Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel Night Opening Ticket

• Evocative view of the Vatican Museums by night
• Priority entry to Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel without queues
• Warm welcome and assistance by Roma Cristiana staff
• Religious art masterpieces by Michelangelo and Raphael

Museums

Visiting the Vatican Museums is an unmissable opportunity for tourists and pilgrims in Rome. This museum complex houses an immense selection of sacred artworks from ancient to modern times, collected by popes over the centuries in order to preserve them and make them accessible to believers and non-believers alike for contemplation. The crown jewel of this museum complex is hidden at the end of its 54 galleries: the Sistine Chapel, with the legendary Michelangelo's mural painting on the ceiling.

With over 4 million visitors per year, the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel are some of the most popular destinations in Europe. Thanks to special night openings (every Friday from 20 April to 26 October) it is now possible to explore them in a more intimate, relaxed, and evocative atmosphere.

History

The Vatican Museums are among the world's oldest public art galleries. Their gigantic artwork collection came together thanks to many popes' contributions throughout history, starting with the donation of several classical sculptures by Pope Sixtus IV (1471-1484). His pieces constituted the original core of the museum, along with ancient marbles donated by Pope Julius II (1503-1513) and exhibited in what has now become the Octagonal Courtyard, as well as other ancient Greek and Roman artworks revalued during the Renaissance.

After art history and archaeology were recognized as disciplines in the 18th century, the first museum in Vatican City was officially commissioned by Pope Clement XIV and Pope Pius VI – known as the Pio Clementino Museum from their names. Since that moment, the collection has grown incessantly to include pieces from every age, from ancient Egyptian artifacts to Van Gogh and Dalí's paintings.

Rooms and collections

During Vatican Museums night openings, visitors can enter the following exhibitions:

• Pio Clementino Museum
• Egyptian Museum
• Upper Galleries (candelabra, tapestries, and maps)
• Raphael Rooms
• Borgia Apartments (selection of some rooms)
• Modern Religious Art Collection
• Sistine Chapel

These rooms contain illustrious examples of Western art, such as the sculptural Laocoön Group in the ancient art section, “Transfiguration” by Raphael (1518), “St Jerome” by Leonardo da Vinci (1480), and “The Entombment of Christ” by Caravaggio (1603) in the Renaissance section, and the marble “Perseus with the Head of Medusa” by Canova (1801) in the modern art section.

Reduced/Half Ticket:

• Children between 6 and 17 years old
• Students under 25 years old (valid International Student Card required upon entrance)

Free Ticket:

• Children from 0 to 5 years old
• People with 74% disability (valid identity document required)
• Carers of people with 74% disability

1. Tickets are valid all evening until Museum closing time starting from entrance time chosen when booking. Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel night opening is every Friday (religious holidays excluded) from April 20 to October 26, from 7:00 pm to 11:00 pm (last admission 9:30 pm)
2. Once tickets are booked, selected date and time are binding. Please arrive to the meeting point at St Peter's ORP Office in Piazza Pio XII, 9, at least 15 minutes before scheduled time slot.
3. The Vatican Museums are almost completely accessible. We suggest to follow the barrier-free itinerary indicated by the museum staff to easily reach main points of interest. In some areas the use of electric or motorized wheelchairs is not permitted due to space constraints. In these cases it is possible to rent a free standard wheelchair in the cloakroom, subject to availability, showing a valid identity document. It is possible to book a wheelchair in advance by contacting accoglienza.musei@scv.va or the "Special Permits" desk in the entrance hall (valid identity document always required to collect the wheelchair).
4. Guide dogs with muzzle and leash are allowed in the museums, upon written notice to accoglienza.musei@scv.va before your visit.
5. Tickets will be sent via email within 24-48 hours of the purchase (on weekdays) with instructions on how to get there and what to do to enter.
6. For a satisfying experience it is recommended to reserve at least 2 hours to visit the museums.
7. Visitors are invited to dress appropriately. 
8. Italy Tickets is not responsible for eventual lack of service caused by ticket offices or Holy Father's activities.