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Colossal in dimension, innumerable in its offerings
Con
Huge crowds at the General Audience to meet the Pope
In a nutshell
A must see, regardless of your religion.
104 Reviews I've read most of the answers fairly quickly and I think you got most of the information you need, but I will tell you a little of our experience with our visit this past May. We stayed right down the street from Vatican City so we only had a leisurely 10 minute walk to Vatican City. St. Peters...
The Cupola of St Peter's Basilica
31 Reviews While climbing the dome (cupola) of St Peter's is a great experience, it would be even be more enriching if you get a chance to view the interior of the cupola within the basilica. The best chance of getting up close to it would be before your climb to the dome (after the brief elevator...
54 Reviews You can't take pictures in the Sistine Chapel, although some people do sneak them in. But this is a good way to have a look up close and personal. http://www.vatican.va/various/cappelle/sistina_vr/index.html
145 Reviews Inside St Peter's Basilica you can spend hours to check the details of the chapels and the altar as well as the high ceiling. The capacity is 60000 people which you can compare with a large football stadium. It is all about timing and being selective in Vatican city since you might get caught with a...
St. Peters Square ( Piazza San Pietro)
73 Reviews Before I went to St. Peter’s, I had always thought that there was just one row of Doric columns around the square, but in fact there are four. From most places in the square, you can see the four rows of columns – but on either side of the central obelisk you will find a porphyry disc in the ground...
11 Reviews After visiting the Basilica don't miss the chance to visit the Grottoes where are the tombs of the Popes. Entrance is free of charge and although I had read in my guidebook that the minimum age to enter is 10 or 11 years old, there was nobody guarding the entrance, so, on we went, although our son...
14 Reviews Wednesdays are the Pope's audience day, and if you are lucky enough (like me) you might get to see him during one of those days when he appears in public at St Peter's Square. I did get a very good vantage point near the fountain, and what is amazing is not seeing the Pope himself (I'm not...
13 Reviews The Vatican Gardens are urban gardens and parks which cover more than half of the Vatican territory in the South and Northeast. There are some buildings such as Radio Vatican within the gardens. The gardens cover approximately 23 hectares (57 acres) which is most of the Vatican Hill. The highest...
19 Reviews First we saw St. Peter's Dome, then we came to the walls that surround the Vatican, dividing it from Italy. Vatican City is surrounded by a Fortress which over the years, protected the Pope from his enemies. A tunnel connects Vatican City to Castel Saint'Angelo and was used as an escape route during...
5 Reviews If you don't want to walk a long way, it's easy to take the metro to the Vatican. The station closest to St. Peter's Square is "Ottaviano". It's also cheap to take the metro, but watch out for pickpockets.
3 Reviews Bus number 64 is the one we used to go to Vatican. We took it on Termini station and has few stops before arrive. Careful because pickpockets used to go on this bus. El autobus num 64 es el que va al Vaticano desde Termini, nosotras lo cogimos alli. Hay que gastar cuidado porque en este autobus...
6 Reviews Once we got into Rome, we walked just about everywhere. This is what we do on most of our trips unless we absolutely have to get somewhere too far away to walk. I found Rome to be a very easy city to walk in. There are only a few hills, but the majority of sites are located on a flatter part of the...
My best view of the Vatican NEWS FLASH - VATICAN MUSEUM can be seen under the stars - Friday evenings from 7 to 11! There is a much different atmosphere at night - serene and quiet - beautifully lit...
The Holy See: A Pilgrim's Report
A place like all the others and still unique in its mission, a place marked by the history and men and still above the time and mankind, a place where we all can touch the miracle of our creation, our...
Destination: Citta Del Vaticano
Some Interesting facts - The Vatican City is to a Roman Catholic what Mecca is to a Muslim and Jeruslem to a Jew, the difference being the Holy See comprising an entire country unlike any other...
So impressive I was in the Vatican city, the idea itself is so excited, this fantastic country, the richest in the world, the most important for the Chrisitian spirituality on the planet, and the most...
Vatican City is a landlocked city state located within the city of Rome in Italy. It has a total area of only 110 acres and a population of less than 1,000 people. Therefore it is the smallest country...
Build your own Vatican City page
Comments (37)
The "Secret Garden" in the middle of the Vatican Museums are now open for Spring for visitors of the Museums to walk through. See mv.vatican.va/3_EN/pages/MV_... . Please enjoy this area; it is a treat that visitors from many years ago could only look at through the windows of the Museums...
Bill McCalpin
Vatican City Travel Editor
Note: The Roma Pass has a new feature: limited health assistance for card holders
"Travel Health Call Center
www.travelhealth.it
A team of Doctors and health operators at your disposal for information and orientation regarding both public and private health care throughout the city.
Multilingual Tourist medical doctors, special medical examinations, diagnostics, dentists, home health care, ambulance, emergency recovery and legal service in case of accident are available upon request to the multilingual Call Center.+39 06 43236291, open 24 hours every day (local call fee. Give your Roma Pass Serial Number in order to receive up to 30% discount on health services.
The call center is free of charge for RomaPass holders; Health performance is reduced up to a maximum of 30%."
romapass.it/p.aspx?l=en&tid=...
This new feature may, for some, justify the increased cost of the card (scheduled to go up to 34 euro on May 1 2013).
