One of the things we most wanted to do during our recent trip to Rome was to visit Vatican City. People told us if we wanted to avoid the hours-long line to get into Saint Peter’s Basilica, we should book a guided tour to enter through the back door via the Vatican Museum. Sounded fair to us.
We walked from our apartment across the Tiber to Saint Peter’s square. As expected we found several representatives selling tours to passing visitors. We were offered two options: an independent self-guided tour through the museums and Sistine Chapel or a group tour with a guide, both ending in the Basilica. The independent option was considerably cheaper and so we decided to do that one.
We were lead several blocks in the opposite direction from the Vatican to the tour company’s office, where to our dismay we were informed there was no option for the independent tour like we were sold. We expressed our dissatisfaction to the tour office. They told us there was never an option for a self-guided tour. The girl who initially sold it to us was British so the misunderstanding was definitely not a language issue. We were disappointed but decided to go ahead and go on the tour since we were already there.
Things began going downhill as we were gathered around our tour guide and issued those lame earphones connected to her mic. She introduced herself and proceeded to talk, in the middle of the sidewalk, with us standing around her, for THIRTY minutes. We stood there uncomfortable and embarrassed as locals shot us dirty looks after being forced to step around our group on the street. We heard the history of Vatican City although I can’t tell you a single detail as she just spouted out facts in a monotone voice with no interaction or interesting anecdotes.
We finally made our way over to Vatican City and were provided our tickets to the museum. While the entire group paused for restrooms, photos, etc. we had a chance to peruse the gift shop and Roberto was able to purchase a rosary for his mom. We reconvened and our guide led the way to the museum, but first stopping in the courtyard.
Our guide walked us up to a large sign which depicted and explained the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. She proceeded to go start from the top and painstakingly explain each and every detail of the painting. We just wanted to see it! We wandered the courtyard taking pictures, sat and rested for a bit, wandered into the museum to get a drink, and she was still talking. Finally, we gave up and wandered into the Vatican Museum ourselves. It was the last we saw of our tour group!
The Vatican Museum was spectacular! We couldn’t believe the depth and time span of the collections. We could have wandered there for days, but we made our way through the beautiful hallways just awestruck at the artifacts and surroundings. Sometimes we would look out the windows and see Saint Peter’s rotunda in all its splendor, waiting for us to make our way through the winding hallways to greet her.
We spent the next couple hours wandering the museum and space at our own pace. We made it to the Sistine Chapel where we admired the famous ceiling for as long as we wanted, sitting on the benches lining the room to take it all in. Photography was not allowed there but throughout the museum the ceilings were stunning and sometimes we just didn’t know where to look: around, down at the beautiful floor tile or up at the amazing ceilings.
Finally we made our way through the museum and into Saint Peter’s Basilica in all its splendor. The sanctuary was simply spectacular and we both felt rather awed as we stepped slowly around the heart of the basilica.
We took a few moments to take in our surroundings and then went together into a designated chapel area to say a couple prayers.
It was late afternoon when we exited the basilica and the sun was low in the sky over Rome, casting a soft light on the buildings of Vatican City that made them glow pink. From the steps leading to the basilica we looked over Saint Peter’s Square and contemplating the long and fascinating history of the very place we were standing.
Before we left the Vatican, we were able to spot a couple members of the Swiss Guard who are responsible for the safety of the Pope and serve as the military force of Vatican City. Their colorful uniforms are certainly popular photo subjects and they paid us no attention as we snapped away.
We often say that we don’t like going on guided tours in favor of wandering and discovering things at our own pace. This experience certainly affirms this preference. While we ended up having a great time while visiting the Vatican, we would not choose to do such a tour again. We were very disappointed with the entire experience, especially after having been “bait and switched” into paying more for it.
Have you ever paid for a tour you regretted? Do you find guided tours to be educational and enjoyable? Let us know what you think!
Tours are so dependent on the individual guides – what a shame you got a bad one! We don’t tend to take tours, but we’ve been lucky so far with the few we’ve done (one of our recent winery tours excepted, but frankly I can forgive a bad guide when I’ve got a couple glasses of wine in me).
Emily in Chile recently posted..Saturday in Santiago: The Grand Hyatt
You’re right, it really is dependent on the guide to make or break the tour. Obviously in this case we didn’t do our research and get a recommended guide, and we paid for it. We certainly could’ve used some wine on this tour!
Laura recently posted..Survey Results and Thanks
Same experience at the Vatican. Able to appreciate the history of what I was seeing, when I wasn’t being run over by other tourists.
Erik recently posted..Photo of the Day- Boston, Massachusetts
It was definitely super crowded. We are still so glad we got to see it though!
Unfortunate that the tour sucked. When visiting a place like the Vatican I would much rather wander and discover things myself then listen to someone blab on about every last detail, however it was probably worth it to beat that line to get in to the Vatican. You can wait forever to get in their!
Cailin recently posted..The Best Bread in the World – Mallorca Bread
Yea, we had so much more fun wandering around on our own and getting lost in the museum. I couldn’t believe the crap the guide was telling us about! Glad we got to skip the line though!
We did both in the Vatican City – guided and not. I will say that I like guided walking tours around cities – if you have a good tour guide, it puts the history and details into context.
