Book your skip-the-line access Evening Vatican tour, likely sell out quickly, as they only take place once a week from May to October.
Your tour of the Vatican at night starts when you meet your guide near the Vatican Museums, skip-the-line, and purchase your entrance ticket (own expense, payable on the day).
Then go inside with your guide to explore some of the nearly 2,000 galleries, apartments and other rooms that make up the vast, maze-like museum complex. As you enjoy the tranquil evening atmosphere without the usual daytime masses, you’ll see artistic and historical treasures such as Etruscan and Egyptian artifacts and Renaissance art. Visit the Gallery of Maps, where you’ll be wowed by 40 frescoes dating back to the late 1500s, and Raphael’s Rooms, a group of four chambers home to paintings by Raphael and his students.
Then make your way to the Vatican’s crown jewel, the Sistine Chapel, where you have about 15 minutes inside to admire the famous artwork (talking inside is not allowed, so your guide will tell you about the chapel and its frescoes before you enter). Stare in wonder at Michelangelo’s The Creation of Adam, his most iconic ceiling fresco, and The Last Judgment, a piece that adorns one of the chapel walls.
After exiting the chapel, your tour ends just outside the Vatican, where you are free to stay at St Peter’s Square as long as you like. This is a great chance to capture some beautiful evening photos of the Vatican. (Note: Entry to St Peter’s Basilica is not allowed in the evening.)
