Walks of Italy

Walks of Italy is a tour company with its Rome base on Viale Giuseppe Mazzini in Prati, and it says it has served more than a million guests since 2009. Its Rome programme covers the city's big-ticket sights with an emphasis on special access and good timing, alongside food tours, cooking classes and day trips, and it offers both small-group and private versions of most tours.

The Vatican is a core focus. The Pristine Sistine Early Entrance tour enters the Vatican Museums before the general opening, giving a chance to see the Sistine Chapel with fewer people, and there is a Complete Vatican Tour, a shorter express version and visits combining the museums with St Peter's Basilica. At the Colosseum, options include a premium guided tour with the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill, an arena floor tour that enters through the Gladiator's Gate, a tour adding the restricted areas of the Palatine palaces, and a private VIP tour of the underground passages.

Beyond the ancient sites, the Rome Underground tour visits the catacombs, the Appian Way and the aqueducts, and the Rome in a Day tour combines the Vatican, the Colosseum and the historic centre in about seven and a half hours. Food lovers can choose a Trastevere food and wine tour at sunset, a Testaccio market food tour, pasta and pizza-making classes, and a family cooking class for children. Day trips go to Pompeii and the Amalfi Coast, and there are two-day trips to Florence and Tuscany and to the Amalfi Coast.

Small-group sizes vary by tour, from 12 on food tours to between 16 and 20 on Colosseum and Vatican tours, while private tours are for up to six people. Book early for the Vatican's first-entry slots and the Colosseum's underground and arena tours, which sell out weeks ahead in busy months. Check the cancellation policy on the website before booking, and arrive at the meeting point in good time, as timed entries at the sites cannot be moved.

The tours suit first-time visitors who want context and good access, families who prefer a guide to keep children engaged, and food lovers. Comfortable shoes are essential, and modest dress is required for Vatican tours. Meeting points vary by tour and are sent with the booking confirmation; the company's office is at Viale Giuseppe Mazzini 88, near Lepanto metro station.