Our evening tour begins at the Vatican Museums, when the daytime crowds have thinned and the galleries settle into a calmer rhythm. We move through the Vatican's many treasures, artistic and historical, many of them dating back to ancient Roman times, and we stop in the Gallery of Maps, with its 40 frescoes painted in the late 1500s, and in the Rooms of Raphael, four chambers that hold works by Raphael and his students.

The route leads to the Sistine Chapel, one of the reasons so many guests come to Rome. In the quiet of the evening, away from the daytime crowds, we spend a full 15 minutes inside, looking at Michelangelo's ceiling fresco, the Creation of Adam, and at the Last Judgment on one of the walls. Since speaking is not allowed in the chapel, our guide tells the story of the frescoes before we enter.

The Basilica of St. Peter is closed in the evening, so the tour closes with a stroll around St. Peter's Square, lit by countless lights under the night sky. There our guide points out Bernini's optical illusions and shows the exact spot where St. Peter, who became the first Pope, was crucified, the place that later became the foundation of the Catholic Church.

With the group kept private, we set a comfortable pace and give the evening the attention it deserves. Skip-the-line access with reserved tickets means we walk past the long entrance lines.

• Suitable for most guests.
• Please arrive on time: late arrival may mean losing the entrance.
• Each guest must present a valid passport or ID matching the booking name.
• Dress code: knees and shoulders covered, no shorts or sleeveless tops.
• Food and drinks are not allowed in the museums, except bottled water.
• This is a private tour, reserved for the group.