In photographs, I'm pretty awestruck by the intense beams of light through St. Peter's. The current itinerary has us going very early in the morning, between 7 and 9 AM. I doubt that kind of light will be zipping through the interior at such an early hour... Am I wrong?
Anyway, what are the best times to get the effect of the sunlight at St. Peter's? Rick Steves says he likes to go at around 5 PM "when the church is fairly empty, sunbeams can work their magic, and the late-afternoon Mass fills the plays with spiritual music".
Surely there are other good times to go, for the sunbeams at least.