Vatican City

Vatican City
Country in Europe

Vatican City is the smallest country in the world surrounded by Rome, Italy. With an area of 121 acres and a population of about 825. Vatican city is ruled by the pope who is the bishop of Rome and head of the Catholic Church.
St. Peter, one of the 12 Apostles of Jesus Christ, was crucified head downwards, by his own request because he considered himself unworthy to die in the same manner as Jesus between AD 64-68.
Old St. Peter's Basilica construction began by the orders of the Roman Emperor Constantine I between 318 and 322. It was demolished in 1505. where the new St. Peter's Basilica stands today.
Present St. Peter's Basilica construction began on 18 April 1506 and was completed on 18 November 1626.
The independent Vatican City held on 11 February 1929. The area was part of the Roman rione of Borgo until 1929.
Since 1983 the Vatican has produced its own television programming.
Vatican City was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1984.

How to Reach Vatican City

By Air: There is no airport at Vatican City. Fiumicino International Airport "Leonardo da Vinci" (IATA Code -FCO) in Rome is the nearest airport for Vatican City.
I always use the following app to buy air tickets. Because this app shows the cheapest tickets on all airlines. I can buy tickets as per my requirement. Enter the country you are going to. Then enter your departure and arrival date. Click on search.


Vatican City is about 39 km from airport towards northeast. You can go by metro, bus or private or shared taxi.
Buy online and travel worry out of your arrival or departure in Vatican City.

* Return Bus Transfer Between Fiumicino Airport and Rome.

* Fiumicino Airport: Leonardo Express Train Ticket.

* Relax in an air-conditioned minivan to and from City Hotels to Fiumicino Airport shared transfer.

* Ciampino or Fiumicino Airport Private Transfer to Rome for Per group up to 4.

You can go inside the Vatican country without passport and visa from Rome.

Vatican City is surrounded by wall. There are two main entrances to Vatican City for tourists.
1) St. Peter's Basilica, on the eastern side of the city and accessible from Via della Conciliazione.
2) the Vatican Museums, accessible from viale Vaticano on the northern side of the city.

Hotels in Vatican City

There is no hotels and staying facility in Vatican City. So you have to stay in Rome.
I always use the following app for hotel bookings. Because it compares to Booking.com, Airbnb and other sites and shows the cheapest price in the same room. I can book a budget or a luxury room as I need it. Just enter your check in and check out date and click search.


If you go to Vatican City for a day trip and you have luggage, you need not to rent hotel room or to carry luggage with you. Just rent a luggage storage near Termini. It takes €5 a day per item. You can book online during high season for Rome Termini Station Luggage Storage.

Tourist Places in Vatican City

I have described all Best Places to Visit in Vatican City. Those are Top-Rated Tourist Attractions in Vatican City. Among them some are Must-Visit Attractions in Vatican City. Also described The Best Things to Do in Vatican City and Fun Things to Do in Vatican City.
So that you can able to know the Famous Vatican City Tourist sights and Attractions and make your itinerary for Vatican City Attractions and Sightseeing.
You need approximately USD 67.1 to visit all the places listed below + Food cost.

St. Peter's Basilica

Church

Saint Peter also known as Simon Peter was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ and also the first Bishop of Rome (Pope).
St. Peter's Basilica is the largest church in the world. It is regarded as one of the holiest Catholic shrines and the greatest of all churches.
Originally built by order of the Roman emperor Constantine I in between 318 and 322 AD. It is the burial site of Saint Peter. It demolished in 1505 and Construction of the present basilica began on 18 April 1506 and was completed on 18 November 1626.
Dress code: Must wear shoes and shoulders, knees have to be covered for both men and women.
Visiting Time: 7 AM to 6.30 PM every day. Entry gate closes at 5 PM.
Entry Fee: Free.
How to go: From Rome through the road Via della Conciliazione.
Inside the Premises:
St. Peter's Square: Located directly in front of St. Peter's Basilica. There is an ancient obelisk at the center of the Square.
Obelisk: 40-meter high Egyptian obelisk including the base and the cross on top Obelisk is located at center of St. Peter's Square was previously located in Circus of Nero, where St. Peters were crucified. St. Peter was crucified head downwards, by his own request because he considered himself unworthy to die in the same manner as Jesus. The crucifixion took place near an ancient Egyptian obelisk in the Circus of Nero. That Obelisk was moved at the current site in 1586.
Statues: Large statues of St Peter at the left and St Paul at right near stairway.
Front of Basilica: There are 5 entrance door. and two magnificent arches. The one on the left is called the Arch of the Bells which is the entry from the square to the Vatican City.
The Atrium: Place after First entrance at the building. It is 14 meters high and 7.6 meters wide.
The Nave: Place after 2nd entrance: Long straight pathway.
Chapel of the Pieta: Right side after entrance in Nave. Jusus on lap of his mother Mary after crucification, worked by Microangelo in 1499.
Baptistery Chapel: At the left end, opposite of Chapel of Pieta.
Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament: at the middle of the Nave right side.
Baldacchino: At the end of the Nave. A pavilion-like structure 28.74 meters (94.3 feet) tall and claimed to be the largest piece of bronze in the world. the work began in 1623 and ended in 1634.

Turn left at the middle of the Nave. then turn again left.
The monument of Pope Pius VII (on the left), The Altar of St. Gregory the Great (straight end). Turn right. At the right, The tallest dome in the world. At the straight end is the monument of Alexander VII (on the left) and sacred heart (on the right).

