Pope Francis Tomb and Papal Basilicas Tour

Recommended by 93% of travelers

Badge of Excellence

Rome, Italy

Great choice

5+ bookings last month.

3 hours (approx.)
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

Why travelers loved this

4.7

· Carma_M ·

May 2026

Very special to visit three major basilicas with a knowledgeable and charming guide. I learned much more history than I expected and had for great pictures.

· Anna_O ·

Jun 2026

Our tour guide Rebecca was knowledgeable about the churches but also Catholicism in general. The churches were so beautiful and it was nice getting out of just the city center for the day.

Overview

Go beyond the Vatican and visit three other papal basilicas on this guided tour. Discover these sacred sites, which are scattered across the city, without the public transit stress on this small-group tour. Visit the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore, the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls, and the Basilica of St. John Lateran, home to the pope’s throne and the Holy Stairs.

Tour all of Rome’s major basilicas apart from St. Peter’s with a guide
Enjoy time to pray, meditate, or have quiet time at each stop
An intimate group enhances the spirituality of the experience
Guide introduces the relics, the papal throne, the Holy Stairs, and more

Why Travelers Choose This Tour

This tour is capped at just 8 people for a more intimate, contemplative experience.

What's Included

Experienced guide and a small group of like-minded travelers make this tour unique.
Visit the resting place of Pope Francis.
To make communication easier, you will receive the name and number of your guide, the night before.

Gratuities are not mandatory, however are very much appreciated.

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting point

Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major
P.za di Santa Maria Maggiore, 00100 Roma RM, Italy
Meet your guide outside the basilica! In the center of the Piazza di Santa Maria Maggiore, near the fountain.

End point

Basilica of San Giovanni in Laterano
P.za. San Giovanni In Laterano, 00184 Roma RM, Italy
The tour ends at the third venue – Saint John in Lateran.

Itinerary

Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore

45 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Abbazia di San Paolo Fuori Le Mura

50 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Arcibasilica di San Giovanni in Laterano

50 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Wheelchair accessible
Stroller accessible
Near public transportation
Infants must sit on laps
Transportation is wheelchair accessible

Surfaces are wheelchair accessible
Most travelers can participate
Attention! The Holy Doors will be open until December 27, 2025.
On rare occasions, we may have to change the order in which we visit the basilicas.
Please wait for your guide in the center of the square and NOT INSIDE THE BASILICA.
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 8 travelers

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Cancellation Policy

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

Traveler Photos

Gallery picture 1 (from a traveler's review)

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Gallery picture 4 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 5 (from a traveler's review)

Reviews

4.7

based on 176 reviews

Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor

We perform checks on reviews

History lesson on Popes

Adriana_T, Jun 2026

You go to different basilicas by taxi a total of 3. Joan our guide is a historian so he was very knowledgeable.

Must See especially if you've been to Rome before

Anna_O, Jun 2026

Our tour guide Rebecca was knowledgeable about the churches but also Catholicism in general. The churches were so beautiful and it was nice getting out of just the city center for the day.

A Must Do Experience

James_R, May 2026

Beautiful Basilica’s and guide very educated on the history and details of each. Our guide made the experience very special and gave us some private time in each Basilica for reflective time.

The other major basilicas of Rome

Carma_M, May 2026

Very special to visit three major basilicas with a knowledgeable and charming guide. I learned much more history than I expected and had for great pictures.

Great tour

KEVIN_S, May 2026

It was a great experience, we really learned a lot. My only complaint is that the guide did not provide us with an earbud to hear him, so we missed out on some of what he said.

Excellent tour of three...

Edmund_S, Jan 2026

Excellent tour of three Basilicas: St John Lateran, St Mary Major, and St Paul Outside the Walls. Highly knowledgeable guide.

Not worth it

MariaLuz_v, Jan 2026

Very disappointing experience. The tour lasted only about 30 minutes, which felt rushed and not worth it. St. Peter’s Basilica was one of the main places I wanted to spend time in—especially to pray and reflect—but we were not given the opportunity to stay longer. This felt more like a quick walk-through than a meaningful tour. I would not recommend this tour to anyone looking for a spiritual or in-depth visit.

Response from Host, Feb 2026

I am sorry, but I think you got the wrong business. The duration of this tour is 3 to 4 hours, and we do not do St Peter's Basilica.

Christmas time in Rome

David_B, Jan 2026

Our tour guide provided a wonderful tour of St Peter’s Basilica. My wife and I were there before but this tour provided a different perspective than before.

Wonderful experience. ...

