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SCAVI tour timing question

Posted by on

Hi all - My boyfriend and I are headed to Rome in the June. We're pretty low key travelers, who generally prefer eating/drinking/walking around to seeing every sight. However, since this is my first time in Rome and we plan to relax on the beach in Croatia afterwards, I would like to spend a little more time than usual visiting the sights in Rome.

To my surprised, we received two tickets for the Scavi tour on a Tuesday at 10:30am. I'm wondering what will be the best way to accommodate this tour, see the Sistine Chapel (which my boyfriend has seen before and insists is a must-see for me), but not spend our full two days in Rome at the Vatican.

Should we show up at 9am and zip through the Vatican museum/Sistine Chapel before the Scavi tour? From what I understand you can check out the Basilica on your way out of the tour? Then by 12:30, our sight seeing is done and we can enjoy a leisurely afternoon? If that doesn't give us enough time in the museum should we return to see the Vatican Museums/Sistine Chapel the next day, possibly in the later afternoon? If it comes down to choosing between the tour and the Sistine Chap, which would you recommend? We are both Catholic, but not incredibly devout. I'm more of a history buff than he.

Appreciate the recommendations!

Posted by
11613 posts

I doubt that you will be able to rush through the Vatican Museums in one hour. The ticket for the Museums will not get you passage through the door for combined tours of the Museums and the Basilica (sometimes you can go through, sometimes not). And, I think you need to be at the Scavi tour meeting point 15 minutes or more before your appointment time.

If you want to do all of this on the same day, you could take the Scavi tour first, then stay inside the Badilica and visit it, then have lunch somewhere and visit the Museums later in the afternoon.

If anyone has a better plan, I'm sure they will post.

Posted by
8700 posts

Do the Scavi, end in St. Peters and view that then go get lunch and do an afternoon at the Vatican Museums. I would book a timed ticketfor maybe 2pm or so

Posted by
12 posts

I would make it a full Vatican day. I had Scavi tickets for 9:15 am and the whole tour is about 1 1/2 hours. They leave you in the Vatican grottos. We spent time in there and then went to lunch. We had a tour booked for the Vatican museum/Sistine Chapel/St Peter's Basilica at 2 pm. It was a nice break in between and we didnt feel rushed.

Posted by
128 posts

Another thought: You could book an early entrance tour of the Sistine Chapel and Vatican museums. This way you start in the Sistine Chapel around 7:30 AM without the crowds. That would give you about two hours or so in the Vatican and seeing the Sistine Chapel without the crowds is so special! However, I like spending three to four hours in the Vatican museums alone. We did the same Scavi tour as you but came early to see St. Peter's without crowds and then did the Vatican museums at 1 PM. It was a full day and the Vatican was very crowded.

Posted by
11613 posts

The early morning tours meet up at 7:30am but you don't actually get into the Museums until after 8am. Have taken two so far, one ended at 1:30pm and another at about 12:15.

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