are there vatican tours on sunday

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Can you tour the Vatican on Sundays?

Home / Blog / Can you tour the Vatican on Sundays?

When organizing a trip to Rome, any tourist would be remiss if they didn’t pay the Vatican City a visit. Regardless of your religious views, the Vatican has a plethora of unique experiences to offer, from St. Peter’s Basilica (the biggest church in the world) to the countless art pieces stored in the Vatican Museum’s extensive collection.

Every week hundreds of thousands of tourists flock to this miniscule city-state to see living, breathing history and immerse themselves in the heart of civilization.  While the Sistine Chapel may be beautiful, the crowds can be suffocating, so it’s important to carefully plan your trip to the Vatican to avoid swimming in a sea of people. 

This guide will walk you through the best day to visit Vatican city so that your experience is peaceful and seamless. We’ll also discuss what day the Vatican is closed and the closing time of the Vatican Museums . 

Let’s dive right in! 

Can you visit the Vatican on Sunday?

Given its religious importance, Sunday is a popular time to visit the Vatican. Unsurprisingly, Vatican City is more than busy on Sundays , its bustling crowds making it almost impossible to maneuver around the city. Thousands of tourists and believers gather in St. Peter’s Square throughout the morning to get a glimpse of the Pope’s public Sunday Mass. 

Luckily, this means that on Sundays, along with every other day of the week, you can just walk into the Vatican to see the Pope’s Sunday mass or visit St. Peter’s Basilica! These experiences are completely free of charge and won’t require you to fill out any paperwork, even though you’re technically entering another state to attend them. 

However, because Sundays are so significant in the Catholic church, you can expect your Sunday at the Vatican to move more slowly as there will be large crowds and long lines. That said, this is a small price to pay for the unique experience to see the Pope preach and be immersed in this timeless city state on its holiest day. 

While strolling around Vatican City and St. Peter’s Basilica are uniquely marvelous experiences, there’s more to the holy city, such as its precious heritage from an architectural and artistic point of view . 

Is the Vatican Basilica open on Sundays?

Yes, the Vatican Basilica is open on Sunday. 

As the Pope hosts Mass each Sunday in St. Peter’s Basilica, the Vatican Basilica is open every Sunday. St. Peter’s Basilica is not only a popular tourist attraction, but also an active church used to host many important Catholic events throughout the year. 

You can visit the Vatican on Sunday whether you want to attend Mass as a believer or simply marvel at its splendid collection of statues and frescoes. 

Are the Vatican Museums open on a Sunday?

No, the Vatican Museums are closed on Sundays, except for the last Sunday of each month.  While visitors usually have to pay a fee to enter the Vatican Museums, the last Sunday of each month presents a unique opportunity to see the church’s vast collection of art for completely free! 

To visit the Vatican museum free of charge, simply show up anytime from 9 am to 12:30 pm and roam the museum halls until 2pm.  Naturally, this unique opportunity to see the Vatican Museums for free can attract thousands of people, tourists and locals alike. So, expect lengthy lines and tight crowds.

What is the best day of the week to visit the Vatican?

There’s nothing quite like walking through the historic halls of the Vatican with little to no few people surrounding you. If you too want to experience the holy city without the hustle and bustle of the crowds, it’s essential to find the best time to visit the Vatican City . 

What is the best time to visit the Vatican City?

The high tourist season in Rome is usually during the spring and summer months. So, if you want to skip lines and beat the crowds, it’s best to plan your visit to the Eternal City during the late autumn or winter months. 

This save you hours of waiting in the blistering sun to enter St. Peter’s Basilica. To ensure your day at the Vatican goes even more seamlessly, consider planning your visit during the week. Please note that St. Peter’s Basilica is closed Wednesday morning .

When does the Vatican Museum open?

As of now, the Vatican museum is open from Monday to Saturday, from 8 am to 7 pm. However, final entry is at 5 pm, so make sure you’re admitted to the museum before this time. 

From 1 March 2024, the Vatican Museum’s hours will be extended on Friday and Saturdays, admitting visitors until 6 pm and staying open until 8 pm.  As discussed, the Vatican Museum is usually closed on Sunday but is open the last Sunday of each month for free admission from 9 am to 2 pm, with final entry at 12:30 pm. 

However, the Vatican Museum will be closed on the Sunday of each month should this day coincide with the following holidays: 

• Easter Sunday 
• 29 June – St. Peter and Paul’s Day
• 25 December – Christmas Day
• 26 December – Feast of St. Stephen 
• 31 December – Feast of St. Sylvester

What day is the Vatican Museum closed?

While Rome may be eternal and open for exploration 24/7, the Vatican Museum is closed to the public on the following dates: 

• Sundays (except for the last Sunday of each month, given it doesn’t fall on a holiday)
• 1 January – New Years
• 6 January – The Epiphany
• 19 March – Saint Joseph’s Day 
• 1 April – East Monday
• 1 May – Labor Day 
• 14 and 15 August – Ferragosto 
• 1 November – All Saints’ Day

When is St. Peter’s Basilica closed?

St. Peter’s Basilica still holds importance in modern-day Catholicism. Thus, it’s closed Wednesday mornings until 12 to 1 pm. During this time, the basilica hosts the Papal audience and Pope, and is temporarily closed to the public.

What to know before visiting the Vatican?

Millions of eager tourists visit the Vatican every year. To ensure your trip is as seamless and pleasant as possible, it’s essential to meticulously plan your day in the holy city. 

If you want a Vatican experience tailored to you, consider booking one of our exquisite Vatican tours which include: 

• Reserved access to St. Peter’s Basilica and/or the Vatican Museums;
• Pre-booked tickets, saving you the hassle of waiting in lengthy queues;
• The possibility of visiting the museums early in the morning, allowing you to avoid crowds and foster a serene experience;
• A knowledgeable, English-speaking guide who will offer unique insights into the Vatican’s art, history, and architecture;
• The unique experience of witnessing the Vatican’s dedicated clavigero unlocking the museum’s doors, opening it to the public.

Planning your trip to the Vatican can be daunting. Let us tailor a custom experience for you so you can experience all the Vatican has to offer with no lines, fewer crowds, and less stress. 

Vatican Early Morning Clavigero Tour

Early Bird at the Vatican with Breakfast | Private

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Italy Travel Experts Tours and Vacations

How To Visit the Vatican City: Tickets, Hours, Tours, and More

Sean Finelli Last Updated: August 28, 2023

Did you know that approximately 19,000 people visit the Vatican every day? It can get hectic inside these museums, but there are some ways to get around the crowds. We’ll explain everything you need to know to visit Vatican City from how to get tickets to when to go, the best Vatican tours to take, and more .

Pro Tip:  Planning can be tough, but it’s easier to organize your trip when you have all your resources in one place. Create a browser folder and bookmark this post along with our dedicated guide to planning your visit to the Vatican , where you’ll find everything you need. Also, check out our article on the  best Vatican tours .

Visiting the Vatican City: What We’ll Cover

Vatican City is the seat of the Roman Catholic Church and the smallest independent country in the world. No matter your religious affiliation, it welcomes all who want to visit—around 19,000 people per day! It is home to some of the greatest works of art in the world.

Visiting the Vatican is an unforgettable experience not only for lovers of art but also of history, culture, and architecture. In this guide, you’ll find information on how to visit Vatican City, the Sistine Chapel, St. Peter’s Basilica, and more. Here’s what we’ll cover:

• Facts and History of the Vatican City
• Opening hours and tickets
• How long to budget for your visit
• How to get to Vatican City
• What to see at Vatican City
• Guided tour options
• Visiting the Vatican with kids
• Where To Eat Nearby and Inside

Facts and History of Vatican City

Constantine’s Vatican 

The early establishment of the Vatican began with Constantine’s St. Peter’s Basilica, which stood where the current Basilica stands today. Jesus gave Simon the name Peter when he first met him and said, “You’re the stone upon which I will build my church.” After Constantine legalized Christianity in A.D. 313 with the Edict of Milan, he quickly began building that church. For Constantine, Jesus would have been as old as George Washington is in relative history to us.

The Vatican’s Name

I have read many versions of how the Vatican got its name. The most likely is that the Etruscan society living in this area referred to it as Vatica   prior to Roman settlement. It was a marshy area called Ager Vaticanus. There are a lot of other theories which may well be correct. It is an old word with many possible roots.

The Leonine City

In A.D. 846, Pope Leo IV commissioned a 39-foot wall to be constructed around the old St. Peter’s Basilica and other areas used by the clergy as a protective measure. The Saracens attacked Rome and caused significant damage to St. Peter’s Basilica, which motivated the pope to build out defenses. The area, which was larger than the current Vatican City, was proclaimed the Leonine City and stayed that way for some time.

Sottopassaggio

In 1277, there was a half-mile-long underground passageway and wall that connected the papal residence adjacent to St. Peter’s Basilica to the Castel Sant’Angelo. This was a major fortification for the pope in case of attack.

Vatican Museums

The Vatican Museums have residents. You won’t see the pope walking around as you visit, but he’s there. The collection of art is a mix of ancient and Renaissance or Baroque. There is even a modern religious art section.

St. Peter’s Basilica and Tomb

The Basilica of St. Peter is basically the largest and most beautiful gravestone ever built. According to Vatican dogma, it was built on the grave of St. Peter, which you can visit with special Scavi tickets. The Basilica, built during the 16th and 17th centuries, was completed in 1615 with contributions by almost every great Italian artist.

Sovereignty

In 1870, Italy was unified under the leadership of Italian-American Giuseppe Garibaldi. The government of the newly-defined Italy allowed the pope to keep a small area under sovereignty. Pope Pius IX would not agree to the terms until 1929, when the Lateran Treaty was signed under Benito Mussolini, which granted the Vatican sovereignty. This sovereignty extends beyond the Vatican City to other churches, including the Basilica of St. John Lateran in Rome.

Not ready to book a tour? Find out if a Vatican tour is worth it .

Vatican Opening Hours and Tickets

Vatican Museum Ticket Prices:

• Adult (18+): €17
• Children (ages 6 – 18): €8
• Students (ages 19 – 26): €8
• Members of the clergy: €8

Be prepared to show proof of eligibility at the door. Without that, they’ll either make you pay more or disallow entrance without a refund. Tickets include access to the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel. If you are looking for solo-visit Vatican tickets , you can check our website for all types of entrance times to suit your preferences.

The Vatican Museum Hours:

• Monday to Saturday: 9 am to 6 pm (last entry at 4 pm).
• Extended Opening Hours: April 14th to 30th, Friday and Saturday, open until 10:30 pm (last entry 8:30 pm); May 5th to October 28th, Fridays open until 10:30 pm (last entry 8:30 pm), Saturdays open until 8 pm(last entry 6 pm).
• Closed: Sundays except for the last Sunday of every month, Jan 1st and 6th, Feb 11th, Apr 10th, May 1st, June 29th, Aug 15th and 16th, Nov 1st, Dec 8th, 25th, 26th, and 31st.
• Free the last Sunday of every month: 9 am – 2 pm (last entry 12:30 pm). Not recommended if you don’t like crowds.
• Most tour companies can enter at 8 am, an hour before it opens.
• The Tour Guy/The Roman Guy can enter as early as 7:30 am, before most tour companies.

St. Peter’s Basilica Ticket Prices:

• Free for all.
• Climbing the dome costs €8 if you take the stairs or €10 if you take the elevator. I recommend the elevator. Find out more about climbing St. Peter’s Dome .
• The Basilica of St. Peter is free to enter but does not include entry to the Sistine Chapel.

St. Peter’s Basilica Hours: 

• From April to September: 7 am – 7 pm
• From October to March: 7 am – 6:30 pm
• Closed Wednesday mornings for the papal audience

St. Peter’s Dome Climb Hours:

• From April to September: 7:30 am – 5 pm
• From October to March: 7:30 am – 5 pm

Tours: 

We sell top-rated Vatican tours  enjoyed by thousands of customers. The Vatican Museums is a bucket-list place you absolutely should visit at least once with a tour guide.

Vatican Dress Code:

To gain access, you’ll have to abide by the Vatican dress code. Cover your shoulders and avoid shorts and short dresses and skirts. We know that Rome gets hot in the summer, we suggest bringing a light scarf to wrap around yourself when you need to. Hats, food, and metal tools like knives and scissors are also not allowed.

How Long To Spend at Vatican City

Short Answer:  3 to 5 hours

This is a great question! The Vatican is an immense complex of artwork. You could spend a few hours inside and see a lot of art or you could spend 3 – 5 hours and really learn the history. It depends on your level of interest.

Most people visiting the Vatican for the first time, without an art-history background, will follow the signs for the Capella Sistina or Sistine Chapel until they get there, snap their photo, and leave. Our goal is to help you have a more enriching experience. Here is a proposed Itinerary:

• Spiral Staircase
• Pinecone Courtyard
• Pio Clementino Gallery
• Gallery of Candelabra, Tapestries, and Maps
• Raphael Rooms
• Sistine Chapel
• St. Peter’s Basilica

If you’re an art aficionado, also visit the Pinacoteca. Further on in this article, you’ll see a more comprehensive list of Vatican must-see artwork . If you’re going to go it alone, be well prepared. Check out our top things to see at the Vatican .

How To Get To Vatican City

Luckily, getting to Vatican City is really easy. Depending on your preferences, you can take the metro, a bus, catch a cab, or just walk.

Metro (about 20 minutes):

There are two metro stops located near the Vatican Museums entrance: Ottaviano and Cipro. These stops are located on the A-line (orange line). So, if you jump on near the Spanish Steps (Spagna) or Termini train station, make sure you catch the A-line going towards Battistini and get off at either Ottaviano or Cipro.

The entrance to the Vatican Museums is a 5-minute walk from either of these stops. Of course, you can also catch the A-line from many other stops, just check the Rome Metro schedule. You can buy tickets at the metro station or a corner store, but not from the driver.

Pro Tip:  Always budget an extra 10 to 20 minutes if you have a scheduled event like a Vatican Tour . This way you don’t have to rush and it’ll give you time for that quintessential morning espresso.  

Bus (about 20 minutes):

From the Termini train station, head outside and get on bus number 64. The bus ride will take about 20 minutes and your stop is the last one on the route: P.za Stazione S. Pietro. Getting to the Vatican Museums’ entrance is about a 15-minute walk from the bus station.

You can also take the number 81 bus from the Colosseum area (the bus stop is located right outside of the metro station—B-line). The 81 bus route ends in Piazza Risorgimento, which is a five-minute walk to the Vatican Museums’ entrance.

Taxi (depends on the departure point):

 A taxi ride should cost no more than €20 if you’re staying in the historic center of Rome. When you get in the taxi, tell the driver to take you to the Vatican Museums’ entrance, otherwise, they’ll probably take you to St. Peter’s Basilica.

The most typical way to get a taxi in Rome is to go to a taxi stand. These are located near every major tourist attraction. If you aren’t located near one, you can always order a coffee and pastry at a café and ask the people working there to call you one.

Walking (about 20 minutes):

You can easily walk to the Vatican Museums if you’re staying near Piazza Navona or in Campo de’ Fiori. Prati is also within walking distance. Technically, you can walk to the Vatican from basically anywhere in Rome, depending on your level of fitness.

It’s important to take into consideration that you’ll be on your feet for 3 hours or more as you visit the Vatican. I would recommend taking public transport because you’ll be on your feet plenty in Rome.

Pro Tip:  A neat trick for using your map app on your phone is to set your course while you’re on wifi on airplane mode. GPS will still show your location while you’re on airplane mode—it won’t reroute you if you go off the route but it will show you where you are.

Popular Vatican Tours

Best Selling Tour

Privileged Entrance Vatican Tour with Sistine Chapel

This our most popular and longest-running Vatican tour to date. It enters the Vatican Museums an hour before the general public and visits the Sistine Chapel before heading to St. Peter’s Basilica. Our English-speaking guides will amaze you with how they bring the museums to life!

Exclusive Value

Vatican Night Tour with Sistine Chapel

You’ve heard about the crowds at the Vatican, but did you know that the museums are almost empty in the evening? This night tour of the Vatican is perfect for those who prefer to explore Rome later at night. You’ll have 2 hours of a guided tour to key areas in the Vatican, plus the Sistine Chapel. And you’re welcome to stay on your own until the museums close at 10 pm!

What To See at Vatican City

This is a list of the top things to see at the Vatican—an excerpt from our much more elaborate mega-guide on the top things to see at the Vatican Museums written by a Vatican guide. Check it out for more in-depth descriptions, history, and images.

1. Spiral Staircase 

The staircase was built by the famous architect Giuseppe Momo in 1932. It was commissioned by Pope Pius XI and was to be created for the new entrance to the Vatican Museums.

2. The Terrace with a view of the Basilica and Vatican Gardens

3. the pinacoteca (for art lovers).

Pinacoteca means “painting gallery” in Italian and, considering that all the popes have historically been the main patron of the arts for centuries, they don’t disappoint. Be sure to see:

• Transfiguration (Raphael)
• The Annunciation (Raphael)
• Crowning of the Virgin (Raphael)
• St. Jerome (Da Vinci)
• St Matthew (Guido Reni)
• Deposition (Caravaggio)
• The Crucifixion of Saint Peter (Guido Reni)
• Martyrdom of St. Erasmus (Nicolas Poussin)
• Astronomical Observations (Donato Creti)
• Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden (Wenzel Peter)

4. The Pinecone Courtyard 

The pinecone courtyard is a massive courtyard that connects the main galleries leading to the Sistine Chapel with the Pio Clementino and Braccio Nuovo Galleries. Reports have been written of jousting tournaments and bullfights taking place under the Borgia Pope AlexanderVI in the 15th century and supposedly Pope Leo X housed his pet elephant, Hanno, here in the 16th century. Be sure to see:

• Colossal Statue of Augustus
• Sphere within a Sphere
• The Pinecone

5. The Pio Clementino Gallery 

The collection of classical statues you will see in these galleries was started at the beginning of the 16th century by Pope Julius II. The gallery is named, however, for popes from a much later date: Clement XIV(1769-1774) and Pius VI (1775-1799), who created the current galleries you’ll walk through. Much of the artwork here was taken by Napoleon and returned to the Museum after his defeat. Be sure to see:

• Apoxyomenos
• Apollo Belvedere
• Laocoön Group
• The Belvedere Torso
• The Bath of Nero
• Statue of Hercules in Bronze
• Sarcophagus of Saint Helena

6. The Candelabra Gallery 

As the name suggests, this gallery owes its name to the enormous marble candlesticks that you’ll find in each section as you walk down the hallway. The gallery was completely renovated during the pontificate of Pope Leo XIII Pecci (1878-1903), which is what you see today. It was meant to be built so that each piece is like a furnishing for the house. Be sure to see:

• Artemis of Ephesus
• Lapus Lazuli Mosaic
• The Persian Warrior

7. The Gallery of Tapestries

As you walk through the gallery, you will see tapestries on the right-hand side dedicated to stories of the life of the Barberini Pope Urban VIII (17th century). On the left-hand side, are stories from the Bible whose original drawings were executed by the school of Raphael, then woven in Flanders.

• Resurrection of Christ

8. The Gallery of the Maps 

By far one of the most over-the-top galleries as far as decor goes, this room is literally a gigantic mural with frescoes on both sides of maps depicting Italy. Pope Gregory XIII, also known as the calendar pope, commissioned this room to be painted so he could accurately study the lands in which he lived and the surrounding areas.

• The Grotesques
• The Ceiling
• Map of Sicily
• Map of Lazio
• Vatican Radio Station (Out of the window to your right)

9. Raphael Rooms

The four rooms known as the Raphael rooms were painted by Raphael and his students between 1508 and 1524. They were commissioned first by Pope Julius II (1503 to 1513), supposedly because he refused to live in the Borgia apartments on the floor below due to his hatred for the man. These rooms were also used by his successors, specifically Leo X the Medici Pope (1512-1521). Be sure to see:

• Room of Constantine
• Vision of the Cross
• Battle of Constantine against Maxentius
• The Victory of Christianity over Paganism (Ceiling)
• Room of Heliodorus
• Liberation of St.Peter
• Encounter of Leo the Great with Attila
• Room of the Segnatura
• The School of Athens
• Room of the Fire in the Borgo
• Fire in the Borgo

10. The Sistine Chapel

This chapel needs no introduction. Originally named Capella Magna (Great Chapel), it was restored by Pope Sixtus IV (pontiff from 1471 to 1484) in 1480. Sixtus IV had famous early Renaissance artists, who lived a generation before Michelangelo and Raphael, paint the fake draperies, the life of Moses and Christ (side walls), and the Pope (above the windows) Sixtus’ nephew. Julius II had Michelangelo paint the ceiling in 1508. Be sure to see:

• The Central Panels
• The Side Panels
• The Stories of Moses
• The Stories of Jesus
• The Last Judgment

11. St. Peter’s Basilica

For me personally, there is no church that compares in beauty. It is the ultimate expression of space, beauty, and monumental grandeur. It also happens to have an amazing history to it as well. When you’re there, be sure to see:

• La Baldacchino
• St. Peter’s Square

Vatican Tour Options

Not sure if a Vatican tour is worth it ? Beyond the explanations and local insight, a major advantage of a tour is that it provides you special access to many sites like St. Peter’s Basilica.

Without a tour guide, you will have to exit the Vatican Museums from the entrance where you came in, which means about a mile of additional walking. Many of our tours provide direct access from the Sistine Chapel to St. Peter’s Basilica. Here are our best Vatican tours:

Colosseum, Roman Forum & Vatican Highlights Combo Tour (8 hours)

This tour is for the art-history buff, visiting the majority of the Vatican Museums including the Pinacoteca, Sistine Chapel, and more. You’ll even have time in the Cabinet of Masks which is an area reserved specifically for guided tours. Your guide will share plenty of stories and information to engage and inspire even novice art lovers.

See tour itinerary, price, and description

Privileged Entrance Vatican Tour with Sistine Chapel (3.5 hours) 

This is our most popular Vatican tour. It covers all the must-see sights for visitors including the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter’s Basilica. It’s good for art lovers and anyone that wants to see a ton but doesn’t want to be too mentally exhausted by the end of the visit. A major benefit of this tour is that we have an 8 am entrance time, which is an hour prior to general admission and gets you in when it’s less crowded.

Skip the Line Vatican Tour with Sistine Chapel (3 hours)  

This is a great low-price Vatican tour that covers most of the main attractions including the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter’s Basilica. It features a large selection of start times throughout the day, so you can fit your visit into the rest of your plans. The price is also hard to beat from a top-quality tour company.

Exclusive After Hours Sistine Chapel Tour with Aperitivo (3.5 hours)

If you want to see the main sites and understand them but don’t want to get caught up in every detail, this is for you. We have an 8 am option that beats the crowds, along with other start times. It’s a small group tour and great value that’s also our fastest way to see the best of the Vatican Museums.

Not ready to book a tour? Check out our  best Vatican tours to take and why.

Visiting the Vatican With Kids

If you want to visit the Vatican Museums with your kids, you’re in luck. The museums are happy to welcome families with children and strollers in tow.

As you explore the collections, there are also plenty of restrooms with changing tables and places to sit and rest. There’s even a private room for mothers to nurse in complete privacy. For a more private experience truly geared toward a younger audience, consider our family-friendly Vatican tour .

Popular Rome Tours

Best-Selling Tour

Rome in a Day Tour with Colosseum and Vatican Museums

Our “in a day” tour is best way to get your bearings all in one day. Visit the Sistine Chapel, Colosseum, Trevi Fountain, and more with a licensed, fun English-speaking tour guide. They’ll add tons of insights and make the entire experience so much more memorable. Also, you’ll get a feel for the city, so it’s a great option on one of your first days in Rome. Bring your walking shoes and water bottle!

Best Price!

Skip the Line Vatican Tour with Sistine Chapel

One of our most popular Vatican tours since it is such an amazing value. Skip the line to get inside with a super-knowledgeable, English-speaking guide who will bring the museum to life with stories of the artists, popes, conspiracy, love, and even tragedy! This tour has start times throughout the day so you can choose when to visit based on your schedule!

Not ready to book a tour? Check out our  best Rome tours to take and why .

Places To Eat Inside and Nearby

Like all great Italian museums, you can get coffee and food inside the Vatican Museums. Here are a few recommendations for getting a bite to eat and some refreshments inside and nearby the Vatican.

Inside the Vatican

Caffetteria Centrale : €€ | Coffee Shop —With sub-par reviews that you would expect in a cafeteria-style eatery, this coffee shop and light eatery will get the job done if you want to spend more than 4 or 5 hours inside the Vatican Museums. To find it, look for signs near the Pinacoteca.

Bar: €€ | Quick Snacks —There is a small bar for coffee and pastries located near the Sistine Chapel. Look for the signs as you get close.

St. Peter’s Dome Bar: €€ | Coffee Shop —Yep, you can get coffee on top of St. Peter’s Dome. There is a little bar open basically whenever they want to be open. But if it’s open, stop for a coffee and enjoy the view.

Near the Vatican

Hostaria Dino e Toni : € | Roman Restaurant —Somehow this owner-operated and authentic Roman restaurant has yet to get touristy. They make good food with relatively friendly service, and they may just order for you. Come here for pizza, pasta, and apps.

200 Gradi : €€ | Sandwich Shop —Have a big day of sightseeing planned after your Vatican visit? This sandwich shop is perfect. You can get really tasty to-go sandwiches or sit down inside. Super reasonably priced.

La Zanzara : €€ | Bistro —A bit more cool and trendy with a modern spin on Italian classics, this place feels like a French bistro but the food is definitely Italian. It’s great for a cocktail and sit-down lunch.

Where To Stay in Rome

Rome has a rich cultural history and many iconic landmarks to explore. Plan where to stay in the magnificent Eternal City in the best neighborhoods.

Reader Interactions

Comments (16).

March 6, 2019

It’s best to visit this enthralling withing the country charm

March 8, 2019

Hey Eric! Thanks for reading our blog. We’re so glad you enjoyed reading!

June 5, 2019

It was great reading your blog, very nicely executed. You obviously put a lot of effort into it. Keep it up!

