AWESOME Rome in a day Private: Vatican, Colosseum, Squares Lunch
Description
Have limited time to see Rome’s highlights? This private tour is for you! It is one of the most sought after tours and the only Rome city tour covering so many must-see sites in 8 hours: Colosseum, Roman Forum and Palatine Hill - Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, Pantheon and Piazza Navona - Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel. How do we do this? By moving around in a comfortable private car and using entrance tickets! Your driver will bring you directly to all the main sights and our guide will tell you everything you need to know about the Eternal City. It includes: - pick up, drop off and transfers by private luxury car with chauffeur; - enthusiastic certified guide who will give you numerous details, fun facts, curiosities and anecdotes about the places you’ll visit; - entrance tickets to Vatican Museum, Colosseum and Forum; - typical Italian lunch. Pack all of your stress away and buy this tour!
Tour Options
Itinerary
The driver will pick you up at your accommodation and bring you to the Colosseum, where you will meet your private guide. After admiring the incredibly well preserved Arch of Constantine, you will enter the Coliseum, a huge and amazing feat of engineering. Here, 50.000 spectators could quickly find their seats, shaded by a huge awning, and watched cruel fights between gladiators and wild beasts.
After the Colosseum, you will proceed into the archaeological site of the Roman Forum which represented the commercial, legal and administrative center of Ancient Rome. While strolling past ancient ruins of temples and Roman mausoleums, such as the Roman senate and the altar where Julius Caesar's body was cremated, you will literally feel as if you were brought back in time during the Imperial age of Rome. Along the “Sacred Way” in the Roman Forum, your guide will show you where Julius Caesar inaugurated the Imperial Forums in 46 B.C., a focal point of ancient Rome enriched by all Emperors with their own Temples and Houses until A.D. 608.
The impressive Basilica of Maxentius and the stately Arch of Titus will introduce the panoramic hill of the Palatine, where Emperors lived. It is the most ancient part of Rome, where Romulus founded the “Square Rome”, destined to become the world’s biggest Empire. Augustus, Tiberius, Maxentius and many others decided to build their Palaces here, among the remains of Romulus wall and the huts dating back to 4.000 years. His panoramic position still offers amazing views on the Eternal City! Just the view of the Circus Maximum from the Palatine Hill is worth the tour.
You will proceede to the Spanish Steps, one of the biggest tourist spots in the city. As you stand, you can admire the Church of Trinità dei Monti, which sits at the top of a famous stairwell with the Fontana Della Barcaccia at its foot.
Hidden in narrow back streets, you will reach the Trevi Fountain, the largest and most spectacular roman fountain, built at the end of one of the aqueducts that provided water during the Roman Empire. Be certain to toss a coin over your left shoulder into its water, to ensure your return to Rome!
Following our knowledgeable guide, you will admire another masterpiece: the Pantheon. Miraculously well preserved, it was completed in 128 A.D. by Hadrian and its diameter has never been equalled. The square is a gathering place and is decorated with a lovely 16th-century fountain, surmounted by an Egyptian obelisk.
During this Rome in A Day Tour, you cannot miss Piazza Navona. Considered one of Rome’s most beautiful squares with its church and the three amazing fountains - the Fountain of the Moor, the Fountain of Neptune and, in the middle, the Fountain of the Four Rivers - it now sits amidst the artists who arrive to peddle their wares on a daily basis.
Your driver will take you to the Vatican Museums, where you can admire an infinite number of masterpieces by Bernini, Raphael, Michelangelo, Botticelli, Perugino, Pinturicchio and other treasures, all incredibly united in this unforgettable visit. The numerous Popes that have lived here continuously enriched it, but the unmissable Sistine Chapel and its sublime “Last Judgment” by Michelangelo are surely the real attraction. Among the galleries, you will surely appreciate the collection of mosaics, ancient Greek and Roman sculptures and the most worthy Raphael Rooms, once the official residence of the Popes.
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
We pick-up from any central hotels/apartments/B&B in Rome. If it is not central (a ray of about 8 km from the Pantheon), let us know its location and we will ask a supplement for the extra distance. If your accommodation is not mentioned, during the booking, please provide details regarding its location. If your accommodation has not been booked yet, you will modify the booking later by providing the data relating to it. Kindly add to your booking an email address you can check frequently. If you do not receive further messages, by mobile phone or by email, default pick up time is confirmed.
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Specialized infant seats are available
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- Remember to cover knees and shoulders before entering the Sistine Chapel .
