Basilica di San Giovanni in Laterano: Guided Tour + Cloister

Start the visit at the Lateran Apostolic Palace, built by Pope Sixtus V Peretti in the late 1500s on the site of the ancient Patriarchate, the Pope’s main residence for centuries. Walk through the palace staircase to enter Saint John Lateran Basilica, the first Christian church in the West, built after the Edict of Constantine in 313 A.D. It’s often called the “mother and head of all the churches of Rome and the world.” Conclude in the Cloister to the left of the basilica, a standout example of medieval Roman art. Once a place of prayer and meditation for the clergy, it’s now a quiet space for visitors.