June 6, 2019

Grazie! We’re so glad to hear that you enjoy the blog. Come to Rome soon and join us on tour !

July 11, 2019

I, being a native of Italy, wasn’t aware of these facts and the way it has been stated is interesting as well as hugely informative. Thanks for the post man… Would be waiting in for more.

July 12, 2019

Ciao Daniel! We’re thrilled to hear that you enjoyed reading this post. We offer tons of useful content on travel in Italy! Check out another one of our useful Vatican blogs here, about our best Vatican tours .

September 19, 2019

Thank you for this informative post! With regards to your Vatican tours, which tour will be the one to get the most out of Vatican City? Solo traveler by the way. Looking forward to hearing from you soon!

September 20, 2019

Ciao Darryl! Thanks for checking out our blog. For the most in-depth Vatican City experience, I recommend our Complete Vatican Combo Tour with Sistine Chapel & Dome Climb . This climbs St. Peter’s Dome and provides an excellent skip the line Vatican tour. Hope this helps!

September 29, 2019

Thank your these tips Tawny. Very helpful and detailed. I will definitely look up in your travel guide and tours next time I come in Rome.

October 1, 2019

Ciao Sophia! Thanks for reading our blog! Happy to supply helpful information to you. We’d love to welcome you on tour when you come to Rome!

October 6, 2019

Hello, We have planned a day visit to Rome on 25th Dec. Please suggest if all attractions will be open that day especially the St. Peter’s basilica and the Vatican museum.

October 11, 2019

Ciao Anu! The Vatican Museums are closed on Christmas. We recommend visiting the Vatican a different day during your stay.

December 10, 2019

Hello! It was great reading your blog, very nicely executed. You obviously put a lot of effort into it. Keep it up! Thanks

January 13, 2020

My daughter and I are going to our first trip to the Vatican this summer. I wanted to find out if there is a mandatory dress code when visiting. In our country, for example, women in trousers and bare-headed cannot go to Orthodox churches. Thanks for such detailed details.

January 21, 2020

Hi Tori! Thanks for reading. Yes, there is a dress code – knees and shoulders must be covered.

April 19, 2020

The Tour Guy always does a great job. Had a trip planned for the Vatican this week but of course it was cancelled due to COVID-19. Anyways, this made it feel like I still went.

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Can I Visit the Vatican on Sundays?

Another big question I always get: can I visit the Vatican on Sundays?

Well, like most things in life, the answer to visiting the Vatican on Sunday is yes and no .

Let’s figure out whether it’s possible to visit the Vatican on Sundays or not.

Before starting, I would also like to suggest some passes with their main differences for visiting the city of Rome

Can I Visit the Vatican on Sunday?

If you’re planning a trip to Rome and hoping to visit the Vatican and the Vatican Museums , you might be wondering whether it’s possible to visit on Sundays.

As we know, Sundays are significant days for Catholics, with special religious observances taking place at the Vatican, including the Angelus prayer and the Papal Mass.

Furthermore, this unique world attraction it has its own set of unique rules to follow .

That said, I assume when you mean ‘Vatican’ you’re talking about the Vatican Museums.

This is home to most of the best things to see at the Vatican including an extensive collection of art and artifacts and the famous Sistine Chapel.

The Vatican Museums are closed to the public on Sundays except the last Sunday of every month (9:00 am to 2:00 pm).

This is to allow for the Papal Mass and other religious observances.

I strongly suggest visiting another day as the last Sunday of the month has enormous lines – it’s also strongly recommended to book online in advance to avoid lines.

If you don’t do it you could end up spending an hour in line.

While the Vatican Museums are closed on Sundays, St. Peter’s Basilica, the iconic and breathtaking church within the Vatican City, remains open to the public.

Visitors can still access St. Peter’s Basilica on Sundays and attend the Papal Mass held in the basilica’s main square, St. Peter’s Square.

The Papal Mass is a significant event for Catholics and draws crowds of devout worshippers and tourists alike.

Attending the Papal Mass on Sundays can be a unique and memorable experience for visitors to Rome. However, it’s important to plan ahead and follow the dress code guidelines of the Vatican .

🎟️ Looking to buy? Read my post: Where to Buy Tickets for the Vatican

In addition to St. Peter’s Basilica, visitors can also explore the stunning Vatican Gardens on Sundays . The Vatican Gardens are a lush and peaceful oasis within the Vatican City, with beautifully landscaped lawns, colorful flowers, and ancient statues.

Guided tours of the Vatican Gardens are available on non-Sundays, offering visitors a unique opportunity to enjoy the tranquility and natural beauty of this hidden gem.

👍  Pro tip :  Best Days to Visit the Vatican

Still Wanting to Visit the Vatican on a Sunday?

I’m only going to suggest you visit the Vatican on a Sunday if it’s the only day you can do it, or if you’re there for religious purposes – I mean, how can you beat seeing the Pope?

At any rate, make sure you book your smart phone tickets in advance or you could end up lining up for hours.

Anything else about the Vatican on Sundays? Write me in the comments below.

You might be interested in:

Rome is a city rich in history and culture, and there are many attractions to visit. However, the lines for the most popular attractions can be long and daunting, especially during the peak season. If you are looking for a way to avoid the queues and visit the attractions of Rome at the last minute, […]

The Vatican Sunday Mass is a religious and cultural event of great importance for Catholics around the world. It is a solemn celebration that takes place in St. Peter’s Basilica, the seat of the Catholic Church. If you are a Catholic or are simply interested in Catholic culture, I encourage you to attend this celebration. […]

As you prepare for your upcoming visit to the Vatican, it’s important to be aware of the Vatican dress code requirements. The Vatican is a religious site and holds significant spiritual and cultural importance, and adhering to the dress code is a sign of respect. In this blog post, we will provide you with essential […]

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Finding the Universe

Travel tales, photography and a dash of humor

Visiting the Vatican in Rome 2024: A Detailed Guide to Help you Plan Your Visit

Last updated: March 25, 2024 . Written by Laurence Norah - 2 Comments

If you are planning to visit Rome, then we think a trip to the Vatican is a must. This is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the city, and one we have been lucky enough to visit several times over the past 20 years.

There is a huge amount to see and do at the Vatican, as well as many options for visiting and purchasing tickets for the various attractions at the Vatican.

It can be a bit overwhelming trying to figure out how to visit, as well as what to see and do when you visit the Vatican.

In this guide we’re going to share with you everything you need to know to plan your visit, from the best time to visit, to how to skip the lines, to the highlights you must not miss when you visit.

We’ll also tell you the best places to get Vatican tickets, share some of our favourite guided tours, share practical information for your visit, and much more. Once you’re finished reading, you’ll be fully prepared for your Vatican visit!

Let’s start with an overview of the Vatican.

What is the Vatican?

The Vatican, or Vatican City, is an independent city-state found within the city of Rome, Italy. It is the headquarters of the Roman Catholic Church and is home to and ruled by the Pope.

Vatican City is also the location of a number of popular attractions, including the Vatican Museums, St. Peter’s Basilica, St. Peter’s Square, and the Sistine Chapel. It is both a pilgrimage site for Catholics as well as a place that appeals to all types of visitors interested in the architecture and world-class art that is found within the museums and churches here.

It’s worth noting that when people talk about “the Vatican”, they are normally referring to either Vatican City or the Vatican Museums within, which can be a bit confusing.

For clarity, this guide will cover all the attractions inside Vatican City which includes the Vatican Museums.

An Overview of the Vatican

The Vatican (formally the Vatican City State) was established in 1929 at the signing of the Lateran Treaty, which helped resolve a long-running issue concerning the power of the Pope in Italy.

It is named after Vatican Hill, where it is located, which is one of the traditional seven hills of Rome. The name “Vatican” dates back to Roman times.

Vatican City is 49 hectares (121 acres) in size, with a population of under 500 people.

The Vatican is ruled by and home to the Pope, who is both the bishop of Rome and head of the Catholic Church. The Pope lives in the Papal Apartments in the Apostolic Palace, also known as the Vatican Palace and the Palace of Sixtus V in honor of the Pope who oversaw the majority of its construction.

As well as the Papal Apartments, the huge Apostolic Palace is also home to the Vatican Museums, the Vatican Library, the Sistine Chapel, the Raphael Rooms, and the Borgia Apartments.

The other main sight in the Vatican is St. Peter’s Basilica and St. Peter’s Square. St. Peter’s Basilica is the largest church in the world and an architectural masterpiece, and the square in front is also very impressive.

About half of Vatican City is taken up by the Vatican Gardens, a large private garden area which is home to a number of buildings such as the Vatican Radio building and the Palace of the Governorate.

Many areas of the Vatican, such as the Vatican Museums and St. Peter’s Basilica, are open to the public and can be visited. Other areas, such as the private apartments of the Pope, are not open to visitors. In this guide we’ll cover all the areas of the Vatican and your options for visiting them.

Where is the Vatican?

The Vatican, or Vatican City, is within the city of Rome, Italy. In fact, Rome entirely surrounds the Vatican City. It is located to the west of the Tiber River. You can see it on Google Maps here .

How to get to the Vatican

Found in Rome, the Vatican is relatively easy to get to. Just bear in mind that the Vatican covers an area of around 49 hectares (121 acres), so you will want to plan accordingly depending on which part of the Vatican you wish to visit.

For example, the access to the Vatican Museums is at the north side of Vatican City ( here on Google Maps ), whilst St. Peter’s Basilica is towards the south of the city ( here on Google Maps ).

There are a number of options for reaching the Vatican. These include walking, the metro, taking a public bus, taxi, or the hop on hop off sightseeing bus.

First, it is relatively easy to walk here. From Piazza Navona for example it is 20 minutes’ walk to St. Peter’s Basilica, or 30 minutes’ walk to the Vatican Museums entrance.

The closest metro station to the Vatican is Ottaviano, which is a 7-minute walk to the Vatican Museums entrance or a 10-minute walk to St. Peter’s Basilica. Ottaviano is on the red line, which connects you to locations such as the Spanish Steps and Rome’s Termini station (where you can transfer to the blue line for the Colosseum for example).

Numerous public bus routes also pass by the Vatican from all over the city. It is also easy to take a taxi or use a ride-sharing app to get to the Vatican. Just be sure to specify exactly where you intend to go in the Vatican so they can drop you at the closest drop-off point.

Finally, a number of hop on hop off buses in Rome include the Vatican as one of their stops, so if you are using one of these services this is also an option.

If you have an attraction pass such as the Omnia Vatican and Rome Card , many of these include either a public transit card or sightseeing bus that you could use to visit the Vatican.

Vatican Opening Times

The Vatican is a country but here are no gates or security controls to cross from Rome to Vatican City, and you probably won’t even notice when you do. So you can visit it whenever you want although most indoor attractions are only open during the daytime.

A number of the attractions within the city-state do have specific opening times, which are as follows.

Vatican Museum Opening Times

The Vatican Museum is usually open as follows:

• Monday – Saturday 8am – 7pm (last entry at 5pm)

From 1st March 2024, there are extended opening hours on Fridays and Saturdays, until 8pm (final entry 6pm).

The Vatican Museum is closed on Sundays with the exception of the last Sunday of the month when it is open from 9am – 2pm (last entry 12.30pm). On these days entry is free.

In addition, the Vatican Museum is also closed on the following days in 2024:

1st & 6th January, 19th March, 1st April, 1st May, 29th June, 14th & 15th August, 1st November, 8th, 25th and 26th December.

For more information on opening times and closing times, see the official website here . Note that there are multiple sites with information on the Vatican Museums, but the only official site is https://www.museivaticani.va/ .

St. Peter’s Basilica Opening Times

St. Peter’s Basilica is usually open as follows:

• 1st October – 31st March: 7am – 6.30pm
• 1st April – 30th September: 7am – 7pm

Note that this is a working church and mass is regularly celebrated here. Access is normally not restricted during these times but you should be aware when it is going on and behave respectfully.

In addition, when the Pope is in Rome there is normally a Papal Audience held on a Wednesday. This is normally held in St. Peter’s Square outside of St. Peter’s Basilica in the morning from around 9am. On these days, access to St. Peter’s Basilica is normally not allowed until the audience is complete. See more about attending a Papal Audience in that section of this guide.

For more information on opening times and visiting St. Peter’s Basilica, see the official webpage from the Vatican here .

What to see and do at the Vatican

There is a huge amount to see and do at the Vatican, at least enough to spend at least half a day here if not a whole day.

Here are the main sights you can take in when you visit Vatican City.

Vatican Museums

A definite highlight when visiting Vatican City are the Vatican Museums. These are found within the Apostolic Palace, and are the main public museum of the Vatican City.

The collection, which includes a rather staggering 70,000 pieces (of which around 20,000 are on display at any one time), was founded in the early 16th century.

Today, the collection spans seven kilometers across a number of galleries. and includes paintings, sculptures, religious artifacts, and tapestries. Art from some of the world’s greatest artists is on display, including Raphael, Michelangelo, Bernini, Van Gogh, and Picasso. It’s one of the most visited museums in the world.

As you will have noticed, the Vatican Museums are plural. This is because this is not just one museum. In fact, there are 26 museums listed as being contained with the Vatican Museums complex.

However, as a visitor you will likely just feel like you are visiting one giant museum that spans numerous galleries rather than 26 museums. If you’re feeling overwhelmed and wondering what to see, see the section of this guide covering our highlights of the Vatican Museums.

The Vatican Museums require a ticket, and you can see more about buying a ticket in our guide to tickets for the Vatican City sights elsewhere in this guide. You can buy a ticket on site, but the lines are very long and we highly recommend booking a ticket in advance.

If you have a limited time or are wanting to see the highlights in around 3 hours or less, we highly recommend considering a guided tour such as this one or this one .

We took tours on our first two visits to the Vatican and found them very helpful in seeing and learning about the most important pieces and rooms without being too overwhelmed. They all include a visit to the Sistine Chapel as well.

Sistine Chapel

The Sistine Chapel, or Capella Sistina , is a chapel located within the Apostolic Palace. It was built in the 15th century and named after Pope Sixtus IV. It is best known for the frescoes within, notably those done by Michelangelo (the ceiling and Last Judgement above the altar), which are often considered to be some of the best artistic work to come out of the Renaissance period.

The Sistine Chapel is also known as being where Popes are selected, in a process known as the Papal Conclave.

The Sistine Chapel has been drawing visitors for over 500 years, since Michelangelo completed his masterpieces, and is still a major attraction today.

The Sistine Chapel is found within the Apostolic Palace, and can only be visited when you visit the Vatican Museums. So to all intents and purposes it is a part of the Vatican Museums. However, it is technically separate, hence why tickets are sold as being for both the Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel. But all Vatican Museums tickets include entrance to both.

Entry to the Sistine Chapel is included as part of a Vatican Museums ticket, and you can also book tours which give you early access such as the Pristine Sistine tour and the more exclusive Key Master tour .

St. Peter’s Basilica

One of the most visually spectacular buildings in the Vatican is the Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican, more commonly known as St. Peter’s Basilica.

Its famous dome can be seen from around Rome, and a visit to this church is a must when visiting the Vatican.

Construction began in 1506, and the church was consecrated in 1626. It replaced the fourth century Old St. Peter’s Basilica, which was built by the Roman Emperor Constantine.

St. Peter’s Basilica is impressive for a number of reasons. First, for it’s incredible size. By volume, it is the largest church in the world and it has a footprint of almost six acres.

Second, its design. It was built during the Italian Renaissance period, with help from famous artists, designers, and architects such as Bramante, Michelangelo, and Bernini. It is widely regarded as one of the foremost examples of Renaissance architecture in the world.

Third, the interior. This is filled with priceless artworks from Renaissance masters, including Bernini and Michelangelo.

Finally, St. Peter’s Basilica has enormous significance to members of the Catholic faith. Whilst it is not the mother church of the Catholic faith, it is still regarded as one of the most important of Catholic shrines. 91 popes are buried here, and it is widely believed to be the final resting place of Saint Peter himself, the head of the apostles.

Suffice to say, we think a visit to St. Peter’s Basilica is a must when you visit the Vatican. Entry is free and you do not need a ticket to visit, although you can book a tour like this or this .

There’s also the option to visit the dome for a small extra fee. As with any holy place in Italy, it is important to adhere to the dress code as otherwise entry may be denied.

See our sections in this guide on dress code, tickets and tours for more information. This guide also has a detailed section covering the highlights of St. Peter’s Basilica that you won’t want to miss when you visit.

• St. Peter’s Square

Directly in front of St. Peter’s Basilica is St. Peter’s Square, a large plaza whose current design was created by Bernini in the mid 17th century.

The center of the plaza is dominated by a 25.5 meter (84ft) high ancient Egyptian obelisk which was brought from the city of Alexandria in Roman times and placed in its current location in 1586.

The plaza is surrounded and almost entirely enclosed by a series of massive Doric colonnades, four deep, with the design aiming to enclose and embrace visitors in the arms of the Mother Church.

There are also a pair of fountains in the plaza on either side of the obelisk, one designed by Bernini, and an earlier one designed by Maderno.

Overall, St. Peter’s Square is a hugely impressive foreground to St. Peter’s Basilica. It is also here where Papal Audiences are most regularly held, which was one of the reasons it was designed as it is, in order to hold large crowds and provide a good view of the Pope to visitors.

St. Peter’s Square is free to visit and open all the time. During Papal Audiences it can get very busy and some sections will be closed off.

• Vatican Gardens

Around half of the Vatican City is taken up by the Gardens of Vatican City, which date back to medieval times when the area was largely used for orchards and vineyards.

However, the more formal landscaped gardens that are visible today largely date to the beginning of the 16th century. Despite taking up a large part of the Vatican and being filled with beautiful sculptures and fountains, the gardens were not open to the public until 2014.

Today, it is only possible to visit the gardens as part of a guided tour. You can get a view of part of the gardens from various points whilst touring the Vatican Museums and from the top of the dome of St. Peter’s Basilica.

Vatican Grottoes

The present-day St. Peter’s Basilica, as previously described, was built atop a fourth century building known as the Basilica of Constantine.

That basilica was in turn built upon a Roman-era cemetery, or Necropolis, which we will cover in a separate section as it is visited separately. Rome, as you will quickly learn when you visit, is a city of many layers!

Construction of the new St. Peter’s Basilica did not completely destroy the old Basilica, which can still be visited today.

The parts of the Constantine Basilica which can be visited are generally known as the Vatican Grottoes, or Vatican Caves. It’s not quite an accurate name because what you are actually visiting is the original basilica, but that’s the name that is used.

The Vatican Grottoes are also sometimes called the Vatican Crypt and Catacombs.

Within the Vatican Grottoes you can see the ancient basilica, complete with chapels, funerary monuments and artworks. This is also where a great many popes are buried , along with some European Royalty, as they wanted to be near the final resting place of St. Peter.

Just note that St. Peter’s tomb is not actually in the Vatican Grottoes, it is in the Vatican Necropolis, which is below the Grottoes and accessed separately on a special tour. See the next section for details of that.

Access to the Vatican Grottoes is free, although tours which include it are available, like this one . The entrance to the Vatican Grottoes is inside St. Peter’s Basilica. It’s near the high altar at the Pier of St. Andrew. Note that there may be a line to visit the grottoes, and photography is not allowed in the grottoes.

• Vatican Necropolis

The Vatican Necropolis (literally, city of the dead) dates from the Roman Empire, and was built here because Roman law at the time decreed that the dead must be buried outside the city walls.

Much of the Vatican City was built on top of the Roman Necropolis, and it can be accessed in a number of different ways, depending on what you want to see.

The two main parts of the Necropolis that will be of interest to visitors are the Necropolis containing the tomb of St. Peter, the the Necropolis of the Via Triumphalis. We’ll cover visiting both of these.

Vatican Necropolis and The Tomb of St. Peter (Scavi)

In the 1940s, the Vatican set out to find the tomb of St. Peter, the apostle for whom St. Peter’s Basilica is named. He, along with many other Christians of the time, was martyred at the Circus of Nero.

This Circus was found essentially where the present-day St. Peter’s Basilica and St. Peter’s Square are situated.

There was a widely held belief that St. Peter was buried near the location of his martyrdom, and so the Vatican set out to discover this grave.

A number of mausoleums were discovered as part of the extensive Necropolis which is buried beneath the Vatican, and in 1968 the Pope announced that the tomb of Saint Peter had officially been discovered directly beneath the Vatican Grottoes and St. Peter’s Basilica.

Today, the area of the Necropolis underneath St. Peter’s Basilica is now widely known as the Scavi , which means excavation in Italian. It can be visited as part of a special guided tour.

The tour takes you under the Basilica (and the grottoes) and essentially back in time to an ancient Roman cemetery where you see the old mausoleums, as well as what is believed to be the final resting place of St. Peter.

Normally, as you exit the tour you also go through the Vatican Grottoes and then up into St. Peter’s Basilica itself, which is handy as it skips what can be lengthy lines to get into the Basilica.

This tour has very limited availability, and needs to be booked in advance. See the ticket section of this guide for information on how to book Vatican Necropolis tickets.

It is definitely a unique experience if you have the extra time, however there are only 250 spaces per day so you will want to book as far in advance as you can if this is of interest. We really enjoyed this tour when we did it and think it is well worth doing.

Note that to get access to the Necropolis tour you need to go to the far left of St. Peter’s Basilica as you face it, the entrance is in the columns to the left. It’s approximately here on Google Maps .

You have to go through security and you will need a printed copy of your ticket. If in doubt, I advise arriving early and asking a Swiss Guard for directions.

Necropolis of the Via Triumphalis

The other Necropolis that you can visit in the Vatican City is the Necropolis of the Via Trimphalis , which was discovered in 2003 and only fully opened to visitors in November 2023.

Note this is different from the visit to the Vatican Necropolis below St. Peter’s Basilica, although it is likely part of the same ancient Necropolis site.

Visiting the Necropolis of the Via Triumphalis requires a separate ticket purchase and they are not always available, check the official ticket site for options.

The entry to the Necropolis of the Via Triumphalis can be found in the walls of the Vatican Museum as you walk up towards the Vatican Museum entry, near Piazza Risogimento. The exact location is here on Google Maps .

Attend a Papal Audience

As the Vatican is home to the Pope, one reason many people come to visit is to actually see him. The best way to do that is to attend a Papal Audience, also known as a General Audience.

This isn’t a mass, instead, it’s basically an audience with the Pope. He normally gives a speech and says some prayers, and often gives out blessings.

The Papal Audience is free to attend, and is held on Wednesdays when the Pope is in residence. It is held either in front of St. Peter’s Basilica (during warmer times of year), or in the Paul VI audience hall (normally in the winter months and in times of bad weather).

It is absolutely vital that you get a ticket for the Papal Audience, as you cannot just show up. Tickets are free, and we have a detailed guide to getting them in the ticketing section of this guide.

The Papal Audience starts at 9am, however you will have to go through security, and seating is on a first come first served basis. There are also capacity limits, so even if you have a ticket, once the venue is full admission is closed.

As such, we recommend arriving between 7am and 7.30am to be sure of a good seat. In the busier summer months, it is recommended to arrive even earlier if you want a good view.

Note, you can also catch a glimpse of the Pope during the Sunday Blessing, or Angelus. When the Pope is in Rome he appears at his Papal Palace window at noon for around 15 minutes to bless those in St. Peter’s Square.

All you have to do is show up, no tickets are required for this event. It will be quite busy and it’s going to be a brief, distant view, but it is an option as well.

Attend Mass

Another popular option when visiting the Vatican is to attend mass.

The best place to do so is at St. Peter’s Basilica, where services are held multiple times a day. You can see the full schedule of services on this page . These services do not require booking, you just need to show up at the Basilica.

Depending on when you visit Rome, there is also the possibility to attend a Papal Mass, which is a mass led by the Pope. These are also known as Liturgical Celebrations.

A Papal Mass is a less regular event than a Papal Audience, normally held to celebrate a special event such as Christmas or Easter. They are held either inside St. Peter’s Basilica or on St. Peter’s Square. They may also be held in one of the other basilicas in Rome (you can see a list of these here ).

As with a Papal Audience, you need a ticket for a Papal Mass. These are also free.

The procedure for booking a Papal Mass is the same as for booking a Papal Audience. You can check when there are Papal Masses on this Vatican page for 2024 .

Note this page is normally updated around a month in advance, however for particularly popular masses (Easter and Christmas specifically) you will want to book as far in advance as possible. The dates may not be shown on the calendar, but there is normally a mass held on Palm Sunday, Easter Sunday, and on Christmas Eve.

Use the Post Office

The Vatican, as already mentioned, is a country unto itself. That means it has all the things you would expect to find in a country, including its own postal system .

There is a post office open to all found on St. Peter’s Square, and there is also one near the giftshop just before you exit the Vatican Museums.

If you are looking to send a postcard or mail from your trip, we think doing so from the Vatican post office is a great idea. Jess always send a postcard from the Vatican to her grandmother.

The stamps and postage mark are obviously unique, and in our experience anyway, the mail service is much more effective than the Italian postal system! Our international postcards mailed from the Vatican arrived weeks before the ones we mailed from Italy!

For everything you need to know about using the post office, including where to find them, buying stamps and more, see our detailed guide to the Vatican Post Office . You can find out more about the Vatican post office, including opening hours and tariffs, on the official website .

Highlights of the Vatican Museums

With 20,000 objects on display, you could literally spend weeks exploring the Vatican Museums collection. However, as you probably don’t have weeks, we’d recommend focusing on some of the highlights for your first visit.

Whilst there are countless highlights to choose from, and you can of course make your own selection, we’d recommend at least seeing the following when you visit. We would also recommend visiting the official site which has a list of masterpieces in each of the main museums.

We’d also honestly recommend taking a guided tour like one of these if you can, because there is so much to see and understand here, and a good guide can really bring what you are seeing to life.

See more on tours in the section on tours in this guide.

Below are some of our favourite parts of the Vatican Museums. These are all accessible with a standard ticket. There are other areas of the Vatican that we love that require a special ticket, like the Bramante staircase, but we wanted to focus on the general access areas for the highlights.

If you would like to plan a route before you visit, we suggest downloading the free Vatican Map from the official Vatican website here . This map is also available for free from the Vatican ticket office.

