To dig deep into the history and art of St. Peter’s Basilica, explore the church on a self-guided audio tour. Explore St. Peter’s Square, walk to the basilica. Inside, listen to stories about the popes, pilgrims, and Renaissance art masters who have left their marks on this iconic Catholic site, whose Michelangelo-designed dome dominates the Rome skyline.

Audio guided tour of St. Peter's Basilica
Gaze in awe at the impressive dome designed by Michelangelo
Rub the foot of the statue of St. Peter, and see Michelangelo's 'La Pietà'
Listen to audio commentary as you explore at your own pace

What's Included

Audioguided tour of the Basilica with fully narrated tour
Over 30 point of interest to visit
Basilica entrance (the entrance in the Basilica is free)

Headphones
Cupola (Dome) entrance ticket
Skip the Line (security checks can result in queue)

Meeting And Pickup

Meeting point

WF24+W5 Vatican City
WF24+W5G Vatican City
The queue to enter in the Basilica is COMPULSERY for any one . NO SKIP THE LINE.

Start time

Opening hours

1/1/2023 - 12/31/2023
Monday : 07:00 am - 06:00 pm

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

What To Expect

See the best of St Peter's Basilica in Vatican City, the self-guided tour lets you decide what you want
to visit and when. As you walk, hear tales of the popes, pilgrims and legendary artists who,
throughout history, have helped make St Peter's Basilica the awe-inspiring place it is today.

Go straight inside the spectacular structure, said to be built upon the site where St. Peter the Apostle was crucified. Throughout the centuries, the humble church grew into the ornate icon it is today—the holiest of Catholic sites. With your audio guide on, explore at your leisure to discover Renaissance art like Michelangelo’s 'La Pietà' sculpture, as well as the Cupola—St. Peter’s famous dome.

Admire mosaic works, see a statue of St. Peter, visit the tomb of Pope John Paul II, and stare in wonder at Bernini’s 'Baldacchino,' the elaborate canopy alter that sits above St. Peter’s tomb.

No meeting point needed: at the time of booking you will receive a QRCode that will allow you to download the audio guide track. This will allow you to go to the Basilica when and how you want without having to respect fixed times and appointments.

St. Peter's Basilica

1 hour • Admission Ticket Free

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
NO Ticket is needed to enter St. Peter. Basilica. This is an Audio-guide service.
Scan the QR code on the voucher that will allow you to download the audio guide track. This will allow you to go to the Basilica when and how you want without having to respect fixed times and appointments.
A dress code is required to enter places of worship and selected museums. No shorts or sleeveles
Wheelchair accessible

Near public transportation
Surfaces are wheelchair accessible
Please note: Due to religious celebrations, the venue might be not accessible on the day of your tour; it is recommended that you contact the local operator to avoid any inconvenience
Most travellers can participate
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 99 travellers

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.

Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.
Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.

Traveller Photos

Traveller Tips

Skipping the main line is worth it unless you don't mind queuing for well over an hour.

Entry to the museum and the location of Peter's bones are an extra cost.

Reviews

4.0

280 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travellers.

Showing 1-10 of 280 reviews

We did not even get in I...

RebeccaA_L, Apr 2023

We did not even get in I realize there was going to be a q. No skip line but there had to be 5000 people in line No direction people trying to sell that they could get you in. I waste of time. We took pic’s outside and left a big rip off

It is a terrible option. Doesn’t work.

Carmen_V, Apr 2023

The application never accepted The QR code. We couldn’t use the audio and there were nobody to help us. The staff at the Basilica have nothing to do with it. So we lost pur money!

Scam!

Sophie_A, Apr 2023

Totally useless! You sell this experience as an amazing visit of the basilica but turns out the tickets are only for the audio guide on an app!!! No entry tickets since it’s free to get inside the basilica. It’s a total scam!!!!

audio guide for basilica tour

Noel_C, Apr 2023

we paid and no audio guide was given to us.. shame on booking this tour that we paid for nothing.. nobody was there to let us know where to get the audio.. security told us that there’s no audio for the day.. no email from the company.. they should refund us for the money we paid

I asked for a refund as...

