Explore Vatican City and its surrounding streets at your own pace as audio stories bring walls, basilicas, bridges, and papal strongholds to life. A self-guided GPS walking tour with a live map that shows your location and each stop, plus local tips.
Admissions not included.
Your purchase is for 30-day access to our self-guided cell-phone tour. Tickets or entry fees
for museums, historic sites, and other attractions are sold separately.
This self-guided walking tour leads you around Vatican City and the streets that frame it. From fortified walls and pilgrim lanes to St. Peter’s Square, basilica, and dome, you can use the map to link museums, bridges, and papal strongholds in the order you like. Along the way you hear how devotion, politics, and architecture reshaped this tiny state and the surrounding Roman neighborhood. Start anywhere, follow the GPS map at your own pace, and see the Vatican area as both a place of pilgrimage and everyday city life.
Highlights
Piazza del Risorgimento — a modern square at the edge of the Vatican district; learn how vanished streets, 19th century planning, and today’s transport hub all meet in this busy gateway for pilgrims and visitors.
Vatican Walls — towering fortifications that mark the border of Vatican City; discover how centuries of sieges, escapes, and papal politics turned these stones into symbols of both independence and protection.
Vatican Museums Entrance — the modern gateway into vast papal collections; hear how a single ancient statue grew into kilometers of galleries filled with art, maps, and the path toward the Sistine Chapel.
St. Peter’s Square — Bernini’s great oval plaza embracing crowds in stone; learn how colonnades, fountains, and an Egyptian obelisk turned this space into the world’s most filmed stage for papal events.
St. Peter’s Basilica — Rome’s monumental church rising over a former circus; discover how saints, relics, architects, and rituals all layered together to create the spiritual heart of the Catholic world.
St. Peter’s Dome Viewpoint — Michelangelo’s soaring dome above the basilica; hear how daring engineering, a double-shell design, and a steep climb reward visitors with one of Rome’s most famous panoramas.
Via Borgo Pio — a narrow lane just behind the basilica; learn how inns, taverns, and small shops served generations of pilgrims and why this street still feels like a lived-in neighborhood in the shadow of the dome.
Castel Sant’Angelo — fortress, tomb, and papal refuge on the Tiber; discover how an emperor’s mausoleum, an angelic vision, and secret passages turned this round tower into a symbol of survival.
Ponte Sant’Angelo — Hadrian’s ancient bridge lined with Baroque angels; hear how pilgrims, processions, and a darker history of executions all crossed this span on the way to St. Peter’s.
Via della Conciliazione — the wide ceremonial avenue leading to the square; learn how demolishing a medieval maze reshaped the approach to St. Peter’s and why opinions about this grand view are still divided.
Cinematic Vatican Photo Spot — the classic postcard viewpoint along Via della Conciliazione; discover how film crews, travel photographers, and everyday visitors all use this stretch to frame the perfect dome shot.
All this, plus additional "hidden gems," expertly brought to life through our virtual guides....with rich, vivid history, local stories, and unmatched knowledge you will not find elsewhere. Even better, no tipping required!
Tour area: Rome – Vatican Treasures to St. Peter’s Secrets
Distance: ~2 miles (3.2 km) • Time: 2–3 hours • Stops: 11+ • Terrain: Mostly flat with some cobblestones
Shaded area = approximate tour area
What you’ll experience
GPS location tracking — see your current location on the map.
Virtual Tour Guides — Detailed narration at each stop & answers to common questions.
Vast local knowledge — history, legends, and insider spots.
Local weather updates — stay prepared as you explore outdoors.
A “Free Roaming” adventure — start anywhere, wander at your pace.
What exactly unlocks when I buy?
You’ll get the full tour map with hot-air balloon markers (our map pins), our suggested walking path for orientation, detailed stories and site info, narration, and tons of local tips. Your purchase gives you unlimited access for 30 days via a private link. It runs right in your mobile browser — no installs, no storage — just open and go.
How do I start the tour?
Open your private tour link on your phone and tap the compass icon on the map to show where you are. Simply walk to the nearest stop and tap its marker to start the story. Then just visit any other stops you like, in any order, at your own pace.
How does a SmartWalkTour differ from a traditional tour?
It’s your pace, your path. No buses or group schedules. No tour guide tipping. Explore freely with on-map markers, narration, and an optional suggested path for big-picture orientation. Pause for a café, browse a shop, and pick up where you left off anytime — your guide is always in your pocket.
Screenshots from an actual tour. (Key West example)
Swipe or scroll to see more →
Multiple tour stopping points. Start at any one, then tap the hot air balloon for detailed tour guide information.Virtual tour guides share rich stories at every stop, with Q&A and helpful links.Always know the local weather and plan your walk comfortably.Discover more tours nearby—walkable options to keep exploring.Four map styles, live GPS, and a suggested path you can toggle on/off.Helpful information is built in, plus links for even more detail.In app tips, FAQs, Local festivals and events. Maps show a wealth of detail, with public restroom locations.Direct links to attractions for hours, tickets, and more.
