Is proof of age required for Necropolis under the Basilica of St. Peter (Scavi) Tour?

only if you're dead

Have a passport or copy of passport for the 15-year-old, just in case. He/she should travel with iD anyway.

Right. You should have your passports with you anyway.

Yes, if the child looks to be young they will ask to see the passport. If they are under 15 they will not be allowed on the tour.

Donna

I was hoping someone here might have "first hand" knowledge.

I do have first hand knowledge. If the child appears young they will ask for proof of age. My niece was carded just a few weeks ago. She is 16 but very petite. We just showed her passport and everything was fine.

Donna

Much mahalos Donna ( and everyone else)! Feedback was very useful! Very much looking forward to the tour.

There are lots of things that are free to kids this age in Europe and teens should always have a copy of their passport as they are occasionally 'carded' -- if they look too young as in this case of the Scavi Tour or if they look too old as a 16 or 17 year old might going to a museum.

You're required by law to carry your passport if you're not from the EU. A copy won't be sufficient.

Donna

yeah yeah required. and if you lose that passport you will lose a huge hunk of your vacation coping with it. I figure that if I am actually being braced for my 'papers' then I have bigger problems than arranging to get the passport from the hotel safe. the copy works fine as ID in museums or for VAT purposes in shops. We had business at the US Embassy in Paris last year and were surrounded by nearly hysterical tourists whose passports had been lost or stolen; some of them had missed flights home others were wasting a big chunk of their short vacation dealing with getting travel papers.

How many times have you lost your "copy" of your passport? None? If not, why would you think you would lose the original any more often then you would lose a copy? It's the law, obey it or don't but you shouldn't advise people to break the law just because you're comfortable doing it.

Donna

I'm curious as to why the age limit for visiting the Necropolis? Is it simply because it's considered possibly too ghoulish for younger-than-15s? Or is it for some completely different reason?

Keith, I'm not overwrought about anything. I'm simply pointing out what the law is in Italy. If you're not a citizen of the EU you are required to carry the original passport as identification. Would you carry a copy of your drivers license and expect that to be accepted if you were stopped for a traffic violation? It's the same thing. A copy is not a legal document. In this day of heightened security it makes no sense to not have it with you.

As for the age limit, this is a very hard to get on tour and most kids won't appreciate what they're seeing. There's also the fact that the ruins are very fragile and don't want to chance children disturbing them.

Donna