Rome: Underground Temples and Crucifixion Relics Walking Tour
Recommended by 95% of travelers
Badge of Excellence
Rome, Italy
- 2 hours 30 minutes to 3 hours 30 minutes (approx.)
- Group discounts
- Offered in: English
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Overview
Delve into the early days of Christianity with this unique tour that traces the evolution of this important world religion from paganism through its formative stages. Explore four of Rome’s most storied churches with a guide to learn about early Christian history and view a number of holy relics said to be from the Crucifixion—including a nail and wood from the cross—as well as the Holy Stairs.
- An immersive journey through early Christian history in just a few hours
- Venture beneath the Basilica of San Clemente to admire pagan temple ruins
- See Rome’s cathedral and the Holy Stairs that Jesus is said to have climbed
- Stop in Santa Croce in Gerusalemme, home to impressive Christian relics
What's Included
- Live professional guide
- Headsets to hear clear your guide
- Entrance fees
- All Fees and Taxes
- Optional gratuities
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting point
- Piazza di San ClementePiazza di S. Clemente, 00184 Roma RM, Italy
Meet us at Piazza di San Clemente, 00184 Rome. Please arrive 5 minutes before your scheduled starting time. Look for a member of staff holding a yellow label.
End point
- Basilica di Santa Croce in GerusalemmePiazza di S. Croce in Gerusalemme, 10, 00185 Roma RM, Italy
Itinerary
1
Basilica of San Clemente
1 hour 15 minutes • Admission Ticket Included
2
Arcibasilica di San Giovanni in Laterano
30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
3
Pontifical Sanctuary of the Holy Stairs
15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
4
Basilica di Santa Croce in Gerusalemme
30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
5
Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major
1 hour • Admission Ticket Included
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Near public transportation
- Infant seats available
- Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
- Please note: In the event that certain areas of one of the churches are closed, your guide will adapt the itinerary by highlighting alternative sites. As a result, the overall duration will remain unchanged
- An appropriate dress-code is required in order to enter the churches: knees and shoulders should be covered.
- Wear comfortable walking shoes: a moderate amount of walking is involved.
- This tour is not wheelchair-accessible.
- This tour is subject to weather conditions and/or liturgic-calendar events. If canceled you will be given the option of an alternative date or full refund.
- Not recommended for people with claustrophobia
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 10 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
Reviews
4.8
based on 92 reviews
Sort by: Most insightful
Mario was incredibly knowledgeable and one of our favorite tour guides. It was nice just being the two of us. The Relics were still unable to be viewed which was a bummer but not in the tour’s control
Response from Host, Sep 2026
Thank you for your review, we are glad to hear that you enjoyed our tour with Mario. Unfortunately the relics were currently shut down, however we appreciate your understanding and hope that you get to see them next time!
Daniel was our guide and he did such a great job! We ended up being the only 2 on the tour so we received personalized service - even found one of the public water fountains for us to fill our water bottles! Lots of walking and extremely hot, but exactly what we wanted to see. Thank you!
Response from Host, Aug 2026
Thank you so much, we are glad to hear that you enjoyed our guided tour with Daniel!
Going deep to history of church and relics . Nice tour with 4 people group and Daniel our tour guide was very educated. We loved it …
Response from Host, Aug 2026
Thank you so much, we are glad to hear that you enjoyed our Underground temples and Relics tour with Daniel.
Very knowledgeable and friendly. Great way to see some of the best churches in Rome. Great for solo, family and friends as well.
Response from Host, Aug 2026
Thank you so much! We are glad to hear that you enjoyed our Underground Temples and Relics guided tour!
Unfortunately the reason we did the tour was because of the Christian relics including the wood from the cross, nail from crucifiction, thorns from the crown, and the wooden sign saying “King of the Jews” that was above the cross. None of those things were shown on the tour. When we asked about them half way through the tour, we were told it was at the first location we visited but not available for viewing. Then in another church we visited, we were told there was the seat of Jesus at the last supper in the room that cost $3 to see but wasn’t part of our tour. Why was that not part of our tour. We wouldn’t have cared about paying $3. Add our guide was very cynical in his delivery of information. He spoke perfectly English as he was from America, but I had a much harder time following his delivery than any of the other tour guides with a strong accent. I felt like I was back in college in history class where the professor had a wealth of knowledge but spoke down to the class. I walked away feeling like I learned nothing and probably missed a lot of valuable knowledge because of the cynical delivery.
Response from Host, Jul 2026
Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback. We're sorry to hear that the tour didn't meet your expectations.
We understand that seeing the Christian relics, the nail from crucifixion and the wooden sign was one of the main reasons you booked this experience and that it must have been disappointing to not have seen them, so we're sorry this wasn't made clear during the tour.