The Sistine Chapel is definitely one of the highlights of a visit to the Vatican Museums. This chapel, named for Pope Sixtux IV who had it commissioned, is world famous for its incredible frescoes.

The most famous of these frescoes are those painted on the ceiling, and the one above the altar. They were both created by the Renaissance master Michelangelo.

The frescoes on the ceiling depict the creation of Earth as told in the Book of Genesis. This story is told in nine panels, starting with The Separation of Light from Darkness and finishing with the Drunkenness of Noah . Perhaps the most famous of these is the Creation of Adam panel, which depicts God giving life to Adam.

The frescos above the altar depict the Last Judgement, essentially the Second Coming of Christ and the separation of sinners from the saved.

There is of course more to the Sistine Chapel than the incredible frescoes by Michaelangelo. The other walls are also all decorated, with artwork from Boticellii, Perugino and Ghirlandaio to name but a few. As you would expect, these also depict various religious scenes.

A visit to the Sistine Chapel is a must when visiting the Vatican. It is not a huge space but it does tend to get fairly crowded as the day goes on.

This is also one of the few places in the Vatican Museums where photography is strictly prohibited. We have seen people escorted out for violating this rule, so we’d suggest just enjoying the incredible art on display, and then if you want a memento, buy a postcard on your way out from the Vatican Gift Shop.

If you want a special experience of the Sistine Chapel with fewer people, then we recommend taking an early access tour.

We have done both the Pristine Sistine tour and the Key Master tour (see our Key Master Tour review here ), both of which get you into the Sistine Chapel earlier than normal for a more peaceful experience.

Gallery of Maps

One of my personal favourite attractions in the Vatican Museums is the Gallery of Maps , or Galleria delle carte geografiche.  This is located on the west side of the Belvedere Courtyard.

The Gallery of Maps is essentially a 120 metre long, six metre wide corridor. On the walls, 40 maps depict the main regions and cities of the Italian Peninsula.

These date from the 1580s and were painted by the friar and geographer Ignazio Dante at the request of Pope Gregory XIII.

He wanted to be able to “travel” to the different Italian states on the Italian peninsula (Italy was not a single country at that point) without actually have to leave the Vatican, and the incredibly detailed maps allowed him to do so.

A visit to the Gallery of Maps is always a highlight of our time in the Vatican Museums, and one we highly recommend.

The Borgia Apartment

The Borgia Apartment ( Appartamento Borgia ) is a series of six rooms in the Vatican Museums which were commissioned by Pope Alexander VI in the late 15th century. He was from the Borgia family, hence the name given to the apartments.

Alexander VI engaged the Italian painter Pinturicchio to decorate the six rooms with frescoes, which feature a range of subjects, from Old and New Testament scenes through to depictions of the planets.

Some of the frescoes also references notable events of the time, including what is believed to be one of the first depictions of a Native American in Europe. The frescoes were painted around the time that Columbus returned from the New World, and “The Resurrection” in the Room of Liberal Arts contains these depictions.

Alexander’s legacy as Pope was somewhat tarnished by his various affairs. In fact, the word Borgia became a common term for a lack of morals, corruption and nepotism.

After his fairly gruesome death (believed to be poisoning), the Borgia Apartments were sealed, and only re-opened and restored in the 19th century by Pope Leo XIII.

Today, the six apartments feature the original frescoes which have been restored. They also house part of the Vatican’s collection of contemporary art. They can now all be visited as part of a visit to the Vatican Museums.

Raphael’s Rooms

There are four rooms in the Vatican Museums which are together known as the Stanze di Raffaello , or Raphael’s Rooms .

These rooms were originally intended to be an apartment for Pope Julius II, with some suspecting the idea was to outdo the Borgia Apartment of Alexander VI.

Whatever the reason, he commissioned Raphael to create the frescoes in the early 16th century, starting with the library.

Unfortunately, Julius II died before they were completed, and in fact Raphael himself died in 1520 before all four rooms were completed in 1524.

However, Raphael did complete the majority of the work, with his students finishing the rest after his death.

Our favourite of the rooms was the first to be completed, which features “The School of Athens”, “The Parnassus” and the “Disputa”.

The School of Athens in particular is a highlight, and is widely regarded as one of Raphael’s best works. It has incredible perspective and there’s even a sneaky appearance by the artist himself, staring out at the viewer.

It’s definitely worth taking a tour like one of these to get the most from these paintings as there is a lot to unpack in just these four rooms!

The Pinacoteca / Vatican Art Gallery

The Pinacoteca , or Vatican Art Gallery, has been the home of some of the Vatican Museum’s most impressive art since it opened in 1932.

It’s essentially a mini art museum inside the Vatican, and you have to ensure you include it on a visit.

Across 18 rooms you will find over 400 works from some of Italy’s most well-known artists including Raphael, Caravaggio, Tiziano, Titian, and Da Vinci, to name but a few.

The museum was purpose-built to provide the best viewing conditions of the collection, whilst preserving them for future generations. It’s arranged chronologically, so as you move through the rooms you are essentially taking a tour through time from the 12th century Medieval period right up to the 19th century.

Obviously, 400 paintings are a lot, and you could honestly spend a big chunk of your time in the Vatican just exploring the Pinacoteca. But if you wanted to hone in on some highlights, consider:

• Giotto’s “ Stefaneschi Polyptych ” (Room II)
• Raphael’s “ The Transfiguration of Christ ” (Room VIII)
• “The Last Supper Tapestry” (Room VIII)
• Leonardo Da Vinci’s “ St. Jerome in the Desert ” (Room IX)
• Tiziano’s “ Madonna and Child in Glory with Saints ” (Room X)
• Caravaggio’s “ Deposition from the Cross ” (Room XII)

Of course, there are highlights in every room. The Vatican Museum websites list their highlights by room on the official Pinacoteca website here .

The Pio Clementino Museum

The Pio Clementine Museum (Museo Pio Clementino) is home to a collection of classical sculpture, and is where some of the first objects in the Vatican Museums were displayed. Pope Julius II used this area of the Vatican in the early 16th century to display a collection of antique sculptures.

There are many highlights in the Pio Clementino Museum, but some stand out rooms and sculptures not to miss include the following.

The Octagonal Court

The Octagonal Court is a stunning courtyard found in the Pio Clementino Museum. Many of the objects on display here are still in exactly the same place they were back in the early 1500s, including the Belvedere Apollo and the statue of Laocoön and His Sons.

The Belvedere Apollo is definitely not to be missed when you visit the Octagonal Court. Depicting the Greek god Apollo, it dates from around 120AD, and is widely regarded as being one of the greatest ancient sculptures.

The statue of Laocoön and His Sons is another must-see marble statue in the Octagonal Court. This one depicts the Trojan Priest Laocoön and his sons being attacked by sea serpents. It is believed to date from around 200BC, and was put on display in the Octagonal Courtyard in 1506.

The Round Hall

The Round Hall , also known as the Round Room, is, as the name suggests, a circular room. It was designed int he 18th century in homage to the circular Pantheon.

It’s hard to miss the highlight of this room, which is a massive red porphyry basin which dates to Imperial Rome. Around this enormous basin are niches displaying huge statues.

There is of course more to see in the Pio Clementino Museum, including the Gallery of Statues and the Hall of Busts, the Hall of Muses, and much more.

Gregorian Egyptian Museum

When you enter St. Peter’s Square, you will instantly notice the giant Ancient Egyptian Obelisk sitting at the centre. It’s fair to say that Imperial Rome was pretty obsessed with and influenced by Egypt.

To learn more about the relationship between Ancient Rome and Egypt, you’ll want to visit the Gregorian Egyptian Museum (Museo Gregoriano Egizio) in the Vatican. Spread across six rooms, this museum has everything from stone tablets to artefacts relating to death. Definitely worth a visit for those with an interest in Egyptology.

Carriage Pavilion

Founded in 1973, the Carriage Museum ( Padiglione delle Carrozze ) is one of the newer museums you can visit at the Vatican. It can also be a bit tricky to find, but it is marked on the map.

As the name suggests, it’s home to various modes of transport used by Popes from carriages to motorcars known as the Popemobiles. It’s not well-known and so makes for a welcome escape from the crowds!

Momo’s Double Spiral Staircase

Even the exit from the Vatican is going to be a highlight of your visit. Once you have finished with the gift shop you are going to head down the stunning double-helix staircase designed by Giuseppe Momo in 1932.

This is actually only one of two double-helix staircases in the Apostolic Palace. The other one was designed by Bramante in 1505. Both the original and the homage to the original by Momo are often referred to as the Bramante staircase, which can be a bit confusing.

The original Bramante staircase though is not normally open to the public.

Still, the 1932 version is absolutely stunning and you will definitely want to capture some images of it before and as you descend.

And now we are done with the highlights of the Vatican Museums! Let’s move on to St. Peter’s Basilica.

Highlights in St. Peter’s Basilica

As with the Vatican Museums, there is a lot to see and do in St. Peter’s Basilica. However, we do have some favourites that we recommend you include when you visit.

High Altar & Bernini’s Canopy (Baldachin)

The centrepiece of any church is normally the altar, and St. Peter’s Basilica is no exception. Whilst the basilica is home to at least 15 altars, the High Altar is naturally the most impressive.

This is situated directly underneath the dome of the basilica, and above what is said to be the resting place of St. Peter himself.

The most impressive part of the High Altar has to be the incredible sculpted bronze canopy (known as a Baldachin) designed by Bernini. This soars almost 100ft (30 metres) above the altar itself, with four helical columns presided over by four massive angels.

It’s hard to miss, and definitely something you will want to see in St. Peter’s Basilica.

Chair of St. Peter

The Chair of St. Peter, also known as the Throne of Saint Peter, is a wooden throne which is one of the more important relics in St. Peter’s Basilica.

The original wooden chair was believed to have belonged to St. Peter himself, and today it is displayed above the second major altar in the basilica, which is found in the apse of the basilica behind the main altar.

The chair is enclosed in a sculpted bronze encasing which was designed by Bernini, and which is itself an important artwork.

Michaelangelo’s Pietà

The Madonna della Pietà, often just referred to as La Pietà, is one of the many sculptures created by the Renaissance master Michaelangelo. It’s particularly noteworthy as it’s the only piece he ever signed.

It is also, of course, a masterpiece. The sculpture, which dates from the late 15th century, depicts the Virgin Mary holding the body of Jesus following his death. It is remarkably lifelike and beautifully detailed.

The Pieta is easy to find in Saint Peter’s Basilica, it is in the first chapel to the right as you enter the church.

The Vatican Grottoes (not to be confused with the Vatican Necropolis, both of which are under St. Peter’s Basilica) are where you will find the remains of the original 4th century Basilica. This stood until the 15th century, when the new Basilica was built.

You can visit the Vatican Grottoes for free as part of your visit to St. Peter’s Basilica, and it is well worth doing. This is where you can see sections of the original Basilica, as well as the graves of a great many Popes who were buried down here.

Access to the grottoes is near the high altar at the Pier of St. Andrew. Note that there may be a line to visit the grottoes, and photography is not allowed in the grottoes.

Pope Saint John Paul II’s grave

One of the most well-known Popes of the 20th century was Pope John Paul II, who because a Saint after his death. It is a popular place of pilgrimage, and can be found in St. Peter’s Basilica.

The Pope was originally buried in the Vatican Grottoes, however, following his canonization in 2011 his remains were moved to the Chapel of St. Sebastian.

This can be found on the right of the central nave in the basilica (as you are looking at the High Altar from the entrance), and is next to the niche where you will find Michelangelo’s Pieta.

Pope Saint John Paul II’s grave is under the altar in the Chapel of St. Sebastian, and there is a marble slab marking his grave with the inscription IOANNES PAVLVS PP. II.

Statue of Saint Peter

At many pilgrimage locations around the world you will find some sort of item that pilgrims wish to touch, usually in order to receive a blessing.

In St. Peter’s Basilica, that item is the 13th century Statue of Saint Peter. This bronze statue features St. Peter sitting on a marble chair, holding the keys of heaven in one hand and giving a blessing with the other hand.

Touching (or kissing) the feet of the Saint is a very popular tradition that has likely been going on for hundreds of years. It’s quite easy to find the Statue of St. Peter, it is by a pillar in the centre of the nave near the High Altar. There will also likely be a line of people queuing up to touch the foot of the statue.

Tomb of Pope Alexander VII

I think it is fair to say that Bernini did quite a lot of work in and around St. Peter’s Basilica! His last great work, designed when he was 80, is the monumental tomb of Pope Alexander VII.

This was commissioned by Pope Alexander VII, who unfortunately died around 11 years before it was actually completed and unveiled in 1678.

The monument itself is created from marble and has six main figures, including Alexander himself. There are then four female statues representing four virtues, Charity, Truth, Prudence and Justice. The last statue features Death holding an hourglass to represent the passing of time and of course mortality.

The monument is found in the south transept of St. Peter’s Basilica.

My personal favourite activity at St. Peter’s Basilica is the climb to the top of the dome. This does have a small fee, which you can pay on site, but the experience is very much worth it.

The dome climb has you climbing from the bottom of St. Peter’s Basilica right to the very top of the dome, from where you will get excellent views across St. Peter’s Square, the Vatican, and most of Rome.

If you are not feeling fit enough to tackle the 500+ steps, you can pay a little bit more to take the elevator. However, this still requires climbing quite a few steps.

We actually prefer the steps over the elevator, not because of the sense of accomplishment, but because the route takes you up through some fascinating parts of the basilica that you otherwise wouldn’t get to see.

And yes, there is a definite sense of accomplishment when you see the view having done all the steps!

Note that you have to pay on site for the dome climb unless you book a tour like this which includes a dome climb. For a long time this was cash only, however the last time we visited they accepted cash and credit cards. When we visited it cost €8 to climb the steps and €10 to take the elevator. The entrance is to the left of the Basilica as you face the entrance, and is well signposted.

Planning your Vatican Visit

We’ll now cover some important information to help you plan you visit to the Vatican City attractions.

Options for how to visit the Vatican

You have a number of options for visiting the Vatican City attractions. These are as follows:

• Turn up on the day without any tickets and purchase tickets in person (not recommended except at the quietest times of year)
• Book tickets directly or via third-party sites like GetYourGuide or Tiqets
• Book a guided tour with a walking tour company
• Use a Rome attraction pass which includes some of the attractions in the Vatican City

How Long to Visit the Vatican For

As you have probably noted by now, there is a lot to do and see at the Vatican. We’d recommend spending at least four hours here, which will allow you to see the highlights of the Vatican Museums and St. Peter’s Basilica, as well as the main outdoor spaces like St. Peter’s Square.

However, there is plenty to see, so you could easily spend all day here, or even multiple days! But four hours would be our recommended minimum.

Most people do not have days to see everything within Vatican City. So here are some ideas for what to prioritize depending on how much time you have:

Suggested Half Day Vatican Itinerary

If you have half a day to visit the Vatican, we’d suggest the following highlights:

• St. Peter’s Basilica, including the High Altar, Pieta, Statue of St. Peter and Tomb of Pope Alexander VII
• Vatican Museums, to include the Pio Clementino Museum, Gallery of Maps, Borgia Apartment, Raphael Rooms, Momo’s Double Spiral Staircase, Sistine Chapel and Pinacoteca

We would recommend either booking a tour which includes the above attractions like this one  or  this one .

If you would prefer to be self-guided, then we recommend visiting St. Peter’s Basilica first at opening time, and then booking timed entry for the Vatican Museums at opening time. This will ensure you don’t get caught up in the lines for St. Peter’s Basilica, which get longer as the day progresses. You also won’t have to stand in the ticket line for the Vatican Museums.

Suggested Full Day Vatican Itinerary

If you have a full day to visit the Vatican sights then you can take your time and have more of a leisurely experience.

In this case we’d probably recommend something like the following:

• St. Peter’s Basilica, including the High Altar, Pieta, Statue of St. Peter, Tomb of Pope Alexander VII, the Grottes and Dome. You may also consider advance booking a Necropolis Tour.
• Break for lunch / coffee
• Vatican Museum, to include the Pio Clementino Museum, Gallery of Maps, Borgia Apartment, Raphael Rooms, Momo’s Double Spiral Staircase, Vatican Historical Museum, Sistine Chapel and Pinacoteca

Again, you could look at booking tours of both of these attractions. Timing wise, this will depend a little on the time of year you visit. In the summer months the Vatican Museums can get very hot, so you might want to do this in the morning and then visit St. Peter’s Basilica in the afternoon.

Tips for Pilgrims & Seeing the Religious Highlights

If you are visiting the Vatican as a pilgrim, then you will likely want to prioritize the religious highlights of the Vatican City.

Our recommended activities would be:

• Attending mass at St. Peter’s Basilica
• Attending a Papal Audience or Sunday Blessing if the Pope is in residence
• Visiting St. Peter’s Basilica, including the Necropolis where St. Peter is buried
• Visiting the religious highlights in the Vatican Musuems, including the Vatican Historical Museum
• Visiting the museum gift shop which offers a number of religious items including rosaries and crucifixes.

You may also consider booking a specific tour which focuses more on the religious highlights and history of the Vatican attractions.

Can you Visit the Papal Apartments at the Vatican?

You cannot visit the private Papal Apartments where the current Pope lives. However, previous Popes have lived in different areas of the Apostolic Palace, and some of these areas can be visited as part of a visit to the Vatican Museums.

Two stand out locations in the Vatican Museum which were former Papal Apartments are the Raphael Rooms and the Borgia Apartments. These can both be visited as part of your Vatican Museums ticket.

Can You See the Pope at the Vatican?

When the Pope is in residence, it is possible to actually see him if you plan ahead.

The best option to see the Pope at the Vatican is to attend either a Papal Audience or a Papal Mass. These are free events, you just need to book a ticket.

You can also catch a glimpse of the Pope during the Sunday Blessing, or Angelus. When the Pope is in Rome he appears at his Papal Palace window at noon on a Sunday for around 15 minutes to bless those in St. Peter’s Square.

Where is Castel Gandolfo?

You may have heard of Castel Gandolfo, or the Papal Palace of Castel Gandolfo to give it its more formal name. This was long used as the Pope’s summer residence, but it is not found in Vatican City. It’s actually 16 miles (25 km) southeast of Rome, overlooking Lake Albano.

The Palace is a 135-acre complex of buildings and gardens, found in the town of Castel Gandolfo. The current Pope does not use it as his summer residence, but many previous Popes have.

The good news is that you can actually visit Castel Gandolfo and tour the Papal Palace and Gardens. You can either do this yourself, or you can book a tour from Rome which includes transport and access to the gardens and palace.

The Vatican Museums sell tickets for a tour which includes a tour of the Vatican Museums, Vatican Gardens, a return train trip and a tour of the Palace and Gardens. Other companies also do tours, including this tour with Take Walks and these options on GetYourGuide.

Vatican Ticket Information

Below we’re going to cover everything you need to know regarding getting tickets for the Vatican City attractions. This will cover which attractions you need tickets for, how much tickets cost, where to get them and more!

Do You Need a Ticket for the Vatican?

You do not need a ticket to visit the Vatican City State.

However, many of attractions and activities do require visitors to have a ticket or to be part of a tour, which includes:

• Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel
• Papal Audience / Papal Mass
• St. Peter’s Basilica Dome

We recommend booking tickets in advance where possible to avoid disappointment.

How Much does it Cost to Visit the Vatican?

Prices for the attractions inside the Vatican City vary depending on exactly what you want to see. However, you can see an idea of prices for the attractions as follows.

Prices are correct as of January 2024.

Vatican Museums Ticket Price

There is an entry fee for the Vatican Museums. This is as follows:

• €20 if booked in person at the ticket office (not recommended due to the length of the lines!)
• €20 + €5 booking fee (€25 total) if booked on the official Vatican tickets website ( recommended option )
• From around €31 via a third-party site such as GetYourGuide ( check prices here ) or Tiqets ( see prices here ). Recommended option if the official site is sold out.

Note that if you buy a ticket from a third-party site our experience is that it is normally a voucher that needs to be exchanged for an actual ticket on entry. Instructions will be provided on purchase and there should be a specific entry line for holders of these tickets.

St. Peter’s Basilica Ticket Price

St. Peter’s Basilica is free to visit, although there are some passes which include fast-track entry such as the Rome Tourist Card . Alternatively, you can book a guided tour which includes fast-track entry.

In busier months these can definitely be worth it as the lines for entry can be very long.

You can also pay for additional activities as follows:

• Sacristy & Treasury Museum of St. Peter’s Basilica (€5)
• Dome climb €8 (stairs), €10 (elevator)
• Official 1hr audioguide €5

Vatican Necropolis Ticket Price

The part of the Vatican Necropolis under St. Peter’s can only be visited on a guided tour. This costs €13 per person as of 2024. See the entry on the Vatican Necropolis for booking instructions.

Note the last time I booked this tour it included some discounts on St. Peter’s Basilica activities, including the museum, audio guide and dome entrance. These discounts were sent to me by e-mail after I booked the tour.

The Necropolis of the Via Triumphalis is a separate ticket. It includes a guided tour of the Necropolis of the Via Triumphalis lasting around 90 minutes, and ticket prices are €20 for adults in 2024. Tickets can be purchased online in advance from the official Vatican ticket site here .

Papal Audience / Papal Mass Ticket Price

Tickets for the Papal Audience and Papal Masses are free and there is no booking fee. See the section on tickets for the Papal Audience and Papal Mass for booking instructions.

Where to Buy Vatican Tickets

As covered above, some of the attractions in the Vatican require tickets. There are various options for purchasing tickets for these attractions, as follows.

Where to Buy Vatican Museums Tickets

Normally the first place you should check for tickets for the Vatican Museums is on the official website here . These tend to be the best value tickets and the website has a range of ticket options including basic entry tickets, guided tours, and tickets which include locations like the Vatican Gardens.

We also recommend checking ticket options on third-party sites, and we specifically recommend either GetYourGuide ( check prices here ) or Tiqets ( see prices here ).

Whilst prices on third party sites can be higher, they sometimes have more availability as well as more flexible cancellation policies (depending on the ticket type). So they are definitely worth checking.

Vatican Museum Tickets Sold Out? You still have options to visit the Vatican!

The Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel are a very popular attraction, and they do have capacity limits. That means tickets can sell out, especially at busier times of year.

The good news is that even when tickets have sold out on the official site you still have options. These will be slightly more expensive, but often come with additional features.

First, check other ticket types on the official site here . Whilst the standard entry ticket might have sold out, other ticket types such as guided tours or tickets with access to other areas of the Vatican may have availability.

Next, check the options for Vatican entry on GetYourGuide . There are a range of options, including guided tours like this one which includes St. Peter’s Basilica. This can be a good way to get last minute entry to the Vatican and get a tour as well, which is our recommended way of seeing the Vatican Museums. GetYourGuide tickets also have a specific entry line.

Finally, check these tickets on Tiqets . They are pre-purchased so they do often have availability even if the official site is sold out.

Speaking of tours, our favourite walking tour operator in Italy is Take Walks. We’ve done walks with them all over the world, including a number of tours in the Vatican. You can see their Vatican tours here . Again, these might have availability even when entry tickets are sold out.

We hope that one of the above options will allow you to visit the Vatican Museums, even if you are looking for tickets at the last minute.

Where to Buy St. Peter’s Basilica Tickets

St. Peter’s Basilica is free, so there is no need to purchase tickets.

In previous years, there was the option to purchase a skip the line ticket, which allowed you to skip the often very long lines and get into the Basilica more quickly for a fee. This was discontinued in 2022 (although many sites still talk about it).

This ticket type is supposed to return. However, in the meantime, the only option for skipping the lines is to book a tour like this one .

Another option is to book a Vatican tour like this one which also include St. Peter’s Basilica. Some of the Take Walks tours also include St. Peter’s Basilica. You can see all their Rome tours here .

Where to Buy Vatican Necropolis Tickets

The only way to book Vatican Necropolis tickets is to e-mail the Vatican Scavi office at [email protected].

In the e-mail you need to provide the exact number of participants, their full names, language of the tour, the dates you are available to visit and your full contact information.

There is more information on the official website here , but the last time we checked it was a little out of date as it mentions faxing, when e-mail is actually the preferred option. When we have booked the tour we have always gotten a response within a day or two via e-mail.

Where to Buy Papal Audience and Papal Mass Tickets

Papal Audience and Papal Mass tickets are free, however you do need to arrange them in advance of your visit to avoid disappointment.

The tickets are usually easy to come by (except at popular times like Easter), and you have a few options for getting them.

First, you will want to check there is an audience or mass on the date you wish to attend, which you can do on this Vatican page for 2024 . Note this page is normally updated around a month in advance.

Next, for advance bookings (recommended) and groups over 10, you need to contact the Prefecture of the Papal Household, which you can do as follows:

• by e-mail at [email protected]
• by fax on (+39) 06 698 85863
• by mail at: Prefecture of the Papal Household, 00120 Vatican City State

Include the number of tickets required, the event you wish to participate in, the date you wish to visit, your first and last name, and your e-mail address. You can see this information here on the official Vatican website where there is also a form you can download to make things easier.

If you book in advance, you will still need to collect your tickets in person at the Bronze Door in the Vatican (found under the right-hand colonnade in St Peter’s Square, here on Google Maps ), either the day before the event between 3pm and 7pm. or on the day from 7am. We would recommend collecting them the day before if possible.

It is also possible to obtain tickets when you are in Rome, just by going up to the Bronze Door and asking the Swiss Guards. These are of course subject to availability.

For more information on how to reserve tickets and attend a papal ceremony, see this page of the official Vatican website.

Can you Skip the Lines at the Vatican?

The various attractions at the Vatican have slightly different systems in place for access.

All the Vatican attractions have a security line, which cannot be skipped. However, there are different options for skipping the ticket lines, so we will go through these.

Vatican Museum Skip the Line Access

The main line you can skip at the Vatican is the ticket line. This line can be incredibly long on a busy day, and is definitely one you will want to try and skip.

The good news is that the Vatican Museum ticket line is easy to skip. You can skip this line by purchasing an advance ticket or booking a tour. Both of these include your entry ticket so you can skip the ticket line.

