It's commonly believed that no first-time trip to Rome would be complete without a visit to the Sistine Chapel. It's the crown jewel of the Vatican City (besides the Pope, of course), and arguably one of the world's most famous and treasured works of art. To visit one of Michelangelo's masterpieces, visitors must push past other tourists (up to 30,000 people visit the Sistine Chapel and Vatican Museums a day—that's 6 million a year) hoping to take in The Creation of Adam or crane their necks to get a glimpse of The Last Supper.
But if you could pay a couple thousand dollars to take in the majestic body of work all by yourself, would you? True Luxury Travel is betting on it: The luxury travel company has just announced a new offering that invites visitors to explore one of the world's most famous buildings all by themselves for $5,558 per person.
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Beginning at 6 a.m., visitors will accompany the Vatican's clavigero, or official key keeper, as he performs the sacred ritual of unlocking the 300 gates to the museum with a ring of antique keys and switches on the lights to the grand Sistine Chapel. It's perhaps the most exquisite way to experience some of the most important works in art history: alone in a peaceful near-silence—a luxury that has been enjoyed by only a select few people throughout history.
The visit also gives access to the Upper Galleries and the Pius-Clementine Museum, which includes beautiful frescoed spaces like the Raphael Rooms and the passage through the Immaculate Conception and Sobieski Rooms. An art historian who has been personally appointed by the Vatican City State will lead the tours, explaining the history and significance of Michelangelo's chefs d'oeuvre. The Sistine Chapel was completed in 1512, and is home to an array of other monumental works by Renaissance masters like Pietro Perugino, Sandro Botticelli, and Domenico Ghirlandaio, to name a few.
