Vatican City tour groups or on your own

[grandpa ssz]

We (8) will be traveling to Rome after RC cruise in September. Is it worthwhile to hiring a tour guide for a four hour tour of Vatican City and Sistene Chapel or can it be done well on your own. Also, has anyone used either WHEN IN ROME TOURS or AVVENTURE BELLISSIME for the Vatican tour.

[tomko2]

We have been to the Vatican (Museum, Sistine Chapel, St. Peter's) twice. The first time we read lots in advance and took crib notes with us to serve as a self-guided tour. The second trip (last August) we booked a guided tour through Tickitalty. The tour was unbelievable. Our guide had her PhD in Art History, born and raised in Rome, her Mother worked on the restoration of the Sistine Chapel, etc. We couldn't believe how much better we appreciated and enjoyed our time. Very much recommend a guided tour. Photos and review of our trip in the links below.

Kathy:)

[Mimi21]

I wish I could remember the name of the company, but we did a fabulous walking tour of the Vatican, it's art treasures, a few years ago. All of their guides are doctoral students, etc, and ours was amazing!