St. Peter’s Basilica Skip the Line Access

As of 2024 there is no fast-track entry for St. Peter’s Basilica. The only line is for security, but this can take a while on a busy day. We’d suggest getting here as early as possible to avoid this line.

The good news is that there are a few options for getting faster entry. Currently, these all involve booking a tour.

First, you can book a combined tour of the Vatican and St. Peter’s Basilica like this . Group tours are able to use a special access corridor that leads from the Sistine Chapel to St. Peter’s Basilica, which entirely skips all the lines and saves you walking around the whole Vatican Museum building.

The disadvantage of this is that you don’t get the opportunity to explore the Vatican Museums at the end of your tour. Most tours which just cover the Vatican Museums end inside the Museum, so you can then go see any additional areas that the tour might have missed.

Another option is to just book a tour of St. Peter’s Basilica like this . Whilst these tours do still have to go through security, entry is normally quicker than the standard entry line.

Finally, you can book the Vatican Necropolis tour. This tour actually ends inside St. Peter’s Basilica, so you skip the main entry line.

Rome Passes that Include the Vatican

Another option for visiting the Vatican City attractions is to purchase an attraction pass which includes either entry or a guided tour of the attractions. There are a few to choose from, our suggestions to check out are:

• The Rome Tourist Card
• The Omnia Card
• The Omnia Vatican and Rome Card

The right card for you will depend on what other attractions you plan to visit during your time in Rome and the Vatican.

We’d recommend reading our guides to spending 1 day in Rome , 2 days in Rome and 3 days in Rome for some inspiration to help you decide what other attractions you would like to see.

When is the Vatican Free in 2024?

Visiting the Vatican City is always free. St. Peter’s Basilica is also free, although you can pay for a tour to skip the lines at busier times of year.

The Vatican Museums are normally free on the last Sunday of the month when it is open from 9am – 2pm (last entry 12.30pm). However, beware that the museums, which are normally busy anyway, can be super busy during free days.

Tours at the Vatican

We highly recommend taking a tour of the major Vatican attractions like the Vatican Museums and St. Peter’s Basilica. There is so much to see here, and having a guide can really help you navigate, see the major highlights, and really get a feel for what you are seeing.

Tours of the Vatican Museums

There are a lot of guided tours to choose from at the Vatican Museums. We’d recommend picking a tour that is at least 3 hours long as there is so much to see and a shorter tour might not cover enough.

We’ll go through some of our recommended tour options, although of course there are lots to choose from across a range of price points.

• The Pristine Sistine tour with Take Walks. It includes early entry, a smaller group, and it also includes St. Peter’s Basilica. We’ve done walks with Take Walks all around the world and always enjoyed their tours.
• Vatican Key Master Tour . Another tour with Take Walks, this is the most exclusive tour of the Vatican currently available. It basically has you walking through the Vatican and opening it up before anyone else is allowed inside. It’s an incredible experience, one of our favourite Vatican tours, but it’s not going to be for everyone. See our full Vatican Key Master Tour review to see if this tour might be right for you.
• This five hour tour covers many of the highlights of the Vatican Museums as well as St. Peter’s Basilica including the Dome.
• This is a shorter 3 hour tour which focuses on the highlights, and includes the Vatican Museums and St. Peter’s Basilica
• This private tour includes the Vatican Museums and St. Peter’s Basilica, and has the option for hotel pickup as well.
• Visiting the Vatican Museums with kids? Check out this private kid-friendly Vatican Museums tour

Of course, there are many more tours to choose from. You can see all the Take Walks Vatican tours here , as well as Vatican tours on GetYourGuide here and Viator here .

There are also full day tours of Rome which cover more than just the Vatican. If that’s of interest, we recommend this 1 day Best of Rome tour from Take Walks which includes the Colosseum, Pantheon, Trevi Fountain and Vatican Museums.

When it comes to picking the right tour, we recommend reading recent reviews and of course picking a tour that matches your budget.

Tours of St. Peter’s Basilica

As with the Vatican Museums, there’s a lot to see in St. Peter’s Basilica, and a tour can be a great way to do that.

Many of our recommended Vatican tours (see above) also include St. Peter’s Basilica, which can be a good option for visiting both locations. However, there are also tours which only visit the Basilica, which is what we’ll focus on in this section to avoid repeating ourselves!

• This tour of St. Peter’s Basilica with Take Walks offers early entry, a dome climb and a visit to the crypt
• This tour of St. Peter’s Basilica includes the main areas of the Basilica as well as the Dome and Crypts
• This early morning tour of St. Peter’s Basilica will let you enjoy the Basilica with less crowds. It also includes a dome climb.

Again, there are plenty more tour options to choose from, including this selection on GetYourGuide and this selection on Viator .

Practicalities for Visiting the Vatican

Now we will go through some practicalities for visiting the Vatican, which covers all the things you need to think about when planning a visit.

Dress Code at the Vatican

Whilst the Vatican State does not have a dress code, the major attractions within it do. These are religious venues, and as such a dress code is strictly enforced.

We have seen many people turned away from entering these attractions because they didn’t dress appropriately. This is not unique to the Vatican, most religious sites across Rome & Italy have similar dress codes in place.

The good news is that the dress code is not hard to get right. Basically, everyone visiting the Vatican needs to have their knees covered and the shoulders, chest area, and upper arms covered. T-shirts are fine.

Men are also required to remove any hats. Women can continue to wear headwear.

Essentially, if you dress modestly, covering your shoulders and knees, you’ll be fine. You’ll want to avoid any short skirts, shorts, or dresses (they need to be knee length or longer). You’ll also want to avoid sleeveless tops, tank tops, crop tops, and low-cut shirts. Tops need to cover shoulders, cleavage, and midriff/belly. This applies for all visitors, including both men and women.

It is also worth noting that the dress code extends to include any visible personal objects or signs (including tattoos) that may offend Catholic morality, the Catholic religion, or common decency.

The Vatican is not specific about precisely what this means, but we’d advise against wearing any clothing which has explicit content, and if you feel you have body art which may offend, to consider covering it up.

You can learn more about the dress code requirements here .

We normally are appropriately dressed when travelling in Italy, but Jess always carries a travel wrap or travel scarf in her day bag just in case we forget or someone is being especially strict. A scarf or wrap is handy as it can be used to cover shoulders and chest or be tied around the waist.

Facilities at the Vatican

There are a number of toilets that are available for public use in the Vatican State. In St. Peter’s Square there are two toilets that are open to the public. There are also toilets inside St. Peter’s Basilica and the Vatican Museums.

For food and drink, there are a number of food and drink options in the Vatican Museums, including self-service options and sit-down options.

You can bring your own snack food and soft drinks into the Vatican Museums, but be aware that you are not allowed to consume food or drink in the actual exhibition halls inside the Vatican Museum.

There are also a number of dining and cafe options around the Vatican area, including some of our favourite coffee shops in Rome and gelaterias in Rome .

Security at the Vatican

All the major attractions at the Vatican have security checks in place, including St. Peter’s Basilica and the Vatican Museums.

There are fairly common-sense restrictions around what is not permitted inside. Items like knives, scissors and other metal tools are forbidden. Alcoholic beverages are also not permitted inside. All these items can however be stored in the Vatican Museums cloakroom which is a free service.

Weapons and hazardous materials are not permitted in Vatican attractions, and these cannot be stored at the Vatican Museums Cloak Room.

Accessibility at the Vatican

Despite being found in some very old buildings, the majority of attractions in the Vatican are set up to be as accessible as possible. Just be aware that parts of the outside are quite uneven, especially St. Peter’s Square which is cobbled, so care will need to be taken.

The Vatican Museums offer free wheelchair hire for those with mobility issues. Mobility scooters and electric wheelchairs are also permitted in most areas (with some exceptions). There are also lifts and ramps for access to most areas. Accessible toilets are also available.

There is a suggested itinerary for those with mobility issues which allows visitors to access the majority of the museum. You can see this on the accessibility page here .

The Vatican Museums also have special services for hearing impaired and both blind and partially sighted visitors. More information on these services can be found on the accessibility page .

St. Peter’s Basilica is also accessible via ramps and an elevator and the interior of the Basilica is flat. There are also accessible toilets near the entrance. However, the grotto and necropolis cannot be accessed by wheelchair users. There is an elevator to the dome area, however there are still some steps to the top of the dome making this not accessible.

If you are visiting the Vatican as a wheelchair user, this company offers wheelchair hire as well as wheelchair friendly guided tours of the main Vatican attractions.

Luggage storage Near the Vatican

Large bags, including rucksacks, suitcases, packages and containers are not allowed in the Vatican attractions. This also includes tripods, selfie-sticks umbrellas and any banners or signs. Walking sticks are permitted.

The Vatican Museums have a free cloakroom where these items can be left. St. Peter’s Basilica does not have a cloakroom, however there are a number of luggage storage options near the Vatican.

Tips for Visiting the Vatican

We have been lucky enough to visit the Vatican a number of times over the years, both as part of guided tours and on our own. From our experiences, we wanted to share some tips for visiting.

Plan your day in advance

You will definitely have an improved experience at the Vatican if you plan your activities in advance. That means booking any tours or tickets in advance.

The Vatican attractions, and especially the Vatican Museums and St. Peter’s Basilica, are amongst the most popular visitor attractions in the world. That means the queues can be long, and they can sell out.

It’s also important to check that the attractions you want to visit are going to be open on the days you plan to visit, and that events like a Papal Audience are not going to impact your visit.

Overall, having a plan for what you want to see and when, and booking any tickets, tours or passes in advance of your visit is going to make for a much more pleasant visit.

Consider a Guided Tour or Audio Guide

We highly recommend taking a guided tour of the Vatican attractions when you visit. A guide will be able to lead you to the highlights and help give you context and information about what you are seeing.

We’ve taken a number of tours of the Vatican, and our favourite tours have all been with Take Walks. Their guides really know their stuff, and their passion always shines through. That said, there are lots of tour operators running Vatican tours, so you should be able to find something that meets your requirements.

If you decide not to take a guided tour, then we recommend at least getting an audio guide. Both the Vatican Museums and St. Peter’s Basilica offer audioguides which are available just near the entrance for a small fee. These are well worth it in our opinion.

Dress and Pack Accordingly

First, you are going to want to ensure you adhere to the dress code for your visit to the various Vatican attractions, as already outlined in this section on what to wear in the Vatican.

The next thing you are definitely going to want to bring is a pair of comfortable shoes. You will be walking a great deal as you explore the Vatican, and a good pair of shoes will ensure your feet are comfortable throughout the day. Check out our guides to the best travel shoes for men and the best travel shoes for women to help you find the right shoes.

You will also want to bring some drinking water so you can stay hydrated, we always travel with a reusuable water bottle. A camera is of course also a must!

It is also a good idea to leave items such as large bags, luggage, food and drinks, knives, laser pointers, tripods, scissors, video cameras, etc. at your hotel if you don’t need them that day. Otherwise, you’ll need to wait in line to check them at the Cloakroom as they are not permitted inside the Vatican Museums.

Be Wary of on-site Touts at the Vatican

When you arrive at the Vatican it is very likely that you will be approached by official looking individuals offering you tours or tickets which might include fast-track entry. They may even try to tell you that you need to book a tour or a ticket with them in order to get entry.

Normally these folks are not affiliated with the Vatican. Instead, they are trying to sell guided tours or pre-bought fast-track tickets. These will generally be at inflated prices.

If you don’t pre-book a ticket for the Vatican Museums and find yourself in the long ticket lines, they will also attempt to persuade you to purchase a fast-track ticket, which will likely be tempting if the ticket line is stretching out of sight around the building.

Our recommendation is to skip the touts entirely, and to plan your tickets in advance. That way, when you are approached, you can just politely refuse their services. If you do happen to turn up at the Vatican without a ticket, I’d suggest finding a coffee shop or similar location with free WiFi and either checking the official website, or using a service like GetYourGuide or Tiqets to book a same day ticket.

Skip the Free Days, or Arrive Very Early

As mentioned previously, the Vatican Museums are free on some days of the year. Whilst these days can be a good way to see the museums without spending any money, they are also incredibly popular. The queues stretch for hours on the free days.

If you really want to visit the Vatican Museums on a free day, then I would advise arriving as early as possible so you don’t have to queue for as long.

Arrive Early

Regardless of whether or not you are visiting on a free day, you will want to arrive early for both St. Peter’s Basilica and the Vatican Museums.

For St. Peter’s Basilica, which is free to visit, this is because the line for security tends to just get longer as the day progresses. The Basilica opens early, so if you can be here at opening time you will be able to skip that lengthy wait.

For the Vatican Museums, if you pre-book your ticket, you will be visiting with timed entry. We suggest booking your entry for as early in the day as possible, especially in the warmer months.

This is because the majority of the Vatican Museums are not air-conditioned, and it gets progressively hotter as the day goes by. If you arrive early, you will be able to explore with fewer people and at more manageable temperatures.

If you are taking a a guided tour, then we suggest booking a tour with early entry for the same reasons, but also so you can experience the museums with even fewer people.

Escape the Crowds at the Vatican.

Almost any time of year that you visit the Vatican it is going to be crowded, and it just seems to get busier as the day goes on. Between giant tour groups and security guards ushering you on, it can become a bit of an overwhelming experience.

The good news is that there are far less popular areas of the Vatican that are well worth visiting, where you can take a break from the crowds. Whilst the Map Room, Sistine Chapel and Raphael Rooms are nearly always crowded, locations like the Pinacoteca and Carriage Pavillion receive far fewer visitors.

If you want to really escape the crowds, head to the basement level where you’ll find the coin and stamp collection ( Museo Filatelico e Numismatico ). Sure, it might not have quite the headline status of the Sistine Chapel, but it is almost guaranteed to be a more peaceful experience!

Attractions Near the Vatican

Vatican City is home to a great many attractions, so you definitely won’t run out of things to do. However, if you are planning your time in Rome and want to see some other sights on the same day you might be wondering what other attractions are near the Vatican. Here are some ideas for nearby attractions, ordered by distance.

• Museum of Leonardo Da Vinci – this small museum is dedicated to Leonardo Da Vinci’s life and works. There are no original artworks but it is interesting nonetheless. 5 minutes’ walk from St. Peter’s Square.
• Castel Sant’Angelo – a stunning 2nd century castle, 10 minutes’ walk from St. Peter’s Square
• Piazza Navona – one of Rome’s most famous squares, with a stunning Bernini waterfall as the centrepiece. 20 minutes’ walk from St. Peter’s Square
• Villa Farnesina – a beautiful Renaissance-era suburban villa, found in trendy Trastevere neighbourhood, 20 minutes’ walk from St. Peter’s Square
• Belvedere del Gianicolo – a popular viewpoint which overlooks the city of Rome. 25 minutes’ walk from St. Peter’s Square.

There are of course more sights all around Rome that you can visit, but this should give you some ideas of nearby attractions to consider.

Where to Stay Near the Vatican

There are a lot of accommodation options in Rome, across a wide range of budget and styles. Here, we’ll share some options for accommodation near the Vatican. These are ordered approximately by distance. Prices do vary, so you will want to compare before booking.

We’d recommend booking a hotel with air-conditioning if visiting in the summer especially as Rome can get very hot.

• Residenza Paolo VI – this well-rated four star hotel set in a converted monastery is just moments away from St. Peter’s Basilica. There are lovely views of both the Basilica and St. Peter’s Square from the Terrace, and it’s only 15 minutes’ walk from the Vatican Museums.
• Palazzo Cardinal Cesi – another well-rated four-star hotel just 150 yards from Saint Peter’s Square. The 15th century building has a courtyard garden and a selection of comfortable rooms to choose from.
• Elle Boutique Hotel -this four-star boutique hotel is around 500 yards from St. Peter’s Basilica with views of the Dome.
• Starhotels Michelangelo Rome – another well-review four-star hotel just 500 yards from St. Peter’s Basilica offering classically decorated rooms. There’s also an on-site restaurant.
• Tmark Hotel Vaticano – this four-star hotel is moments from the entrance to the Vatican Museums and about a 10 minute walk to St. Peter’s Square.
• Best Western Plus Hotel Spring House – this well reviewed hotel is just three minutes’ walk from the Vatican Museums and around 10 minutes from St. Peter’s Square
• Hotel Silla – this 2-star hotels offers great value accommodation just eight minutes walk from the Vatican Museums and 13 minutes from St. Peter’s Square. It’s also right next to Ottaviano metro station, for easy access to sights around Rome.
• Villa Agrippina Gran Meliá – this luxury 5* hotel is abouta 15 minute walk from St. Peter’s Square or 25 minutes to the Vatican Museums entrance. It’s also just 10 minutes from the trendy Trastevere region.

Of course, there are many more options. See the listings for accommodation near the Vatican on Booking.com here .

How to Find More Information on Visiting the Vatican?

There are a great many websites with information on visiting the Vatican (including this one!).

I have endeavored to make this site as accurate as possible based on our personal experience and knowledge from multiple visits to the Vatican over many years.

There are of course official sites for the Vatican which I would also recommend reading. These are:

• https://www.vatican.va/content/vatican/en.html – the official Vatican website, which has information on opening times and visiting, attending Papal Audiences , visiting St Peter’s Basilica and more. I’ll be honest, this site can be difficult to navigate and pages are not always available, but it’s the best place to start
• https://www.vaticanstate.va/it/ – the official Vatican State website, which has information on services, live webcams and history. Currently only in Italian as far as we can tell.
• https://www.museivaticani.va/content/museivaticani/en.html – the official Vatican Museums website, where you can purchase tickets, learn about the collection, take virtual tours, and plan your visit. Well worth visiting in advance of your trip to get some ideas for what to see.

Personally, I would suggest starting with the above sites when looking for information on visiting the Vatican and purchasing tickets. You can also see a list of official Vatican websites here .

If you have any questions, we’re also happy to answer them in the comments below.

Further Reading for Visiting Rome

That’s it for our guide to visiting the Vatican. We also wanted to share some more guides we’ve put together for Rome, based on our many visits to the city.

We’ve also visited many other parts of Italy, and we’ve included some of these posts below as well, as well as some other resources we think you’ll find useful.

• We have a guide to spending  1 day in Rome , as well as guides for  2 days in Rome  and  3 days in Rome , which should help you plan your time effectively. We also have a guide to  things to do in Rome  in general.
• You can’t visit Rome without trying gelato – the Italian version of ice cream. See all our favourite places to find the  best gelato in Rome
• Another popular Italian pastime is drinking coffee, particularly espresso! See some of the  best cafes to drink coffee in Rome
• We’ve taken a number of other walking tours in Rome. See our guide to our favourite  walking tours of Rome here , and our favourite Rome food tours here .
• We also have a full review of the Vatican VIP Key Master’s tour , which is one of the most exclusive tours of the Vatican you can take.
• We have a detailed guide to  visiting the Borghese Gallery in Rome  which is one of our favorite art museums in Rome.
• We also have a  guide to visiting the Colosseum , which has everything you need to know to plan your visit to this remarkable attraction
• Beyond Rome, we have a  guide to Florence , suggested  things to do in Milan , and tips for  a day in Venice
• We also have a detailed  10 day Italy itinerary  to help you plan a trip in this wonderful country
• If you’re planning on visiting Rome in summer, read our  tips for visiting a European city in summer  to stay sane
• If you’re looking for a physical (or Kindle!) guidebook, we recommend the latest edition of  Rick Steves Rome guide , which has lots of practical information to help you make the most of your stay

And that’s the end of guide to visiting the Vatican City and its attractions. We hope you found it useful. As always, if you have any questions or feedback on this post, let us know in the comments below!

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Alexander says

25th March 2023 at 1:56 pm

All your photos are simply awesome and your posts are speaking a lot of useful information. Thank you for sharing this article.

Laurence Norah says

25th March 2023 at 5:11 pm

Thanks Alexander!

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ENTIRE VATICAN & VATACOMBS: FLAGSHIP VATICAN TOUR

Quick Details

• Hour Glass Duration: 3 Hours
• Tag Tour category: Vatican Tours

Our Flagship Tour of the Vatican and Vatacombs

Meet your expert guide by the Vatican Museum entrance and after brief introductions enjoy skip-the-line entry to what is arguably the most important and largest art collection in the world.

The Vatican Museums weren’t always as we know them today. For over five hundred years, celebrated Popes slowly gathered and commissioned works of art from the most talented painters, architects and sculptors in Italy and brought them to the Vatican to showcase them for their own personal enjoyment and that of a carefully chosen circle of clerics, artists, nobles, and scholars. Each new Pope sought to leave a legacy, commissioning chapels, frescoes, sculptures, libraries, paintings, courtyards – one masterpiece after another until the Papal Collection finally grew to more than 70,000 works of art spread over 1400 galleries.

In 1771 Pope Clement XIV finally opened the doors to the public, making it possible for us to enter the Holy See and walk in the footsteps of Popes and the most celebrated artists from Renaissance and Baroque Italy.

On this epic Vatican Tour you’ll walk in the footsteps of Popes and Renaissance Masters as you take in the Rooms of Raphael and of course the Sistine Chapel from its commissioning to the finishing touches by none other than Michelangelo Buonarroti. With an expert guide, learn to discern between myth, fact, and popular Hollywood fiction regarding this epic work of art.

Enjoy fast-track access to St. Peter’s Basilica to view masterpieces by Michelangelo, Raphael, and Bernini among others before descending to the Papal crypts below. We conclude on the portico with an overview of Bernini’s magnificent piazza (St. Peter’s Square), the central obelisk, and of course the Swiss Guard.

• Stand just feet away from Michelangelo’s remarkable frescoes in the Sistine Chapel
• Take in the beauty of the extraordinary rooms of Raphael
• Skip all lines with priority tour operator access
• Visit the “Vatacombs,” the eerie resting place of former Popes beneath St. Peter’s Basilica
• Expert local guide
• Skip-the-line tickets to the Vatican Museums
• Room of the Muses and Belvedere Torso
• Pinecone Courtyard
• Octagonal Courtyard
• Rooms of Raphael
• Gallery of Maps
• Laocoonte Sculpture 1st Century AD
• St. Peter’s Basilica
• Vatacombs (papal tombs beneath St. Peter’s)
• Visit to the Necropolis / Scavi
• Transport to and from meeting point

ADDITIONAL INFO

• Tour departs rain or shine
• Unfortunately, wheelchairs and strollers cannot be accommodated on this tour. Contact us for private tour options for your group.

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The original all-inclusive Vatican City experience featuring a climb to the top of St. Peter’s Dome for an incredible view of Rome followed by our award-winning tour of the Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel.

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Vatican Museum Tours - How to pick the best one?

By Elyssa Bernard

December 21, 2023

Wondering which of the many Vatican Museum Tours is right for you?

There are so many options, so h ow do you decide which one to take?

Vatican Museum Tours - Why it's so hard to choose

One of the questions I get most often is "How do I decide which Vatican tour to take?"

I know there are a lot of choices.

There are early morning tours, small group tours, tours that include Saint Peter's Basilica, the  Necropolis of Via Triumphalis  or the Vatican Gardens . . . And even then, there are a lot of different companies that offer the same or similar tours. 

So how do you choose?

I'm going to break down the different TYPES of tours, and then give you links to book the best ones of each type.

On this page about Vatican Museums tours, you'll find:

• Is it worth taking a Vatican tour?

Tours through the official Vatican website

• Standard Group Tours of Vatican Museums
• Vatican Museum Tours before Opening Hours
• Super-speedy Tours of Vatican Museums  - head straight for the Sistine Chapel and bypass the rest
• Small/ Semi-private Group Tours of Vatican Museums
• Vatican Museums on Friday or Saturday Night
• Private Tours of Vatican Museums
• Vatican Gardens and Vatican Museum Tours Combo
• VIP Vatican Museum Tours with out-of-hours viewing of Sistine Chapel
• Tours that include the Vatican + Colosseum
• Do it yourself - build the Vatican tour you want!

Vatican Museum Tours - Is it Worth Taking a Tour?

I love to visit the Vatican Museums on my own because I can take as long as I want, and linger over a painting or a room if I feel like it.

But that is partly because I am lucky enough to live here and be able to visit often.

I've also taken part in pretty much every Vatican tour out there, and love that experience also.

Now the question is, is it worth taking a tour to visit Vatican Museums?

In my opinion, absolutely yes.

Here's why:

• Easy -  Your tickets will be bought and ready, nothing for you to do but show up.
• Focused -  With the vast amount of art to see in the Vatican Museums, having a guided tour can help you to focus on just some of the most important sections and pieces.
• Just the right amount of sight-seeing -  On a guided tour, you will keep your visiting time to a limit, and won't overdo or exhaust yourself trying to "see it all."
• Help with your questions -  When you have a guide, there is someone to answer your questions as they pop up. This happens to me all the time and I find myself asking museum guards (who may or may not know the answer), or trying to look things up on my phone. It's considerably nicer to have a knowledgable guide who can tell you (correctly, and in person) just what you want to know.
• Don't miss a thing! -  On a guided tour, you will no doubt see things you would have overlooked on your own. This also happens to me a lot in Rome, and every time I take a guided tour with an expert, I learn something new. The first time I went to the Vatican Museums on my own (years ago), without a guide, I breezed past the  Laocoön sculpture because I didn't even know what it was, let alone to look for it!

And if you take a more special kind of guided Vatican Museums Tour , like a private, small-group, out-of-hours tour, then it can make an even bigger difference.

Vatican Museums Audio-Guide

You may also decide to skip the Vatican Museum tours, and visit on your own with an audio-guide.

This can be a good compromise, because you will get more information than you can from the little printed info-cards next to some of the pieces in the museums.

I still would recommend a human guide because they are better able to bring the whole thing to life for you, and are there to answer questions.

If you do decide to use the Vatican Museums Audio-Guide, you can book this when you pre-book your Vatican Museums tickets through the Vatican website, or, you can opt to get the audio-guide once you enter the museum.

Vatican Museum Tours - Which One is Right for You?

One of the most frequent questions I get is, which Vatican Museum tours do you recommend?

