discovered in the 16th century, but only the 20th century that excavations were carried out. For centuries the Forum was the center of day-to-day life in Imperial Rome, evidenced by the many remains of triumphal arches, temples and basilicas. Today remains of many buildings from different periods are visible in this area: Arch of Titus, Arch of Septimius Severus, Temple of Antoninus and Faustina, Basilica of Maxentius and Constantine, The Curia, Column of Phocas. The Via Sacra was the main street in ancient Rome and linked the Piazza del Campidoglio with the Colosseum.