Does anyone have any tips to share or preferences for visiting the Vatican? Doing it on your own, with a tour, private guide? I believe I've read you can just as easily pick up on the information from other tours while wandering on your own but I think you can't get to everything if you aren't on a tour? Plus if the museum isn't marked as well as noted, wandering on our own might not be very informational?
I appreciate any experiences or suggestions you might offer - thanks!
I cant give advice on the museum because we didn't bother, but for St peters Basilica make sure you go early. We got there at approx. 8.15 am and waited approx. 15-20 minutes to get through sercurity. When we came out an hour or so later the line had gone a full lap and was approx. 2 hours long.
Many tour group guides use devices that make it difficult to overhear, and why would you try to get something for free that others have paid for?
There is no narration inside the Sistine Chspel by any guides. This happens before the group enters.
The self-guided tours in the RS guidebooks are adequate, or you can join (and pay for) a tour guided provided by the Vatican at a very reasonable price.
Most tours now use headphones so the guides don't need to talk loudly to be heard. You would need to stand right next to the guide in order to get a "free" tour and I'm sure they're on to that trick.
If you want more information that the signs provide you'll need to book a tour.
Donna
The tours by the Vatican are very reasonably priced and are quite good. I've been to the Vatican twice and would never think of trying to do it on my own - it's just too massive. If you go to the Vatican website, you can find information on their tours. I would also book as early in the morning as possible -as things get very crowded in the afternoon.
If you visit the museums on your own, you go at your own pace. Either buy the Vatican guidebook or rent the audio guide if you want more information. The objects all have labels, but with minimal information (name, artist, date . . . ). If you rent the audio guide you will have to backtrack a long way to the beginning of the museum to return it and retrieve the photo ID deposit. Do not underestimate how big the museums are. If you do it on your own, it's worth the extra money to reserve tickets in advance and avoid a possible very long line at the museum entrance security.
If you just want some highlights, a guided tour may be worthwhile. If you want an in-depth tour, a (pricey) private guide is what you'll want. Tours can exit the Sistine Chapel directly to the church, a very short walk and no security check. If you go on your own, you may not be able to take advantage of that exit. Some people report having an easy time doing it, others say they weren't allowed to. If you're on your own, you'll have a long walk through more (less interesting) parts of the museum and then a long walk to the church and line up for the security check.
You can visit the church very early in the day, when the security line is short (or non-existent) and the building is relatively empty and quiet. If you want to climb the dome, you should plan to do that when it opens (10 am maybe?). The lines can get pretty long. Space is limited and it looked to me like they were only letting people in at the rate others were leaving. It may thin out late in the day, I was there in the morning.
Here's a comprehensive (if a few years old) post from Ron In Rome about visiting the Vatican: http://www.roninrome.com/%20sites-and-attractions/20-tips-on-visiting-the-vatican-museums