And of course, there is not one right answer: this depends on what you are looking for, how much time you have and want to commit to, and your budget.

All Vatican Museum tours include skip-the-line tickets, a visit to the Sistine Chapel , and a licensed tour guide  (someone who is knowledgable and who is legally allowed to take you on this tour.)

Most tours are offered in English or Italian.

You can usually book a guide in other common languages too, such as Spanish, French, German, Japanese, Korean, Russian, etc.

There are also a few options for pre-booking special tickets, without a tour.

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What happens when you book a tour of the Vatican Museums using the official Vatican Museums website ?

First, you will pay less, as there is no tour agency or middle-man.

Second, you will be assigned a tour guide who is directly employed by the Vatican Museums.

What is the difference between booking a tour of the vatican through the vatican website and a tour agency?

All guides who give tours of the Vatican Museums must be licensed guides and they must have permission from the Vatican Museums to give tours there.

The difference between a Vatican Museums employee/guide and an outside guide may simply be in the quality of the guide.

I must say that I have taken tours with Vatican Museum employees/guides, and some of them have been fantastic.

But you just never know.

No matter what tour you book, unless you hire a private guide that you either know or who has been recommended to you, you have no way of knowing what that guide will be like.

Reasons to choose booking with the Vatican Museums or with a tour company

Sometimes, tickets and tours may not be available on the Vatican Museums website but you might find more availability for tickets and tours on a certified reseller such as Tiqets, Get your Guide, or Viator.

Or, perhaps you have heard about a specific tours company or tour, such as Walks of Italy, who offer two of the most popular tours of the Vatican Museums, Pristine Sistine, and the Vatican Key Master Tour in which you get to open the museums.

Read on to discover more tour options, and the differences between the different types of tours you'll find, both on the Vatican website and on outside tour company sites.

NEW FOR 2024!

The archeological area of the Vatican Necropolis of Via Triumphalis is now open for visitors.

This is an ancient Roman burial site that is within the Vatican walls and before now was very difficult to get access to.

You can only enter as part of an official Vatican tour group, and tickets need to be purchased through the official website .

This is an entirely separate visit, so you will not have access to either St Peter's Basilica or the Vatican Museums.

Click here to watch my YouTube video about it and see what it's like!

Vatican Museum Tours - Skip the Line Group Tours

One of the most popular of the Vatican Museum tours is the group tour .

You skip the line of course, and have a knowledgable guide so you don't have to think about what to see or where to go.

All of these tours  include the Sistine Chapel , usually ending there.

St Peter's Basilica Shortcut

You can only take the shortcut from the Sistine Chapel to St Peter's Basilica if you are on a tour that INCLUDES the basilica.

The shortcut is open from 9:30 am - 5 or 5:30PM, and it's ONLY accessible to tour companies or private guides that you book OUTSIDE the Vatican Museums website.

The Vatican Museums does not have any ticket or tour that includes the shortcut.

This means that you won't have access to the shortcut during the  KeyMaster tour , the  Extra Time tour , or any other tour that does not specifically include the basilica.

If you book any tour of the Vatican Museums, you can check the details to see if it finishes in the  Sistine Chapel  or the basilica.

Click here to view a map of Vatican City  (it will open in a new page.)

When you take a group tour, you will have what's called "whisper" headphones, so the guides can speak in a normal tone and you can easily hear them.

As of January 1, 2024, all group tours will be limited to 20 people.

The best part about this kind of group tour is the price.

This is the least expensive option of the Vatican Museum tours.

Visit the Sistine Chapel before it opens to the public on this special access tour.

There are many options even for taking a group tour.

Click the below to book a group tour of the Vatican Museums that includes:

• Only the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel (and not St. Peter's Basilica - just access, but no tour)
• The Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's Basilica (this is an excellent tour because you skip ALL the lines, even the priority lines, AND you get a tour of the Basilica)
• Handicapped access (most tours do NOT accommodate wheelchairs , so you need to pick one that specifically DOES. This tour covers the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel but not St. Peter's Basilica.)
• The Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel and The Pinacoteca (The Pinacoteca is the Vatican Museums Paintings gallery - most tours skip this but it is amazing, full of masterpieces, and worth the time if you have it! The Basilica is not included on this tour, but you can visit on your own without queuing.)
• The Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, St. Peter's Basilica with Hotel pick-up/drop-off 

A word about "skip the line"

Of course one of the benefits of taking a tour is the possibility to skip the line.

You can skip the line even without a tour, simply by pre-booking your tickets.

HOWEVER, you should know that nobody can skip the line for security, and when Rome is really crowded, as it is nearly all the time lately, you may find a bit of a wait to get through security.

So prepare yourself for that, and also plan to arrive a bit earlier than your entry time to give yourself plenty of leeway in case of long security lines.

Vatican Museum Tours - Early Access

The Vatican Museums open at 8AM Monday - Saturday. (There can be different closing times depending on the time of year.)

However, it is possible to gain early access to the Vatican Museums.

There are two things you need to know about this kind of tour:

• There are a LOT of companies doing this , so you will not have an exclusive visit (although of course there will be a lot FEWER people than during the morning rush.)
• In order to get the advantage of seeing the Sistine Chapel before the crowds arrive, you will need to rush through the rest of the Vatican Museums on your way there, missing most of the major works of art along the way. Either the tour will go back through so you can see the rest of the museums at a slower pace, or, if the tour itself does not offer this, you can do it on your own. In either of these cases, you will wind up in the Sistine Chapel a second time before you finally exit.)

That said, it will still feel like a special experience to get in there before the crowds fill in.

Also, many people do want to "just" see the Sistine Chapel, so this helps to keep the visit short if you want to.

For a more exclusive experience, jump down to this section .

As of January 2024, it will only be possible to gain early access to the museums by booking a tour.

Previously you could book early access entrance tickets, but these have been removed with the extension of the opening hours from 9AM to 8AM.

Open the Vatican Museums and turn on the lights of the Sistine Chapel!

One of the most special tours I ever took was with the Key Master of the Vatican Museums .

We literally went through the museums and opened them up and turned on all the lights.

You can book this through Take Walks and I assure you it will be one of the most amazing things you've ever experienced!

Before Hours Vatican Museums Sistine Chapel and Basilica Tour

With this 3-hour tour, you will go with group of around 15 people into the Vatican Museums before they open to the general public. 

Click here to book this Early Access Group Tour of the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's Basilica.

The perfect 3-day itinerary in Rome

Trying to figure out how to organize your visit to Rome? I've got the perfect 3-day itinerary for first-time visitors (or those who have not been here in a while.) It works for a 2.5 day visit as well.

In my 3-day itinerary, you'll see all the major must-see Rome attractions like the Vatican , Colosseum , Trevi Fountain , Pantheon , Piazza Navona , Spanish Steps , Castel Sant'Angelo , and much more.

And if you have more time, or want suggestions for extra/other things to do, you'll find that there too.

Visit my page with the best 3-day itinerary in Rome for first-timers .

Speedy Express Tours of Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel

Maybe I should have put this one at the top of the page.

One of the most common questions I hear about the Vatican Museums is:

Can I just go see the Sistine Chapel ?

I've answered this before (the answer is no) and even with a tour that guarantees this, you really cannot. 

There is an "express route" to the Sistine Chapel from the entrance of the Vatican Museums, which skips the Pinacoteca, the Pio-Clementine Museums, the Egyptian and Etruscan wings.

But you still have a lot of museum to get through before you make it to the Sistine Chapel, so even without visiting any of the above, and bee-lining to the chapel, it will still take you at least 30 minutes just to walk there quickly, without stopping to look at anything. 

That said, there are tours that help you do this.

In the section just before this one, about Early Access Vatican Museum Tours , you have options for going in before opening hours.

In theory, these could also be considered as fast tours, since you do go directly to the Sistine Chapel.

But with the above, you are also given the chance to go back and take more time in the museums.

No matter what season you visit Rome, here are 4 things never to leave at home:

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Normally I would urge you to visit the rest of the museums, as they are chock full of some of the world's most amazing and beautiful art.

But maybe you have really limited time, or who have been to the museums before and want to re-visit just the Sistine Chapel.

So, you can book an Express tour:

Visit to the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel with option to add on St. Peter's Basilica .

Your guide will provide explanations of the Sistine Chapel, but as you are sort of speeding through the rest of the Vatican Museums, you won't get detailed explanations of what you're walking past.

Vatican Museums - Small Group Tours

In the section above, there is a link to a small group, exclusive tour.

That tour goes inside the Vatican Museums early, before they open to the general public.

It's an amazing experience and I highly recommend it! (More about this below.)

If you're looking for an excellent truly small group Vatican Museums tour, click here.

Their small-group tours are max 20 people, but when you go to choose your date, you can see they also offer even smaller groups or private tours (which costs a bit more but may be worth it.)

Ready to plan your trip?

Vatican Museums - Private Tours

Taking a private tour is exactly what it sounds like: this is a fantastic option if you want a completely private, personal tour, with the guide focused just on you.

Of course, if you are a family or group of 4-6 people, it becomes more affordable.

Click here to book a private tour (minimum 2 people), of the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel.

Vatican Museums + Vatican Gardens Combo Tour

The Vatican is home to some amazing gardens , which are beautifully kept and landscaped.

But they are in two places: one is just behind St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City.

The other is in the summer residence of the Pope, Castel Gandolfo .

You can easily book the Vatican Gardens tour through the Vatican Museums website .

It includes entry to the Vatican Museums but no tour or guide.

If you want, you can book this through an outside agency so you get a more complete tour experience.

See below for options.

Tour of Vatican Museums and Vatican Gardens in Vatican City

With this small-group tour, you will first visit the Vatican Gardens.

After visiting the gardens, your group will head inside to tour the Vatican Museums, finishing inside the Sistine Chapel.

Click here to book a Vatican Gardens + Vatican Museums combo small-group tour.

Currently unavailable - stay tuned for the updates!

Visit to Vatican Museums and Gardens in Castel Gandolfo

If you have a full day to dedicate to this, and want to experience something really special, a whole world of tranquility, quiet and beauty, away from the hustle and bustle of Rome, this is a wonderful tour.

It allows you to skip the line and visit the Vatican Museums, then walk through the Vatican Gardens and get on a train that will take you just half-hour outside Rome to the summer residence of the Pope: the stunning Barberini Gardens at Castel Gandolfo , only recently opened to the public.

Click here to book your full day Vatican Museums + Vatican Gardens at Castel Gandolfo tour . 

(Note this option does not include a visit to Saint Peter's Basilica.)

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VIP Vatican Museum Tours with out-of-hours Viewing

There are a good selection of Vatican Museum tours that offer early morning entry to the museums (see above.)

This means that although your group is going in before the normal opening time, you will also be going in with all the other tour groups doing the same thing.

Which means it is not quite as exclusive as it sounds, even if it's definitely less crowded than going at opening time (which is why it's actually a pretty affordable tour, usually costing less than 100€ per person.)

If you're really looking for an exclusive visit to the Vatican Museums out of hours, here are a couple of options:

VIP: Sistine Chapel Private Viewing and Small-Group Tour of the Vatican's Secret Rooms

Visiting the Vatican Museums after hours and seeing the secret rooms was one of the best tours I ever took.

You can read more about it on my dedicated page .

VIP Vatican Museum Tours - After Hours Private Viewing of Sistine Chapel

For a really special experience, book a VIP tour , that features  after-hours viewing.

You really do have a much more exclusive experience than the groups going before the Museums open.

Most Vatican Museum tours do not offer this option, so you will have the Sistine Chapel almost entirely to yourselves.

Click here to book your VIP tour of the Vatican Museums with Sistine Chapel Private Viewing.

And for an even more exclusive, private, truly after-hours tour, you can book this one.

Tour the Vatican Museums and the Colosseum on the same day

While I normally don't recommend this, sometimes a day is all you have, and you really want to fit in these two Rome must-sees.

You can try to do this on your own, but if you want to make the most of this day, especially if you are doing this as a shore excursion, I really recommend doing it as a guided tour.

Click here to book visit my page about this, for more details .

Click here to book a guided tour of the Vatican Museums and the Colosseum in one day .

You can also book a night tour of the Colosseum at certain times of the year, so you could see the Vatican Museums during the day and then do this night tour.

Do it yourself - build the tour YOU want!

If you are still not sure which tour to book, you can  visit this tour booking page where you can choose the length of the tour, the time of day, and the maximum group size you want  (the smaller the group, the more it costs per person.)

Click the "filters" button and go through and check the boxes you want, and you'll see all the tour options available according to your criteria.

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Top attractions and tours

• Colosseum - Don't miss visiting Rome's most iconic monument
• Vatican Museums - This is where the Sistine Chapel is
• Pantheon - Book ahead and skip the line
• Galleria Borghese - You'll need to book ahead for one of Rome's best museums
• Castel Sant'Angelo - See Rome's history through its architecture
• Rome City Pass - A great way to make your Rome visits easier

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• The Altar of the Confessio
• The Cathedra of Saint Peter
• The Tomb of Saint Peter
• The Necropolis
• The Vatican Grottoes
• The Basilica
• The Chapter of Saint Peter
• The Fabric of Saint Peter
• The Vicariate
• The Sacristy
• The Basilica Archives
• Participate
• Services for pilgrims
• Exhibitions
• Services for people with disabilities
• Zero Emissions
• Info and opening hours
• Photo gallery
• Video mapping

Guided tours

For the guided tour of the Basilica and other listed sites of interest, Saint Peter’s Basilica provides guides trained and accredited by the Fabric of Saint Peter. Visits with guides accredited by the Fabric of Saint Peter can only be requested at the Visits Desk, located in the portico of Saint Peter's Basilica.

Visiting hours

- from Monday to Saturday, from 9:30 to 17:30 (last admission at 17.00);

- Sunday and Vatican holidays, from 13:30 to 15:30 (last admission at 15:00).

Guided tour of the Basilica

Visit with expert guide

From Monday to Saturday, the tours take place at:

- 10:30 (in Italian, English, Spanish and French);

-12:00 (in Italian, English, Spanish and French): 

-15:30 ((in Italian, English, Spanish and French). 

On Sunday, the tour begins at 14.00 and is provided in Italian and English.

§  full-price ticket at a cost of 15€;

§  reduced ticket at a cost of 10€.

Audio guide

The service is available from Monday to Sunday from 8.30 until 17.30. The audio guide is available in Italian, English, Spanish, French, German, Russian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese and Chinese.

§  full-price ticket at a cost of 5€;

§  reduced ticket at a cost of 3€.

Go to the Basilica

Guided tour of the Vatican Necropolis

To visit the Vatican Necropolis, it is necessary to book by email at [email protected] . The visits are provided in Italian, English, Spanish, French, German, Russian, Portuguese, Hungarian, Czech and Dutch.

Access is not permitted to visitors under 15 years of age, and it is forbidden to bring bulky objects or photographic apparatus. The visit is strongly discouraged for pregnant women and those who suffer from claustrophobia.

The Necropolis can be visited:

- from Monday to Friday, from 8:00 to18:00; final tour starts at 16:30

- Saturday, from 8:00 to 14:00; final tour starts at 12:30

The full-price ticket costs 13€; the reduced ticket costs 7€.

Go to the Vatican Necropolis

Book a visit to the Necropolis

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Vatican Museums Night Tour with Sistine Chapel

• Experience the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel after hours, when the palaces are at their most peaceful.
• See world-famous masterpieces—from the Sistine Chapel to the Raphael Rooms—away from the crowds.
• Head straight into the Vatican with privileged entrance, allowing you to spend more time exploring and less time waiting.

Tour description

Avoid the crowds on our vatican night tour, with plenty of space to fully appreciate every masterpiece..

Few visitors are aware of the Vatican Museums’ extended opening hours throughout the summer months. On this special Vatican night tour, you’ll share its galleries and apartments with only those in the know. In echoing, elaborate halls and galleries, your expert Vatican guide will bring the church’s fascinating history to life—from St. Peter’s martyrdom to the modern Vatican City.

Explore the best of the Vatican collection, including the Sistine Chapel, in peace and quiet.

During your Vatican night tour, your guide will take you to see some of the finest ancient sculptures and Renaissance art in the world, including Raphael’s "School of Athens", the Hellenistic "Laocoön", and the beautiful "Belvedere Torso"—a stunning sculpture that influenced a young Michelangelo’s work. You'll be able to get up close to these world-famous pieces, a major perk of visiting the Vatican at night and with minimal crowds!

The pièce-de-resistance of your experience, of course, is the Sistine Chapel: the Pope's very own private chapel. In the evening light and with fewer tourist hordes, you’ll find it easier to pick out the details in Michelangelo’s famous frescoes. You’ll be well prepared to appreciate these works after spending time with your expert guide, listening to the stories and secrets hidden within the art.

Enjoy the company of a small group and privileged access for a hassle-free experience on your Vatican night tour.

Since your group will have a maximum of just 15 people, it'll be easy for you to interact with your guide and ask them any questions you have. A good thing too, since we’ve spent years building the perfect team of Vatican guides, choosing the best art historians, architecture buffs, and storytellers.

Experience the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel outside of the stifling heat of the Roman summer on our limited edition Vatican night tour, offering you a rare view of the Papal Palaces after bedtime.

Sites visited

Verified guest reviews, oct 15, 2023.

If you have no agenda and no idea about the Vatican Museums this evening tour may be for you. We never actually entered until nearly an hour after tour started, as the guide spent a considerable time explaining what to expect in sistine chapel. We ended up going by so much so quickly, as opposed to having that extra hour in the museum itself. You are then hustled out as the museum closes, so if you want to linger or spend more time and get better bang for your buck, take an earlier tour or just do the audio tour on your own and spend time where you want to.

Oct 07, 2023

Excellent tour! Our guide was Christina. She is a native of the area with extensive knowledge and a captivating passion about the art and architecture we were seeing. She was kind and patient and I learned so much in a short time. I highly recommend this tour and would take it again.

Oct 01, 2023

Vale was very knowledgeable, but it was at times difficult to keep up with her. Our 2 and 1/2 hour tour was over in less than 2 hours.

This tour was fabulous. Angela was a great tour guide and, on a hot day, did her best to keep us out of the hot sun whenever possible. We learned so much and would not have gotten as much out of visiting these sights if we did them on our own.

We took this tour for the reason of advertisement of quieter time off hours for the Sistine Chapel. During the tour we were told we would have time at the Sistine Chapel but as soon as the guide dropped us off, we were rushed out due to it closing at 7:30. This is a huge miss for the tour company and false advertising since the staff said it always closes then. Also the tour said max 15 people and we were over 20 despite 8 people not showing. Our tour guide was excellent but the tour is not as advertised, which is not her fault. So disappointing.

Know before you book

Similar tours, alone in the vatican: exclusive vip access vatican museums & sistine chapel tour, pristine sistine™ early entrance small group vatican tour, the complete vatican tour with vatican museums, sistine chapel & st. peter’s basilica.

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Vatican Museums Tickets and Tours

As tour guides, we're always being asked about how to get admission to the most popular attractions in Rome, including the illustrious Vatican Museums.

Located in Vatican City, these museums house thousands of precious and historic artefacts from throughout history.

One of the biggest attractions here is of course the Sistine Chapel, which is included with the price of admission to the Vatican Museums.

While you can get in for free on the last Sunday of the month, it's always busy during this day, and you'll need to pay for admission on every other day of the week.

Since there is a lot to see at these museums, you might want to consider taking a guided tour as well.

We also recommend planning your trip ahead of time to ensure you'll have the best possible experience. 

HOW TO GET VATICAN MUSEUMTICKETS

There are several different ways to get tickets for the Vatican Museums.

Whether you want to take a guided tour or just explore the grounds on your own, it’s important to get an idea of how much admission will cost. 

• €17 for Adults | €8 for Reduced (Children between 6-18)
• €4 extra for Skip-the-Line entry
• €7 for Audio Guide

So, it shouldn't cost more than €21 for an adult ticket with a fast-track entrance, especially with our tip for a free audio tour. 

You can purchase admission either at the ticket office or online from the official Vatican Museums website .

TIP: Several tourist passes include free, skip-the-line entry to the Vatican Museums and St. Peter's Basilica.

Night Tickets

During the spring and summer, the Vatican Museums open their doors between the hours of 19:00 (7 pm) and 23:00 (11 pm) to give visitors a chance to see their exhibits after dark.

This service is only available on Friday nights and it can be very difficult to get tickets, so we recommend purchasing them well ahead of time to avoid any issues.  

Guests who take advantage of this opportunity indicate that the crowds are much smaller and it’s a lot easier to enjoy the experience at night.

• Ticket Prices: €21 for Adults | €12 for Reduced (Children)

If the official Vatican ticket site doesn't have the night tickets, you should be able to purchase these as part of a guided tour from some of the guided tour companies listed below.

TIP: In addition to the night tickets, there are a variety of specialty services available directly through the official Vatican Museums website .

Guided Tours

In addition to the various ticket options available, you might also want to consider a guided tour.

Guided tours include skip-the-line tickets, and when you have a guide to show you around, so you’ll never get lost!

Several of these tour options also offer early-bird access. 

If you want more information about these services, make sure to read our section covering many different guided tours of the Vatican Museums.

Free Admission

Believe it or not, you can get into the Vatican Museums without paying even one euro.

On the last Sunday of every month, the museums open their doors to all visitors. Although this is a wonderful opportunity, it also draws a much larger crowd than usual.

With that in mind, we recommend avoiding this option unless you need to save some money.

Free admission is also granted on World Tourism Day (September 27th).

PLAN YOUR VISIT

This section will cover topics such as how to get here (below), hours and best times to visit, and prohibited items.

Consider the following information before you head out to the Vatican Museums. 

Be sure to also check out our guide to visiting St. Peter's Basilica . Let's get started!

How to Get There

The Vatican Museums are located on the west side of the Tiber River and the northern edge of Vatican City.

There are many options for traveling to this location, but we will be focusing on some of the easiest and most affordable choices.

However you end up here, we recommend using this Google Maps link for exact directions to the Vatican Museums .  

Click here to learn more about the metro system in Rome.

For many people, taking the subway is probably the best way to reach the Vatican. This depends on where your hotel or accommodations are. 

The A-Line actually offers two stops very close to the Vatican Museums: Cipro and Ottaviano.

This is technically the closest metro stop to the museum's entrance. If you plan to arrive early in the morning, this is probably the best option.

This stop can be handy when the crowds get larger during mid-day.

The Vatican Museums are one of the most popular destinations in Rome, and lines can stretch as far back as 600m on particularly busy days (see the red line in the image above).

If you plan on arriving later in the morning, and especially if you don't have a skip-the-line ticket, you will want to consider the Ottaviano stop instead.

Depending on where you are located, you may be able to take the #19 tram down to the St. Peter’s stop.

This will take you closer than any other option on our list, but it may be difficult to reach this tram from the city center.

Visitors will want to consider this option if they are traveling from the surrounding areas of Rome, but as we stated above, use the Google Maps link to be sure.  

Hop-On-Hop-Off Bus Tours

There are a few hop-on-hop-off tour bus services that provide stops just a few blocks from St. Peter’s Square. 

Most tour buses will stop very close to Via della Conciliazione, allowing you to enjoy the incredible views of St. Peter’s Basilica as you walk up to the museums. 

TIP: We recommend considering the Vatican & Rome Bus Tours. This is the only bus tour in Rome that actually has ties to the Vatican.

You can take their tours and get free entry to the Vatican Museums with the Omnia card .

HOW MUCH TIME IS NEEDED TO VISIT THE VATICAN?

This depends on what you want to see and even more on when you plan to go and whether you have skip-the-line tickets or not.  

The Vatican Museums are open every day but Sunday from 9:00 am - 18:00 (6 pm) with the last entry at 16:00 (4 pm), but not all times are equally busy.  

As we mentioned before, the lines for tickets to enter the Vatican can reach close to 1km in the peak summer months and you could wait for 90-120 minutes just to enter the museums.  

IMPORTANT: Be sure to get skip-the-line tickets and get to the Vatican early in the morning or later in the day, and if you can afford it, we highly recommend an early-bird ticket and tour.

As you can see in the image below, from 11:00 am till 15:00 (3 pm), it is very busy.

On Saturdays and Mondays, the volume of people visiting the Museums is at the highest level.

If you only want to see the museums, you probably won’t spend as much time here.

That being said, if you decide to stick around and explore areas such as St. Peter’s Basilica, you could end up staying in the area for almost an entire day.

With that in mind, here are a few average peak hours time-frames you should consider.

• Vatican Museums: 2-3 hours for the main exhibits
• Sistine Chapel: 1-2 hours for queue, walk & visit
• St. Peter’s Basilica: 1-2 hours for the main church
• Vatican Grottoes: 2-3 hours for the main sites

Needless to say, one could easily spend an entire day at the Vatican. This is why skip-the-line and/or early bird tickets are critical.

At the very least, make sure you arrive by 8:30 am so that you can avoid the very long ticket and security queues.

There are so many things to see in the museums alone that you could spend an entire day looking through them.

If you just want to see some of the highlights, you might not spend as much time here.

However, visitors who want to see as much as possible should seriously consider devoting an entire day to just the Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel.

You have to go through the Vatican Museums in order to reach the Sistine Chapel.

The walk alone can take up to 30 minutes and you also have to go through an additional metal detector to enter.

Once inside, there is a lot to see and do which you will want to give yourself time to experience. We recommend that you do not neglect to set aside enough time to visit this historic location.

Make sure to consider the operational hours at the Vatican Museums when deciding when to visit.

If you plan to make a trip to St. Peter’s Basilica either before or afterward, check our section about the church for our recommendations.

SECURITY AND PROHIBITED ITEMS

There are some items that you simply cannot take into either the Vatican Museums or the Sistine Chapel.

Although some things are completely forbidden, others will be held for you at the cloakroom.

Here is a list of items you will be asked to check in while visiting this historic location:

• Video Cameras
• Metal Tools

In addition to these items, visitors should also keep the following details in mind:

• Alcoholic beverages are not allowed
• Food and drink are not allowed
• Strollers are welcome
• Guide dogs and animals are permitted
• Touching the artwork is prohibited
• Photography is permitted for personal use only
• Flash photography is not allowed
• Laser pointers are not allowed
• Microphones are also prohibited
• Mobile phones must be kept silent
• No photography of any kind is allowed in the Sistine Chapel

Please note that visitors who bring any kind of firearm or dangerous weapon will be turned away from the Vatican Museums.  

