Scavi tour 11am what should we do before or after?
 

We just received confirmation for an 11am Scavi Tour, I'm wondering how best to plan the rest of the day, should we plan to tour the Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel after at 1pm? Would we have time to do anything before the 11am tour? My husband and I are in our 50's and active if that helps.

We have only 4 days in Rome and want to take advantage of every day, this is our first visit Italy and Europe for that matter.

Your help would be most appreciated

You could visit the nearby Castello before the Scavi tour, and then wander the area in front of St. Peter's, take in the architecture and variety of tourists. There's no need to arrive at the Scavi office more than 5-10 minutes before 11:00 a.m. The guards won't let you in any earlier.

My answer depends somewhat on where you are staying in Rome and how early you like to get up. When we were in Rome last year, my husband and I really enjoyed getting up quite early and walking while our teenage son slept in.
We were staying near the Campo de Fiori so one morning spent time at the market there and in the Piazza Farnese and along Via Giulia before circling back to our apartment in the ghetto neighborhood. It would be easy to extend this walk across the Tiber to the Vatican.

Other ideas:
You could visit the interior of St. Peter's and admire the Piazza before the Scavi tour.

Lines at the Vatican museums tend to be fairly short around 1 p.m. (or at least they were last year before the new extended hours) so you might want to go to the museums then.

Castel Sant'Angelo would be another option in the afternoon. I don't think you would have enough time for that before your tour.

Our family really enjoyed taking a trip up the Janiculum (Gianicolo) after visiting the Vatican museums. There is a spectacular view out over the city from the Piazzale Garibaldi, and you can catch a bus (or taxi) from near the Vatican to the top and walk down into Trastevere.

After I posted my suggestion I thought to check your name for other posts, and it looks as though you are staying at the Hotel Lancelot near the Colosseum. In that case the walk to Campo de Fiori etc. before the Scavi tour is probably not such a great option. I would recommend trying to see that part of the city on another morning during the hours for the open air market, though.

Thank you vttraveer and Jean...thoses are great suggestions, we have changed our hotel to the Residenza Canali in the Piazza Navona area after reading the many recommendations on Fodors about that excellent location. It seems the best use of our time to see the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel after the Scavi tour, I just wasn't sure is that would be way to much to take in, as some have suggested, but with such little time in this great city we wanted to make the most of our time if doable...

I think you will be happy with the location of the Residenza Canali

I do think the Scavi tour plus Vatican museums will seem like a lot in one day. We broke up our time in the VAtican into two days (and went to the Vatican area another evening to meet friends for dinner) but we were staying in Rome for 8 nights. The #23 bus trip from our apartment to the Vatican really didn't take long.
The museums have an incredible collection in addition to the Sistine Chapel and Raphael rooms so it is hard to choose what to see.

I would probably have breakfast at a cafe somewhere and then visit St. Peters before the tour. If you get there early enough you can beat all the crowds. The Basilica is breathtakingly beautiful but so much more enjoyable without all the crowds. We got there at approximately 8:00 am a few years ago, before our 9:15 scavi tour, and had the place almost to ourselves. Of course this was also in December.

Castel Sant Angelo is nearby and can easily be visited before your tour, as it doesn't take too long.

Best wishes,
Tracy

We stayed at the Residenza Canali last year, and it's an easy walk to the St. Peter's area. You'd have plenty of time to see the Castel Sant'Angelo before your tour.

Have a great time!

bookmarking

I think we will visit the CastelSant' Angelo before our Scavi tour at 11am then the Vatican and Sistine Chapel after. I know it will be a full day, but we want to make the most of our time. Thanks everyone for your great suggestions!

St Peter's Basilica and the Piazza is a good place to spend an hour ahead of the Scavi tour. You can walk over via the Ponte di Angeli and see a nice bit of old Rome before you start. We dont get the appeal of Castel San Angelo.

Make sure you get a good lunch,or at least some coffee, sitting down, before you dive into the Vatican Museum, if you choose to do that afterward. The Scavi tour is fascinating and not too challenging but St. Peter's and the museum are both major sites that take lots out of you in terms of crowds and sheer size,

Re-reading I guess I would take a bus or the Metro over to the Vatican area (Ottaviano) - its a little far to walk ahead of a day of touring.

Between the Ottaviano Station and the Vatican Museum is a good pizzeria open at lunchtime
http://www.isoladellapizza.com/pagine/disclaimer.html
after a pizza or coffee decide whether you want to tackle that museum the same day. I think its potentially doable.

I wanted to clarify that when I said you wouldn't have time for Castel Sant'Angelo before the Scavi tour I was thinking you would want to spend more than an hour. Other people seem to think an hour or so is enough time so if you get there when it opens you could fit it in before St. Peter's.

You can walk across the Ponte Sant' Angelo to admire Bernini's sculptures. I don't think the metro would help you at all from your hotel to the Vatican. The central city is mostly served by buses.