Albiona_G, Apr 2023

I asked for a refund as nobody was there to help us . Even tried to install the audio guide with the application mentioned at the ticket but it didn't work. So we it wasn't that good experience.

If you don't have headphones, this isn't the tour for you.

Lisa_L, Mar 2023

When booking, we didn't realize that we had to use our phones and not the audio guide from the Basilica itself. It would have been easier to go through the Basilica walking audio tour than to use our phones. Unfortunately, we couldn't use what we paid for because we didn't have our earbuds on us at the time of the visit, so we ended up walking around and reading plaques. As a result, we never used this tour. I would not choose this type of guide again.

Need better instructions

Michael_C, Mar 2023

Communication was terrible. I missed the only sign that shows where to download to audio guide so I did not receive the guide and wasted my money

A must see in Rome

sophia_t, Dec 2022

All of it was amazing you can’t even put into words how beautiful the Basilica is. It is a must see for Rome, our tour guide was great and very informative.

Easy, informative and interactive

Jwayton, Dec 2022

Being able to learn everything at my own pace using this self-guided tour was greatly appreciated. I was able to pause my tour to listen to a prayer or go into quiet spaces, and take my time getting to the basilica on my own schedule. The map also includes images of the item and text of the audio description to make sure you are looking at the right thing and can read for details. The only challenge was realizing I could easily go to the basilica entrance and find the right audio guide helpdesk with its own wifi and QR code to download the map. I complicated things by going to the basilica audio guide tour desk, which was separate and not necessary.

The responsible at the...

Ziad_A, Nov 2022

The responsible at the office meeting point wasn’t cooperative and helpful in assisting tourists. The responsible at the office meeting point wasn’t cooperative and helpful in assisting tourists.

This is not a booking,...

Violeta_M, Nov 2022

This is not a booking, you have to stay in line for hours before entering the cathedral. Entrance to all churches in Italy is free. This ticket covers only the audio guide. The Viator ad is misleading. The best is to go as early as possible, before the church opens to go through security. The line forms to go through security and it takes hours.

Poor experience

Michael_V, Oct 2022

Only positive was the staff and guide were polite and did get us to the entrance. The rest was a rip off. Meeting place was shabby with dirty worn furniture. We followed the guide to the entrance, he pointed to where we would enter with tickets, and that was it. I realize we didn't "hire a guide" but the experience wasn't worth it.

Did not warn Basilica closed in the morning due to Papal Prayer

Jennifer_P, Sept 2022

Viator failed to mention that the Bascilica would be closed on Wednesday until 1pm because of the morning Papal Prayer (ticket said I could go anytime between 9a-close). I had another tour booked in the afternoon so I was not able to have my tour

Amazing Basilica

Brian_L, Sept 2022

Just walking into the Basilica was amazing. Ceiling painting, stone carvings excellent. How did they construct this, how many man hours, could it be duplicated today?

Waste of money.

Xuan_H, Sept 2022

Don’t waste your money on this! They don’t send you any instructions on where to pick up the audio guide. There is clearly nowhere to get a physical audio guide. Entry to the Basilica is FREE. If you saw that an audio guide gets you to skip the line, it does NOT! Wait in line, go into the basilica, for free and enjoy the Basilica. Skip this waste of money

Good for the money

Amir_K, Aug 2022

The main reason to go for this was to get Entry tickets otherwise the Audio guide experience wasn't anything impressive

The audio guide was...

Stephen_C, Aug 2022

The audio guide was thorough and informative. It is a download app to your phone and you can listen through the speaker or with headphones. They sell them for 1 Euro but with an aux plug. Bring your own if you have a newer iPhone.

A great experience

Ciara_O, July 2022

Tour guide was much better than the audio guide. That’s all I want to say. That’s all I want to say.

At Peter’s Gone Bad

Mary_G, July 2022

We never figured out where to pick up this experience and had to wait in huge line. Nothing good to say

Two hours queue.,🥵

MogensPedersen_R, July 2022

The experience of seeing the church and the Vartikanet from the outside was ok. but to buy tickets we never got used to due to the 2 hour long queue. It is better to go there and then buy tickets if there is not such a long queue. So you can buy a fast track for all 3 experiences for 61 euros. He's not stupid that Pope.😀

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