We're also sorry to hear that our guide's presentation style wasn't to your liking. We know that every guest has different expectations, and while many visitors appreciate his depth of knowledge, we understand that his approach didn't resonate with you. Your comments will be taken into consideration as we are always looking for ways to improve the experience we provide.
Thank you again for your feedback, and we hope you'll consider joining us again in the future.
Our guide, Daniel, was very knowledgeable and funny. We enjoyed our experience and would recommend!!
Response from Host, Jun 2026
Thank you! We are glad to hear that you enjoyed our tour with Daniel.
Brilliant tour, excellent guide and inspiring experience. Definitely a highlight of my trip would highly recommend to anyone who is interested in Christian history.
Response from Host, Jun 2026
Thank you! We are glad to hear that you enjoyed our tour with us.
The church where the crucifix relics is undergoing renovation so were unable to visit. The tour guide was great with explaining all details in every church we went in. Great tour.
Response from Host, May 2026
Thank you! We are glad to hear that you enjoyed our tour!
This was a great tour for us and our guide was phenomenal! Unfortunately we weren’t able to see some of the expected relics due to an unforeseen incident but our guide made up for it by taking us to see other things that weren’t planned. We would highly recommend this tour!
Response from Host, May 2026
Thank you for your review, we are glad to hear that you enjoyed our Underground Temples and Crucifixion Relics walking tour!
Best tour in Rome! Our tour guide Daniel was so educated about every church else visited. A spiritual experience if you are looking for that feeling.
Response from Host, May 2026
Thank you so much, we are glad to hear that you enjoyed our Underground Churches and Relics tour with Daniel!
Excellent Tour and Guide. Daniel spent a great deal of time telling us exceptional stories of the different things we were looking at and going to. He was very patient and answered all our questions as well. The tour took us through several locations, all with very unique things to see. I would highly recommend this tour and Daniel!
Response from Host, May 2026
Thank you! We are glad to hear that you enjoyed our guided tour with Daniel :)
We met our guide (Francesca) at the start of the tour to find out it was just us on the tour (3pm Tuesday) so felt like a personal one !
One of the churches on the tour was undergoing extensive renovations so Francesca took us to see something else instead. Really interesting tour (especially the first church on a church on a church on a house) dating back to 1st century. Incredible mosaics, paintings and tapestries going back thousands of years, well preserved or restored. The tour included a huge baptismal font (full body immersion) and the first church in Rome.
Francesca talked our way though everything and was very knowledgable, but without being boring (a risk with any group tour is people asking questions about things you don’t care about or the guide has already described). She kept the tour at a pace we were happy with and we managed to squeeze everything in within a couple of hours - perfect.
Response from Host, Apr 2026
Thank you for your thorough review, we are happy to hear that you enjoyed the overall experience with us and the guide Francesca :)
A wonderful experience with our very knowledgeable guide David. He has a passion for the relics, their stories and the basilica’s. Thank you!!
Response from Host, Apr 2026
Thank you so much, we are glad to hear that you enjoyed the tour with us!
Our tour guide was very informative! She was super friendly and answered all of our questions. It definitely felt like a very personal/intimate experience since it was such a small group. She was very easy to understand and so very sweet! Definitely recommend this tour and everything you get to see, loved it!!!
Response from Host, Mar 2026
Thank you so much, we are glad to hear that you enjoyed our Underground churches and relics tour!
Excellent experience, some walking involved as with all, and Excellent guide! Beautiful churches, relics and steps are a must see!
Response from Host, Mar 2026
Thank you for your kind review, we are so glad to hear that you enjoyed our Underground Temples and Crucifixion Relics tour!
Very educational. Saw some different parts of Rome. Guide (Mario) was well educated in what we were seeing.
Response from Host, Nov 2025
Thank you!
We are glad to hear that you enjoyed the Underground Temples and Relics guided tour with Mario :)
I would highly recommend. Our tour guide Kiara was knowledgeable and made the tour amazing. Seeing the relics was a humbling experience. The Bascilica’s were beautiful. A must see in Rome
Response from Host, Oct 2025
Thank you for your review, we are glad to hear that you enjoyed our Underground Temples and Relics guided tour with Chiara!
Arguably the best tour we have ever been on! Our guide was amazing. His historical knowledge was unmatched.
Response from Host, Oct 2025
Thank you so much! We are delighted to hear that you enjoyed our walking tour of the Roman Basilicas :)
Daniel was an outstanding tour guide. We received an in depth explanation of all the churches. It made the Jubilarian experience extraordinary. He was knowledgeable and explained complex subjects in an understandable manner - a fine skill in a tour guide. He was respectful of the holy sites.
Response from Host, Oct 2025
Thank you for your review! We are glad to hear that you enjoyed our guided walking tour with Daniel.
