Vatican visit - shortcut to St. Peter's Basilica through Sistine chapel
Jul 28th, 2015, 06:01 PM
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Vatican visit - shortcut to St. Peter's Basilica through Sistine chapel
I am visiting Rome next week and am planning to visit vatican museums and St. Peter Basilica.I will buy vatican museums ticket online on the official web site. I have read that there is a shortcut to St. Peter's Basilica through Sistine chapel . It marked for only for groups, but is otherwise not regulated.
I have read that people visiting individually(not part of group) have used this shortcut to get into the basilica thereby skipping the line outside St. Peter's. Some of these posts I saw are fairly old.
I want to know , if it is still possible to use this shortcut when not part of a group.
Is it a hit or miss or does it always work? Has anyone recently used this?
Based on whether or not I can use the shortcut , i have to decide whether to visit part of group or on my own.
I have read that people visiting individually(not part of group) have used this shortcut to get into the basilica thereby skipping the line outside St. Peter's. Some of these posts I saw are fairly old.
I want to know , if it is still possible to use this shortcut when not part of a group.
Is it a hit or miss or does it always work? Has anyone recently used this?
Based on whether or not I can use the shortcut , i have to decide whether to visit part of group or on my own.
Jul 28th, 2015, 06:28 PM
#2
My experience, several years ago, was that as part of a group we were cut loose in the Sistine Chapel to proceed on own into St. Peter's. So I was alone when I exited through the door in the opposite corner from the entrance to the chapel, made a turn to the left, then right and walked past the front of the line right into the basilica. I can't imagine how they'd know if you were part of a group or not. Nor do I know how else you would get from the chapel to St. Peter's, except through that door. I think you'll be fine.
Jul 28th, 2015, 08:37 PM
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The bad news is that the argument for using the short cut isn't that you avoid the security queues at St Peter's: they're an irritant, but never seem to take more than a couple of minutes.
The walk within the Vatican Palace (http://mv.vatican.va/1_CommonFiles/p...i_vaticani.pdf) back to the exit - just a few yards from the main entrance - and the subsequent walk round the outside of its walls back to St Peter's Square, though, between them can easily take 45 mins. The trek's a serious timetable-buster - and on a hot day, yet another potential way of nackering yourself for other sightseeing.
The route to the exit within the palace isn't back the way you've come: it takes you through even more galleries. Few of us have the mental energy to take much of them in, though.
The walk within the Vatican Palace (http://mv.vatican.va/1_CommonFiles/p...i_vaticani.pdf) back to the exit - just a few yards from the main entrance - and the subsequent walk round the outside of its walls back to St Peter's Square, though, between them can easily take 45 mins. The trek's a serious timetable-buster - and on a hot day, yet another potential way of nackering yourself for other sightseeing.
The route to the exit within the palace isn't back the way you've come: it takes you through even more galleries. Few of us have the mental energy to take much of them in, though.
