Vatican
 

How does one get tickets to see the Vatican ? I can't seem to find this info. What time would you arrive ? (opens 0845-1645) Going in April. Thanks so much ...

HI
You get tickets by waiting in what is often a very long line. Most people suggest getting in line early. I had a letter from my local diocese for a reserved Vatican tour (and I am not Catholic), so I was able to skip the line and wait for the tour inside.
The English of the Vatican guide was largely incomprehensible.

There is a public Papal Audience at St Peters on Wednesdays at 11am. It is possible that the line for the Vatican museum might not be as long during that time period but that cuts into your time in the museums.

We went early and stood in line. It moved very fast as many of the people were with tour groups and they went to different ticket lines than we did. Although we did wait for 20-30 minutes, going early did pay off as the museum will only more and more crowded later in the day.
If I were going again I'd get to the line by 8am. I stood in line with the kids and my husband found a cafe/store/bakery and brought us food as we stood inline. Perhaps not the thing for some people, but it was a good way to pass the time and we didn't "lose" time eating breakfast. I would not eat many meals this way EVER, but we really wanted to get into the museum as early as possible.
We were there in October- perhapss some one who was there in April (a more crowded period) could better answer the best time to get in line.

Hi
We just returned from Rome yesterday. I think I figured it out. We did not not take a tour but rather used our guidebook, that however is not the solution, I am thinking of. We went in January, on the day that they had their first snow in 4 yrs. There were no lines however there were many tourists though not near as many as during the tourist season. this was the first time we went in mid winter and we thought it was great. The city is much less touristed, hotels offer discounts. You can see whatever you want, go into most restaurants with few tourists and mostly locals. It really was great. We walked right into St. Peters, had about a 5 minute wait for the Sistine Chapel, and visited some of the other museums in the Vatican. They also have a couple of good reasonably priced caffeterias and a pizzeria.
alan

When we went in early September of last year, we arrived slightly before noon and it took us only eight minutes to stroll in, purchase our tickets, and pass through the turnstiles. Maybe we were very lucky, or maybe it just proves that the early bird doesn't always get the worm...

With friends we went an hour before opening. The line was already very long. We waited the hour, of course, before the line started moving then maybe another 25 minutes to get in. When we came out, my friends remarked that the line was still just as long. Yea, but people getting in it then would only have to wait 25 minutes total as it was already moving, unlike us who waited an hour and 25 minutes.

If I had it to over again, I wouldn't arrive before opening, as it only means you have to wait that much longer in line before it even starts moving! I've met people who proudly say they arrived two hours ahead of opening and were the first ones in -- yea, big deal. They still stood in line two hours. What's the point?

So many people have said that the line is long to get into the museum of the vatican.. when i went about a week ago i just walked right in and got my tickets and went inside.. no wait whatsoever, not even a line.. weird... maybe i was just lucky i got there about 1045 am... good luck =)

I have been three times, and only once was there a queue of about 10 minutes. Last time we went in November, during the papal audience, and there was no line at all. We were with a guide, but she said that guides can't bypass the line at the Vatican.

Whenever you decide to go, make sure you rent one of the audio guides. It's outstanding....the best one I've ever experienced at a museum anywhere.

Note that the comments about minimal or no lines were at times like January and November. If like many of us you go in the busy summer months, you can indeed expect waits. Marcielee, I'd expect all of April will also be very busy -- particularly close to Easter.

We went in May and the line was LONG!!! We did have reserved tickets and a tour that we did on line at italyselect.com or selectitaly.com (I can't remember the correct name...) We walked right up to the front and waited for our english tour to begin. We had limited time in Rome (only 2 full days) so paying more money not to wait was valuable to us. The tour was good too. It showed us the basics and ended right before the Sistine Chapel so we could go in and view the chapel on our own. I hope this helps. Also...I don't remember what day we were there for sure (I think it was on a weekend though) but the Sistine Chapel closed early (I think at 1pm) so we only had 20 minutes to enjoy it. This information was not listed in my tour books. Try to look into that before so you aren't rushed like we were.

Good luck!
Maria

We went on a Wednesday in late May and stood in line for quite some time. We were trying to see Rome in a day so we went through quickly once we got in. When we left, we noticed that the line was minimal when we left. I am guessing everyone thinks being there early is best.

Rent the audio tour - you can understand it, go at your own speed - definitely worth it.

We are going back this May so we'll see how it goes this time.

This is one sure thing that won't get in the Vatican museums for sure:


<a href="http://mercury.walagata.com/w/bigfeat/roma50.jpg"; target="_blank">Dress to Impress</a>

Sorry - here it is again

http://mercury.walagata.com/w/bigfeat/roma50.jpg

Wish this site would allow some form of web coding. ;)

Another little know tour of the Vatican is the one of the Vatican Necropolis. This was excavated in the years before WWII to discover if St. Peter was really buried there. You must have a reservation to see this. Send an email to [email protected] to request a reservation. The fee is not much. You can find out more information on this at this excellent site run by the American Catholic Church in Rome: http://www.santasusanna.org/popeVatican/museums.html

There's lots of info in the archives on the necropolis visit. Just type <scavi> into the search box at the top of the page. The tour was one of the highlights of our trip to Rome. Don't miss it.