In addition to these rules, it is important to keep in mind that the Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel have a strict dress code .

Guests with low-cut or sleeveless clothing, shorts, mini skirts, and hats are not allowed.

GUIDED TOURS 

When visiting the Vatican Museums, you may quickly become overwhelmed by just how much there is to experience.

After all, there are 9 different museums and several additional galleries to see – and then there’s the Sistine Chapel!

With so many incredible and historic exhibits on display, you may want to consider hiring a guide to show you around.

In this section, we will discuss the various types of guided tours you can take, including small group guided tours and audio tours.  

Official Guided Tours

The guide provided on these tours has been authorized by the Vatican City State, ensuring that the information they provide is going to be very accurate.

These professionally guided tours will reveal some of the most beautiful and historic areas in the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel.

They even offer a few tours which include St. Peter’s Basilica and other areas of the Vatican! 

However, according to several tourist reviews on TripAdvisor, the tours provided by the museums can get very crowded and difficult to follow, so you might consider a small group tour, or better yet, an early-bird tour. 

Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel Tour

• Tickets: €33 for Adults | €24 for Reduced (Children)
• Duration: 2 hours
• Languages: English, Italian, German, French, Spanish

Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel Tour (+St. Peter’s Basilica)

• Tickets: €38 for Adults | €29 for Reduced (Children)
• Duration: 3 hours
• Languages: English, Italian, French, Spanish, German

St. Peter’s tour availability is dependent upon the schedule of Papal Appearances.

The tour cannot access St. Peter’s Basilica if the Holy Father is holding a special ceremony.

TIP: If you are interested in visiting St. Peter’s Basilica , make sure to read our post about the historic location for more information. 

Additional Official Tours

If you want to see and experience more than just the Vatican Museums, the Sistine Chapel, and/or St. Peter’s Basilica, they also provide tours of other areas in and around the Vatican.

These tours are also offered by guides who have been authorized by Vatican City State.

• The Vatican Museums/Vatican Garden
• The Vatican Museums “Out of Hours”
• The Hidden Vatican Museums
• The Vatican By Train

Private Guided Tours

In addition to the official tours offered by the Vatican Museums, there are also several private services that provide a very similar experience.

Tours operated by private companies are usually limited to small groups of less than 20 people, in order to ensure the best possible tour.

This is just one of many reasons why you may want to consider one of the following options. 

Each company also offers early-bird tours, which allow you to enter the Vatican up to 90 minutes before the general public.

These companies are all very well-rated. Customers can choose between many of the same tour options available directly through the Vatican Museums.

You can also expect some of the following guided tours to last much longer and potentially provide a lot of additional details about the historic exhibits on display.

While the official tours are limited to only 3 hours at most, some of the services on this list offer tours that last for up to 5 hours. 

This company offers a variety of tours at the Vatican Museums, including both an extensive outing and a trip that will cover the basic highlights.

Both tours cover the museums and the Sistine Chapel, while one includes a walk through St. Peter's Basilica as well.

The Complete Vatican Tour

• €65/Adults | €58/Kids
• Availability: Mon-Sat
• Includes skip-the-line access.
• Vatican Museums
• Sistine Chapel
• St. Peter's Basilica

Vatican Highlights Tour w/ St. Peter's Dome Climb

• €92/Adults | €82/Kids
• Duration: 5 hours
• Availability: Limited

Vatican Museums Night Tour

• €69/Adults | €61/Kids
• Duration: 2 ½ hours
• Includes late Vatican access (7:30 pm).

In addition to these services, they also offer a general early access tour you may want to consider.

The Roman Guy

The Roman Guy tour company offers several Vatican Tours, including an 'early-bird' tour (see below).

Their most popular tour is the Vatican Museums/Sistine Chapel/St. Peter’s Basilica Tour . This 3-hour tour is available every day but Sunday. 

Tours include skip-the-line access and group sizes are small and are capped at 18 participants. 

* Save 5% on tickets for all Roman Guy tours with our exclusive code FREETOURSBYFOOT *

• Tickets: Adult € 61.95/ Youth  (age 6-17) : €49.95 / Child under 6 Free
• Every day but Sunday at 9:00 am, 9:45 am, 10:30 am and 14:30 (2:30 pm)

In addition to this outing, The Roman Guy also offers a Vatican highlights tour with an additional Rome walking tour included which covers sites such as Castel Sant'Angelo, the Pantheon, Trevi Fountain, Piazza Navona and the Spanish Steps.

As an added bonus, visitors who take this tour will also receive a free gelato!

• €89.95/Adults | €79.95/Youth
• Free for Kids 5 and under
• Max of 16 guests
• Availability: Daily

Longer, more in-depth Vatican tours are available as well as tours throughout Rome.

City Wonders

This is another excellent company that also offers several Vatican Tours. Their Skip-the-Line Vatican Tour, Sistine Chapel & St. Peter's has many time slots to book.

Prices vary depending on the time of day so if you are on a tight budget, you can opt for a less expensive time.

The group size is a maximum of 20 people and the tour is 3 hours long. A nice feature is that they have a 24-hour cancellation policy.

The tour is offered in English several times a day and once or twice a day in Spanish, Italian, French, German and Portuguese.

This tour has an 8 am slot you can book and you will be entering before the general public at 9 am. In this way, it is essentially an early-bird tour.

• Tickets: Prices start from €69/Adult | €64/Child (6-18)
• Children under 5 are FREE
• Every day but Sunday at 8:00 am

Note: From mid-November through the end of February, they decrease the number of times per day the tour is offered to just 10:00 and 14:30 (2:30 pm). 

Official Audio Tour

If you’re not interested in having someone show you around, you can always take one of the audio tours offered at the Vatican Museums.

These tours are far more affordable, but you may find it easier to locate things with the help of an actual tour guide. There are two audio tour options to consider:

This tour provides commentary on more than 400 different subjects. It is designed and curated by experts of the Vatican Museum.

• Ticket Price: €7 per person
• Languages: English, Italian, French, Spanish, German, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Russian, Portuguese 

Rick Steves' Audio Tour

This is an excellent and free alternative to the official audio tour which provides a lot of helpful information for visitors at the Vatican Museum.

In addition to covering a variety of topics in the museums, Rick Steve also provides a free audio tour of the Sistine Chapel, both with accompanying maps.

Visitors are free to download both audio tours directly from his website and listen to them with their smartphone.

You will need to wear headphones in the museums as microphones and loud audio devices are not allowed to be used.

Mobile phones must be kept silent, so headphones/earbuds are an absolute must.

• Rick Steves' Vatican Museum Audio Tour
• Rick Steves' Sistine Chapel Audio Tour

There is also a free audio tour of St. Peter's Square and St. Peter's Basilica .

Self-Guided Vatican Exploration Game

If you'd rather take your time and discover the area around the Vatican at your own pace, there is a mystery game based on the Angels & Demons film/book series which might be of interest.

This is a bit like a self-guided tour, except it tells a story along the way to keep you entertained as you explore the city looking for clues to solve a mystery.

Although this won't include tickets to the Vatican Museum, it will allow you to explore the area around Vatican City and discover some of the most important landmarks.

EARLY BIRD AND SKIP-THE-LINE TICKETS AND TOURS

The earlier you visit the Vatican Museums, the less likely you will be to run into large crowds.

Thankfully, in addition to the services provided directly by the museums, you can also get early access and skip-the-line tours from licensed partners such as those listed above.

These tours usually start at 7:30/8:00 am, before the 9 am opening time when the general public can enter.

The differences between the tours listed below are how many participants there are, how long you have your guide for, and whether or not the tour includes St. Peter's Basilica. 

Many visitors indicate that this is the best way to see the museums and experience the Vatican if you can afford it, and we agree.

Here are a couple of options for well-reviewed companies to consider.

This company offers many different Vatican tours including two skip-the-line services that cover the museums, the Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter's Basilica during the day.

In addition to these outings, they also provide the following early access opportunities that you might enjoy. Each of these tours begins at 7:30-7:45 am.

Pristine Sistine Early Entrance Vatican Tour

• €89/Adults | €86/Students | €79/Kids
• Duration: 4 hours
• Availability: Mon-Tue, Wed-Sat
• Includes early Vatican access.

VIP Pristine Sistine Vatican Tour w/ Breakfast

• €109/Adults | €104/Students | €99/Kids
• Includes full buffet breakfast.

The Roman Guy offers 4 early bird tours. These tours are available Mondays through Saturdays at 7:30 am and include a tour guide the entire time.

The tours include the Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter's Basilica. Some also provide free breakfast!

Our guests get 5% off these prices with code FREETOURSBYFOOT .

3.5 Hour Tour

• Tickets: €89.95 Adults | €74.95 Children (age 6-17) | Kids under 6 are free.
• The tour starts at 8:00 am
• Limited to just 14 guests.

2.5-Hour Express Tour

• Tickets: €69.95/Adults | €64.95 Children (age 6-17) | Kids under 6 are free.
• Limited to just 16 guests.

2-Hour Private Early Entrance Tour

• Tickets: €89.95/Adults | €73.95 Children (age 6-17) | Kids under 6 are free.
• The tour starts at 7:30 am

3-Hour First Entry Tour w/ Breakfast

• Tickets: €135/Adults | €120 Children (age 6-17) | Kids under 6 are free.
• The tour starts at 7:15 am
• Limited to just 10 guests.

*Remember to use our exclusive promo code FREETOURSBYFOOT when you check and save 5% off these prices.

City Wonders Tours

Although they didn't originally offer an early bird service, this company has since started providing a special early entry tour which includes a free buffet breakfast.

This outing starts at 7:30 am and groups are kept to a relatively small size of 13 people or less, ensuring you'll be able to ask questions of your guide and have them answered.

• Starts at 7:30 am
• The tour is 2.5 hours long
• €109 Adults |  €104 Child (6-18) | under 6 are free
• Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the tour

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE VATICAN MUSEUM AND THE SISTINE CHAPEL

There is a lot to experience at the Vatican Museums and inside the Sistine Chapel.

Some guests have even indicated that it could take upwards of a month to see everything they have to offer.

It’s far too easy to become overwhelmed, so we’ve decided to provide a few noteworthy details about some of the most popular exhibits.

This guide should be handy for anyone who just wants to see the basics.

The Pine Cone Courtyard

The first thing you’ll notice upon entering this area is a large pine cone statue in front of the Belvedere Palace.

As you may have guessed, this statue is where the courtyard got its name.

This courtyard was constructed by Donato Bramante, though the pine cone was constructed much earlier—nearly 2,000 years ago!

It originally stood near the Pantheon and represents Isis, the god of fertility.

If you look closely, you may notice a giant sphere that was constructed in 1990 by Arnaldo Pomodoro.

Though its meaning is unknown, many speculate that this sphere represents the cosmos.

The two sculptures are very different and represent both the old and the new in Vatican City.

Octagonal Courtyard

The most impressive piece of art in this courtyard is the Apollo Belvedere. Apollo was the Greek god of the hunt.

Many scholars consider this sculpture to be the most perfect and symmetrical sculpture in the world.

It was found during the Renaissance and is thought to have been created around 120 AD.

Michelangelo used this sculpture to paint Jesus in “The Last Judgment”.

Also in this room are a statue of the River God, Arno; Laocoon (seen in the photo to the right), the man who tried to warn the Trojans not to accept the Greek’s gift of the wooden horse; and several sarcophagi.

The River God sarcophagus dates back to 140-150 AD. Laocoon was sculpted by Michelangelo. 

The Spiral Staircase

Designed by Giuseppe Momo in 1832, this staircase is well-known due to both its location and size.

This structure is made up of two stairways engraved with iron which form a double helix.

Some visitors may be familiar with this shape as that of DNA, but it’s worth noting that there is no way Momo could have known that when the stairs were constructed.

This is also known as the Snail Staircase. 

The Round Room

You may have noticed that this room is also appropriately named.

In the middle of this room, you will find a giant bath that supposedly once belonged to Nero, emperor of Rome. Surprisingly, this room had to be built around the bath.

The mosaic floor is 1700 years old and depicts scenes from the battle. It’s made of imperial porphyry, a purple stone only found in the mountains of Egypt.

The Gallery of Candelabra

The long gallery behind the Round Room is full of pale marble statues. These statues were once colorful, but their paint has long since worn away.

Many of the statues were adorned with fig leaves from the mid-16th – 19th Century in order to give the statues a little modesty.

Two of the most prominent statues are of the Greek goddesses Diana and Artemis. Artemis is the goddess of fertility, and Diana is the goddess of the hunt.

Both hunters and farmers used to pray to these statues in hopes of a prosperous year ahead.

Raphael Rooms

These rooms include paintings by Raphael and his students.

They are broken down into four rooms: Room of the Segnatura, Room of Heliodorus, Room of the Fire in the Borgo, and Room of Constantine.

Keep an eye out for famous paintings such as The Baptism of Constantine, Deliverance of Saint Peter, The Parnassus, and Disputation of the Holy Sacrament.

If you want to see even more work done by Raphael’s students, make sure to visit the Gallery of Tapestries as well. 

Gregorian Egyptian Museums

If you want a change of pace, head for this museum filled with 9 rooms of ancient Egyptian artifacts.

Founded by Pope Gregory XVI in 1839, this section of the museum includes various sculptures, statues, and bronze objects.

Look in the second room to find mummy cases and sarcophagi which were traditionally used during Egyptian ceremonies.

Go to the fifth room to see incredible statues of various pharaohs, queens, and gods.

The Sistine Chapel

This chapel is the home to the papal conclaves, the group that chooses the next Pope.

Finished in 1481, The Sistine Chapel was designed by Baccio Pontelli and named for Pope Sixtus IV.

This building is most famous for the frescoes that adorn the ceilings and walls, painted by Botticelli, Perugino, Ghirlandaio, and of course—Michelangelo.

The frescoes on the walls depict scenes from the life of Moses, and Jesus, narratives from Genesis, and the ancestors of Christ.

Perhaps most notably, the famous ceiling was painted by Michelangelo from 1508-1512. He also painted “The Last Judgment” from 1535-1541.

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Guided Tours of Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel

• Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel & St. Peter's Basilica Guided Tour
• From the world-famous Sistine Chapel to the extensive art collections of the Vatican Museums, uncover it all on this unforgettable tour.
• Discover the grandeur of St. Peter's Basilica, a sanctuary of faith and artistic beauty, with skip-the-line entry and self-guided exploration.
• Journey through centuries of history as an expert guide reveals the stories and secrets behind the art and architecture of the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel.
• Behold the frescoes of the Sistine Chapel, including the iconic ceiling and Last Judgment, showcasing the genius of one of history's greatest artists.
• Choose between local English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, or Portuguese-speaking guides who will regale you with intriguing anecdotes.
• Skip-the-line entry to Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel
• Skip-the-line entry to St. Peter's Basilica
• Expert local English, German, French, Italian, Spanish or Portuguese-speaking guide
• Audio equipment
• Group tour of 25 or less
• Tip: Avoid booking on Wednesdays! Did you know the Pope speaks in St Peter's Square Wednesday mornings? Sometimes this results in last-min closures, so plan for another day if possible.
• The Vatican Museums offer free tickets for visitors with mobility impairments (with certified invalidity exceeding 74%). In the case of visitors lacking in self-sufficiency, free entry is extended to their companions.
• Please note: All guests must pass through airport-style security. During high season and peak hours, the wait time at the security check may be up to 30 mins.
• Compulsory Vatican dress code: Visitors must wear clothing that covers their knees, arms, and back.
• The experience is not accessible for wheelchair users, pram/stroller users, or baby carriages.
• The Basilica may be subject to last-minute closures. In the event that it is closed, the tour will be extended inside the museums.
• St. Peter’s Basilica may be closed on Wednesday mornings and afternoons as the Papal Audience takes place in St. Peter’s Square. If you’re considering visiting St. Peter's Basilica, please make plans for another day.
• These tickets can't be cancelled or rescheduled.

Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel Guided Tour

• Make the most out of your visit and jump straight into the action. Skip the line with this guided tour, bypassing long queues at the Vatican Museums.
• Are you ready for the experience of a lifetime? The expert guides share stories and hidden symbolism behind artworks, adding a whole new dimension to your experience.
• With unforgettable masterpieces and exquisite art, explore a vast collection spanning centuries, from ancient artifacts to Renaissance marvels.
• Tour in the language of your comfort. Choose from English, Italian, Spanish, German, French, Portuguese, Romanian, and Polish-speaking guides.
• Discover Michelangelo's awe-inspiring Sistine Chapel frescoes, including the iconic ceiling and Last Judgment, showcasing the genius of Italy's most renowned artist.
• Guided tour of Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel
• Skip-the-line entrance to the Vatican Museums
• Priority entry to the Sistine Chapel
• Expert English, Spanish, French, Italian, German, Portuguese, Romanian, and Polish-speaking local guide (as per option selected)
• Group size (up to 25)
• Tip: Arrive early in the morning or later in the afternoon to avoid the crowds.
• Please be dressed appropriately. Sleeveless blouses, miniskirts, shorts, and hats are not permitted.
• Knees and shoulders must be covered for both men and women.
• It is recommended to cover tattoos and any other similarly visible distinctive personal signs.
• Photography and the use of mobile phones is strictly prohibited in the Sistine Chapel.
• Luggage and/or large bags are not allowed inside the venue. You may drop off your bags with the free cloakroom service.
• Pets and other small animals are not allowed in the venue, with the exception of guide dogs.

• Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel Guided Tour with St. Peter’s Basilica Dome Climb
• Commence your tour by climbing to the terrace of St. Peter’s Basilica, where you will uncover unmatched panoramic views of Rome from atop Michelangelo’s Cupola.
• Immerse yourself in the genius of the Renaissance on VIP Vatican tour, guided by experts with skip-the-line access.
• Discover the Basilica's Barocco charm and Michelangelo's Pieta. Then, witness Bernini and Michelangelo's Renaissance masterpieces at the Papal Sarcophagi.
• Pay a visit to the beguiling Sistine Chapel, and marvel at the cherished murals here, such as the painted ceiling and The Last Judgement by Michelangelo.
• Skip-the-line VIP access to Vatican Museums
• Admission to the Sistine Chapel
• Admission to the St. Peter’s Basilica
• Expert English-speaking guide
• Dome climb and visit to the Papal Sarcophagi
• Headsets (for groups of six or more)
• Reservation fees
• Transportation
• Food and drinks
• Visit to the Necropolis / St. Peter’s Tomb / Scavi
• Tips: Don't forget to look down as you ascend the dome. Through special windows, you can catch glimpses of the basilica's interior below, offering a unique perspective.
• It's recommended to wear clothing that covers their knees, arms, and back.
• The experience is not accessible for wheelchair users.
• Note that the following are not allowed on this tour: tripod, flash photography, knives, weapons, or sharp objects.

Vatican Museum & Sistine Chapel Premium Small Group Guided Tour

• Elevate your Vatican experience with this exclusive, small-group tour of the museums and Sistine Chapel. Personalized attention and a fun-filled day await!
• Skip the crowds and embrace VIP treatment on this small group tour. Say goodbye to long lines and the hustle of larger groups.
• Dive deeper into history with expert storytellers. They bring the Vatican and the Chapel to life with captivating stories and intriguing anecdotes.
• Imagine Michelangelo lost in his brushstrokes as you listen to interesting backstories, in English, Italian, French, Spanish, or German.
• Beauty awaits you at every turn! With the help of a local expert unveil Vatican's best-kept secrets and get ready to step into the world of Renaissance.
• 2.5 - 5 hour guided tour (as per option selected)
• Skip-the-line entry to the Vatican Museums
• Entry to the Sistine Chapel
• Charismatic local expert
• English, Italian, French, Spanish, and German-speaking guides
• Intimate group size of 16 or less
• Tip: This tour ends inside the museums…so, why not make the most out of your visit and enjoy a coffee in the courtyard before leaving the site?
• Strict dress code: Sleeveless and/or low-cut garments, shorts above the knee, miniskirts, and hats are not permitted.
• On rare occasions, the Sistine Chapel closes without notice. If this happens, you will spend your full tour diving into the depths of the Vatican Museums.

Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel Early Morning or After-Hours Skip-the-Line Tour

• Get priority access by skipping the line to the Vatican's top attractions and firsthand experiencing its renowned wonders such as central panels and the Last Supper.
• Make your way to the historical Sistine Chapel and marvel at the staggering collection of artworks by Renaissance artists like Michelangelo, Botticelli, and Ghirlandaio.
• Upgrade your stay with a delectable American breakfast in the Pinecone Courtyard. Upgrade and opt for a night tour of the museum as an alternative option.
• Choose between an early morning guided tour, ideal for a walk, or an after-hours guided tour where you enjoy the soft evening light and count on much smaller crowds than usual.
• Entry to the Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel
• After-hours guided tour of Vatican Museums (optional)
• Early morning guided tour of Vatican Museums (optional)
• 30-min breakfast in the Vatican's Courtyard (optional)
• Group of 20 people or less
• Tip: Located in the Vatican Museums' exit area, this unique double-helix staircase was designed by Donato Bramante. Its innovative design allows you to ascend and descend without intersecting each other, creating a visually captivating architectural marvel.
• Note that tripod and flash photography are not allowed in this experience.

Small-Group Guided Tour of Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel

• Enjoy the beautiful Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel with a semi-private and informative guided tour of the Vatican City.
• You get a chance to learn all about the history and rich culture of the Vatican in an intimate group of 8 to 12 people or less.
• Take a stroll and admire the wonderful interiors, and frescos of the pristine Sistine Chapel, the official residence of the pope.
• Witness the largest collections of art and classical sculptures and gain knowledge about them from your private tour guide.
• Enjoy a hassle-free entry in a small group with your personal tour guide.
• Entry to Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel
• Expert tour guide (English, German, Italian, French, Portuguese, Russian)
• Small-group tour (up to 12 people)
• Headsets (if required)
• Entrance to the Dome
• Guided tour of St. Peter's Basilica
• Pick-up & drop-off
• Food & drink

This ticket has the following options that you can choose from:

• English Guided Tour
• German Guided Tour
• Italian Guided Tour
• French Guided Tour
• Portuguese Guided Tour
• Russian Guided Tour

Rome in a Day: Vatican Museums & Colosseum Guided Tour

• Head to Rome's renowned spots Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, Colosseum, Roman Forum, and Palatine Hill on this expertly crafted tour.
• Admire masterpieces by Renaissance maestros at the Vatican Museums followed by a visit to the Sistine Chapel and time to explore St. Peter's Basilica.
• Head to the top of Palatine Hill for spectacular views of this ancient city.
• At the Colosseum, your tour guide will offer intuitive commentary on the ancient amphitheater and the larger-than-life shows hosted here in the past.
• Finish your full-day tour with a walk down the ancient path of the Roman Forum along the Via Sacra.
• Full-day guided tour of Rome
• Access to the Colosseum floors 1 & 2
• Access to Palatine Hill & Roman Forum
• Access to Vatican Museums
• Access to Sistine Chapel
• Access to St. Peter’s Basilica
• Tip: Don't miss checking out Pietà by Michelangelo in St. Peter's Basilica, one of the most famous sculptures to exist in the world.
• All visitors must carry a photo ID for security checks.
• Please note that in case of unexpected closures of some of the areas inside the Museums, the guide may have to modify the itinerary slightly.
• Please note that you will be able to visit St. Peter’s Basilica on your own. Your guide will not take you inside, since direct access from Vatican Museum is not possible.
• St Peter’s Basilica is an active place of worship and may be closed without prior notice for religious events: in this case, the visit will be substituted by a visit to the Vatican Library.
• Due to heightened security measures, you may experience delays in clearing security checks when entering venues. Guests with a pacemaker will need to show a certificate to bypass security screening
• Facilities: Cloakroom at Vatican Museums
• The experience is not accessible for wheelchair users, people with mobility issues.
• Strict Dress Code : In order to enter St.Peter's Basilica and Vatican Museums, one must abide by a dress code. Sleeveless blouses, miniskirts, shorts, and hats are not permitted. Knees and shoulders must be covered for both men and women.
• Note that the following are not allowed inside Colosseum: large backpacks or pieces of luggage.
• Note that the following are not allowed inside Vatican Museums: suitcases, backpacks, containers, umbrellas, walking sticks (except those required by disabled visitors), tripods for cameras and video cameras, signage of any kind.

Small-Group Guided Tour of St. Peter's Basilica

• Head over to St. Peter's Basilica, and discover an iconic church with an official Vatican guide in a language of your choice.
• Check out the stunning works of art and architecture by Renaissance greats such as Bernini, Donato Bramante, Carlo Maderno, and more.
• Pay homage to the grand tomb of St. John Paul II on this guided tour.
• Entry into St. Peter's Basilica
• Guided tour in English, French, German, Italian, or Spanish (as per option selected)
• Specialized guide for small groups (no more than 25 people)
• Tip: Be prepared to go through a security screening before entering the basilica, so it's best to avoid carrying large bags or backpacks.
• To pay your respects, you must abide by the Basilica's dress code. Sleeveless blouses, miniskirts, shorts, and hats are not permitted. Knees and shoulders must be covered for both men and women.
• It is recommended that you wear comfortable shoes as the experience involves a fair amount of walking.
• Expect a considerable wait time as you queue for the security checks. It could take up to 60 mins during the peak season.

