We have a 12 yr son and this is the end of a 20 trip.
My plan is to self guide with Rick's audio guides through the Vatican and Sistine and on through St Peters.
All we need are tickets to Vatican and Sistine Chapel, right? Then can go on from there to St Peters?
Our other 'must sees' are Colosseum and Parthenon. etc .. (advance tickets advised?)
Our hotel is in the heart of this... so are these 'doable' (though brief with concessions to my son...) in a day?
Thx
drj
Yes, able to be done in a day, but a full day.
You need a ticket to the Vatican Museum, which includes the Sistine Chapel at the end of the tour. St Peters has no entrance fee, and someone else can chime in, but I believe you can exit after the Sistine chapel and go directly into St Peters as opposed to exiting and heading all the way around into St Peters square and standing in line, though in several trips we have not had to do this. There is a separate line to the crypt below St Peters where the Popes are interred, and a separate line and fee to climb the Dome (Which your Son may really enjoy), as well as completely separate reservations for the Scavi tour and the Gardens tour.
As for other sights, no ticket needed for the Pantheon (the Parthenon is in Athens, Greece) and you could hit that plus Trevi fountain, Piazza Navona, Spanish Steps, and Camp di Fiori on a walk from St. Peters to the Colosseum (see the Rick Steves Rome walk). It would probably be as easy to buy a ticket for the Colosseum at the entrance to the Forum (a combo ticket), walk through the Forum, then to the Colosseum. There are some other tours that cost extra and need a reservation at the Colosseum, but for the time you have, just do the regular ticket.
The door from Sistine Chapel into the Basilica is reserved for private guides with their group. You probably will not be allowed to use that door...but you can always try.
You can book entry tickets to the colosseum online at their official website.
http://www.coopculture.it/en/colosseo-e-shop.cfm
Your son will get in for free so you can pre-purchase the free ticket for him and adult tickets for everyone else. You'll pick them up at the colosseum ticket office. These tickets allow you to bypass the long ticket lines and are good for the forum and palatine hill as well.
For the Vatican museums, you can pre-purchase entry tickets for all of you. Your son will qualify for a discount, not a free ticket.
https://biglietteriamusei.vatican.va/musei/tickets/do?weblang=en&do
Your son will not be able to go on the scavi tour at the basilica. There is a strict age limit of 15 years old and they do check passports. You could take a tour of the gardens if you wish but I don't know if your son would be that interested in it. You could climb the dome for great views.
Donna
