We see an "Art & Faith" (English) tour via the official Vatican website. We can see the Vatican, Sistine Chapel & St Peter's Basilica w/ this particular tour, & this is perfect for us. I can book that 60 days prior to the date we hope for. My question to you all is -- are these Vatican tours the best ones? Or do you recommend ones via a private tour company? Thank you.

In general, the official Vatican tours are highly rated. I've never taken any tour there, just my Michelin Green Guide.

The only Vatican tour I've taken was the Scavi tour which takes you into the excavated area under St Peters. It's a wonderful Roman necropolis where you see images of Roman gods along with Christian images in the tombs. The tour was very well done. I went with several people who were not Christian and I thought they did a good job of phrasing things in an inclusive way. I was impressed. This tour can only be taken with the Vatican as you get special access not sure if this is true with the other tours. Otherwise we've used Context and have been pleased with them in both Rome and London.

Hope this helps. Lots of other Rome ideas on my blog
http://www.somuchmoretosee.com/search/label/Rome

We also went on the Scavi tour and enjoyed. We used Walks of Italy for the Vatcan museum tour and it was excellent.

<i> I went with several people who were not Christian and I thought they did a good job of phrasing things in an inclusive way. </i>

That depends on the guide. I've taken that tour twice. The first guide focused on a historical perspective, while the second emphasized the religious aspect.

It's true that you can do this tour only with an official Vatican guide. There are very limited spaces on the tours, and they sell out rather quickly. Complete information is on this document.

http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/in...090216_en.html