Vatican City
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Vatican City is the home of the Roman Catholic church and the smallest state in the world, located in the heart of Rome. Home to the Popes for centuries, its collections of art and sculpture are some of the finest in the world. Visit the Vatican Museums to see Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel, or explore St Peter’s Basilica to see the seat of the Bishop of Rome.
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Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel
Skip the lines to enter the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel when you book a ticket in advance.
Vatican: Museums & Sistine Chapel Entrance Ticket
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Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel Skip-the-Ticket-Line Tour
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Rome: Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, and Basilica Tour
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Rome: Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel Tour and St. Peter's
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St Peter’s Basilica
Take a tour of St Peter’s Basilica to learn more about the impressive religious architecture.Small-Group Guided Tour of St. Peter's Basilica
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Rome: St. Peter's Basilica & Dome Entry Ticket with Audio Tour
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Rome: St Peter's Basilica and Papal Tombs Audio Guide
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St Peter’s Square
Discover the secrets of St Peter’s Square when you take a guided tour of the area.Rome: Public Papal Audience
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Rome: Papal Audience with Host and Pickup
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Papal Audience with Pope Francis in Vatican City
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Meet Pope Francis at St Peter square Vatican City
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More Tickets & Tours
Browse even more products which include a trip to Vatican City.Rome: Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel & Basilica Guided Tour
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Vatican: Early Entry to Museums, Sistine Chapel & St Peter's
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Rome: Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, and Basilica Tour
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Rome: Vatican and Sistine Chapel Tour with Basilica Entry
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7 tips for visiting the Vatican City
Vatican City | Photo: Flickr, Dennis Sylvester Hurd - CC BY 2.0
1
Climb the cupola of St Peter’s for an amazing view of St Peter’s Square and the rest of Rome! You can either climb the first 320 steps or take the elevator (which costs a little extra). Then there are an additional 231 steps to the very top of the dome, for a total of 551 total stairs.
Vatican Gardens | Photo: Flickr, tacowitte - CC BY 2.0
2
The Vatican Gardens are stunning and can only be visited with a guided tour. Book at least a day in advance to avoid disappointment.
3
Vatican City is the smallest state in the world! In addition to having a flag and a national anthem, it has its own postal service, pharmacy, radio station, and television center, and you can even walk past tiny embassies from other nations! If you’re interested in exploring, you can visit and use both the post office and pharmacy.
4
Decide if you want to see just St Peter’s or the Sistine Chapel and Vatican Museums and St Peters. If you want to do everything then see the museums first, then you’ll be able to take the short corridor to the basilica when you exit the museums. The other way around, you risk ending up in super long queues for the museums.
5
While inside St Peter’s Basilica make sure to visit the Popes’ tombs in the Vatican Grottoes. You’ll notice that Pope John Paul II’s tomb isn’t there - after he was canonized in 2014 his body was moved to the chapel of St Sebastian in the upper part of the basilica.
6
The most exclusive tour in Vatican City is a Scavi tour, which visits the excavations of the necropolis below St Peter’s Basilica and takes visitors to see the bones of St Peter. Only 250 people are allowed to visit every day with a guided tour and the spots can sell out months in advance. You can try to get tickets by emailing scavi@fsp.va.
7
Papal audiences usually begin at 10 am when the Pope is in Rome - to get a good spot, some people arrive at 8 am and you should definitely consider coming early if you require a seat. You can book free tickets in advance, and there’s a reserved seating area for those with tickets. Tickets are unlimited but there are a fixed number of seats, so you’ll still need to arrive early. Everyone is welcome, so St Peter’s Square is usually extremely full. An audience takes 1.5 to 2 hours, so bring sunscreen and hats if it’s hot out, and wrap up warm if it’s cold.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is it called the Vatican?
The site where modern-day Vatican City stands is named after the Vatican Hill on which it stands. The word “vatican” is taken from an ancient Etruscan settlement which was called Vatica or Vaticum, which meant garden, and the ancient Romans referred to it as vaticanus ager, or “vatican territory”. Agrippina the Elder, mother of Emperor Caligula, did build gardens on the site, before her son decided to built a circus for charioteers there instead. His project was completed by Emperor Nero, which is why it was named the Circus of Nero. It was in this circus that many early Christians were martyred, including, according to tradition, St Peter himself. The first basilica was built on the supposed site of St Peter’s tomb in 326 CE and the Vatican has been associated with Christianity ever since. Read more.
Who are the Swiss Guard?
The Papal Swiss Guard are responsible for the safety and security of the Pope and palaces of Vatican City. The guards are all Swiss Catholic men aged between 19 and 30 who have completed basic training with the Swiss army. The guard was founded in 1506, and their modern dress uniform (which is stripy and multicolored) reflects the way the guards were reported to have dressed in the 16th century, and on formal occassions they also carry halberds, their traditional weapons. Today, their day uniform is a plain blue, with a white collar, brown belt, and black beret, and they’re trained to use the same rifles and pistols as the modern-day Swiss army. They have ceremonial roles as well as being in charge of security, and they’ve also recently undergone extra training in case of terrorism. Read more.
Can we visit the Vatican for free?
You can visit parts of the Vatican without a ticket. St Peter’s Square is open to the public from 7 am to 11 pm and there’s plenty of architectural gems in the square alone. You can also visit St Peter’s Basilica for free, though lines can get pretty long during peak hours of the day. Papal audiences and the Sunday Angelus can also be attended free of charge. Read more.
Will we meet the Pope?
It’s extremely unlikely that you’ll be able to have a private chat with Pope Francis, but it’s usually quite easy to see him from a distance! You can attend a papal audience at 10 am on most Wednesdays, which is a 1.5 to 2 hour service where the Pope preaches and gives blessings to the congregation in St Peter’s Square, or you can be in the square for the Sunday Angelus, where the Pope appears on a balcony and prays with the assembled crowd for about 15 to 20 minutes. Just make sure you’re in the right place at the right time, it’s free to attend either service and you don’t need a ticket. Read more.
Can you only visit the Sistine Chapel?
No, you can only visit the Sistine Chapel with a ticket to the Vatican Museums. Read more.
Do we need our passports to get into Vatican City? And do they use another currency?
Vatican City has an open border agreement with Italy, so if you’re in Italy you can enter Vatican City state without worrying about a visa or border controls. It also uses euros, so if you’ve changed money for the rest of your trip to Rome then you’re all set for a day in the Vatican. Read more.
General information
opening hours
tickets
address
00120 Vatican City
security
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