Would you advise arranging private guides for ancient Rome and/or the Vatican? Usually we do city sites on our own, but I can imagine that we might get more out of it with someone who has more depth of knowledge. And if the answer is yes, any particular suggestions. grazie

I can highly recommend Daniela Hunt for tours of ancient Rome.

Mirabilia Urbis Tours

She is a classics scholar, who came to Rome to do research and decided to stay. Her knowledge is impeccable, and she communicates it in a way that brings you face to face with history. She tends to book up quickly, because she also assists on archaeological digs.

Daniela also gives tours of the Vatican, which I'm sure are also excellent, although I have no direct experience. I've never taken any tour of the Vatican Museums or the Basilica. The Museums, at least on the standard itinerary, are so crowded that I'm not sure it would be successful, shoulder to shoulder with the crowd of other visitors. I would want to visit on one of the out-of-hours options if I were taking a tour. If you're interested in ancient history, you should visit the Egyptian collection and the Etruscan collection at the Vatican Museums. These are usually not crowded.

There is also a guided visit to the necropolis under St. Peter's Basilica, where it is believed St. Peter is buried. The number of visitors is strictly limited, so you should reserve early and communicate a selection of dates and times that would suit you.

Thank you bvlenci!

I second the recommendation for Daniela. She's a good person, quirky and fun to be around. She also seriously knows her stuff. She will not squander your time and she will give you good information that you just won't get on your own. She gives the place context. We used her for a tour of the Forum/Col and then for another day we went to the Villa Farnesi. She pointed out things for us to 'come back to' on our own as well as being incredibly informative in the moment. I can promise that you will get more out of it with her.

Truly down to earth as well - we met up with her a couple years after our initial tours when my oldest was on foreign study (college) in Rome. My kid (also a Classics scholar) knew that if she had a problem in Rome, she could call Daniela for help - that's how friendly and truly helpful she is.

Do yourself a favor - just email her now.