when to show up if you have reservations at the Vatican museum and the Borg

For the Borghese gallery- they start giving away unclaimed reservations starting about half an hour before entry, so be there AT LEAST a half hour early if not more. You need to be there early in order to get and pay for your tickets as well as check all of your bags as they are not permitted inside. For the Vatican museums, if you are late they have the right to make you wait in the regular line. They usually won't let you in too early so 15 minutes is fine. Donna

Two things - first I agree with Donna about the Borghese Gallery. After 30 minutes before they will start selling the unclaimed tickets to the waiting no-tickets queue. It won't take them long to sell them; then you will be out of luck. Also - if your trip is that close you should have your reservations by now. Its quite a small place and only a small number of people, relatively, for each 2 hour block. The spaces go quickly. Please act immediately to avoid disappointment.

Ken,
the Borghese Gallery is fantastic, but they have strict rules, I would suggest that you comply. If too thight in time, take a taxi to go (and bus to come back). Vatican museum: we showed up perhaps 15 min before our time and we were able to enter right away if you are doing more than the Borghese, do the math but you will likely conclude to buy the Roma pass (30 E this year I beleive)

Donna and Nigel, Thank you for your useful information. We will get there 20 minutes before at the Vatican museum and 40 minute earlier at the Borghese Gallery. In a different thread, one person stated that you cannot make reservations 2 weeks in advance of the date that you want to visit. So I have not done so yet. But I will try to book it very soon. Thank you very much. Ken

Borghese tickets are available on their website through all of August, as I saw when I just checked. If you wait too long you won't get in.

Nigel and Paula, Thank you for your useful information. I just emailed to my hotel in Rome to book our reservations for us two hours ago or so. They just contacted the Borghese Gallery for us and emailed me back that the office was already closed for today. They said that they will try it again the first thing in the morning tomorrow. Ken

I just returned from Rome and can give my personal observation regarding the Vatican Museum last Tuesday (did not go to the Borghese Gallery). First, I forgot to make the timed ticket reservation prior to departure, so I was able to do it from my iphone there and the hotel kindly printed the ticket voucher. The lines at the Vatican Museum seem to peak between 9-11AM, and then get shorter as the day progresses. I had a time of 1230PM but showed up 30 minutes early to check out the scene. They let me walk right in at that time. Frankly, there was almost no line and I probably didn't need the reservation. If going earlier than that, my advice is to arrive about 15 minutes prior to your reservation time. It can be very chaotic and you want to ensure you go to the right place (you want to be at the right side of the main entrance, not in the left line that snakes around the Vatican wall!) There are also scores of "skip the line" tour hawkers all around the Vatican. They are extremely aggresive and annoying. Ignore them please. The bottom line: Even if you have no reservation at all, don't be discouraged if you see the line is extremely long. Come back in a couple of hours and you will get in. The line moves fast.

I forgot to mention 2 things. On Wednesday morning if there is a Papal audience, the Vatican Museum lines will be at there worst in the afternoon.
And although the museum's official closing time is 6PM, they will start telling people to leave at 530.

Allen, Thank you for your great tips. Unfortunately I made reservations yesterday and will be at the Vatican Museum at 8:30 AM for 9:00 entry on Thursday, July 12th . I just want to get there in the morning when I still have energy before it's get hot in the afternoon. After visiting the museum, We plan to go back to our hotel to take a rest. Ken

Ken, did your hotel get the Borghese tickets?

Nigel, My hotel in Rome made reservations for the Borghese Gallery for the July 8th at 11,00 a.m. entry. I thank you for your concern. Ken

Have a great trip Ken, Did anyone mention the long walk around the outside of the Vatican walls to get to the museum entrance? If you are cutting it close this walk can be stressful. Plan on an extra 10 minutes. But first, arrive at St. Peters Square an hour before your museum time and take your outside photos with the early morning sun behind you. If you wait until later in the day your photos will be washed out, the sun sets behind St. Peters and can be blinding. We went to Rome in 2011 and 2010 in July. The heat was the same as Boston in July so we were fine. Drink lots of water and fill up your bottles at the plentiful water spigots throughout Rome. There is a great one right in front of the obelisk in St. Peters. Happy travels.