Vatican museums – a traveller’s experience

If you’ve ever been to the Vatican museums, you’ll know that the visit there warrants at least a whole day of your time. There are thousands of exponats from ancient times through medieval, Renessaince until this day. The experience is truly worth it, so I will urge you to go should you find yourself in Rome.

The tickets

Any traveler who wants to visit the museums should be warned that the queues for tickets to the museums are miles long. You should go early morning and get in line if you want to be sure you can get in at some point. The working  hours for the museums are 9 am – 4 pm (last entry). We paid EUR 20 per person to enter the museums and the Sistine Chapel. You can find the current price list here.

Vatican Museums location

We went to the museums around noon and the queue was simply huge, but we managed to get in fairly quickly. We did not buy tickets in advance, so we paid to the cashiers. If I go to the museums again in the future, I would much prefer to buy my ticket online. You can check for online options to buy your tickets here, and also here.

Impressions

Experience-wise, I can say that the tour was amazing. I have never had the chance to see so much art and history in a single place. The exhibitions feature all times in human history from the time of the Ancient Egyptians through Gallileo’s days to current times. They even feature a flag brought fro the moon by Apollo 11!

I would not reveal more from the tour so that I don’t spoil your experience. I will share some of the photos I took so you can get the magical feeling of the place.

I’ve tried to leave it out of the pictures, but unfortunately the Vatican museums are always full during working hours. The crowds of people can definitely spoil your experience, so if you have the chance, get a ticket for a visit in off-working hours. They offer night visits as well. This will be especially important for your visit in the Sistine Chapel. It’s a place for worship, one of the most sacred places in the Vatican, and it’s breathtaking. However the sheer mass of people we had to crumble with to get in the Chapel was a serious drawback.

Overall, the museums were a great experience for us, only spoiled a bit by the crowds of people who want to see them as well. I think it’s only natural, though, as all popular historical and cultural places want to be seen by thousands of people. Still, you won’t be sorry to visit them.

Housing in Rome

When planning our trip to Rome, we noticed an interesting facts. In Rome, bed and breakfasts are much more popular and available than hotels. Not to mention, they are a lot more budget-friendly as well. After reviewing for a few days, we chose to stay in Romoletto. This is a small bed and breakfast establishment very near to the Vatican – around 20 min walk to St Peter’s basilica. The host speaks perfect English and they offer good breakfast and clean rooms. They cleaned our room every day and were friendly and helpful so this is definitely a place I would recommend!

Check out how we spent our time in Rome outside the Vatican here!