Enjoy an official, English guided tour through the Papal Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore.

Together with an expert guide, you will discover one of the most important Papal Basilicas in Rome, the one where the first Christmas Eve's mass has been celebrated. For centuries, Popes have gone to the Basilica keeping this custom. The legend tells that Giovanni, a rich, but childless Roman patrician, decided with his wife to dedicate a church to the Virgin Mary, appeared in their dreams. A miracle would have shown the site where to build the church. Pope Liberius had also the same dream and, on the following day, went to the Esquiline to find the hill covered with snow. The miracle of the snow is still commemorated on August 5, every year, with a special celebration involving white petals that, getting released into the air from the top of the Basilica, create a truly evocative and must-see effect.

This guided tour's complete itinerary will include: the Papal Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, the Benediction Loggia, the Room of the Popes, Bernini's Staircase and the Historic Liberian Museum.