We will be in Rome on a Saturday in July and are told by Context Rome that the Vatical closes at 1345 that day. Since we have no alternative, we are looking at a personally guided tour by CR, beginning at 0815. What should we expect in terms of lines (we are told that there are no advance ticket sales)? Are there any tricks to avoid congestion? I assume that CR would know them, but if there are nuances, I'd like to be aware. Thanks. Gradyghost

Hi
There wll be a line, but they are suggesting that you join them in that line well before the museums actually open. I trust CR implicitly.

Hello Elaine:

That's exactly what CR suggested. They said that they can be orienting us while we are in line. Good advice, and having read your posts, I trust you implicitly. I will forget about any end runs. Thanks. Gradyghost

We were there the end of November 2004. Got in a long line about 1/2 before it opened. Once they opened the doors the line moved very quickly and only took about 10 minutes before we bought our tickets and were through security.

I was amazed at how fast they moved that many people through the lines. Do not be intimidated by the site of the line. Although that said, remember this was in November.

Just be patient, no matter how long the wait, it will be worth it. Loved Rome.

Karl

Though the wait is always worth it, the last time I went with a guide in Rome (which was 2 years ago) we reached the line for entry at around 9:00 am and it took an hour and a half to reach the door. The only good thing was that the guide gave us a wonderful briefing and almost ran out of things to say because the wait was so long.

The last time I was there in the morning, the people in line were talking out of turn, shooting spitballs, and yelling catcalls at nuns passing by. So, yes, the lines in the morning can be pretty bad.

gradyghost: I just went on this same tour with Context Rome in February on a Saturday morning. Although the line was long, it was very clear that the CR guide was very much in the know and the time we spent on line was not wasted. Once the doors opened the line went very quickly and our guide was very adept at moving our small group throughout all of Vatican/St. Peter's without getting caught up in the crush. Plus we didn't have to wear caps, or follow an umbrella/flag - it felt like we were getting a private tour and we knew from the beginning that we would be well taken care of. Can't wait to return to Rome and take more of their tours - they'll spoil you for choice!

Obviously, you don't have any other option that to go on a Saturday. For others, my advice is to go around lunch hour any day but Saturday or Monday. The cab driver bringing us from the airport to the hotel on Sat. morning drove us by the Vatican and the line was horrendous. I had never seen such a long line at the Vatican. He suggested that we go during the week, around lunch time. We went on a Thursday around 1:30 and there was NOBODY there buying tickets in front of us! We bought the tickets and walked right in!Unbelievable!

I read that the Vatican museum is free the last Sunday of the month, which we will be there May 29. Has anyone tried to go on the free day? Would the lines be so long that we should just wait until a weekday around lunch hour?

We arrived according to suggestions about an hour before it opened. The line was unbelievable. Of course it didn't move at all for the hour until it opened, then maybe another half hour or more to get in, so one and a half hours in all. When we came out we noticed the line was about the same length as when we got in it in the morning, so logically those people would only be waiting about a half hour to get in, not an hour and a half. I really question the logic of standing in a non-moving line for an extra hour. I'm not sure there is another time of day when you'd stand in line as long as we did arriving an hour before they opened.

For all of you who don't want to wait in line in Rome, Venice or Florence for the museums, sights, etc. have you ever considered using a booking service to reserve all your tickets at once, so you won't have to stand in any lines?

There's a website called "www.weekendaroma.com" that my friends in Brussels use all the time for Italy (they're using it to reserve all their museum tickets for their upcoming trip to Rome) and who really like it. No standing in lines, just pick up your tickets at the desk. There is a booking fee, however, but if you don't mind that, you can book as many tickets to as many sights that you want, and then pay for them all in one lump sum.

Due to a miscalculation, we got to the museum around 10:30AM on a weekday. Waited in line about an hour but it kept moving. Entertained the whole time by beggars (one lady slipping off her scarf to show her "scalped scalp" looked like a piece of pizza on her head) and adolescents playing music.

ttt

Spygirl - I've never seen tickets that could be booked in advance for the Vatican Museums so I checked the website you named. They didn't have advance tickets either or at least I couldn't find them. There were tickets available for some other museums but not the Vatican.

I thought that one of the advantages to booking a tour of the vatican (with either a private company or with the vatican) was that you wouldn't have to wait in line. Some posters here have said they got to go right past the line with their tour guide. Do only certain companies have this privilege or what explains this?

When I had pre-booked a tour with one of the Vatican Museum's own guides, I showed my letter to the line guard, and he let me go right in. Then I waited inside, in front of the Groups window, for the tour to start.

The downside was that the tour was very unsatisfactory, at least in my experience. The guide spoke incomprehensible English in a low voice
and those of us in the group kept asking each other "What did she say?"
She dashed us through in about 90 minutes, though after lunch in the cafeteria I went back to a couple of rooms (including the S Chapel) on my own.
Next time, it's either the audio guide (I've heard it's quite good) or Context Rome, for sure.

Elaine, wouldn't it be worth it during the summer just to get in to the Vatican without a long wait (with kids) in line? Could you have ditched the tour guide once inside?

You know, I never thought about it.
My admission ticket was for a guided tour, so I don't know if they would have let me past the admission police without being part of the group. Leaving the group once inside, is another story, perhaps I could have just silently faded away on my own. I don't recall if I had to be wearing some sort of coded admission tag on my clothes or not, the way some museums handle it.
Maybe others can recall the protocol.

OUr first Vatican visit, we were in line about 40 minutes before it opened. We were about 20th in line and went directly to the chapel. When we got there, there was maybe a dozen people in it. It felt like we had it to ourselves...until the tour groups entered. Last Dec. we got in line about 10am and it had to have been 2 miles long. (it seemed that way) but the good thing is that the line moves fast. When we got to the chapel though it was packed. I'd get in line early and head directly to the chapel.