One of the most beautiful and popular attractions in Rome is undoubtedly the St. Peter’s Basilica also known as the Basilica Papale di San Pietro in Vaticano. This basilica is in the centre of Vatican City and is renowned as the most beautiful and largest basilica in the world, making it a true must-see during your city trip in Rome.
As soon as you step inside the church, you will be amazed by the splendor. Everywhere you look, you’ll see beautifully decorated walls, ceilings, and floors. The church is adorned with thousands of statues, paintings, and artworks made with mosaic tiles. All in all, the impressive splendor ensures that you won’t soon forget your visit to the St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome.
The church is built in the shape of a Latin cross and is a whopping 220 meters long and 150 meters wide. Due to these enormous dimensions, the interior of the church is vast; a total of up to 60,000 people can stand in the basilica if there are no chairs. During a service, there is seating space for 9,000 people inside, and outside, an additional maximum of 140,000 people can stand.
The St. Peter’s Basilica and its impressive dimensions
The St. Peter’s Basilica is enormous in size. The church is nearly 190 meters long, including the portico, it is 218 meters long. At its widest point, the church is a whopping 155 meters wide. The height of the nave is 46 meters, and the height to the top of the dome in the church is an impressive 119 meters. On the exterior, the dome is even higher, precisely 136.5 meters.
The diameter of this enormous dome is 42.6 meters, and the lantern atop the dome stands 17 meters tall. The diameter of the dome is slightly smaller than that of the Pantheon in Rome. The designer of the St. Peter’s Basilica, Michelangelo, is believed to have intentionally done this out of respect for the architect of the Roman monument. The diameter on the outside is slightly larger than that on the inside, precisely 58.9 meters.
A fun fact, similar to the Madonnina in Milan, there is a rule in Rome that no building can be higher than the dome of the St. Peter’s Basilica. The enormous dome of the church is supported by four pillars with a circumference of a whopping 71 meters. The dome itself weighs an astonishing 14,000 tons. In addition to the large dome, the St. Peter’s Basilica boasts another 10 smaller domes. The facade of the church, designed by Carlo Maderno, is 115 meters wide and 47 meters high, and the roof of the church is supported by 778 separate columns.
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The tombs of the St. Peter’s Basilica
Under the basilica are several tombs where popes, kings, queens, and cardinals are buried. In total, there are more than 100 tombs to be found beneath the St. Peter’s Basilica, 91 of which belong to former popes.
The entrance to the tombs is near the statue of Saint Andrew, and the tombs themselves lie directly beneath the main altar. Beside to the tombs, there is also a crypt filled with relics and remains of Saint Peter. This crypt was only opened to the public since 1979 after Pope John Paul II decided to publicly display it.
Climbing the dome of the St. Peter’s Basilica
Would you like to get a magnificent view over Vatican City and Rome? Then you can choose to climb the 137-meter-high dome of the St. Peter’s Basilica. You will find the entrance to the dome via a side entrance on the right side of the basilica.
To visit the dome, you need to buy a separate ticket at the ticket office near the entrance that grants access to the stairs leading to the dome. Once you have purchased your ticket, you can choose to go up either by stairs or by elevator. The elevator only covers the first part of the ascent, and the last section must be completed on foot. If you opt for the stairs, you will need to climb a total of 551 steps before you can enjoy the view. If you choose the elevator, you only need to climb the last section of stairs, which consists of 320 steps.
Visiting the dome is only recommended for people in good physical condition. If you suffer from claustrophobia, it is also not advisable to make the climb, especially because the last part of the stairs is very narrow. This is because this staircase is in the dome, and the walls here are sloping. The very last part of the stairs is a narrow spiral staircase.
Once you have ascended the first part with the elevator, you will arrive at an intermediate level where you can view the St. Peter’s Basilica from a great height from the inside. From this point, it is still 165 steps to reach the top of the church. Once you have reached the roof of the church, you can enjoy a panoramic view over Vatican City and Rome. Here you can also have a cup of coffee, send a postcard at the Vatican City post office, or buy a souvenir in the souvenir shop.
Tickets for climbing the dome cost 5 Euro each. If you choose to use the elevator for the first part, you will pay an additional 2 Euro. Keep in mind that only cash payment is accepted; credit card payment is not possible. The dome is open daily, from 08:00 to 18:00 during the summer period and from 08:00 to 17:00 during the winter period.