Circus of Nero: Also called Circus of Caligula. Caligula (31 August 12 AD - 22 January 41 AD), a Roman emperor, began construction of this circus in the year 40 AD . circus was 90 meters wide and 161 long. It was a place where Caligula and Nero trained racing with four horse chariots. In 65 AD,. St. Peter was crucified head downwards, by his own request because he considered himself unworthy to die in the same manner as Jesus between AD 64-68. The crucifixion took place near an ancient Egyptian obelisk in the Circus of Nero. Circus was abandoned by the middle of the 2nd century AD so Constantine built the first basilica (Old St. Peter) at the site of the Circus using some of the existing structure. Most of the ruins of the Circus survived until mid-15th century. They were finally destroyed to make a space for the construction of the new St. Peter's Basilica.

St. Peter's Basilica Dome

Dome Climb

By elevator you can skip 320 steps stairway. After using elevator, if you want to go farther top, then you must use 231 steps narrow stairway. Michelangelo designed the dome. From the top roof, you can see the view of Vatican City and Rome. In high season, queues are very long and can spoil your day.
Visiting Time: April to September - 8 AM to 6 PM. October to March - 8 AM to 5 PM.
Entry Fee: 10 Euros ($11.22) for elevator, 8 Euros ($8.98) for stair.
How to go: After the security check in St. Peter's Church, look at right.

Vatican Necropolis

Historical Underground

Large cemetery or burial ground with intricate tomb monuments. It is located under the St. Peter's Basilica. To visit necropolis needs special permission granted from time to time by the “Fabbrica di San Pietro”. Visits are organized according to the schedule set by the Excavations Office. limited to around 250 visitors per day, in groups of not more than 12-15 people. The guided visit lasts about an hour and a half.
Visiting Time: Monday to Friday - 9 AM to 6 PM. Saturday - 9 AM to 5 PM.
Entry Fee: Guided tour - 13 Euro ($14.53).
How to go: Excavations Office in Vatican city, located south side of Basilica.
Inside the Premises: 1st century AD Pagan burial ground, 5th century Christian stone mausoleums, Alleged tomb of St. Peter the Apostle.

Palace of the Holy Office: The palace was first built after 1514 for Cardinal Lorenzo Pucci. So, it was called Palazzo Pucci. Pucci died in 1531 and the palace was purchased by Pope Pius V In 1566–67. It was converted into the seat of the Holy Office. The palace is situated south of St. Peter's Basilica near the Petriano Entrance to Vatican City.
Fontana di Porta Cavalleggeri: Fountain was built in 1565 by Pope Pius IV.
Paul VI Audience Hall: Hall with a seating capacity of 6,300, It lies partially in the Vatican City but mostly in Italy. It was completed in 1971.
Church of Our Lady of Mercy in the German: Located between Basilica and Paul VI Audience Hall.
Saint Martha House: It was completed in 1996. The building is using as a guest house. It is located west side of Paul VI Audience Hall.
Palazzo San Carlo: It is located west side of Saint Martha House.
Fonte da Estação Ferroviária Vaticana: It is located west side of Palazzo San Carlo.
Church of Saint Stephen of the Abyssinians: St Stephen of the Abyssinians is church near Fonte da Estação Ferroviária Vaticana.
Santa María Reina de la Familia: It is located west side of Church of Saint Stephen of the Abyssinians.

Museum of Vaitcan City

Museum

fourth-most-visited art museum in the world in 2017.
Visiting Time: Monday to Thursday - 10 AM to 8 PM (Last entry 6 PM). Friday and Saturday - 10 AM to 10 PM (last entry 8 PM)
Entry Fee: 17 Euro ($19) for adult and 8 Euro ($8.94) for reduced ticket.
Free Entry: On the last Sunday of each month.
Inside the Premises: Gregorian Egyptian Museum, Pio Clementino Museum, Lapidary Gallery, Ethological Museum Anima Mundi, Collection of Contemporary Art, Pinacoteca, Chiaramounti Museum, Gregorian Etruscan Museum, New Wing, Gregoriano Profano Museum, Lapidario Profano ex Lateranse, Plus-Christian Museumm, Christian Lapidarium, Jewish Lapidarium, Carriage Pavilion, Christian Museum Profance Museum, Room of the Aldobrandini Wedding, Chapel of St. Peter Martyr, Sistine Chapel, Raphael's Rooms, Borgia Apartment, Niccoline Chapel, Chapel of Urban VIII, Room of the Immarculate Concetoption, Room of the Chiaroscuri.
Online Ticket: Buy online and skip the line for Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel entry Ticket.

Gardens of Vatican City

Garden

Private urban gardens and parks. There are some buildings, such as Radio Vatican and the Governor's Palace, within the gardens.
Visiting Time: Monday to Saturday - 9 AM to 6 PM. Last Entry - 4 PM. Sunday remains closed except last Sunday of each month. Last Sunday of each month - 9 AM to 2 PM. Guided tours last 2 hours and must be booked through the Vatican Museum's website or with a private tour company.
Entry Fee: 20 ($22.35) Euro for adult. 15 Euro ($16.77) for reduced ticket.
Inside the Premises:
Grotta di Lourdes: This is a replica of the pilgrimage cave in Massabielle, France.
Fountain of the Eagle: Fountain of 17th-century fountain.
Papal Coat of Arms: Wonderful example of topiary figurative art in the shape of the Papal Coat of Arms.
Giardino Quadrato: This building is the residence of the head gardener.
Saint John’s Tower: Constructed in the 16th century by Pope Nicholas III.
Online Ticket: Buy online and skip the line for Vatican Gardens Tour on Minibus.

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