Help with Sistine Chapel debate
 

My mother-in-law has been to the Vatican museums several times and swears she has never gotten in tho the Sistine Chapel because there was always a huge line and she didn't want to wait. (That's a whole other issue) I haven't read anything, anywhere to confirm this. For those of you that have been, do you have to cue up to get into the Chapel? What the heck is she talking about?

TIA!
Allison (1 week away from Italy!)

Patience is a virtue! Even if the queue is long it is worth every minute of the wait. Hard to think that one would travel to Rome, visit the Vatican and then skip the Sistine Chapel because the wait was "too long".

I've gone several times in the afternoon and never had to wait very long. I have seen long lines in the morning, but they seemed to move fairly quickly.

I guess that means your Mother-in-Law was right about there being lines to get in..and sometimes once you DO get in the place can be so jammed that periodically an "official" yells out, "Silenzio" to the masses.
If you get as far as the line then I think it would be worth the wait to get in, probably so you can report back to your Mother-in-Law and improve your relationship with her even more.
Have a great trip.

We didn't have much of a line during the first week of March.10 minutes maybe. However it is quite a hike through the rest of the museum before you get to the Sistine Chapel. I was surprised at how long it took just to get there. There is plenty to look at on the way, but I don't remember it being such a trek in 1976.

I've been to the Sistine Chapel twice in the last few years. Both times in the afternoon and there hasn't been a line to get in. There were many people in the chapel but we walked right in.

I have been to the Vatican Museums twice in the past two years. The first time there was no line to get into the museum and no line to get into the Sistine Chapel. The second time there was a long line to go through security to get into the museum, but the line moved fairly quickly; there was also a line to get into the Sistine Chapel but it was not a long wait at all.

The museum is set up so that the entrance is at one end of the complex and the Sistine Chapel is at the far end of it next to St. Peter's. Once you have waited to get into the museum and traversed the entire length of the museum, it would be really silly to avoid the short wait for the Sistine Chapel.

I was in Rome during lent this month, it was very busy and had no problem getting into the chapel. The chapel was packed and had no room to move, but no line to get in. I guess it just depends on what time of the day you go.

Hint: If the line is too long, you can find tour groups in the front of the museum that will get you in without having to wait. We picked up a tour that was an additional 10e and very informative.

Thanks for clearing that up. I have no idea why she wouldn't have waited in the line. To me the Sistine Chapel is what it's all about! Seems crazy to walk 4 miles and then bow out. I'll be waiting if there's a line, that's for sure!!

Thanks for your quick responses!!