- Please provide the full names and date of birth of all travelers when booking. Failure to present a voucher with all travelers' full names at the ticket office prior to entry may result in denied entry to the Colosseum and Roman Forum.
- The order of the visited sites could be reversed, especially for tours booked very close to the date of the experience
- Please indicate the names of all tour participants when booking.
- Please bring your identity document
- If children are present, please also indicate their age
- The tours may not be modified with regard to the places to be visited, except for the golden option, where the duration must still be respected
- Each traveler must present a valid passport or ID document that matches the name provided at the time of booking for successful entry to the Colosseum and Roman Forum.
- Please, communicate if there are disabled people partecipating the tour
- Due to the Jubilee, some monuments may be under restoration. Please pay attention to any messages we may send regarding potential changes.
- As announced by the Directorate of Museums and Cultural Heritage, we would like to inform you that from 11 January 2026 to April 2026, Michelangelo's fresco of the Last Judgement, located in the Sistine Chapel, will not be visible to the public due to extraordinary maintenance work. Please note that the Sistine Chapel, with its vault decorated by Michelangelo, the Vatican Museums and Raphael's Rooms will remain open to the public throughout this period. However, the entire wall of the Last Judgement will be covered by scaffolding to allow for a complex and delicate restoration process.
Reviews(10)
This is my second time using Rome Magic Tour, and I was not disappointed. They’re so helpful when planning your trip. Great suggestions, timely responses, and friendly staff. Our guide this time was Massimo, and he was AWESOME! He was super funny, very knowledgeable, and kept us going at a relaxed pace. He made several church additions to our tour, which we really enjoyed. I just can’t say enough great things about Massimo and our tour. Worth every penny. If I’m lucky enough to get to Italy again, I will absolutely use Rome Magic again.
Many thanks Paula for your positive feedback! We appreciate your words and are pleased that your experience with us was once again excellent. We constantly strive to provide the best customer service and are happy to know that we succeeded. Thank you again!!!!!!
It is important to understand that although this is a private tour, it cannot be adjusted to do anything different no matter what. We just took this tour and the guide is very knowledgeable- Maximo. Due to the extreme heat and a lot of outside, unshaded walking, we asked him to shorten the outside portions of the tour which he did. If you want to shorten something and change to add something else like 30 min of nearby shopping or do anything other than what is listed- there is no flexibility. The driver is not your dedicated driver- he is working multiple tour groups simultaneously so making adjustments is very difficult. You will see a lot on this tour in one day and you will skip lines at the Vatican and coliseum (only) but do not expect to flex this even at the high cost of this tour versus others. If you want them to drop you at dinner afterwards instead of the hotel- they won’t do it- even if dinner is closer to your last stop. I asked the tour company before the tour and they said no. Strict protocol. Even though we paid $1800 for this 8 hr tour, our guide left us an hour and a half before the end of the tour as we had asked to shorten certain parts of the tour due to heat (thinking we could adjust to be in the shade and cool down or shop a little in the shade or a cool store) but instead they ended the tour at 3:30 instead of 5:15 and would not take us to see or do anything else. Pretty inflexible even with extreme heat versus taking us somewhere else near by to sit and cool off. We tried to stop and buy a cross at the a store near the Vatican and were told hurry hurry- really? It’s only 3:00. We had to hire a taxi to take us shopping and to dinner after the early drop off. The guide did his best to adjust- he was very gracious but the tour company was not flexible. This tour would be much better in the fall or spring when it’s not so hot and you can spend more time outside or even in the Vatican (which is packed with people and is not air conditioned for 90 percent of the building). This company did not provide the flexibility required for extreme heat in the summer. Save your money and pick another company.
