Vatican Tickets Price 2023

Visiting the Vatican without breaking your travel budget is possible. I tell you how much tickets cost, how to get discounts and what you can visit for free at the Vatican. Read on!

Carmen Navarro

Carmen Navarro

6 min read

Vatican Tickets Price 2023

Interior of St. Peter's Basilica | ©Mathew Schwartz

If you are thinking about visiting the Vatican, surely you have wondered how much budget you need in total, what are the paid tickets, what things you can visit for free and how much you should invest in tickets or in a guided tour.

The most important thing to know is that you can access the Vatican from 36 euros without waiting in line at the ticket office, but if you prefer to be told the details of the works of art and enter early, the price of guided tours is around 61 euros.

How much does a skip-the-line ticket to the Vatican cost?

St. Peter's Dome| ©Aldo Loya
St. Peter's Dome| ©Aldo Loya

The price of skip-the-line tickets to the Vatican is 36 euros if you buy them online in advance on official ticket websites such as Hellotickets. With these tickets you will access the interior of the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel and you will visit the different rooms at your own pace without a guide, you just have to select the time you want to start your visit.

Guided tours

Also on our website you can book the ticket with a guided tour for 36 € and you can make changes or refunds, which is important to have more flexibility in the trip. With this ticket you will have access to the Vatican Museums, where the Sistine Chapel is located.

Why is it advisable to take the guided tour option? Because in addition to housing several museums, the amount of frescoes, sculptures, paintings and works of art in the Vatican is incalculable. Faced with such majesty, it is advisable to visit it with an expert who will make sure you see the essentials and explain the basics of what you see.

Visit before official opening hours

There is also the option of buying a ticket to enter the Vatican and the Sistine Chapel early in the morning. With this exclusive tour you will enter the Vatican with an expert guide and a very small group of tourists which guarantees a more intimate visit. It costs about 60 €.

Remember that you can buy tickets at the ticket office, but in addition to getting the same price as online (they never give discounts or special rates) you will have to wait literally hours in line at the Vatican gates. Why is it important to take the option without queues? Precisely for this reason, to avoid the eternal queues in front of the Vatican, which are the longest in Rome.

Book skip the line tickets to the Vatican

How much does a ticket to the Sistine Chapel cost?

Sistine Chapel| ©Unsplash
Sistine Chapel| ©Unsplash

The ticket you need to access the Sistine Chapel is the one for the Vatican Museums, as the Chapel is located inside it. Tickets range from 36 € in Hellotickets (without guide) and guided tour, with which you will access the Sistine Chapel with an expert with whom you will also visit the rest of the Vatican galleries. A VIP ticket to enter the Vatican and the Sistine Chapel before it opens to the general public costs about 60 €.

Book tickets for the Sistine Chapel

Vatican entrance fee with the Roma Pass or the Omnia Card

Roma Pass| ©Hellotickets
Roma Pass| ©Hellotickets

If in addition to accessing the Sistine Chapel and the Vatican Museums you are considering entering other museums or attractions in Rome, such as the Borghese Gallery, the Capitoline Museums, the Colosseum or even take the tourist bus, you may want to purchase the Roma Pass together with the Omnia Card, the tourist cards of the city.

You can buy the Omnia Card for 149 € at Hellotickets and with it you can access the Castel St' Angelo, the Colosseum, the Capitoline Museums and most importantly, the Vatican Museums with the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's Basilica, without queues.

On the other hand, you have the option to purchase the 24-hour Omnia Pass which includes, in addition to the entrance to the Vatican, the tourist bus and the Vatican-Rome Open Bus, and the entrance to the Catacombs of St. Callixtus and other basilicas in Rome.