Guided Tour (<30 Guests) of Vatican Museum & Sistine Chapel

• Witness two astonishing landmarks, the Vatican Museum, and Sistine Chapel, by taking a 3-hour guided tour.
• Take a stroll around the museum and spot the world’s largest collections of art, the Renaissance masterpieces, and classical sculptures.
• Check out the breathtaking Renaissance frescos decorated at the Sistine Chapel.
• Get a tour of the Gallery of Maps, Raphael Rooms, Tapestry Gallery, and many other rooms within the Vatican Museum.
• Tour of Vatican Museum & Sistine Chapel
• Priority entrance
• Expert English, Romanian, Spanish, Polish, Russian, Portuguese, German, French, or Italian-speaking guide
• Group tour of less than 30 guests
• Personal radios and earpieces
• Audio guide
• Tip: May through September are usually considered the high season in Rome, with a mini-high season around Easter. So plan your trip accordingly!
• The Vatican Museums offer free tickets for visitors with mobility impairments (with certified invalidity exceeding 74%). Additionally, in the case of visitors lacking in self-sufficiency, free entry is extended to their companions.
• Certification of invalidity must be shown before the issue of the entrance tickets either at the Reception or at the Special Permits Desk, located in the entrance hall of the Vatican Museums.
• Please be advised capacity regulations and security may delay the tour departure This could also influence the smooth running of the tour, especially on national holidays and events.
• This tour is not suitable for guests with mobility impairment.
• Please note the following are not allowed on tour: large bags, backpacks, and suitcases.

Top things to do in Rome

Vatican City is the only independent city-state to be part of the UNESCO registry as a World Heritage Site. A revered location, Vatican City is the heart of the Catholic Church, frequented by millions of pilgrims and tourists each year. There’s plenty to see in Vatican City: historic sites like the Vatican Museums , Sistine Chapel , and St. Peter’s Basilica . These landmarks are a feast for art and architecture enthusiasts, hosting works by iconic names like Michelangelo, Caravaggio, and Bernini among others.

The best way to explore and soak in history is through a guided Vatican tour. Enter a world of insightful facts and trivia about art and artists, the history of Christianity and Vatican City, and more through a guided tour of Vatican City. 

Hear from our guests

Which vatican tour is best for you, combo tours.

Duration: 3+ hours Suited for: Travelers short on time Ticket price: From €59.50 to €92.15

Why go for it?

• Explore more for less with these combo tours. See iconic landmarks within Vatican City and Rome with these 2-in-1 packages.
• Avail guided tours to some of the most celebrated monuments in the world, like the Colosseum.

Recommended tours

• Combo (Save 2%): Vatican Museums + Borghese Gallery Tickets
• Combo (Save 5%): Colosseum + Vatican Museums Guided Tour
• Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel Reserved Entry Tickets with Vatican Gardens Open Bus Tour

Small-group tours

Duration: 2.5-5 hours Suited for: Solo travelers Ticket price: From €69

• Beat the crowds and immerse yourself in a small, tight-knit group of like-minded individuals as you explore the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel.
• Make the most of an expert tour guide. Feel free to ask all your doubts: you're in a cozy setting after all! Be assured that personal attention will be paid to you.

Recommended tour

Early morning/after hours tours

Duration: Flexible Suited for: Early birds/night owls Ticket price: From €99

• Beat the crowds when you choose to visit the Vatican Museums either when day breaks or later in the evening, when the rush has subsided. See renowned sculptures and paintings in soft new light just after daybreak or as the sun sets.
• Benefit from an expert tour guide who is sure to enlighten you on the history and significance of various artworks and exhibits.

St Peter's Basilica Tours

Duration: 3-5.5 hours Suited for: Religious pilgrims/culture enthusiasts Ticket price: From €54 to €104.95

• Begin your journey at the Vatican Museums, then moving on to the Sistine Chapel, and finally finishing at St. Peter's Basilica.
• By visiting all three attractions, you'll enjoy a comprehensive experience that will help you appreciate the Vatican's artistic treasures, historical significance and spiritual influence.

Why Take a Vatican Guided Tour?

Vatican City is a popular traveler’s destination in Rome. Here’s why you should take a guided tour of the Vatican:

• Visit multiple attractions: You can book a Vatican tour that includes access to the Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter’s Basilica
• Get faster access to Vatican attractions: By opting for a Vatican tour, you can enter St. Peter’s Basilica directly through the Sistine Chapel entrance, instead of having to walk around and wait in long lines to enter
• Skip long lines: Your Vatican tour includes skip-the-line access to Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel, allowing you to bypass the long waiting lines.
• Learn more about the attractions: Gain insights into each painting, fresco, and sculpture that adorn these historic landmarks with the help of your professional, multilingual tour guide
• Enjoy priority access: Get priority early morning access to the Vatican Museums by opting for a guided tour. This way, you can beat the crowds and explore comfortably

What to expect from your Vatican guided tour?

A visit to the Vatican can be overwhelming for the uninitiated, especially since this tiny city, only 120 acres in total, packs a punch. A guided tour is possibly one of the best ways to get the most out of your trip to Vatican City, a vestige of Renaissance-era architecture and baroque style.

• Once you meet your certified guide and group at the meeting point, you will be taken straight into the Vatican Museums . Explore the Gallery of Maps, tapestries, Raphael’s Rooms, and more. 
• Through the Vatican Museum, you will be taken to the world-famous Sistine Chapel that is home to famous frescoes like Michelangelo’s ‘The Last Judgment and Botticelli’s ‘Temptation of Christ’, among others.
• At St. Peter’s Basilica, which you can access through Sistine Chapel with a guided tour, you can observe art and architecture by famed artists like Raphael and Michelangelo, the architectural marvel that is the Dome — which you can climb up to as well to get splendid views of Rome and Vatican City. Your Vatican tour ends at St. Peter’s Square. 

What to see inside the Vatican Museums

The Vatican Museums boast a vast collection of over 70,000 artworks, spanning millennia and various cultures. Must-see exhibits include Raphael's Rooms, the Gallery of Maps and more.

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Visiting the Vatican on Sunday - Vatican City Forum

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You can still see the Basilica on Sunday's, although some of the church will be closed off for the morning Mass. You don't need to buy tickets ahead of time.

Have a Great Trip

Hi there. If by chance you are there and it's the last Sunday of the month the Museum will be open and it's free. It's open until lunchtime.

Kind Regards

I wish...it's the middle Sunday

Oh that's a shame.

The earlier you arrive at St. Peters the shorter the line should be. We arrived around 3:00 on a Tuesday and waited maybe 15 minutes in line. It moves pretty quickly.

This topic has been closed to new posts due to inactivity.

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Can You Tour the Vatican on Sundays?

Every year, countless visitors travel to the heart of Rome with one question in mind: “Can you tour the Vatican on Sunday?” The allure of the Vatican City, with its unrivaled religious and historical significance, makes it a must-visit, especially during the Holy day of the week (at least, for the Catholic Church).

However, as with many religious sites, there are certain protocols and schedules to be aware of, and Sundays at the Vatican aren’t the same as weekday visits. In the following guide, we’re going to aim to answer all your questions about experiencing the wonders of the Vatican on Sundays – so let’s take a look!

Is the Vatican Open on Sundays?

The Vatican City is indeed open on Sundays, but it operates differently than on other days. The primary reason for this distinction is the series of religious observances that take place, most notably the Papal Mass; visitors can attend the Mass and witness the Pope’s address, offering a unique spiritual experience that is markedly different from the usual touristic exploration.

St. Peter’s Basilica, one of the key attractions of the Vatican City, is also open to the public on Sundays. However, visitors should note that during Mass times, especially the Papal Mass, the basilica might be quite crowded. This can impact the nature of the visit, transforming it from a sightseeing trip to a more spiritual encounter, so it’s essential to be respectful and maintain decorum during these religious ceremonies. If you’re looking for a more comprehensive and less limiting experience, you might want to visit the city on a weekday, either alone or with the guidance of VIP Vatican tours .

Is the Vatican Free on Sundays?

While St. Peter’s Basilica is free to enter regardless of the day, the Vatican Museums, which are usually ticketed, have a special provision for Sundays. On the last Sunday of every month, the Vatican Museums open their doors to the public from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm, free of charge. This gesture allows more visitors to access the wealth of art and history housed within, without the burden of an entry fee. However, the downside is the potential for larger crowds due to the complimentary admission.

It’s worth noting that while this free access is a wonderful opportunity, you might want to weigh the benefits against the challenges of navigating a more crowded space; for those aiming for a more in-depth, peaceful exploration, choosing another day might be advisable.

How can I see the Pope on a Sunday?

One of the most sought-after experiences for visitors to the Vatican on Sunday is the chance to see Pope Francis in person. Every Sunday at noon, when the Pope is in Rome, he appears from a window of the Apostolic Palace to pray the Angelus and address the crowd gathered in St. Peter’s Square. This cherished tradition is not just for devout Catholics but for anyone interested in witnessing a historical and spiritual event.

To ensure a good spot, it’s recommended to arrive at St. Peter’s Square well in advance of noon. No tickets are required for this event, but be prepared for large crowds, especially during peak tourist seasons. Additionally, on certain Sundays, the Pope celebrates Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica or Square, which can be a deeply moving experience to attend. However, tickets are often needed for these Masses, so it’s wise to check the Vatican’s official website or consult with local parishes for details.

Availability of Tours and Attractions on Sundays

Despite the unique schedule of the Vatican on Sundays, many operate to cater to the influx of weekend visitors. Guided tours, particularly those focusing on St. Peter’s Basilica and its surroundings, can be an excellent way to delve deeper into the history, art, and spirituality of the site, and some private Vatican tours even offer “skip-the-line” access to avoid the throngs of visitors.

While many attractions within the Vatican remain accessible, it’s the ambiance that undergoes a transformation on Sundays; the day takes on a more serene, contemplative atmosphere, with many pilgrims and visitors pausing to pray, reflect, or simply soak in the spiritual environment.

Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel on Sundays

As noted earlier, the Vatican Museums and the iconic Sistine Chapel are closed on Sundays, with the exception of the last Sunday of each month. On this particular Sunday, they are open from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm, granting visitors free access. This is a rare opportunity to gaze upon the masterpieces of Michelangelo, Raphael, and many other legendary artists without an entrance fee.

However, this generosity often results in larger crowds, so for those desiring a more intimate experience with the art, it might be worth considering a visit on a regular weekday when the museums are less crowded, and the environment is more conducive to quiet reflection.

The Bottom Line

Overall, touring the Vatican on Sundays offers a blend of spiritual enrichment and cultural exploration. While the pace may be different, with certain attractions being unavailable, the experience is no less profound. It’s an opportunity to witness the Vatican in its most authentic, spiritual state, where history, faith, and art seamlessly converge.

Published:  03.01.2024

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The 5 best vatican tours of 2024.

Guided Vatican tours can make the experience less overwhelming and more enjoyable.

The Best Vatican Tours

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Key Takeaways

• Guided tours can help you make the most of your visit to Vatican City.
• Ticket prices can vary considerably depending on the tour group size.
• Anticipate crowds regardless of when or how you visit, as many tours offer early entry, after-hours and/or skip-the-line access.

One of the most famous landmarks in the world, Vatican City draws more than 5 million people each year, which means that no matter when you visit, you can expect massive crowds. Along with the crowds, the sheer size of this sovereign city-state in Rome can make a visit to Vatican City feel overwhelming.

If you're feeling intimidated by the experience, consider one of the following small-group Vatican tours, guided by local experts who can both explain the history of the Eternal City and help you navigate the crowds.

What a Life Tours – Skip-the-line Vatican Small Group Tour

Price: Adults from $87; kids from $82 Duration: 3 hours

One of the best tours in Rome , this small-group option includes skip-the-line tickets to all the museums as well as St. Peter's Basilica . Tourgoers are also given headsets so they can better hear their guide. Recent visitors praise the knowledgeable tour guides for helping them maneuver the museums, as well as ensuring guests are comfortable (finding a shady reprieve on a hot summer day, for example).

Tours depart from the What a Life Tours office ( Via Santamaura 14B ) at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. daily. Tickets for children ages 5 and younger are free.

What a Life Tours also offers skip-the-line access that omits the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's Basilica, as well as local food tours and tours of the Colosseum .

Check prices & availability on:

The Best Rome Colosseum Tours

Laura Itzkowitz April 17, 2024

The Roman Guy – Vatican After Hours Tour with Sistine Chapel

Price: Adults from $124; kids from $100 Duration: 2 hours

Instead of early entry, this tour offers after-hours access to the Eternal City on select weekends in the summer months. Tours depart at 5:30 p.m. from Caffé Vaticano . Guided by a local expert, you'll see the Vatican museums, galleries, Raphael Rooms and School of Athens before the tour concludes at the Sistine Chapel. Recent reviewers highly recommend this tour, pointing to the tour guides' breadth of knowledge and the ability to experience Vatican City with fewer crowds.

The Roman Guy offers a number of other local tours that include visits to the Colosseum and Catacombs of Rome as well as food tours (and tours that combine some or all of the above).

Liv Tours – Vatican & Sistine Chapel Small Group Tour

Price: Adults from $140; kids from $124 Duration: 3 hours

This intimate tour is limited to just six people, making the experience more personal and enjoyable. Your tour guide will take you to through the famous galleries, the Julius II apartments, the Raphael Rooms and the Sistine Chapel. Recent tourgoers say they could see a difference in this tour versus the other Vatican tours. They also note how kind the tour guides are.

Tours, which are available during a wide variety of time slots each day, start and conclude at Caffé Vaticano , right across the street from the entrance to the museums.

Other experiences offered by Liv Tours include a Jewish Ghetto & Travestere Tour, cooking classes and tours designed for kids.

Private Tours of Rome – Vatican and Sistine Chapel Private Tour

Price: Adults from $364; kids from $87 Duration: 3 hours

Explore the Vatican with a professional historian on this private tour. Recent travelers say they're so glad they chose to visit the Vatican on a private tour, noting how much they enjoyed hearing the guides' personal stories about the museums and the pope.

Tours depart from Viale Vaticano at 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. Monday through Saturday.

If you're looking for a private tour of other attractions, Private Tours of Rome offers a variety of options. It also offers shore excursions, with pick up and drop-off at your ship in Civitavecchia.

Through Eternity Tours – Rome in a Day Tour with Colosseum & Sistine Chapel: Essential Experience

Price: From $1,345 Duration: 6 hours

If you're short on time and/or prefer to see several Rome attractions at once, this jam-packed tour is a great option. During the six-hour excursion, you'll see the Colosseum, the Roman Forum , Trevi Fountain , Piazza Novana and the Pantheon before visiting the Vatican museums, Sistine Chapel, Raphael Rooms, St. Peter's Basilica and St. Peter's Square (and then moving on to other sites). This tour includes optional headsets and skip-the-line access at all ticketed attractions. Recent travelers say the tour guides make this experience especially fun.

This full-day tour starts at 9 a.m. in front of the Angelino "ai Fori" dal 1947 restaurant and concludes in St. Peter's Square. It's typically offered Monday through Saturday. While babies and toddlers up to age 2 are permitted free of charge, this tour is not recommended for children.

Through Eternity Tours offers a number of other guided experiences in Rome, including an Angels and Demons tour based on the bestselling book. The company also offers shore excursions and day trips to Tivoli, Florence and beyond.

Frequently Asked Questions

The Vatican is a sovereign city-state recognized under international law. Its government includes the pope and the departments of the Roman Curia that help him exercise his responsibilities.

In short, yes. Vatican City is considered an independent nation-state and is the world's smallest such entity.

Yes, and there are a variety of ticket options you can purchase on the Vatican's website . However, many travelers opt for a guided tour to see the highlights with the help of an expert. Plus, many Vatican tours include stops at other attractions in Rome.

All visitors must dress appropriately for a place of worship. Shorts, hats, miniskirts, sleeveless tops, low-cut tops and garments that show the knees are not permitted. Guests dressed inappropriately will not be allowed inside.

When choosing your outfit, remember to wear comfortable walking shoes . Any visit to Vatican City requires a lot of walking.

All visitors are required to go through a security check to enter the museums, and there are a variety of items that you may not take inside:

• Luggage: Bags, backpacks and the like must not exceed 40 x 35 x 15 centimeters (16 x 14 x 6 inches); if they're too big, they must be checked in the cloak room (free of charge).
• Umbrellas: If necessary, these can also be checked in the cloak room.
• Video cameras: Non-flash photography is permitted in all areas except the Sistine Chapel.
• Food and drink
• Weapons and firearms

The Vatican is easily accessible from different sections of Rome.

Metro: You can take the metro to either the Cipro or Ottaviano stop on Line A (orange line) to be dropped near the Vatican Museums.

Bus: If taking the bus, multiple routes drop off near St. Peter's Basilica.

Taxi: You can also opt for a taxi or walk into St. Peter's Square.

Additionally, there are parking garages outside of Vatican City if you want to drive there, though driving in Rome is generally not recommended, as there are many areas where driving is restricted and you could be fined. Traffic in Rome can also be brutal, especially during the summer. Plan to arrive at the tour departure point at least 10 to 15 minutes prior to your scheduled tour time.

The Vatican museums are open Monday through Saturday.

From March 2024 onward, hours are 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., with extended hours until 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. The museums are closed on Sundays, with the exception of the last Sunday of the month and certain holy days throughout the year, including Christmas. Final entry to the museum is approximately two hours before closing.

St. Peter's Basilica opens at 7 a.m. year-round, closing at 6:30 p.m. in the winter months and 7 p.m. from April through September.

Be sure to check if there are any museum closures ahead of your visit.

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In May, Vatican to offer special Marian tour of Pope's gardens

By Paolo Ondarza   

"The only way to stop war is through forgiveness!" 

The message of the Virgin Mary is both disruptive and clear. Throughout history, she has not failed to indicate to humanity her plan of salvation. At Fatima, for example, appearing to the three shepherd children, she delivered a genuine "peace plan," inviting the world to pray, to return to the Gospel, and to consecrate themselves to her Immaculate Heart. 

Prayer for Peace 

These words are as relevant as ever when considering the state of the world today.  

The Popes have always emphasized the importance and power of prayer for peace. The initiative "May with Mary," which will be offered by the Vatican Museums every Wednesday and Saturday, offers visitors the opportunity to immerse themselves in the beauty of the Vatican Gardens by walking through the various Marian images present there. 

Wednesday and Saturday

 "In the Marian month," explains Sister Emanuela Edwards, "on Wednesdays, pilgrims are invited to join us after the papal audience for an exceptional opening of the Gardens in honor of the Madonna. Additionally, on Saturday mornings, traditionally dedicated to Mary, visitors can take advantage of this pilgrimage tour." 

The Queen of Peace

 "May with Mary," continues the nun, "is a visit that includes 10 stops at the most important statues and images of the Madonna. It evokes a decade of the rosary, so in this period when there are many tensions in the world, at each Marian image, we will pray for peace in the world. It is worth remembering that in the gardens, there are 27 different images of the Madonna, so we can rightly say that these are Her gardens. Mary is the "Queen of Peace," and it is right to pray in this way for peace in the world." 

The Pope’s Prayer 

The Marian images featured in the "May with Mary" tour are linked to the devotion of the peoples who have turned to the Virgin in times of war to invoke peace. Regarding the Madonna of Fatima and the conflict in Ukraine, Sister Emanuela recalls: "Pope Francis followed the Fatima appeal by consecrating the cause of peace to the Queen of Peace. During our visit, we recite this same prayer in front of the statue of the Madonna of Fatima, in communion with the intentions of the Holy Father."

Mercy: The way to lasting peace 

Walking through the Vatican Gardens, we encounter another example of Marian intercession for peace: the Madonna of Mercy, created by Renata Minuto at the entrance of the Chalet of Leo XIII. 

"The Madonna," recalls the head of the Educational Activities Office of the Vatican Museums, "appeared to the peasant Antonio Botta in 1536. At that time, Savona was using all its forces in a war against the Republic of Genoa. Mary appeared to invite both parties to peace, urging them to use mercy and not justice, thus putting an end to the conflict. 

Appearing as Our Lady of Mercy, our Mother teaches us how to have lasting peace. This is what she wants us to remember today in our world torn by war. The only way to stop war is through forgiveness!" 

The spirituality of the Vatican Gardens 

Nature, fountains, ancient artifacts, statues of the Virgin and saints contribute what can be defined as the "spirituality of the Vatican Gardens," a refuge of prayer and contemplation appreciated and lived by the Successor of Peter. 

"In this beautiful place, the Popes, such as John Paul II and Benedict XVI, used to take a daily walk as a moment of rest and prayer. Even Pope Francis, like his predecessors, adorned the Gardens with a statue of the Virgin of Luján, made from recycled materials to remind us that nothing is lost, nothing is discarded, but everything has meaning within the magnificent work of God. We can say that, in a sense, the garden also reflects the teachings of the Popes, and this also leaves us with an important message." 

The Vatican Gardens 

Click  here  to make a reservation join one of these May tours.

Families with children or people with sensory, motor, and intellectual disabilities can take advantage of a special service by emailing  [email protected]

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Pope Francis visits Venice in first trip outside of Rome in seven months

April 28, 2024 / 3:18 PM EDT / CBS/AP

Pope Francis made his first trip out of Rome in seven months on Sunday with a visit to Venice that included an art exhibition, a stop at a prison and a Mass.

Venice has always been a place of contrasts, of breathtaking beauty and devastating fragility, where history, religion, art and nature have collided over the centuries to produce an otherworldly gem of a city. But even for a place that prides itself on its culture of unusual encounters, Francis' visit on Sunday stood out.

Francis traveled to the lagoon city to visit the Holy See's pavilion at the Biennale contemporary art show and meet with the people who created it. But because the Vatican decided to mount its exhibit in Venice's women's prison, and invited inmates to collaborate with the artists, the whole project assumed a far more complex meaning, touching on Francis' belief in the power of art to uplift and unite, and of the need to give hope and solidarity to society's most marginalized.

His trip began at the courtyard of the Giudecca prison, where he met with women inmates one by one.

"Paradoxically, a stay in prison can mark the beginning of something new, through the rediscovery of the unsuspected beauty in us and in others, as symbolized by the artistic event you are hosting and the project to which you actively contribute," Francis told them.

The 87-year-old pontiff then met with Biennale artists in the prison chapel, decorated with an installation by Brazilian visual artist Sonia Gomes of objects dangling from the ceiling, meant to draw the viewer's gaze upward.

The Vatican exhibit has turned the Giudecca prison, a former convent for reformed prostitutes, into one of the must-see attractions of this year's Biennale, even though to see it visitors must reserve in advance and go through a security check. It has become an unusual art world darling that greets visitors at the entrance with Maurizio Cattelan's wall mural of  two giant filthy feet , a work that recalls Caravaggio's dirty feet or the feet that Francis washes each year in a Holy Thursday ritual that he routinely performs on prisoners.

The exhibit also includes a short film starring the inmates and Zoe Saldana, and prints in the prison coffee shop by onetime Catholic nun and American social activist Corita Kent.

Francis' dizzying morning visit, which ended with Mass in St. Mark's Square, represented an increasingly rare outing for the 87-year-old pontiff, who has been hobbled by health and mobility problems that have ruled out any foreign trips so far this year.

"Venice, which has always been a place of encounter and cultural exchange, is called to be a sign of beauty available to all," Francis said. "Starting with the least, a sign of fraternity and care for our common home."

During an encounter with young people at the iconic Santa Maria della Salute basilica, Francis acknowledged the miracle that is Venice, admiring its "enchanting beauty" and tradition as a place of East-West encounter, but warning that it is increasingly vulnerable to climate change and depopulation.

"Venice is at one with the waters upon which it sits," Francis said. "Without the care and safeguarding of this natural environment, it might even cease to exist."

in the exhibit as tour guides and as protagonists in some of the artworks.

Ahead of his trip, Francis sat down with "CBS Evening News" anchor and managing editor Norah O'Donnell during an hourlong interview at the guest house where he lives in Rome. 

During the interview, Francis pleaded for peace worldwide amid the ongoing wars in Ukraine and Gaza .

"Please. Countries at war, all of them, stop the war. Look to negotiate. Look for peace," said the pope, speaking through a translator.

He also had a message for those who do not see a place for themselves in the Catholic Church anymore. 

"I would say that there is always a place, always. If in this parish the priest doesn't seem welcoming, I understand, but go and look elsewhere, there is always a place," he said. "Do not run away from the Church. The Church is very big. It's more than a temple ... you shouldn't run away from her."

The pope's Venice trip was the first of four planned inside Italy in the next three months, Reuters reported. He is scheduled to visit Verona in May and Trieste in July, and is expected to attend the June summit of Group of Seven (G7) leaders in Bari.

In September, he is also set to embark on the longest foreign trip of his papacy, traveling to Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste and Singapore.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

An extended version of O'Donnell's interview with Pope Francis will air on "60 Minutes" on Sunday, May 19 at 7 p.m. ET. On Monday, May 20, CBS will broadcast an hourlong primetime special dedicated to the papal interview at 10 p.m. ET on the CBS Television Network and streaming on  Paramount+ . Additionally, CBS News and Stations will carry O'Donnell's interview across platforms. 

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Pope’s Visit to Art Exhibition in Prison Is a First for Venice Biennale

Incarcerated women serve as guides to the show, which reflects Pope Francis’ longtime commitment to society’s marginalized people.

By Elisabetta Povoledo

Reporting from Venice and Vatican City

Landing by helicopter at a women’s prison where the Vatican has mounted its pavilion for the Venice Biennale international art exhibition, Pope Francis on Sunday told the women incarcerated there that they had a “special place in my heart.”

“Grazie,” one woman called out. Others applauded.

Many of the women had participated with artists in creating works that hang throughout the prison for the exhibition, titled “With My Eyes.” Francis, the first pope ever to visit — if briefly — a Venice Biennale, said that it was “fundamental” for the prison system “to offer detainees the tools and room for human, spiritual, cultural and professional growth, creating the conditions for their healthy reintegration.”

“Not to isolate dignity, but to give new possibilities,” Francis said to applause.

Over the decades, countries participating in the Biennale — the world’s principal showcase for new art — have used deconsecrated churches, former beer factories, water buses and various other sites to display their art, but this was the first time a prison was selected.

That made the project “more complex and more difficult to implement,” Bruno Racine, the director of two venues of the Pinault Collection in Venice and a co-curator of the Vatican Pavilion, said in an interview. But the setting is consistent with Francis’ message of inclusivity toward marginalized people, he added.

The Vatican project has received an overwhelmingly positive public reception, but it has not been without controversy. Some critics raised ethical concerns about the intersection of powerful institutions like the Vatican and the Biennale with the limited autonomy of imprisoned women. Others suggested that the Vatican, in mounting the show, was complicit in a penal system in which overcrowding remains a serious issue .

