Did you ever wonder to be the first person to walk into the Sistine Chapel, and gaze in amazement at Michelangelo’s ceiling as the lights are switched on?For you and your partner to have the monumental frescoes all to yourselves, without being herded through the Sistine Chapel with the other 25,000 daily visitors?
Well, now it is possible, thanks to an exclusive new tour offered by True Luxury, a company specializing in bespoke travel experiences around the world.

The day-long private tour of the Vatican Museums, which begins at 06.00, will, however, set you back the eye-watering sum of $5,558 (€5,098) per person.Private tours of the Sistine Chapel – painted by Michelangelo between 1508 and 1512, and including frescoes by Botticelli, Perugino and Signorelli – are usually reserved for royals, celebrities and high-ranking politicians.

The True Luxury tour includes access to the Upper Galleries and the Pius-Christian Museum, as well as the Immaculate Conception Room, Raphael Rooms and Sobieski Room.

Accompanied by a private art historian appointed, visitors will follow the museum’s clavigero, or key keeper, as he unlocks the gates of the museum.

The tour also includes breakfast in the Cortile della Pigna and a three-course lunch, in addition to a visit to St Peter’s Basilica. The tour is available Monday to Friday but not on Wednesdays, Sundays or Vatican holidays.