Escavation Tour To The Tomb Of St. Peter’s & St. Peter’s Basilica

We were first met by Sylvia of Vatican City tickets and tours, who gave us a very brief introduction, and then escorted us thru the Swiss guard to the Scavi office. Silvia was a bit rushed to get us to our reserved entry time because other travelers had failed to bring cash for the additional cost of the tour. The Scavi tour itself was amazing and “Alex” of the “Uficina Scavi” did an excellent job taking us back in time and thru history. After the scavi tour, we were to meet another guide, Dani of Vatican city tickets and tours, who was to take us through the Basilica, but she was difficult to find in the crowd. Once found, she advised our group of five (unrelated) that we we’re to wait for another group of five who had not yet exited from the grottoes. We waited and waited, and one by one each of us dropped off to do the Basilica independently, when Dani insisted she had to wait for them, but had no way of communicating with them or knowing if they would ever show up. This portion of the tour was poorly coordinated. Once inside the Basilica, independently, we learned that it was undergoing remodeling for the upcoming Jubilee in 2025, so many of the important chapels, altars and works of art were not visible and were hidden behind curtains. Note to other travelers: this is currently true for many other churches, streets, and buildings in Rome. While we had visited the Basilica in the past, we were looking forward to seeing it again and learning more from another professional guide, however, we left disappointed. In summary, we would highly recommend the Scavi portion of the tour, but cannot recommend this particular combined tour due to poor communication and timing.

Our Viatour guide didnt do much. We paid for the access to the Scavi Tour. She didnt have much to say. She handed us to a Vatican guide from Austria. The tour itself was good, despite the somewhat snarky Austrian.

This tour was the most appalling, price gouging, waste of time. 4 hours to see St Peter's tomb, which is at the end of the tour and basically a red light which shows where the tomb is. Appalling. The actual tickets for the Scavi tour, for which you have to pay an additional 25 euro once the tour of the basilica is complete, are 13 euro. I guess 12 euro for a 'booking fee' is good money if schmucks like me pay it. Added on to the AUD$173 cost of the tour, this was a terrible waste of money. I've done many tours on this trip and many other trips and this was the absolute worst for value and content I've encountered. To be fair, the woman who did the Basilica part of the tour was lovely, but it was way too long. I would not recommend this tour to anyone.

Very knowledgeable guides and open to questions. Non-hurried tour which is pleasant considering other tours.

Tomb portion of the tour was great but our guide was difficult to understand. Felt rushed through the tour. We had an hour to wait for part 2 after the tomb. Too long to sit around. St. Peter’s portion was wonderful. Guide was super knowledgeable and passionate about art and catholic faith. Pacing was great. Not too long but hit the big items.