Still others demanded that the pope request pardons or at least reduced sentences for any women who were incarcerated because they had responded violently to domestic abuse.

“I don’t think the Vatican has the power to have any influence over Italian justice,” Mr. Racine said of that idea.

While the Vatican has not publicly responded to the critiques, Francis has been consistently outspoken about domestic abuse, saying in 2021 that there was something “almost satanic” about the high number of cases of domestic violence against women.

He has also been a vocal advocate of prison reform, denouncing overcrowding and often meeting with inmates during his travels.

On Sunday, Francis said that prison was “a harsh reality, and problems such as overcrowding, the lack of facilities and resources, and episodes of violence give rise to a great deal of suffering there.” But he said prison could also be a place where people’s dignity could be “promoted through mutual respect and the nurturing of talents and abilities, perhaps dormant or imprisoned by the vicissitudes of life.”

The pope described his artistic vision to artists he called to the Sistine Chapel last year , telling them to “think of the poor and to ensure that art went into the peripheries,” the Vatican’s culture chief, Cardinal José Tolentino de Mendonça, said earlier this year. On Sunday, Francis told artists involved with the Vatican project that “the world needs artists.”

The curators, Mr. Racine and Chiara Parisi, of Centre Pompidou-Metz, the French museum, selected a handful of artists to work with the incarcerated women to create works that are scattered through the prison.

One, a 1965 serigraph featuring the word Hope backward, was hung over the door of the prison canteen, where about a quarter of the 80-odd inmates who agreed to serve as guides to the show first meet visitors. The serigraph was created by the artist Corita Kent, a former nun and an activist for social justice who died in 1986.

The Lebanese artist Simone Fattal transcribed poems and reflections by the incarcerated women on lava slabs that line a brick corridor: “I thought I was suffocating.” “I often think of my family.” “I am so sad.”

In another room were small stylized paintings by the French artist Claire Tabouret that were based on family photos the women had given her.

Visitors get only a brief glimpse of penitentiary life, but during the tour a short film, directed by Marco Perego and starring his wife, the actor Zoe Saldaña, shows the conditions inside in bleak black and white: shared rooms, shared showers, little privacy. Both inmates and professional actresses acted in the film, Mr. Racine said.

This is the third time the Vatican has participated in the Biennale: In 2013 and 2015, it was among many participants at the Arsenale, one of the fair’s main venues. And for the 2018 Architecture Biennale, the Vatican built a series of chapels, “for believers and nonbelievers alike,” that can still be visited .

On Sunday, the pope greeted the inmates of the Giudecca prison individually in an inner courtyard. Some gave him flowers, and others pressed envelopes and notes into his hands.

Giovanni Russo, the head of the Department of Penitentiary Administration in the Italian Ministry of Justice, told reporters at a Vatican news conference last month that the women who participated in the project were entitled to unspecified benefits. While the Vatican Pavilion was unique, he said, nearly all of Italy’s 190 penitentiaries had “artistic projects” of some kind or another, involving more than 20,000 volunteers.

It’s not the first time that the inmates at the prison have participated in major art projects. Two years ago, the French artist Pauline Curnier Jardin worked with inmates to make a film and paint a large common room where the women meet visitors twice a week. The walls are now a soft purple, decorated with stylized leaves and figures designed by the inmates during a series of workshops with the artist.

After the Biennale closes in November, the artworks in “With My Eyes” will be removed, Mr. Racine said. But Ms. Curnier Jardin’s soothing additions, which are unrelated to the Biennale, will remain.

After the prison, Pope Francis celebrated Mass in St. Mark’s Square.

Praising Venice’s “enchanting beauty” during the homily, he added that the city was also threatened by issues like climate change, overtourism and the “the fragility of constructions, of cultural heritage, but also of people,” which risk fraying the city’s social fabric. City officials this past week began charging an access fee to the city, hoping to deter day visitors from coming on especially busy days.

Many tourists hoping to visit St. Mark’s Square on Sunday were stymied by dozens of blockades around the area, part of the increased security for the pontiff’s visit.

“I’m not upset,” Julia Suh, visiting from Augusta, Ga., said at one of the blockades while watching the Mass on her cellphone. “I’m very honored — it’s what they’re supposed to do because of heightened security.”

Elisabetta Povoledo is a reporter based in Rome, covering Italy, the Vatican and the culture of the region. She has been a journalist for 35 years. More about Elisabetta Povoledo

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Pope visits women’s prison in Venice and tours Vatican show at art Biennale

Pope Francis, 87, met inmates, staff and volunteers at Giudecca jail during first trip outside Rome for months

The pope has met female prisoners in Venice who are stars of the Vatican’s pavilion at the Biennale contemporary art show, and urged the women to rebuild their lives in the first ever papal visit to one of the world’s biggest art gatherings.

Pope Francis, 87, arrived by helicopter in the courtyard of the women’s prison on the island of Giudecca, amid concerns over his health. He has not travelled outside Rome since visiting the French city of Marseille in September.

The pope, who throughout his papacy has spoken up in defence of prisoners and the marginalised, encouraged the women to reconstruct their lives “brick upon brick, together, with determination” during their time in prison.

“Prison is a harsh reality, and problems such as overcrowding, the lack of facilities and resources, and episodes of violence, give rise to a great deal of suffering there,” he said, sitting in front of the prisoners. “But it can also become a place of moral and material rebirth.”

Francis called on the prison system to “offer detainees the tools and room for human, spiritual, cultural and professional growth, creating the conditions for their healthy reintegration”.

The pope toured an art exhibition housed at the prison which examines the daily lives of the inmates through the work of 10 different artists. The exhibit is the Vatican’s entry for this year’s Biennale festival of art , which began last weekend.

As some of the women wept, Francis praised the art show. “Paradoxically, a stay in prison can mark the beginning of something new, through the rediscovery of the unsuspected beauty in us and in others, as symbolised by the artistic event you are hosting and the project to which you actively contribute,” he said.

The Vatican exhibit has turned the Giudecca prison – once a convent for reformed prostituted women – into one of the must-see attractions of this year’s Biennale, even though to see it, visitors must reserve in advance and go through a security check. It has become an unusual art world attraction, with visitors greeted at the entrance by Maurizio Cattelan’s wall mural of two giant filthy feet, a work that recalls Caravaggio’s dirty feet or the feet that Francis washes each year in a Holy Thursday ritual that he routinely performs on prisoners.

Francis’s visit represented “a historic moment because he will be the first pope to visit the Venice Biennale,” said the exhibition’s lead curator, José Tolentino de Mendonça.

Later, during a meeting with young people at the iconic Santa María della Salute basilica, Francis acknowledged the miracle that is Venice, admiring its “enchanting beauty” and tradition as a place of east-west encounters, but warning that it was increasingly vulnerable to climate change and depopulation.

“Venice is at one with the waters upon which it sits,” Francis said. “Without the care and safeguarding of this natural environment, it might even cease to exist.”

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Venice, sinking under rising sea levels and weighed down by the impact of overtourism, is in the opening days of an experiment to try to limit the sort of day trips that Francis undertook on Sunday.

This weekend, the city launched a new entry fee for daytrippers , aimed at easing the pressure of tourism on the Unesco world heritage site. As a guest, the head of the Catholic church was exempt from buying a €5 (£4.25) ticket – but non-resident pilgrims visiting for his mass had to pay.

Francis acknowledged Venice’s beauty in his homily at a mass before about 10,000 people in the shadow of St Mark’s basilica, one of the most celebrated churches in Italy .

But he said the city also faced an array of challenges, including climate change, the fragility of its cultural heritage, and overtourism. “Moreover, all these realities risk generating … frayed social relations, individualism, and loneliness,” he said.

Last year in December, a bout of bronchitis forced the pope to cancel a trip to Dubai, where he was to have addressed UN climate talks. He also pulled out of an Easter event at the last minute in March, after suffering for several weeks from what the Vatican called a “light flu”.

The pontiff, who uses a wheelchair, has suffered increasing health problems in recent years, from knee pain to surgery for a hernia and on his colon. Despite his health, the Vatican is planning for him an ambitious 12-day trip to Asia in September, taking in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Singapore. Before that, the pope is due to make two other trips within Italy: to Verona in May and Trieste in July.

• Pope Francis
• Venice Biennale 2024
• Catholicism

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Pope Francis accused of opposing reforms to tackle clerical sexual abuse

Wine is a gift from God, Pope Francis tells Italian producers

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Pope visits Venice to speak to the artists and inmates behind the Biennale’s must-see prison show

Pope Francis began his visit to Venice on Sunday with a meeting with women prisoners at the Giudecca Women’s Prison. The prisoners and their guards gathered in the prison courtyard where the Pope, pushed in a wheelchair, greeted all 80 detainees. (Production by Trisha Thomas)

Pope Francis met with thousands of young people along a canal in Venice Sunday morning and told them to “leave the cell phone and meet people.” The 87-year-old Pope was making a whirlwind visit to Venice where he started off his day meeting women prisoners and visiting the Vatican’s art exhibit at a women’s prison. (Production by Trisha Thomas and Luigi Navarra)

More than 10,000 people crowded into St. Mark’s Square in Venice to take part in a Mass with Pope Francis. (AP video by Paolo Santalucia) (Production by Trisha Thomas and Gigi Navarra)

Pope Francis travelled to the lagoon city of Venice on Sunday for a series of public appearances. The morning visit, which ended with Mass in St. Mark’s Square, represented an increasingly rare outing for the 87-year-old pontiff, who has been hobbled by health and mobility problems that have ruled out any foreign trips so far this year. (AP video by Paolo Santalucia and Helena Alves)

Pope Francis waves to faithful at the end of a mass in St. Mark’s Square, Venice, Italy, Sunday, April 28, 2024. The Pontiff arrived for his first-ever visit to the lagoon town including the Vatican pavilion at the 60th Biennal of Arts. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

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Pope Francis is greeted by Gondoliers upon his arrival in Venice, Italy, Sunday, April 28, 2024. The Pontiff arrived for his first-ever visit to the lagoon town including the Vatican pavilion at the 60th Biennal of Arts. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Pope Francis delivers his message as he meets with young people in front of the Church of the Salute in Venice, Italy, Sunday, April 28, 2024. The Pontiff arrived for his first-ever visit to the lagoon town including the Vatican pavilion at the 60th Biennal of Arts. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Gondoliers wait for the arrival of Pope Francis in front of the Santissimo Redentore church in Venice, Sunday, April 28, 2024. The Pontiff arrived for his first-ever visit to the lagoon town including the Vatican pavilion at the 60th Biennal of Arts. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Pope Francis arrives in St. Mark’s Square to celebrate a mass in Venice, Italy, Sunday, April 28, 2024. The Pontiff arrived for his first-ever visit to the lagoon town including the Vatican pavilion at the 60th Biennal of Arts. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

Pope Francis, foreground, is greeted by Gondoliers upon his arrival in Venice, Italy, Sunday, April 28, 2024. The Pontiff arrived for his first-ever visit to the lagoon town including the Vatican pavilion at the 60th Biennal of Arts. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Pope Francis arrives in front of the Church of the Salute to meet with youths in Venice, Italy, Sunday, April 28, 2024. The Pontiff arrived for his first-ever visit to the lagoon town including the Vatican pavilion at the 60th Biennal of Arts. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Pope Francis is greeted by gondoliers upon his arrival in Venice, Italy, Sunday, April 28, 2024. The Pontiff arrived for his first-ever visit to the lagoon town including the Vatican pavilion at the 60th Biennal of Arts. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Pope Francis, aboard of a speedboat foreground, is greeted by Gondoliers upon his arrival in Venice, Italy, Sunday, April 28, 2024. The Pontiff arrived for his first-ever visit to the lagoon town including the Vatican pavilion at the 60th Biennal of Arts. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Pope Francis is flanked by Cardinal Francesco Moraglia, left, at the end of a mass in St. Mark’s Square, Venice, Italy, Sunday, April 28, 2024. The Pontiff arrived for his first-ever visit to the lagoon town including the Vatican pavilion at the 60th Biennal of Arts. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

ALTERNATIVE CROP OF ALT105 - Pope Francis, foreground, is greeted by Gondoliers upon his arrival in Venice, Italy, Sunday, April 28, 2024. The Pontiff arrived for his first-ever visit to the lagoon town including the Vatican pavilion at the 60th Biennal of Arts. In background is the Church of the Most Holy Redeemer. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Pope Francis arrives in St. Mark’s Square to celebrate a mass in Venice, Italy, Sunday, April 28, 2024. The Pontiff arrived for his first-ever visit to the lagoon town including the Vatican pavilion at the 60th Biennal of Arts. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Pope Francis, background center, delivers his message in front of the Church of the Salute during his meeting with youths in Venice, Italy, Sunday, April 28, 2024. The Pontiff arrived for his first-ever visit to the lagoon town including the Vatican pavilion at the 60th Biennal of Arts. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Pope Francis delivers his message as he meets with youths in Venice, Italy, Sunday, April 28, 2024. The Pontiff arrived for his first-ever visit to the lagoon town including the Vatican pavilion at the 60th Biennal of Arts. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Pope Francis, aboard a motorboat foreground, passes past the Church of San Giorgio Maggiore upon his arrival in Venice, Italy, Sunday, April 28, 2024. The Pontiff arrived for his first-ever visit to the lagoon town including the Vatican pavilion at the 60th Biennal of Arts. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Pope Francis prays in front of an icon of the Virgin Mary and baby Jesus at the end of a mass in St. Mark’s Square, Venice, Italy, Sunday, April 28, 2024. The Pontiff arrived for his first-ever visit to the lagoon town including the Vatican pavilion at the 60th Biennal of Arts. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

Pope Francis celebrates a mass in St. Mark’s Square, Venice, Italy, Sunday, April 28, 2024. The Pontiff arrived for his first-ever visit to the lagoon town including the Vatican pavilion at the 60th Biennal of Arts. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

Pope Francis, background center, celebrates a mass in St. Mark’s Square, Venice, Italy, Sunday, April 28, 2024. The Pontiff arrived for his first-ever visit to the lagoon town including the Vatican pavilion at the 60th Biennal of Arts. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

Faithful gather in St. Mark’s Square, during a mass celebrated by Pope Francis in Venice, Italy, Sunday, April 28, 2024. The Pontiff arrived for his first-ever visit to the lagoon town including the Vatican pavilion at the 60th Biennal of Arts. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

Pope Francis prays inside St. Mark’s Basilica in Venice, Italy, Sunday, April 28, 2024. The Pontiff arrived for his first-ever visit to the lagoon town including the Vatican pavilion at the 60th Biennal of Arts. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Pope Francis leaves St. Mark’s Basilica in Venice, Italy, Sunday, April 28, 2024. The Pontiff arrived for his first-ever visit to the lagoon town including the Vatican pavilion at the 60th Biennal of Arts. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

VENICE, Italy (AP) — Venice has always been a place of contrasts, of breathtaking beauty and devastating fragility, where history, religion, art and nature have collided over the centuries to produce an otherworldly gem of a city. But even for a place that prides itself on its culture of unusual encounters, Pope Francis’ visit Sunday stood out.

Francis traveled to the lagoon city to visit the Holy See’s pavilion at the Biennale contemporary art show and meet with the people who created it. But because the Vatican decided to mount its exhibit in Venice’s women’s prison, and invited inmates to collaborate with the artists , the whole project assumed a far more complex meaning, touching on Francis’ belief in the power of art to uplift and unite, and of the need to give hope and solidarity to society’s most marginalized.

Francis hit on both messages during his visit, which began in the courtyard of the Giudecca prison where he met with the women inmates one by one. As some of them wept, Francis urged them to use their time in prison as a chance for “moral and material rebirth.”

“Paradoxically, a stay in prison can mark the beginning of something new, through the rediscovery of the unsuspected beauty in us and in others, as symbolized by the artistic event you are hosting and the project to which you actively contribute,” Francis said.

Francis then met with Biennale artists in the prison chapel, decorated with an installation by Brazilian visual artist Sonia Gomes of objects dangling from the ceiling, meant to draw the viewer’s gaze upward. He urged the artists to embrace the Biennale’s theme this year “Strangers Everywhere,” to show solidarity with all those on the margins.

The Vatican exhibit has turned the Giudecca prison, a former convent for reformed prostitutes, into one of the must-see attractions of this year’s Biennale, even though to see it visitors must reserve in advance and go through a security check. It has become an unusual art world darling that greets visitors at the entrance with Maurizio Cattelan’s wall mural of two giant filthy feet , a work that recalls Caravaggio’s dirty feet or the feet that Francis washes each year in a Holy Thursday ritual that he routinely performs on prisoners.

The exhibit also includes a short film starring the inmates and Zoe Saldana, and prints in the prison coffee shop by onetime Catholic nun and American social activist Corita Kent.

Francis’ dizzying morning visit, which ended with Mass in St. Mark’s Square, represented an increasingly rare outing for the 87-year-old pontiff, who has been hobbled by health and mobility problems that have ruled out any foreign trips so far this year.

And Venice, with its 121 islands and 436 bridges, isn’t an easy place to negotiate. But Francis pulled it off, arriving by helicopter from Rome, crossing the Giudecca Canal in a water taxi and then arriving in St. Mark’s Square in a mini popemobile that traversed the Grand Canal via a pontoon bridge erected for the occasion.

During an encounter with young people at the iconic Santa Maria della Salute basilica, Francis acknowledged the miracle that is Venice, admiring its “enchanting beaty” and tradition as a place of East-West encounter, but warning that it is increasingly vulnerable to climate change and depopulation.

“Venice is at one with the waters upon which it sits,” Francis said. “Without the care and safeguarding of this natural environment, it might even cease to exist.”

Venice, sinking under rising sea levels and weighed down by the impact of overtourism, is in the opening days of an experiment to try to limit the sort of day trips that Francis undertook Sunday.

Venetian authorities last week launched a pilot program to charge day-trippers 5 euros ($5.35) apiece on peak travel days. The aim is to encourage them to stay longer or come at off-peak times, to cut down on crowds and make the city more livable for its dwindling number of residents.

For Venice’s Catholic patriarch, Archbishop Francesco Moraglia, the new tax program is a worthwhile experiment, a potential necessary evil to try to preserve Venice as a livable city for visitors and residents alike.

Moraglia said Francis’ visit — the first by a pope to the Biennale — was a welcome boost, especially for the women of the Giudecca prison who participated in the exhibit as tour guides and as protagonists in some of the artworks.

He acknowledged that Venice over the centuries has had a long, complicated, love-hate relationship with the papacy, despite its central importance to Christianity.

The relics of St. Mark — the top aide to St. Peter, the first pope — are held here in the basilica, which is one of the most important and spectacular in all of Christendom. Several popes have hailed from Venice — in the past century alone three pontiffs were elected after being Venice patriarchs. And Venice hosted the last conclave held outside the Vatican: the 1799-1800 vote that elected Pope Paul VII.

But for centuries before that, relations between the independent Venetian Republic and the Papal States were anything but cordial as the two sides dueled over control of the church. Popes in Rome issued interdicts against Venice that essentially excommunicated the entire territory. Venice flexed its muscles back by expelling entire religious orders, including Francis’ own Jesuits.

“It’s a history of contrasts because they were two competitors for so many centuries,” said Giovanni Maria Vian, a church historian and retired editor of the Vatican newspaper L’Osservatore Romano whose family hails from Venice. “The papacy wanted to control everything, and Venice jealously guarded its independence.”

Moraglia said that troubled history is long past and that Venice was welcoming Francis with open arms and gratitude, in keeping with its history as a bridge between cultures.

“The history of Venice, the DNA of Venice — beyond the language of beauty and culture that unifies — there’s this historic character that says that Venice has always been a place of encounter,” he said.

Francis said as much as he closed out Mass in St. Mark’s before an estimated 10,500 people.

“Venice, which has always been a place of encounter and cultural exchange, is called to be a sign of beauty available to all,” Francis said. “Starting with the least, a sign of fraternity and care for our common home.”

Winfield reported from Rome. Associated Press writer Colleen Barry contributed.

Everything you need to know about Ohio State spring commencement ceremony

School districts across Ohio canceled graduation ceremonies in the spring of 2020 to curb the spread of COVID-19. Four years later, some of those students will finally get the chance to have their academic progress publicly recognized when they receive their college diplomas at Ohio State University's spring commencement this weekend .

Read More: From COVID to campus protests: Ohio State's Class of 2024 is prepared for anything

More than 12,000 graduates are set to receive their diplomas on Sunday during the ceremony at Ohio Stadium.

Here's everything you need to know about commencement:

What time is Ohio State's graduation?

The ceremony officially begins at noon, but Ohio Stadium will open to guests at 10 a.m.

Commencement typically lasts between two-and-a-half to three hours.

Where can I watch the Ohio State Spring Commencement 2024?

The university is providing a livestream for guests, families and the curious who cannot attend in person. You can find the live broadcast on the OSU Spring Commencement 2024 webpage or by using the player embedded below.

How many guests are graduates allowed to have?

There are no restrictions on the number of guests graduates are allowed to have inside Ohio Stadium. Tickets are not required for guests.

Will there be security?

Ohio State said "heightened security measures will be in effect throughout commencement ceremonies and events" to ensure guest and graduates' safety.

Guests are asked to enter through specific gates at Ohio Stadium to get into the ceremony. They are:

• Gates 7, 9, 11, 13, 23 and 25 on the West side;
• Gates 8, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20 and 22 on the East side.

Security measures are similar to attending an Ohio State football game. All items and persons entering the stadium are subject to security screening and inspection via a walk through metal detector and/or a hand wand metal detector.

Prohibited items include:

• Bags of any type larger than 5-by-8-by-1 inches
• Noisemaking devices
• Mace, pepper spray, aerosol cans or similar substances
• Banners or signs
• Sticks or poles
• Weapons or items that mimic weapons including, but not limited to: lighters, matches, firearms (including Concealed Carry Weapon permit holders), fireworks, pocket knives, knives, spiked bracelets, brass knuckles, martial arts weapons, stun guns, squirt guns, super soakers, rope and chains

Guests who need to bring a medical bag should enter through the Press Entrance on the west side of the stadium or the Band Entrance on the east side of the stadium.

Where should I park?

With an estimated 60,000 people attending commencement on Sunday, mixed with construction on Cannon Drive , folks should expect heavy traffic around Ohio Stadium and on campus.

Parking is available on a first-come, first-served basis in the Sisson Hall lots and any of the permit zones around Ag Campus, the Schottenstein Center, or the student residence halls. No permit is required. The Arps, Ohio Union, Neil Avenue and Lane Avenue garages will be available at no charge.

Disability parking  is located in the East Stadium lot on a first-come, first-served basis.

Parking garages are likely to fill up fast, so its encouraged that guests use the West Campus parking lots and take a complimentary shuttle bus to the stadium.

Shuttle buses  will run from West Campus parking lots to the Coffey Road fields beginning at 9:00 a.m. until one hour after the ceremony. The Coffey Road fields are approximately a half-mile or a 10-minute walk, from Ohio Stadium.

Planning to Uber? Guests arriving by a ride-share service  should be dropped off at the Schottenstein Center.  Pickup after the ceremony will be at Neil Avenue and 19th Avenue.

What will Ohio State do if it rains during graduation?

Weather is looking a bit spotty for commencement on Sunday.

The National Weather Service in Wilmington is forecasting a chance of showers and thunderstorms before 8 a.m., a chance of showers between 8 a.m. and 11 a.m., then a chance of showers and thunderstorms after 11 a.m. with partly sunny skies a high near 79 degrees. Chance of precipitation is 50%.

Commencement will only be canceled if the ceremony cannot be held in Ohio Stadium due to inclement weather. That's because no indoor facility on campus can accommodate the graduating class and 60,000 guests.

If it is raining or rain is forecast on commencement day, graduates and guests should come prepared with appropriate rain gear. Ponchos, raincoats and something to cover wet bleachers are encouraged. Umbrellas are permitted in Ohio Stadium, but using them during the ceremony is discouraged.

Who is giving the commencement speech?

Chris Pan — a social entrepreneur, musician and inspirational speaker — will be the commencement speaker.

Pan, a 1999 Ohio State graduate, worked for PepsiCo and Facebook before starting his own company, MyIntent. "MyIntent makes bracelets with a customer-chosen word that helps the wearer remember to live intentionally," according to the university.

Pan’s umbrella organization SpiritLab promotes spiritual health and growth through experimentation.

“Chris Pan is an incredible example of taking everything you gain at Ohio State and applying it to find solutions that improve the world after graduation,” said Ohio State President Ted Carter. “As we celebrate commencement, I am confident Chris will inspire our graduates to make their own impact as they begin their journey as lifelong Buckeyes.”

Pan released a draft of his commencement speech to his social media accounts Sunday and asked for feedback.

A draft of the speech shows that he plans to invite everyone to sing parts of “What’s Up?” by 4 Non Blondes and “This Little Light of Mine," and he plans to take his shirt off at one point.

After the musical numbers, Pan transitions to talking about the Hamas-Israel war in Gaza and how to address conflict resolution.

"What I learned is that there is so much pain and trauma in both communities. Pain causes hate and violence. Hurt people hurt people. Healed people help people," according to his draft speech. "When we heal ourselves, we heal the world. World peace starts with inner peace."

Sheridan Hendrix is a higher education reporter for The Columbus Dispatch. Sign up for Extra Credit, her education newsletter,  here .

[email protected]

@sheridan120

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What to stream this week: Zac Efron, Indigo Girls, 'Dark Matter,' Brooke Shields and Anne Hathaway

This week’s new streaming entertainment releases include a new documentary showing the Indigo Girls’ rise and subsequent marginalization, Joel Edgerton finding himself in an alternate timeline of his character’s life in the limited series “Dark Matter” and a new “Pretty Little Liars” returns Thursday on Max

Zac Efron and Jeremy Allen White starring in the family wrestling dynasty in “The Iron Claw” and Brooke Shields playing the unwitting title role in the romantic comedy “Mother of the Bride” on Netflix are some of the new television, movies, music and games headed to a device near you.