Scavi guided visit and skip line entrance to St Peters Basilica
Description
Explore the Secrets Beneath St. Peter’s Basilica Venture into the Scavi excavations, the ancient necropolis beneath St. Peter’s Basilica, and visit the sacred tomb of St. Peter, reopened in 2026 after the Holy Year 2025. Accessible to only 200 visitors a day, this exclusive tour takes small groups of up to 15 guests through narrow passageways, uncovering centuries of history, the burial sites of early Popes, and fascinating archaeological discoveries that reveal the foundations of Christianity. Descend into the crypt, explore the Popes’ tombs, then rise to enjoy St. Peter’s Basilica at your own pace—skipping the usual 2+ hour lines. This immersive journey combines archaeology, art, and spirituality, offering a rare and unforgettable perspective on one of the world’s most iconic landmarks. ✨ Book early to secure this once-in-a-lifetime experience! ✨
Tour Options
Itinerary
A pre-visit lecture on the history of Vatican City and St. Peter’s Basilica, delivered by your expert host, providing essential background for one of the most exciting and unforgettable experiences in Rome.
Exclusive visit of archeological area under St. Peter's Basilica (scavi) with the area of the tomb of St. Peter, the Apposle
Self guided visit of Popes' Tombs under St. Peter's Basilica including the area of St. Peter's Tomb.
Skip line entrance to St. Peter's and self guided visit of St. Peter's Interior with works of Bernini and Michelangelo including the Pieta.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Not recommended for pregnant travelers
- Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- not open to children under 14
Reviews(16)
Agnes was a great initial tour guide of the Vatican and St Peter’s square — she had a lot of enthusiasm for the topic and set the stage well for the actual tour. It was just fantastic to see the actual remains of St Peter and learn about the archaeological dig that discovered them — a one of a kind experience.
Very bad they escorted us only at the security check than the entrance of the dome without having any guide with us charge us 30 euro for nothing
Dear Guest. Scavi guided visit and skip line entrance to St Peters Basilica does not include the guide beyond excavations and the crypt. The visit to St Peters is self guided as per information on the web page. Kindly, Francesca
Great tour. Sylvia our first tour guide was great and oriented us to history and architecture. Anna our underground tour guide was also great. This was a bucket list tour and was well worth it.
Don’t book the Scavi tour. The Scavi tour has been shut down for construction and was cancelled. We took a substitute tour to St. Peter’s and it was not good. The tour started with one nice girl talking outside of St. Peter’s until another nice girl showed up to continue the tour. We basically heard everything twice. The tour inside St. Peter’s was ok but felt very rushed. Just book something else. It’ll be best.
Scavi office has prolonged its emergency closure now till December 3rd. We are now open for booking scavi tours starting December 5th, 2024. As number of visitors allowed to explore excavations os limited we invite our guests to book the visit well ahead of planned visiting time.
It was canceled last minute. This was one of the few things we really wanted to do while here. Maybe next time
Our Guide Agnes was simply sensational. Smart prepared enthusiastic energetic with an immense amount of obvious preparation and a storehouse of knowledge - also a really fun and sincere person.
I tried to cancel this booking for six months and viator never responded! Lost my money. Their website never allowed me to cancel. The booking manager never responded. My father passed away the day I should have been on the tour.
I am sorry to hear about your loss. Please note however the Vatican services cannot be canceled as Vatican has introduced since 2023 the "no cancellation" policy for whatever reason. The Vatican desisions are beyond our authority. With kind regards. Francesca Conti
Sylvia and Agnes were both wonderful tour guides. The amount of information they shared even before entering the basilica was more than we expected. Once inside Agnes played Travis with us on things she spoke to in the lower part of the basilica. Lots of fun and very informative.
Ended up doing the tour with the official scavi office!! We emailed them a couple months in advance and got a response within 1-2 weeks. I purchased this scavi tour just because I was afraid the office wouldn’t respond, but glad it worked out with them (for only 25 euro each). Also didn’t want to take a chance on this tour bc it seems like they’re unreliable. Turns out they did message asking where I was, but told them we booked a tour with the official scavi office instead!
The tour ran late - we had to leave early to catch our cruise ship. Didn’t see the tomb or Peter’s bones. Please run these tours on time!!! People are on a schedule!
