HI, I am visiting vatican on 17th june.I have three options with me ,please guide me.
1.I am getting a timed ticket to enter museum at 11.30 am. from official website.Will i be able to go inside without standing in long lines?
2.I have narrowed it done to two tours if i want early access...through eternity or walks of italy's pristine tour.Which one is better?
please guide which one is a better choice.I am visiting for the first time.
Posted by
Huntsville, AL, USA
8312 posts
You will be given 1/2 hour to enter after 11:30 a.m. And you won't have to stand in line. You might not believe how long the line can be without reservations.
There are many tours, and there's no way we would know which is best. I would think most guides would be fine there.
Posted by
613 posts
If a tour gets you in with less wait, sign up for the tour and as soon are you are inside, dump the tour or follow the tour to the door to the Sistine Chapel and then dump it to go back and see all the study the tour skipped. Once inside the museum, the exit is thru the Sistine Chapel, which I did not find to be anywhere near as ineteresting as the museum.
Posted by
OP
2 posts
Thanks....i have booked througheternity tours,i will follow your suggestion and ditch the tour after sistine chapel.just one question....will i be able to go to the basilica through the side door without the tour guide with me?
Posted by
50 posts
You won't have to line up if you have purchased tickets online. Better to be there half an hour earlier than your scheduled entry just to be safe. We went there really early and the lines were already long. We stayed for like 3-4 hours and when we finished just around lunchtime, more people were coming in as we went out and the line was way longer. We didn't do any tours but I wish we did. It must have been more interesting but it was still a great visit nevertheless.
Posted by
Charlotte, NC
238 posts
will i be able to go to the basilica through the side door without the tour guide with me?
If I'm not mistaken - no
We did a First Entry to the Sistine Chapel and Vatican Museum tour with City Wonder and we loved it - met at 7:20am and allowed into the museum an hour and a half before the geeneral public. Had a guided tour on the way to the Sistine Chapel - it was awesome seeing the Hall of Maps and Tapestries empty and once we got to the chapel, there were only a couple of dozen people in there with us. We stayed as long as we wanted and then free to tour the Vatican Museum at our leisure, although it was obvious when the general public was allowed in and hour later.