Just returned from a 10 day trip to Italy (will post a trip report when I can see straight again). Just a bit of info for you if you have reservations to go on the Scavi tour. When they say that it is humid, hot and cramped down below, they mean it! We went on a pleasant day, but it was still very hot. I could feel my jeans getting damp.

If you are not a good hiker, get short of breath, have bad legs, overweight, etc, do not go. One poor woman, who obviously should not have been on the tour in the first place, was finished before we got started. Her poor husband and son had to support her (with much difficulty) the entire tour. She missed out on viewing some of the wonderful areas because she could not go into the smaller viewing areas.

Wear comfortable shoes, with a good (rubber) sole and lightweight clothes. If you're a book nut like me, buy the official Scavi book before the tour, since it is only located in the office. My sis and I had to flash our smiles and tickets to the Swiss Guard in order to go back to the office and buy the books, and even then, I think he only let us go back because he had just started his stint at the gate.

Enjoy! It was truely a privelege to get to see and hear all about this fascinating place.

Yes, it's very humid. They also tell you not to touch or lean against anything which is difficult. Standing in one position in a narrow area can be much more tiring than walking around.

Yup, my back started to ache after about 30 minutes. But, IMHO, the pain was well worth it. In our tour, we had 2 monks and a priest. This was great because they were able to translate some of the Latin. The priest also offered up a very nice prayer at the conclusion of the tour.

It was also nice to be able to skip the loooooong line of people waiting to get into the Basilica.

Where did the tour exit this time? We exited into the grotto, but the inside stairs up to St. Peter's were roped off (perhaps because of an ongoing mass) and we had to go back outside, past the Scavi office and up the outside stairs on the left front of St. Peter's (but still within security area so we didn't have to go through security).

Did your GTG happen?

We were able to exit up the stairs, directly into the Basilica.

No, the meeting didn't happen. Guess I have to refine my "party planning" skills a bit better.

We were on the Scavi tour a few years ago in May. I found it very pleasant - they had controls for the humidity and were very strict about the number of persons per tour and the number of tours per day. We did not find it a strenuous tour at all and we are seniors. Perhaps the weather was warmer during the time you were there than it was in May. The day we went on the tour was a rainy day - we could not take our umbrellas or raincoats with us on the tour.

When I did the Scavi tour, there were a few larger people and a teenage boy on crutches and everyone did fine (I don't think he was completely non-weightbearing).

That was in early January though, which makes a difference heat wise.

It was humid in the tombs and if I remember correctly the guide said they have to maintain the original air and temperature conditions as closely as possible in order to preserve things.