Skip the Line: Crypts and Roman Catacombs Small-Group Walking Tour

Your walking tour starts at Piazza Barberini, where you’ll meet your guide and walk over to the Capuchin Crypt at the Church of Santa Maria della Concezione. Begin your visit here at the crypt museum, home to St Francis in Meditation, a painting by Caravaggio, as well as other artifacts about Italy’s patron saint, St Francis. Then walk into the crypt, where you’ll find small chapels made entirely out of the bones of Capuchin monks. Learn about the history and significance of this unusual design aesthetic before returning to ground level to continue to your next stop.
While you walk along the Appian Way, one of Italy’s oldest roads, hear about its history, including the catacombs that make up nearly 186 miles (300 km) of underground tunnels. Learn how they were used as burial chambers by early Christians, as well as secret places to worship when Christianity was prohibited in Rome, as you enter one of the largest — the Domitilla Catacomb (Catacomb di Santa Domitilla) — with skip-the-line access. Head below ground with your guide to discover what lies beneath the Eternal City, including wall paintings and a 12th-century church.
Finally, visit the last site of your walking tour, Basilica of San Clemente, which is made up of three structures from the 12th centuries built on top of one another. Skip the entrance line outside and go straight in with your guide to take in the different eras of Roman history and see Renaissance frescoes and mosaics. Your tour ends here, where you may stay on your own to explore more, if you wish.