ST. Peter's Basilica

1. I don't believe so. 2. Good question. Don't know.
3. No. You see old tombs and ruins. Reservation are required and must be made in advanced. You may or may not get the day/time requested. You have to explicitly request. They don't give you an open slot by default. If you get a scavi reservation, it is doable in one day. It may take most of the day though. Edwin

Another non-Catholic vote for the amazing scavi tour! It was a real highlight of our trip, and it made for a perfect day at the Vatican. We had the earliest scavi tour (it takes about 90 minutes), which ended right in the grottoes, and from there we were able to take the stairs up into the basilica, so we never had to re-enter and stand in a line. After that, it was the perfect time for a leisurely lunch before spending the afternoon in the Vatican museums. One option for touring the basilica is an audio tour; we used Rick's on our ipods.

Yvonne:
Not sure what #1 means. Who, other than the Vatican or a private operator, could conduct a tour? We liked the Pristine Sistine tour a lot: http://www.walksofitaly.com/. Very small group. 2. You see the tombs of the former popes, including John Paul II. There's good info at http://www.saintpetersbasilica.org/grottoes.htm. You can access the grottoes FROM the Scavi at the end of that tour without the huge line. 3. We loved this tour and we are not Catholic. It's hot and a bit claustrophobic, but very interesting! Send a respectful email and be flexible in your planning. We managed to take the Pristine Sistine one morning (0800-Noon), go to lunch in Transtevere, return for the Scavi tour, see St. Peter's again on our own, in one day. A long day, but very interesting! FYI, when you leave (like we did for lunch) and want to go back into St. Peter's, you have to go through Security again. Allow time!

Hi Yvonne, If you take the scavi tour (we just did in February and it was amazing) you actually end up in the grottoes so you don't have to wait in line at all, nor pay the separate fee for the grottoes. Yes, it is hot down there - they keep it at 98% humidity to preserve everything. You see several masoleums, frescos, etc as well as the bones of St. Peter in their final resting spot. When I say see the bones - it's actually a small glass box with a few fragments left and you are about 5 feet away from it. I am not Catholic but I enjoyed it very much as well. However, I did see a few monks/priests/catholics tear up and weep after seeing the bones. We did everything in one day as well. We had the Scavi Tour at 1030am that lasted until about 1145am. We headed out for lunch then met up with our tour group for the Vatican/St. Peters at 1pm and that lasted until 4pm. Then we even walked down to the Castel St. Angelo and caught it before it closed.

One tip on the scavi tour. We found that we didn't have to go through St. Peter's security for it - just showed our paperwork to the guard at the gate on the side by the post office.

One tip on the scavi tour. We found that we didn't have to go through St. Peter's security for it - just showed our paperwork to the guard at the gate on the side by the post office. You are right, Janet. But if there is a backpack to be checked, you have to go through Security.

You don't have to wonder what you would see on the Scavi Tour. The Vatican has an outstanding virtual tour here: http://www.vatican.va/various/basiliche/necropoli/scavi_english.html

Here's my take: 1: Also confused about what you mean, but Rick Steves has a very nice audio download for free (Podcast) 2: I do not recall the Grotto line being long, the St Peters line is longer, but both move fairly well. The Grotto as others mentioned is the burial place of a number of Popes, if you are non-Catholic, maybe a bit boring, If you are an admirer of John Paul II, then a must do. 3: Been on the Scavi tour, highly recommend, if you can imagine, the area where St Peters is was once a necropolis, basically streets with Roman burial tombs, they excavated these with the church above, so you are burrowing beneath a building. The point is of course that Peter was buried there and the church was built on him. Good for history buffs, great for Catholics (or even former Catholics). The practical point is you get a great tour, are let out in the grotto and can see that, then can usually avoid the line into St Peters by entering just as you pass the gate on the left side.

1. I believe what this question was asking was whether or not there are tours of JUST St Peter's without the Vatican Museums. Some people mistakenly call the Vatican museums just "the Vatican" which is an easy mistake to make, because the concept is confusing. The only company I'm aware of that is running such a tour is Walks of Italy, with this tour: http://www.walksofitaly.com/tour_bookings/tour_all_listing/6/33 2. It is the security line to the church that is often long, not the grottoes line. In fact, after that security line, the grottoes line is usually almost non-existent. The large queue that picks up on that side of the basilica is generally just the dome climb line, which if you arent doing, you dont have to wait in. But people often get confused and wait there initially anyway. Of course there are exceptions, summer crowds can often cause a bottleneck at the entrance to the grottoes since it's a small door, and pilgrims venerating John Paul II's tomb can hold up the flow. But those are exceptions, not the rule. 3. The Scavi tour is excellent, so if you're able to get a reservation during your trip, definitely take it. It is a visit of the extensive excavations under St. Peter's Basilica, including the supposed burial place of the bones of St. Peter. The guides are good and the visit is fascinating. Hope that helps!

You can take a free tour of the basilica once you get there. Here is the website for more information: http://www.saintpetersbasilica.org/touristinfo.htm#tours The scavi tour is wonderful. You see what is believed to be the tomb of Saint Peter along with an ancient grave yard. It's a very interesting tour. There are also wonderful audio guides that can be rented or downloaded that will allow you to tour the basilica at your own pace. Don't worry about the security line outside. It moves very quickly, often being less than a 15 minute wait. There is no need to pay a service to skip this line since it moves so quickly. donna

This posting is over a year old. I think it's safe to assume the the OP has been to Rome and back by now.

To the last post. Yes we went to Rome, Florence and Venice and loved every minute of the trip. I would love to go back and explore some different areas. A really fun time was doing a wine tour out of Sienna. We were going to sightsee at a church, but decided on wine tasting instead. It was memorable.