Traveling to Rome

With very limited time, you don't want to be stuck in line waiting to get in the Vatican museum. Go to www.roninrome.com for detail on visiting museum. We went twice in the afternoon (2pm) as he suggested and no line at all. You can always spend the extra money and join a group tour. There'll be guides at the St Peter Sqare competing for your business.

You didn't say whether or not you'd been there before or where you're coming from, but I assume this is a first trip or you would have seen the Sistine Chapel on your last trip. Please allow plenty of time for going through the Vatican Museum and St. Peter's as well. We did not plan ahead and took a tour of all three that cost 65 Euros each.

While informative, the pace was somewhat like leaving a sports event or concert in an arena, with hundreds of tourist going down concourses listening to their own respective guide describing what you're looking at in your own language. Must have been at least 10 different languages then. Wish I could have just meandered through with a guide book and took the day. Had more questions about what I saw after leaving than what I actually learned.

We tried to squeeze Rome into 2 1/2 days and missed so much. I can't imagine trying to do anything there in a day, once you're that close. Have a great day.

I agree with Jim's description of the Museums and Sistine. When we were there in May the crowds were unbelievable. They must not have fire codes in their buildings, b/c it took us ten minutes of waiting in line just to exit the Sistine. We had joined a tour group (booked directly through the Vatican website) for about 30E/pp (includes admission). It was a zoo....but without the tour guide, i don't think we would have gotten much out of our visit because of the hoards of people. Maybe we were just there on a particularly bad day. If you pre book a tour, you also get to enter through the tour line, saving time waiting in the general line - which I was thankful for....just be prepared for crowds....we did St. Peter's, and the two hour tour of the Museums and Sistine in about 6 hours. After the tour, you can go back and spend as much time as you want in the museum and sistine. Good luck!

Karen,

Am I reading this correctly? You intend to arrive in Rome in the morning, tour the Sistine Chapel and leave Rome that same evening?

We took a train from Venice to Rome last week and it ended up delayed over 4 hours en route, so our very brief visit to Rome got even more condensed and we had to see everything the next day before catching a train out at 5pm.

We started at the Coliseum first thing in the morning and there was no line - and we ended up at the Vatican around 1pm and again, no line. I've heard if you do this in the opposite order, you can end up with insane lines. Something to consider! :)

I agree with Jim. We took a tour with the Vatican in which we purchased tickets from their website. I figured that we could pass line and give us more information than a guidebook. I was rather disappointed. For the first 45 minutes we stood in front of a map of Vatican while the guide discribed each room. Though there was no line to get in, the hallways in the Vatican were extremely crowded with different tours. We kept loosing the tour guide and the headset cut out once you get so far away. I would much rather have gone at my own pace with a good guidebook. I was rather surprised how loud people were in the Sistine Chapel.

We followed Rick Steves' suggestion to move through the Vatican rooms in a different direction from the herd (cutting through the modern exhibits) and approach the Sistine Chapel from the other side. The route is outlined in his Rome guidebook. When we got to the chapel doors there was a HUGE line coming from the other direction, so this tip saved us a lot of time. We also ducked out the back at Rick's suggested exit, too. I don't think I would sign up for a Vatican tour if you just want to go in, see the chapel, and leave.

I know we're only being curious and it doesn't have anything to do with your original question, but I think we're all wondering why you are making Rome only a day trip.

Wow! First of all, thanks to all for the responses. Here's the deal.

My brother and I are touring England, France, Germany (one week each) and then Israel for 2 1/2 weeks. He really wants to tour the Sistine Chapel, so as the 'tour director" I am in charge of logistics. He is only planning on doing this one thing in Italy, so I thought if we took an overnight train from Munich, and left that night or perhaps the next morning back to either Munich or Zurich, we could fly out to Israel. The days are a little flexible, but I cannot fly or travel from Friday afternoon until Saturday night, as I am a religious Jew. So Glenn, who is in great physical condition, will hit the tour and it sounds like doing it backwards, a la Rick Steves' suggestion, is the way to go.

Oh, and we are going around the first of November, so crowds shouldn't be too bad?

Any suggestions for this leg of "The Grand Tour" are very much appreciated!

Karen

We were there in early November and the lines were awful! It's hard to predict, but generally the earlier you arrive the better, it seems. To get to the chapel quickly you aren't really going through backward; you follow the herd through the museum, following the signs for the Sistine Chapel. You go through the papal rooms, which are stunning, but after you see the room that contains The School of Athens, you break from the crowd and cut through the modern section. Since half the world seems to read Rick Steves' books, this is probably not a well-kept secret any more, so there might still be long lines. For us, it was a breeze. Read about his exit strategy for leaving the chapel as well. Your brother must really want to see the Sistine Chapel! If he hasn't already, make sure he reads Michelangelo and the Pope's Ceiling by Ross King before he goes.