Dear Mrs Vetters, We are very sorry about your words, our tour has had over the years, excellent reviews from our customers, so much so that we received the certificate of excellence from TripAdvisor!!! However, we would like to clarify a few points again: The tour you chose included a visit to the fountains and squares, followed by a visit to the Colosseum, Roman Forum and Palatine Hill, a break for lunch included in the price, and then a visit to the Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's Basilica Car service is available for the squares and fountains but then there are only transfers. If you wanted the car available for the whole tour you should have chosen the GOLDEN option. Unfortunately, in addition to the fact that you arrived 50 minutes late, you wanted to finish the tour earlier, instead of 5:15pm at 3:30pm. We took immediate action to arrange for a driver to meet you at your early exit. You reported to our guide that you were very tired and therefore wanted to finish early. The tour does not include sightseeing by car. You tell us that it was too hot to visit the Colosseum and the Vatican for so long and instead you add that the visit was quick, that we should have planned differently, we cannot, we must respect the visits you paid for. Everyone knows that the Colosseum, as well as the entire archaeological area, is outdoors. We absolutely do not feel that we have failed you, we have provided, everything specified on the site and requested by you by booking this tour, we have not cheated anyone!!!!!!!!! While very sorry for your words, we cannot in any way feel responsible for your dissatisfaction with the tour. You also write that you will point this out to Viator, I would advise you to read carefully, however, what you have booked. It is written very clearly on the website. We apologise if it's very hot in Rome today 26 June, one thing we are heartened by is that at least our guide's judgement was excellent!!!!
Massimo was our excellent guide. He navigated easily through the throngs of people with a smile and a nod. He was knowledgeable and made every place interesting. Highly recommend! Having a driver was also priceless.
Dear Mrs Colt, a sincere thank you for choosing us, we always try to provide the best for our customers. We hope to have you with us again next time you return to Rome. Best regards Carlo
Easily saw all the sites very little waiting which was nice. Good information..maybe too detailed. Could have provided some bottled water and lunch was mediocre.
Dear Mr Dalley, thank you very much for taking the time to give your review. We are happy to know that the information was detailed, this is the great merit of our guides. Regarding water, many restaurants in Rome prefer to offer it unbottled, precisely because tap water is spring water and is considered to be of the highest quality. We are sorry that you were not fully satisfied with your experience at the restaurant, we hope to have the opportunity again in the future to provide you with an excellent experience, which is what we are usually known for. Our best regards Carlo
Excellent tour --- our tour guide was professional, punctual and helpful I don't remember her name but she was more than willing to explain all in details and give us more time to spend if we need.
Dear Debbie, your opinion is very important to us, thank you! Every day we strive to give our best and offer quality services, our greatest satisfaction is seeing the appreciation of our customers. We hope to have you as our customer again in the future!!!!! Ciao Carlo
Rome in a Day! We started our day a little rough, our driver apparently hit traffic, so I became a bit anxious. Our contact Tania was wonderful and helped update his status. The gentleman who was our guide Maximo took us to all the spots we hoped to see. The weather was a bit of an issue, but we made it. Had a memorable time!!
Dear Ms Lisa it is a real pleasure to read your words. Our daily commitment to meet our customers' expectations never fails and with feedback like this, we certainly have more incentive to do even better. Thank you, a warm greeting also from Tania and Maximo. Carlo - the owner
An absolutely amazing experience! We made a day trip from Rome to Florence, so we had less than 24 hours to see everything we wanted to see - Massimo made it all possible! Not only is he knowledgable but also perfectly balances being efficient with being thorough. We saw and learned so much and never felt rushed! Cannot recommend this tour enough.
Dear Meghan, Thank you for leaving us a 5-star review! It is very important to us, customer satisfaction is our team's priority. Massimo is a great professionist! We thank you on his behalf too! We really appreciate that you recommended our service. We wish you many more great experiences with Viator! All the best! Carlo - Owner
Fantastic tour of Rome! We covered all the sites we wanted to see. Our guide, Massimo, was extremely knowledgable, we learned so much!
Dear Meghan, thank you for your review! We are extremely happy that the tour was to your liking and fully met your expectations. For us, it is essential to receive feedback of this kind as it shows us that the level of service we aim for is achieved. We will report your compliments to our guide Massimo. We look forward to seeing you soon in Rome for a new tour together with the Rome Magic Tour! Greetings Tania
Marilu’ was WONDERFUL!! Her English was fluent, lunch was amazing, we saw Rome in a day just like we wanted! It was a perfect day!!
Dear Jennifer, thank you for your wonderful review! We are extremely happy and proud that you enjoyed our tour and our guide Marilù! She and the other guides are the heart of our company! We look forward to seeing you in Rome soon to discover further beauties of the Eternal City! All the best!
Fantastic experience! Incredible Knowledge and Passion for the tour! A well organized tour, explained in a simple, complete and never boring way by our guide. My wife and I were satisfied and we wanted to conclude the visit by climbing up to the top of the dome, under the pleasant advice of the guide.
Passion and knowledge are the values on which our work is based! Thank you so much for your review and for enjoying our tour!