We also did the Vatican Museaum and Sistine Chapel as a guided tour – this is one that I would agree is not good… at least for us. Try doing it during Easter weekend. The crowds were horrible and ultimately, we just fell back and looked at stuff on our own. There’s just too much there. When we were in the Sistine Chapel, very few people payed attention to the no-photography rule. I was really surprised that some of the attendants didn’t come out to the floor and tell people – I think the announcement was only in English and Italian. I politely told the guy next to me he wan’t supposed to shoot any pictures, and he looked at me and said, “Who said that? Ok – When they announce it in MY language, I will listen”, and he continued to shoot away with flash. How rude.
The ceilings were remarkable, and the Basilica blew me away.
Did you have a chance to go to the catacombs underneath the Basilica? They only take something like 50 people a day through there to maintain the dryness of the chamber, since it is air-cealed with some very ancient frescos, and you have to book a few months in advance. It was basically a pagan cemetery that had a full view of the sky at one time before a church was built on top of it, and then the Basilica was built on top of that. They have family tombs there, and apparently, St. Peter’s remains were found there after some excavation. They believe it was St. Peter because he was crucified upside down, and he was removed from the crucifix by having his feet chopped off – the bones showed that the feet were severed.
Don Faust recently posted..Japan in Jan: Eating Tokyo, Sushi & Wagyu
Good point about the walking tours Don. They can be a great way to learn about things you otherwise would totally miss! Ugh, I can’t imagine doing the Vatican tour over Easter… glad you got to see things at your own pace though. We didn’t see anyone breaking the photography rule, but the chapel was so amazing wasn’t it? Aw no, we didn’t get to the catacombs! That sounds like a fascinating place and I got a chill reading about St. Peter under there. Definitely making a note of that for our next visit to Rome!
We always used the kids as an excuse to get out of tours. You know… “We’d love the guided tour, but small kids don’t work well on a schedule…” Now that our boys are older, that trick doesn’t work so well. Darn!
I’m glad you were able to ditch the group in any case. It’s even worse if they mandate that you stay with them.
Nancy Sathre-Vogel from Family on Bikes recently posted..A bicycling kind of love story
I love that excuse! They did try to make us stay with them at the beginning but after awhile we just walked away.
In addition to the guides… I’ve been on some tours that we took at our own pace. We could stay at one spot for as long as wanted, and join up with another group at the same company. It was awesome!
Abby recently posted..Miraval: Different Kind of Arizona Spa
That sounds like a much better format Abby. There were definitely tours from the same company wandering around (we could tell from our matching cheesy headsets).
Oh man, that tour guide sounds terrible! It’s so unfortunate that a bad guide can totally ruin what otherwise could be a great tour.
Isn’t the Vatican Museum amazing though?? There’s SO much to see there.
I visited the Museums and St. Peter’s with a large group (and yes, we got the stupid earphones, too), and somehow 3 of my friends and I got separated from our group between the Museums and the Basilica. Once we figured out we were truly good and lost, we did our own thing and ended up climbing to the top of the Dome of St. Peter’s. It was the BEST part of the entire day.
Amanda recently posted..Photo of the Day: Navajo Tapestry
She really did suck Amanda. The worst part is we didn’t want a guided tour and what on earth do you need one for at a museum?? They tell you about everything already haha. That sounds like a blast climbing up the dome. We definitely had more fun on our own after we gave up trying to be interested in the guide.
I used think think I was not a tour person. But I have realized that some tours do suit me. I learned so much about the city of Buenos Aires from local tour guides. And after months of solo travel, I did a 7-day trekking tour in Patagonia and loved it.
The big things is picking the right tour for your travel style, which you guys of course tried to do. Sucks when you get bad information!
Stephanie – The Travel Chica recently posted..Welcome to El Chalten
You’re right, some tours are great. We do often miss out on hearing about interesting things while exploring on our own rather than on tours. I totally agree about picking the right tour!
I’m not a tour person either
Nomadic Samuel recently posted..Mayan Lesson: Coba, Mexico | Sonia’s Travels
Yea, it can be way better to explore at your own pace.
I also did the tour of the Vatican, and had the same issues you had – lots of standing still talking, not interesting enough… Of course I was also there on a 35 degree day, packed with people & I think that’s the first time in my life I ever felt claustrophobic. I still like some tours, they can be good, but I think it’s something to be picked carefully and only on genuine recommendations.
Vanessa recently posted..Redcliffe Markets – Photo post
It’s a beautiful place, isn’t it? I went as a child and remember the stunning ceilings, though I guess they’ve changed the rules since then…
Theodora recently posted..Voices from Post-Revolutionary Egypt 4: The Guide
I lived in Rome for three months one summer and was astonished when the Sistine Chapel was restored…the colors were majestic. I would definitely do an independent tour myself (we did one in Cape May) but there is something to be said for doing both—i just find tours in general to be too slow for my taste.
Charu recently posted..Travel and the Naysayers: Why Sticking to Your Goals and Dreams Is Important
Heading here early June. Hopefully there won’t be huge queues but we will go early anyway. Thanks for not recommending to do the tour
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