What it was like Going on a Tour of the Vatican

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There is ample reason for me to justify my choice of visiting the Vatican given the rich historyof art and architecture that the country presented. In almost every way, it was an extraordinary place to spend my holidays; however, one thing I learnt was that there are certain norms that need to be followed while touring Vatican. Thankfully I had done my research and I did not miss out on any experience, by planning on how not to spend too much time waiting in line.

Waiting in Line

It may seem odd to start an article about one of the most historical places in the city with a segment dedicated to queues outside the tourist spots. But, in my experience successfully battling these queues was the key to covering all the important locations. Visiting the Vatican is quite tedious every day of the week with there being swarms of people outside the attractions at all times. Particularly during the peak tourist hours, the lines for the museums can take hours to beat. Thankfully, I found the ideal way of dodging these lines by buying tickets well ahead of time. By simply going to the museums’ website, I was able to buy the tickets. People who have pre-purchased tickets can skip these long queues. If you are going on a guided tour of Vatican City then make sure it includes line-skip admission.

The Vatican Museums

The main places I wanted to visit in the Vatican were St. Peter’s Basilica and the Vatican Museums. Inside St. Peter’s Basilica was Michelangelo’s Pietà, one of the most beautiful sculptures that there is, and inside the Vatican Museums was Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel, another architectural marvel.

Since both of these places are huge, visiting them both in one day seemed difficult but ended up being rather do-able since I had started off early. The key is to have the tickets sorted and not plan any other noteworthy visit such as the Coliseum as fully exploring these two places will be both time consuming and exhausting. Since I was under some time constraints, I had to walk as speedily as I could. I did take my time to observe the beautiful labyrinthine museum however, after which a half an hour walk led me to the Sistine Chapel. Even though it was pretty early in the morning (about 9AM in the morning) the battle to move past slow-moving visitors on my way had already begun.

St. Peter’s Basilica

Exiting the Vatican Museum was a rather puzzling procedure, but the route to St. Peter’s can be easily found on a walking tour. A stroll by this astonishing structure must be followed with a long walk to the highest section of the basilica – a place where I had an astounding view of the entire city.

The Rest of My Holiday

I spent the next day exploring the beautiful Vatican gardens and visiting the Scavi (which is Saint Peter's Tomb). I took the 9AM Vatican Gardens tour which allowed me ample time to converse with fellow tourists and explore the roads and cuisines of Vatican.



Visiting Vatican City was more than just a holiday. It was as if I had time travelled back into the age of Renaissance, into a world of marvellous artistic and scientific excellence.

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