Visiting the St. Peter’s Basilica: Skip the line tickets
Would you like to visit the magnificent St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City but don’t want to wait for hours in the enormous queue at the entrance of the basilica until you’re allowed inside? Then book the special fast-track access ticket, which allows you to enter the basilica through a special entrance on the side and skip the long lines.
Access to the basilica in Vatican City is free, which is why there are always extremely long queues at the entrance. These long queues are there almost every day, but they are even longer during the peak season, and you might end up waiting two to three hours before being able to enter the church. Considering that temperatures in Rome during the peak season months of July and August can rise towards 40 degrees Celsius, it’s not pleasant to wait for so long in the scorching sun.
With a skip-the-line ticket for the St. Peter’s Basilica, you don’t have to wait in this enormous line and can enter the church through a different entrance. However, you may have to wait a few minutes at the church’s security checkpoint. The skip-the-line ticket provides access to the basilica, access to the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel, but access to the dome of the St. Peter’s Basilica is not included in the ticket and must be obtained separately. If you wish to take the audio tour, you can either bring your own headphones or rent them on-site for 1 euro.
The tickets have changed, and we see that skip-the-line tickets with a guide are being offered. If you’re willing to pay extra to get inside more quickly, you can choose this option and potentially even leave the group once inside if you prefer to explore on your own.
Ticket prices skip-the-line St. Peter’s Basilica
The tickets for access to the St. Peter’s Basilica cost 35 US Dollar for adults (18+) and 27 US Dollar for children between 7 and 17 years old. You can easily order your for the St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome by the Tiqets website or the GetYourGuide website. Payment can be made quickly and securely via iDeal, credit card, and PayPal, and after booking, you will receive the tickets in your mailbox within 24 hours. When booking your tickets, you can choose from several time slots for visiting the St. Peter’s Basilica
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St. Peter’s Basilica including guided tour
Would you like to visit the St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City, including and a guided tour led by an experienced English-speaking guide? Then book the tickets St. Peter’s Basilica with a guided tour via the GetYourGuide website or the Tiqets website. The cost of the ticket is 33 US Dollar.
Combo ticket tour highlights Vatican City without waiting in line
Would you like to visit not only the St. Peter’s Basilica but also the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel? Then GetYourGuide offers a special combo ticket that allows you to save up to 20% on entrance tickets. The combo ticket costs 96 US Dollar for adults (19+) and 89 US Dollar for children between 6 and 18 years old. You can easily order the combo tickets for skip-the-line access to all the highlights of Vatican City via the GetYourGuide website.
How to get to the St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City?
The St. Peter’s Basilica is open daily from 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM during the summer months of April to September. Between October and March, the basilica is open from 7:00 AM to 6:00 PM. On Wednesdays, the basilica opens its doors to the public around 1:00 PM. The church is closed on January 1st and 6th, during Easter, and on other special occasions.
The opening hours of the dome of the St. Peter’s Basilica vary by season. From April to September, the dome is accessible from 7:30 AM to 5:00 PM, while from October to March, visitors are welcome from 7:30 AM to 5:00 PM. The crypt, with the tombs of the popes, is open every day except Sunday from 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM. Between October and March, the crypt closes at 5:30 PM. On holidays, the crypt remains closed.
Vatican City is easily accessible by public transport. Metro line A stops at two metro stations within walking distance of Vatican City. It’s best to get off at Ottaviano metro station, from where it’s about a 10-minute walk to Vatican City. You can also get off at Cipro metro station, which is about a 15-minute walk from the Vatican Museums and St. Peter’s Square.
You can also take the bus to the St. Peter’s Basilica. Bus line 49 stops right in front of the entrance to the Vatican Museums, from where it’s a short walk to St. Peter’s Square. Bus lines 32, 81, and 982 also stop nearby at Piazza del Risorgimento. Bus lines 492 and 990 stop at Via Leone IV / Via degli Scipioni, which is within walking distance of Vatican City. If you’re traveling by tram to Vatican City, it’s best to get off at stop 19 on Piazza del Risorgimento. From here, it’s just a short 5-minute walk to St. Peter’s Square.
