We awoke at 5:30 Am this morning to start our trek to the Vatican Museum and the Sistine Chapel. I had allowed us an hour from our AirBnb to the Museum via the Metro and it was perfect. We are staying near the Furio Camillo Metro Stop in Lazio in a great working class neighborhood. It was a straight shot on the “A” line to the Ottaviano station, a 10 minute walk to the museum entrance.
Now we had booked the “Breakfast with the Pope” tour through the Vatican Official Web Site. Of course it’s not really breakfast with the Pope but it is a huge breakfast buffet in the garden of the Vatican Museum that includes everything you can imagine including eggs, cereal bacon, sausage and pancakes and Maple syrup if you want, including all the coffee you can drink. This Tour starts at 7:15 and after checking in and security you proceed to the garden for breakfast. Then you get an audio guide and can do a self conducted tour of the museum including the Sistine chapel. All before the museum opens to the public.
Now the great thing about this is that the museum doesn’t open to the public until 9 am. This means that relatively speaking there are very few people in the museum and more importantly in the Sistine Chapel. Some tour groups are allowed in early but they are limited in number.
I highly recommend this as a visit to the Vatican Museum as there is virtually NO lines, the breakfast is great, there were only about 60 people for the breakfast and the tour and you have a much more relaxed visit. The cost is 68 Euros per person. I feel it was well worth it.
I spent more than an hour in the Sistine Chapel and it really was not crowded. There was time to reflect and view it all. The magnificence of what is arguably mans greatest single work of art, a wonder to the soul and mind is truly the highlight of my time here in Rome. (I have 5 Days here, you really need 10 to do it justice.)
The true scope of what this decision to book this tour meant was brought home to me as we left the museum and gazed out upon the thousands of people standing in line to get in. Even the so called “skip the line” ticket line was very very long.
So do yourself a favor and think about booking this tour, it was well worth it. But be sure you are on the official Vatican Website to do it.