The Vatican, Christian Rome and the Catacombs - Full Day Tour with Lunch

Rome is principally Christian and the Vatican Museums along with other famous Christian landmarks reiterate this aspect of the great city. This fantastic package gives you a comprehensive tour of Rome’s riveting heritage and history with a visit to the Vatican Museum, the Christian milestones as well as the historic Roman catacombs.

The tour begins with the coach passing through Piazza della Repubblica with the Fountain of the Naiads and trailing the ancient Aurelian walls which once surrounded the ancient city. Moving across the city, you will catch sight of Piazza del Popolo past Borghese Park, the largest public park in Rome and the Square of the People with the Egyptian obelisk of Ramses II at its centre.

Our first stop is the iconic Vatican where we will head to the Museum and kick start our tour with the Gallery of Tapestries where exquisite Flemish tapestries from the 15th-17th centuries are exhibited. We will then pass through the breath taking Gallery of Maps, and finally land up at the spectacular Sistine Chapel whose frescoes are legendary for being one of the best works of Michelangelo, especially the magnificent Last Judgement.

Having explored the Vatican, we will break for a quick lunch at a local restaurant before heading to the beautiful Esquiline Hill, the largest of the Seven Hills of Rome. Site of the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, you can see rich and beautiful frescoes along with other works of art here.

Next up is the venerated Holy Staircase, believed to be the steps Christ ascended the day of his trial before Pontius Pilate. Adjacent to the Holy Staircase is the Archbasilica of St John Lateran which serves as the official ecclesiastical seat of the Pope. Trailing the Appian Way, the most famous road built by the ancient Romans, we will cross the enigmatic Chapel of Domine Quo Vadis, which is believed to be the place where St Peter had a vision of the risen Christ.

Our final halt includes the famed Catacombs of Santa Callisto, Santa Domitilla or San Sebastiano depending upon seasonal conditions. It’s a site of celebrating funeral rites and the anniversaries of martyrs and the dead in the ancient days, besides being an example of Roman engineering genius. We will finally make a stop for the spectacular view of the Baths of Emperor Caracalla, a great architectural complex whose ruins still leaved visitors mesmerised with their grandeur.