Vatican on Christmas Eve

Posted by Julia on 05/31/24 10:21 PM

I plan to go to the Vatican on Christmas Eve to see the museum and Sistine chapel with early access guided tour (7:30am?). But I also want to attend midnight mass, which would entail waiting in line from 3:00 to 7:00 pm most likely, with my day ending at midnight or whenever the mass ends.

This sounds like a really rough, tiring day. Especially since I’ll probably have to walk back to the hotel due to limited transit availability.

I’ll be in Rome for 5 days so I can split up the itinerary if needed. What would you do?

Posted by Laurel

Forest Grove, OR

05/31/24 11:27 PM

11799 posts

Having attended New Years Eve mass at the Vatican twice, I can tell you it is exhausting! Even with tickets provided by the Embassy we had to stand in line for a couple of hours before we entered then wait about an hour for the service to begin, the basilica is enormous and it is very hard to see the Pope or anything else. Savor the experience of Christmas Eve with a nice dinner and a walk to enjoy the lights. People eat late and I would encourage that for the camaraderie. Take a nap in the afternoon, have an aperitivo, but don’t dine until at least 2030. Make a reservation or risk not being seated! (Same goes for lunch on the 25th.)

Posted by Sandancisco

Bay Area SF & Uppsala Sweden

05/31/24 11:56 PM

1038 posts

Yep, agreed. I've attended Christmas midnight mass at the Vatican a long time ago, during Pope John Paul II's time, and it felt more like a busy thorough fare with many people just walking around, rather than a mass or church service. Consider going to a smaller church in Rome somewhere without the security & crowds? You should probably book dinner ahead of time for Christmas eve. I would split up the visit to the Vatican Museums & St Peters as you've asked, but knowing that Christmas to NY many Italians have off, so it may be busy anyway. Consider first thing in the morning. Since you're going at Christmas, here's my TR from last Dec 26- Jan with some restaurant recommendations and ideas on avoiding the large crowds! But we've been to Rome many times, so this TR is not helpful for the larger sights, except views overlooking them. https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/rome-was-jammed-over-ny-but-still-fun

Posted by Laurel

Forest Grove, OR

06/01/24 01:05 PM

11799 posts

Good advice from Sandanisco

Consider going to a smaller church in Rome somewhere without the security & crowds

Santa Susannah is the American Catholic Church in Rome and has a peaceful, sane service you might enjoy before your Christmas Eve dinner. You still have to arrive a bit early (an hour) to get a seat but no lines, less of the wandering around Sandanisco mentions. I had forgotten how irreverent it all seemed at St. Peter’s.