Book the Roma Pass and the Omnia Card

Price comparison table

  • Skip the line entrance to the Vatican and Sistine Chapel
  • From $39
  • At your own pace
  • Priority access without queues and option of audio guide
  • Without guide
  • Book now
  • Guided tour of the Vatican and Sistine Chapel
  • From $61
  • 2h
  • Including guided tour of St. Peter's Basilica
  • With guide
  • Book now
  • Early guided tour
  • From $87
  • 2h
  • Visit before official opening hours
  • With guide
  • Book now
  • Roma Pass and Omnia Card
  • From $158
  • At your own pace
  • Tickets to other museums, tourist bus and public transport
  • Without guide
  • Book now

Combined ticket price for the Vatican and the Colosseum

Colosseum ticket| ©Unsplash
Colosseum ticket| ©Unsplash

A very good option to save also on the purchase of tickets during your trip to Rome is to get the combined ticket to the Vatican and the Colosseum. In Hellotickets you can get the combined ticket to the Vatican, the Sistine Chapel and the Colosseum and the Roman Forum. In addition, you will access both the Vatican and the Colosseum skipping the queues. A great tip!

If you prefer, access the two monuments with a guided tour with the most complete saving pack that includes a half day tour with expert guide to understand the history and significance of the Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, Colosseum, Roman Forum and Palatine Hill.

Book skip the line tickets to the Vatican

How much does it cost to enter St. Peter's Basilica?

St. Peter's of the Vatican| ©Michele Francioso
St. Peter's of the Vatican| ©Michele Francioso

You are in luck, because entering St. Peter's Basilica is free. Of course, the queues at the doors of the Basilica are endless, so there are tickets to the Vatican that include access to the Museums and the Basilica skipping the queues. This is the case of this guided tour of the Vatican and St. Peter's Basilica that costs 49 € at Hellotickets. When you get there and see the lines that form at the door, you will be grateful for having booked this option in advance.

Price of the ascent to St. Peter's Dome

Going up to St. Peter's Dome costs €8 and tickets cannot be purchased online. You will have to go inside the Basilica to buy them right there at a counter. It is well identified, so you will recognize it as soon as you enter. If you want to take the entrance ticket with the option to go up a section by elevator, the price is 10 €.

How much does it cost to go down to the Crypts of the Popes?

To go down to the Crypts where some of the Popes are buried, you will have to pay a separate ticket that costs 13 € and again, you will not be able to get it online. You will have to go to the same place where you buy the Dome tickets, inside St. Peter's Basilica, to purchase them.

Book a guided tour of the Vatican

What can I see for free at the Vatican?

St. Peter's Dome| ©Briana Tozour
St. Peter's Dome| ©Briana Tozour

The Vatican City itself is free to visit, it is free and does not require an entrance ticket. You can access it for free by strolling quietly from the center of Rome (usually if you come from Castel Sant'Agenlo you cross the majestic Via della Conciliazione) until you reach St. Peter's Square with the legendary white colonnade by Bernini. All this is free and entering St. Peter's Basilica is also free (be patient to enter the interior of the temple).

However, to access the Sistine Chapel (which is inside the Vatican Museums), the Vatican Museums and gardens and the Dome and Crypts of St. Peter's Basilica you will need to buy a ticket.

Book a guided tour of the Vatican

Special rates and discounts

Vatican City| ©Anelale Najera
Vatican City| ©Anelale Najera

If you are a properly accredited pilgrim, journalist, art teacher or accredited historian, you can enter the Vatican by invitation, but you must bring your official documentation correctly filled in and go to the ticket office to redeem your free or discounted ticket (you will have to stand in the same queues as all the visitors waiting to buy their tickets). Students are eligible for the reduced rate (€8 per ticket without guided tour) until they reach the age of 25, but must present their student ID card at the door.

Book skip-the-line tickets to the Vatican

Do children pay admission to the Vatican?

St. Peter's Square| ©Unsplash
St. Peter's Square| ©Unsplash

Yes, children over the age of 6 need a ticket to enter the Vatican, but reduced rates are available. For example, for access to the Sistine Chapel and the Vatican Museums, the reduced rate for children is €8 instead of €17 for adults. Children under 6 years of age do not need to pay an entrance fee.

Book a visit to the Vatican with children