Vatican city

Home to Saint Peter’s Basilica, the vast Vatican Museum collection, and Pope Benedict XXVI, the sacred city within a city will take up at least an afternoon of your time.  It officially became a state in 1929, and does actually issue its own passports.  The agreement with the Italian government, the Lateran Treaty, created the independent city-state, established Roman Catholicism as the official religion of Italy, and compensated the Vatican for its war losses.

The walled city contains Saint Peter’s Basilica, the Pope’s private apartments, and the Vatican Museum collection, one of the world’s most comprehensive collections laid out thematically by culture and time period much like the Louvre. Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel is attached to the museums, although many people visit the sight for the chapel alone.  Inside the Basilica are countless art masterpieces, including Michelangelo’s Pietà, and Bernini’s magnificent (though some would call it a bit overwrought) alter canopy. The Basilica is free of charge and open from 7am–7pm, whereas the Cupola (dome) coasts €7 in the elevator or €5 on foot. It is one of Rome’s most remarkable panoramas and worth every cent.

For a fascinating tour of the underworld, take a tour of the Necropolis below the Basilica where Saint Peter was originally buried. The tour costs € 8 and must be reserved at least 20 days in advance via fax (+39 06 69885518) specifying the number of people and the preferred language.

A visit to the museums is a real enterprise. In addition to Sistine Chapel, the collection includes the lavishly frescoed Borgia Apartments, the Raphael-signed apartments for Julius II, Caravaggio’s Deposition, which exemplifies his Chiaroscuro technique, and the 1st century sculpture of Laocoön, the Trojan prophet and his two sons strangled by snakes as they attempt to warn their fellow citizens to close the doors on the gift horse.

How to avoid the long lines
The Vatican museums are open from 8:30am–6pm, with the last entrance at  4pm.  It’s generally advised to skip the long lines in the morning and come at midday. Tickets cost €14.

Why should I go
The smallest city-state in the world in terms of population and area, and one of the wealthiest, hosts some of the world’s most precious artwork.

Where
Saint Peter’s – Via della Conciliazione. www.vatican.va  Metro A ‘ Ottaviano-San Pietro’

Vatican Museums – Viale Vaticano. Metro A ‘Cipro’

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