Scott_P, Jan 2026

Wonderful experience. Communication by our guide was excellent in ensuring we knew where to meet her for the tour. Our guide was Emma who I would highly recommend. The overall experience was above expectations

Papal Basicilas - Holy Doors - What we came to see

Joseph_G, Dec 2025

We came here for the Jubilee 2025. We toured and walked through the holy doors of three out of the four basicilas. We saved St Peter's Basicila for a separate tour and walked through this door twice. Our tour guide was excellent and knowledgeable. A great tour and must see!

Well organized. An...

AMBAR_D, Dec 2025

Well organized. An excellent way to learn about the Catholic faith. Highly recommended. Since the trader between the Basílicas is by a van, you don’t tire out walking. Plenty of time to roam the Basilicas on your own too.

The Way to Go

Kevin_M, Dec 2025

It makes a tremendous difference having a guide to share interesting facts, history along with pointing out things we would not have noticed other wise. Our guide Rebecca who is actually from England did an excellent job. We are grateful for this Holy experience.

It was supposed to be 4...

Carla_K, Dec 2025

It was supposed to be 4 holy doors but 2 were closed earlier than guide new about. The guide had other options. Also we had to pay our own way back to our destination

Response from Host, Dec 2025

We only did three holy doors on this tour, never four. Everything was described very clearly in the description of the tour.

Guide could have been...

mariaadelma_p, Dec 2025

Guide could have been more interactive and appeared interested in what she’s doing. She was pleasant though and gave enough information. I say this because our other guide from another tour was excellent.

We had a very...

Marek_J, Dec 2025

We had a very knowledgeable guide who pointed out really interesting points about the basilicas. And it was well organised.

Holy Doors

Grace, Dec 2025

It was great to see the smaller Vatican basilicas and even better with Rebekka as the guide as she is so passionate and knowledgeable. Her information made a huge difference in appreciating these churches. The passage through the Holy Doors is an exceptional experience.

Papal Basilicas

Andy_S, Dec 2025

It was very interesting experience….our guide was very informative and knowledgeable about basilicas

The entire experience was...

Hunter_Y, Dec 2025

The entire experience was wonderful. The guide was super friendly and informative. The small size of the group let us all get to know each other and made transportation easy. I would highly recommend to anyone coming to Rome for the jubilee.

Beautiful Experience of the Holy Doors

LINDA_N, Dec 2025

Leo was so wonderful and knowledgeable. The tour was such a beautiful and relaxing experience! Thank you Leo!

We walked through the doors!

Anonymous, Dec 2025

Leo was very informative. He told us about the history of the basilicas and also made sure we saw the relics and/or key items to see inside. The vans to move us between the locations were clean and comfortable. We enjoyed the tour. A warning though is that you do not end at the same point you start at and they do not provide transportation back. However, there is a taxi stand across the street and the metro is close by. We had no problems getting back.

Take this Tour!

Heather_G, Dec 2025

Joan led our small group through all three basilicas with ease and filled a very efficient three hour tour into a fun and memorable experience. E&D Tours’ pre tour communications were helpful and made transportation easy to/from the meeting poiint. Thank you Joan!

Very informative. We...

Karen_B, Dec 2025

Very informative. We spent about an hour at each Basilica but it could be longer. I plan to go back to spend more time in at least one of the Basilicas.

Rebecca was Amazing!

Gina_R, Dec 2025

Rebecca was fantastic! The info was interesting and pertinent. She even gave my nephew an umbrella since we didn't have one and it was pouring. She answered all questions we had. Highly recommend this tour!

Well curated, and intimate

Lucio_V, Dec 2025

I liked the well curated tour and the small group made the experience more intimate...it was very helpful that the guide was also pro active as I got lost and he helped me catch up with the group.

Small group tour of Basilicas

MaryAnne_W, Nov 2025

Our guide Fabio was quite knowledgeable about the history of churches and art work. Head set would be helpful as once inside church as difficult to hear with acoustic challenge and crowds. Needed longer time at each stop. Another suggestion would be to use the travel time between stops to point out what significant places and areas that we were traveling through.

Holy Doors on St Mary Major, St Paul Outside the Walls and San Giovanni in Laterano

Ade, Nov 2025

Joann was a very good tour guide. Highly recommended. We learned many things about the history of the 3 churches that we have covered during the tour.

Great tour by Emma

Franciscus_S, Nov 2025

We did the 3 Holy Doors tour with Emma and she was very informative. She explained the meaning and history behind each Holy Door beautifully. We truly enjoyed the experience.

There is a van that takes...

Corazon_M, Nov 2025

There is a van that takes you to the other Basilicas. The guide will talk about the church then you are free to explore on your own.

Outstanding Experience

Richard_S, Nov 2025

Small group was perfect for visiting the Holy Doors outside of the Vatican. I was able to do all three of the doors and see the churches in the morning and then visited the Vatican that afternoon. Emma was wonderful and patient, which is my kind of guide.