Vatican museum tickets

There's a separate line for people who don't yet have tickets. It doesn't move very fast, but it does move. It would be smart to get there before opening time.

From time to time one hears that someone was successful in buying a ticket from a tour company or guide that had an extra one. It's not something I'd want to count on, but if you're traveling solo you might get lucky.

Edited to add: Another option is to throw money at the problem and book a tour. You might find something a bit less expensive through GetYourGuide.

The Extra Time - Sistine Chapel tour is available right now directly from the Vatican Museums for Oct. 23. Also known as the Happy Hour tour. Not cheap, but you also get a drink and snacks.

I agree with booking a tour. We had a similar experience this summer at a different venue, so we booked a guided tour and are so glad we did. Excellent tour guide with a small group that really filled out the experience.

Thank you all
Question for Acraven - if I go to Vatican museum around 830 (opens at 9) - are ticket office open? And how bad is the line af that hour?

I doubt that the ticket office opens before the museums, but I don't know for sure. I also can't tell you how bad the line will be at any particular time. However, conventional wisdom is that tourists don't like to get up early, so lines tend to build as the morning wears on.

Just an update from Rome..
I arrived at Vatican around 330PM - and there were no line.. we walked in, bought tickets on site and went right into the museum.. I was shocked there were no line.. it was a Friday afternoon.
Next morning, on our way to St Peter's Basilica around 8AM- there were huge lines around the block at the Vatican Museum.. so obviously, late afternoon is much better..

Final thought about St. Peter's Basilica - around 8AM - we had to wait 1hour to get in..
When we came out of the Basilica around 11AM - the line was three times as big... can't believe people were willing to wait 3 hours to get into Basilica...

I'm not surprised the line for the museums was shorter by mid-afternoon, but I'd point out that the Vatican Museums are huge, and lots of people would want to spend more time there than would be allowed with a 3:30 PM entry time.

Gene, I'm wondering about the line for the Basilica in the afternoon. Is it shorter then, like the museum line? I've booked a morning tour but my husband doesn't like to get up early, so won't be joining me for that. So I was wondering if he should try going to the Basilica in the middle of the afternoon for a better shot at having to stand in a shorter line. He's not a museum person, but does want to see the Basilica. We will be there in early/mid January. Thanks!

I went by the Vatican around 4 PM or so in early March of this year. The line for the basilica was long enough that I opted not to wait. However, I have no clue how rapidly it moves, so I don't know whether I was looking at a 45-minute line or a 3-hour line. I didn't see any signs indicating how long the wait would be for any particular point, but I may just not have been close enough to the door.

I think on my next trip to Rome I'll stay in Trastevere or Prati and force myself to get up super-early one day so I can see St. Peter's. I couldn't motivate myself to get over there early while I was staying in Monti for about 20 days this year.

Not sure Mary. I haven’t been to Basilica since my visit. One thing for sure, everybody is queuing up in the morning now for popular attractions- so maybe late afternoon is the best bet.

I am writing this as I am on the queue to buy Colosseum tickets. Online is sold out, so everybody showed up at 9am to beat the “crowds” - ha.. crazy line - but at least it is moving fast.

Thank you Gene and acraven! We'll just have to wing it I guess. My husband will probably try for the late afternoon. Happy travels! :)

Too late for Gene, but for future reference: booking a guided tour may solve both the problems discussed here. The tour includes entry, so if you can find and book a guided tour for your time window, you should be all set. Also, if you book a guided tour of the museum/Sistine Chapel AND St Peter's, apparently there is a shortcut from the Sistine Chapel to St Peter's. This allows you to bypass the line for security screening to enter St Peter's (since you were already screened to enter the museum). This shortcut is apparently available only to guided tours. Source: https://www.romewise.com/visit-vatican-museums.html which has lots of other useful info

That's true... but not quite a fan of tours..
While at line in Colosseum, the tour group would come up to all these people waiting line and quoting 50E for skip the line and a tour guide.. nobody took up on the offer..

I was walking past Vatican Museum around 8AM - and the line were immense - I would assume those were pre opening tour groups (as Vatican Museum doesn't open to public til 9AM) - and it didn't sound fun travelling with crowds of tour groups.. one reason why I loathe cruises...

But each is own... plus, those tours cost 3 to 4 times the cost of entry..