annettetx

I've been reading the posts about booking tickets for the "Last Supper," but I'm still not sure I understand the best way to reserve tickets.

This is what I think I understand:
There is one official site to book tickets, which is:
http://www.cenacolovinciano.org/english/index.html

Then there are a couple of companies that will book tickets for you; and they are:
http://www.initaly.com/regions/artists/lastsupp.htm
http://www.tickitaly.com/tickets/las...oked-tours.php

Or, you can ask your hotel to book tickets for you.

Am I correct about the way to book tickets?
Is one of the online sites better than another?
The Ticket Italy site offers a "guaranteed availability tour with an English language tour for 28E. This is about 20E more than buying a ticket through the official website. Does this tour add a lot to the experience, or should we just rent an audio guide when we're there?

Thanks for your advice! We're only going to be in Milan for one afternoon, so I want to follow the most sure way of getting tickets.

Annette

eli297

hi, definetely it is better to rent a guide, the ticket can be booked on the web site and htere is very limited spaces avaiable,i would rather go to duomo instead. have fun in milan

kybourbon

You can book a guided tour from the official site for 3.25e (+entrance fee)but they are at certain times during the day.

For individual visitors not in a group you can attend a guided tour from Tuesday to Sunday at 10.00 a.m and 4.00 p.m in Italian and in English at 9.30 a.m and 3.30 p.m.
Guided tours are available in Italian, English, French, German and Spanish:
Guided tours for individual visitors: € 3,25 per person.

http://www.cenacolovinciano.org/engl...idattiche.html

dina4

First of all, book now!
Believe it or not, I booked my Last Supper reservation 3 weeks ago for June 28th, and the pickins were slim that day! I was shocked how quickly those tickets get booked up and was so grateful I thought to try in mid-January!!

I booked through the website which you first mention. I did not do the guided tour. I thought we could read up in our guide books before we went or bring it along. I thought they might even have audio guides you can purchase on the spot. not sure, though.

annettetx

Thanks for the answers!

The official website hasn't opened up any dates after 6/30/2008 yet, but I'll be checking every day!

We're just going to have one afternoon/evening in Milan (last at Malpensa airport at 11 in the morning, and need to take a train to Genoa the next morning).

Do you think that is enough time to see the Last Supper and the Duomo? My son really wants to see the Last Supper, and the pictures I've seen on Flickr from the top of the Duomo are stunning! I'm hoping we can work both in.

Annette

dina4

From what i read, they only let you view the Last Supper for 15 minutes, then the boot you out.

It seems to me you'll have time to both!

I noticed you can book late afternoon/early evening reservations for the last supper.

asalamy

I'm interest to make a trip to Milan next month but there don't appear to be tickets available to the Last Supper for the day I'm after. There are tickets for the Saturday, but that's when I was hoping to take a day trip to Bergamo. Two questions:

1) Is the Last Supper worth it (I know that's a personal question)? I understand you have to travel a bit to get to it, and you can only view it for 15 minutes

2) If Bergamo is an hour away by train, what is the minimum time required to explore the town ... would 5 hours be enough or is that really rushing things?

Thanks -

asalamy

ttt

asalamy

Thought I would try this one more time - any one have opinions on The Last Supper and/or Bergamo?

jay

We booked through the world is mine and got the time we wanted. I couldn't understand how to book on the cenacolovinciano site and ticket italy had no times available. The world is mine was very easy to use and they got right back to me.

Lexma90

After a handful of trips to Italy, including several flying into Malpensa, we actually visited Milan for the first time during our last trip there, in October.

We took the train from Venice, arrived in Milan at about 1 pm, had time to go to our hotel, check in, grab something to eat on the way from Peck, the gourmet food emporium, catch the Metro, and be at the Last Supper location in plenty of time - we had reservations for 3 pm. (Actually, we were there a few minutes later than the 30 minutes or so that you're instructed to be there ahead of time, but nobody seemed to care.)

I am very glad I went. I'm a big admirer or Michelangelo, and have sceptically read The Da Vinci Code, so I had interest in both the appearance and content of the painting. It was bigger than I imagined, and even though it's still faded, you can still see a lot of detail. It's an incredibly beautiful piece of art! Nobody kicked us out, even after the next group arrived. (I put attribute that to the common, in my experience, Italian handling of the letter of the law vs. reality). We were inside, at the most, 25 minutes. Yes, to me it was worth it. I would say that my travel companions, not so much into art and history as I am, also greatly appreciated it.

After visiting the Last Supper, it was such a beautiful day that we walked from there over to the Duomo. As I recall, we sat and had drinks at a nearby cafe, then visited the Duomo, including the roofs. (Or maybe we visited the Duomo first.) We had plenty of time to fit that all in in one afternoon.

As for deciding between The Last Supper and Bergamo, that is a very individual decision. Are you very interested in art and painting? Do you seek out art in other cities? If so, then maybe choose The Last Supper (there are also some other nice works at other galleries in the city, which you could visit with the rest of your time). Or are you more interested in people-watching and enjoying the architectur of small cities? If so, then maybe Bergamo. (I haven't been there, but we were considering visiting on our last trip, so I researched Bergamo - it sounds lovely!) If I were you, I'd go ahead and get the Last Supper reservation - as I recall, you don't have to pay until you pick up your tickets. Then make your decision that morning, based on your mood and what the weather is like!

asalamy

Thank you very much - that was most helpful. I'm not overly in to art, but I do try to expand my horizons when opportunities exist.