Wonderful! Very educational and interesting. We enjoyed leaning about all the relics and walking through history. Our guide Daniel did a great job—I only wish we had a bit more time at the steps where Jesus walked.
Response from Host, Oct 2025
Thank you so much! We are glad to hear that you enjoyed our Underground Temples and Crucifixion Relics walking tour with Daniel :)
Outstanding. The best tour we took in Rome. Note there is a lot of walking as the buildings toured were generally a few blocks apart.
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Thank you so much - we appreciate your review and the comments about the Underground Temples and Crucifixion Relics tour!
This tour was very interesting and our guide Francesca was excellent . She was knowledgeable and attentive . This was a lot of walking but even in the heat, it was worth it .
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Thank you! We appreciate your review regarding the guided tour with Francesca at the Basilicas!
Fantastic tour of underground churches, churches and so much more. Francesca was an excellent guide -extremely knowledgeable and made the tour a 5 star.
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Thank you so much! We're delighted to hear that you have enjoyed our Underground Temples and Relics walking tour :)
We explored an active archeological site and learned more about Roman architecture. I was moved by the devotion of people visiting the Holy Stairs. I enjoyed the tour and our guide provided us with great insight into the sites we visited.
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Thank you!
We appreciate your feedback and are really glad to hear that you enjoyed our tour of the Underground Temples and Relics.
Francesca was my tour guide and she was exceptionally thorough and thoughtful in her explanation of the four churches that we visited.
It was very helpful to hear the explanation from Francesca while climbing down the levels of centuries from 12th to 4th to 1st AD and see the waters of ancient Rome at the Basilica of San Clemente. She thoroughly explained the frescos, the statues, the stones used in building the church and it's history. Then I took the opportunity to climb the Scala Santa on my knees and walk through Porta Sancti in Basilica of San Giovanni in Laterano. Francesca took the time also to explain the differences in the art work among the frescos and paintings seen in the churches and their time period. At the Basilica di Santa Croce in Gerusalemme, it was unbelievable to see some of the relics of the crucifixion of Christ and the copy of the shroud of Turin. I highly recommend this walking tour to see the 4 holy churches and the relics., and having a guide like Francesca adds more depth in the understanding of the visit. Grazie Francesca. I hope to do this tour when I visit Rome again!
Response from Host, Aug 2025
Thank you so much!
We are really glad to hear that you enjoyed the tour with Francesca and truly appreciate the comments you've made about the experience.
Looking forward to welcoming you back to one of our other tours in Rome!
Our tour was supposed to cover 5 churches, 3.5 hours. Our tour ended up being 2 hrs 40 mins and we missed key highlights because our tour guide changed the order so we entered one during mass. Due to the route change we then had to buy metro tickets to return to our hotel vs a short walk if we ended with the original church. Info on churches and Christianity was limited and given the fast pace, missing key relics, we could have done this on our own.
Response from Host, Jul 2025
Good morning,
We are sorry to hear that you did not have a good experience overall.
We also spoke to the guide assigned for the tour, and he said that he felt like you wished for the tour to be faster, as he quoted that you mentioned the tour was too slow.
We understand that your tour started earlier than usual, and ended about 20 minutes earlier, for the above mentioned reason.
We also would like to remind you that you booked a group tour however you had the chance to have this tour as a private one, since it was just your family and the guide — and you could have decided your own tour path (which site you wished to see the most, and where you necessarily needed to end in order to be able to walk to your hotel).
We understand that this activity was not to your likings and we apologise for any inconveniences you might have met.
Have a good day.
The tour was both informative and enjoyable. Our guide Fransesca was fantastic and very knowledgeable on all the sites. If you have seen the major sites already in rome this tour is for you as it shows some of the earliest Christian artifacts and churches. Moderate walking
The guide was very knowledgeable and witty. It was a very hot day so he made the best of it for our group. All of the churches were fantastic.
Response from Host, Jul 2025
Thank you, we are glad to hear that you enjoyed our Underground Temples and Crucifixion Relics Walking Tour!
Mario was great as a tour guide! Loved this tour. Be prepared to walk a lot from church to church. Prepare for heat. You’ll be going in to churches so no showing your belly or shoulders and no short shorts.
Response from Host, Jun 2025
Thank you for your review, we are glad to hear that you enjoyed our tour with the guide Mario!
We definitely recommend being prepared for the heat (bringing water!) and covering shoulders and knees to enter the Churches.
We look forward to seeing you again in one of our tours in Rome :)
Francesca is a superb guide. She is knowledgeable and competent. She answered all my questions and I usually ask many. We enjoyed our tour with her very much. We are looking forward to our next tour with her. Thank you!
Response from Host, Jun 2025
Thank you for such a detailed feedback, we are glad to hear that you enjoyed the guided tour with us and Francesca!
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