How to spend one day in Vatican City

A trip to Rome isn’t complete without a visit to Vatican City. The Vatican is an independent state located within the city of Rome.

With a population of only a thousand, it is the smallest country in the world! The Vatican is the headquarters of the Roman Catholic Church, and home to the Pope.

Its Vatican Museums house ancient Roman sculptures, as well as Renaissance frescoes by Raphael, and the Sistine Chapel, famous for Michelangelo’s ceiling.

On the blog, I will highlight how to spend one day in Vatican City. You can easily see most of the main sights at the Vatican in one day, but to really soak in all that the country has to offer, two days at the Vatican is the perfect itinerary.

*Check out our blog on how we spent one week in Rome. I include the top things to do in Rome, and how to make the most of your visit.

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Vatican City Itinerary

Visiting the Vatican from Rome

Getting to Vatican City from Rome is easy to get to either on foot or via a hop-on-hop-off tour. You can also get to the Vatican by Metro as well.

Take the Metro line A, and get off at either the Lepanto or Ottaviano stop, from there you can easily walk to the Vatican.

Book your Vatican tours here:

Top things to do in Vatican City

St. Peter’s Square

One of the best places to visit in the Vatican if you’re short on time is St. Peter’s Square. Soak in the views of one of the world’s most famous squares, and admire the beautiful architecture around you.

Designed by Bernini in the 17th century, St. Peter’s Square alone is worth the visit when planning a trip to Vatican City.

Admire the beautiful Egyptian obelisk and fountain in the center, and the semicircular colonnades surrounding the square.

This is also where you can attend Wednesday Mass with the Pope, which was such an amazing experience, and something to add to your Vatican City itinerary.

*Don’t forget to take a photo op with the Swiss Guards at the Vatican. The Swiss Guards is amongst the oldest military units in continuous operation!

Visit St. Peters Basilica

When touring the Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel, your visit usually ends at St. Peters Basilica. If not, entrance to St. Peters Basilica is completely FREE!

St. Peter’s Basilica is an Italian Renaissance church in Vatican City. It is one of the most popular pilgrimage sites in the world, and the most visited.

The Basilica is regarded as one of the holiest Catholic shrines and the largest church in the world. It was built over St. Peter’s grave in Rome in the 4th century A.D. which is located directly below the high altar of the Basilica.

Once you enter St. Peter’s Basilica, be sure to take your time and soak it all in. This is one of the most beautiful Basilicas we’ve seen, and the history is just astounding!

One of the highlights of our visit was St. Peter’s tomb in the Vatican Necropolis. It was such an amazing experience to visit the final resting place of one of Jesus’ twelve apostles!

Wednesday Mass with the Pope

We were also lucky enough to attend an outdoor Mass with the Pope himself! Every Wednesday, if the pope is in town, there is mass outside on the square and it’s completely free to attend.

Just make sure to arrive early in the morning so seats are available. It was one of the most memorable experiences we’ve had on our trip to Italy! Getting to see the Pope up close was such a bucket list moment.

Visit the Vatican Museums

A trip to Vatican City isn’t complete without a visit to the Vatican Museum. The Vatican museums are the largest in the world and hold works of art from the collection amassed by Popes throughout the centuries.

The collection includes some of the most renowned classical sculptures and most important masterpieces of Renaissance art in the world.

Make sure to purchase skip-the-line tickets when planning a visit to the Vatican Museum to avoid the long queues. The museum is usually crowded, and the best way to avoid this is to visit early in the day.

*When visiting with kids, I suggest doing a self-guided tour. It’s so much easier to go at your own pace instead of being rushed through having to follow a guide.

Admire the Sistine Chapel

A visit to the Sistine Chapel is one of the Vatican’s main attractions. To get to the Sistine Chapel, you have to purchase tickets to the Vatican Museum.

There are no direct tickets to the Sistine Chapel alone, and you cannot enter from St. Peter’s Basilica. Once you finally make it into the Chapel, the beauty will leave you breathless!

The Sistine Chapel, with its ceiling decorated by Michelangelo, and the Stanze di Raffaello decorated by Raphael, are the most popular works of art in the museum, and it’s absolutely breathtaking!

Be aware that taking photos is not allowed in the Sistine Chapel, and they’re strictly enforced. I’ve seen guards get pretty aggressive to those not following the rules!

We had some of the greatest moments on our visit to Vatican City. We got to tick off a few things on our bucket list and the most memorable one was attending mass with the pope! For such a small country it holds some of the world’s greatest treasures. It was definitely one of our favorite trips in Europe!

Some tips on visiting the Vatican

• Make sure to purchase skip the line tickets to the Vatican Museum ahead of time to avoid the long queues. The Vatican Museum can get very crowded, so if your traveling with kids, it’s something to keep in mind.

• Entry to St. Peters Basilica is free, but make sure to get here early to avoid the longs lines.

• Be aware of the dress code for visiting the Vatican. The rule of thumb is to dress respectfully, with arms and legs covered.

• Make sure to pack some snacks and water, especially when visiting with kids. You can easily spend the whole day here and it’s best to be prepared.

*Next stop on our Italy trip –> Read about our visit to the Leaning Tower of Pisa!

*Make sure to check out our day trip to Florence Italy as well. I include the top things to do, and how to make the most of your visit.

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