Bill McCalpin
Vatican City Travel Editor
Central Americans have a similar problem in Spanish...parents say "tu" to one child, but "ustedes" to more than one...which sounds very weird to Spaniards who used "vosotros" for the children. And I remember that Mussolini wanted to do away with "Lei" as a remnant of the class distinctions that his fascists were fighting to get rid of (although he supported the king). So sometimes I wonder if different types of Italians use "voi" instead of "Lei" to make a political statement? ;-)
Bill
time flies, and knowledge with it! I learned Spanish "on the street" & w/daily newspaper over a year fm Mexico to Argentina & Uruguay. usted rings a bell, but I was deaf to forms... they came later to me in travel & once back home (attention went to survival first :)) It's a thrill to discover how native speakers make all kinds of "statements" with the way they handle forms etc, as in any language perhaps but very important for "Latin" peoples.
I soon forgot how to speak Spanish when I came home, but continued reading daily paper & many books in Spanish. Tks for reminder of Fascists' attempt to eliminate the Lei. I'm constantly plunged in heated discussions about these things (work related in past, now because I can't wean myself from it.) Enjoy it a lot!
Italo Calvino uses voi a lot in his Fiabe italiane, whoever is speaking. He assembled them for the RAI in the 50's & I'm researching whether Fascists' efforts were "reflected" in this publication. Don't think so, yet. Basta giocare! Ciao! :)
NOTE: the following is for the sake of travelers gong to Rome - the Roma Pass and Roma & Piu' Pass still do not apply to the Vatican museums (or any Vatican entity).
The Roma Pass and the Roma & Piu' Pass had been suspended for a while but are both now back in business. Currently, the Roma Pass is 30.00 euro and the Roma & Piu' Pass is 32.00 euro. NOTE: the Roma Pass' price will increase to 34.00 euro on May 1, 2013. There is no word yet on the Roma & Piu' Pass having a similar increase.
Bill McCalpin
Vatican City Travel Editor
Pope Francis caused consternation for the Vatican security services yesterday when, after Mass at the parish Church of St. Anne inside Vatican City, he stepped out to shake hands with parishioners like any parish priest...only he did it at the Porta Sant'Anna entrance to Vatican City where hundreds of startled visitors crowded around and took photos.
See the AP photo at news.yahoo.com/pope-wades-cr... This photo was taken from inside Vatican City outwards into Borgo Pio, the little neighborhood next to the Vatican full of religious shops and stuff.
You can see a recent photo of Porta Sant'Anna facing from outside the Vatican in at "Use German with the Swiss Guards" - Vatican City Local Custom Tip by mccalpin . The parish church of St. Anne is immediately behind the metal gate on the right
A somewhat more distant photo is the third photo at "A Drive Through Vatican City" - Vatican City Travelogue by mccalpin . This is an old photo of the Porta Sant'Anna back when the piazza in front of it was still open to cars. However, this photo gives you a good view of the gate. Immediately behind the gate on the right is the entrance to the church (where the Swiss Guard is standing). The Pope came out this door to the church, greeted the Mass attendees, then walk the few feet to the gate itself to greet the amazed public who were standing in the now pedestrian-only square.
This gate is the gate just north of the colonnades through the wall; it is the employee entrance to the Vatican, and the entrance I used to use each week as I visited the Vatican bank...
Bill McCalpin
Vatican City Travel Editor
Updates on the Pope's week as it affects visitors:
On Sunday, March 17th at 12 noon, Pope Francis will do the weekly "Angelus" from his apartment window over looking St. Peter's Square. No tickets are needed, just bring yourself and up to 100,000 of your closest friends.
On Tuesday, March 19th, the Papal installation Mass will be held in St. Peter's Square beginning at 9:30 a.m. The Square will open to visitors at 6:30 a.m. There are no tickets required for most of the Square. Parts of the Square will be blocked off for VIPs from around the world, and there is no ticket that will get you in those areas anyway. Expect huge crowds around the Square and streets blocked off for the morning. It is highly unlikely that the Basilica will be open Tuesday morning.
On Sunday, March 24, at 9:30 a.m., the Pope will celebrate Palm Sunday Mass in St. Peter's Square. No mention yet of tickets; presumably, you and 150,000 of your closest friends will be able to flood the Square. Also, at 12 noon, the Pope will say the Angelus from the window of his apartment over the Square as usual.
Bill McCalpin
Vatican City Travel Editor
The Installation Mass for Pope Francis will be on Tuesday, March 19, at 9:30 AM in St. Peter's Square. This means that access to the Basilica will be stopped Tuesday until after Mass has ended.
Also note that there will be many representatives of foreign governments there for the Mass (for example, Vice President Joe Biden will represent the US), so security will be stepped up, and roads may be arbitrarily closed all morning.
Bill McCalpin
Vatican City Travel Editor
The Vatican Museums will reopen the Sistine Chapel as part of the Museums tour at 9 a.m. on Monday, March 18th. In addition, the Borgia Apartment and the Collection of Modern Religious Art will open at the same time.
Thanks to VTer ianbaz for the heads-up!
Bill McCalpin
Vatican City Travel Editor
Whoa! White smoke just spotted at the Vatican!
On a personal note, the election of a new Pope will allow all the cable channels in the US to stop forcing us to watch reruns of the film "Angels & Demons"...the film left me bruised as my wife kept punching me every time I laughed at yet another inaccuracy inside the Vatican ;-)
Bill McCalpin
Vatican City Travel Editor
Father Lombardi, director of the Holy See Press Office, noted today that there are more people in St. Peter's Square awaiting the "fumata" than he had expected. He recalled the day of the announcement of Pope Benedict XVI a few years ago, and how all of Rome came to a halt as Romans and visitors from all over town raced to Vatican City to see the new Pope (he normally appears at the balcony over the front of the Basilica about 30 minutes after election).
Since the election could happen at any time - heads up!
Bill McCalpin
Vatican City Travel Editor
my parents just told me the new pope was elected!!! no name yet, ....waiting impatiently :)