 | Rome St Peter's - San Pietro Reviews | Tips 11 - 20 of 221 |  |
This great building is the center of christianity. The opulence of the building's interior bears testimony to the wealth of the catholic church in the 16th century.
The building itself is truly impressive. The largest church in the world, it has a 218 meter long nave. The basilica's dome, designed by Michelangelo is the largest dome in the world .
The interior, which includes 45 altars, is decorated by many famous artists. Some of the most important works in the church are the Pietà by Michelangelo, the papal altar by Bernini, the Throne of St. Peter - also by Bernini - and the Monument to the Stuarts by Canova.
The opulent interior can be visited daily for free although a strict dress code is advisable. Leave a Comment Address: Piazza San PietroDirections: St. Peter's is located in Vatican state, across the river Tiber, west of Rome's center.
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This beautiful and delicate sculpture of Mary holding her slain son is very moving. Michelangelo chose to create Mary as a younger woman, perhaps the age she was when she gave birth to Jesus. Yet her shoulders are broad and her body seems large, as though she is strong enough to carry the tremendous responsiblilty of motherhood and the great sadness of the loss of her son. The lifeless body of Jesus is frail and small by comparison.
These two figures were carved from one piece of
marble and they are perfection.. Leave a Comment
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For certain the Piazza San Pietro is one of the most famous public squares in the world even is it is actually round. The vast piazza laid out before the Basilica San Pietro was designed by Bernini in the 17th century. The whole piazza is encircled by doric columns. It is here that the Pope addresses hundreds of thousands of pilgrims during each important occasion for the Catholic Church. The obelisk to the right was brought to Rome by Caligula in 36 A.D.
I was actually a little underwhelmed when I visited the Piazza San Pietro. I was probably exhausted by visit to the Vatican museums and the Sistine Chapel. I also found that the facade of the Basilica itself was something of a letdown, perhaps because you really do not get a good lock at its magnificant dome. Leave a Comment Directions: Vatican City
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Many people who visit the Vatican see St. Peters and the Sistine Chapel but often they miss out on climbing the Cupola of the Vatican and missing out on all the fabulous views that it offers from within the Cupola and from the outside as well. You have the option of taking the stairs which is about 5 euro, to take the elevator costs a few euro more but will save you about 300 or so steps. Keep in mind though you will still have to climb the stairs within the dome. Generally the wait time to climb the stairs during the low season is about 30 to 45minutes, but it is well worth the wait.
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A favorite topic among locals is "Where is the best view of Rome?" We have been directed to a few very special sites. This is the Vatican from the top terrace of Castel Sant 'Angelo - be sure to go on a clear night. Another extraordinary panaroma of Rome can be seen from Gianicolo Hill (Off the Beaten Path tips).
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For fabulous views over Rome, you can climb to the top of the dome of St Peters Basilica.
This was the highlight of my visit to the Basilica.
You have the option of taking the elevator or the stairs, the stairs being a bit cheaper.
If you take the elevator, it brings you to the bottom of the dome from where you still need to climb a long and mostly spiral staircase to reach the top of the dome.
If you take the stairs all the way, good luck! We did - it helped to justify all the gelato we had been eating!!
From the top there is a magnificent view of Rome and of Piazza San Pietro.
Well worth the climb! Leave a Comment
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The Piazza San Pietro is the open cobbled entrance to the 'Basilica di San Peitro', but still deserves a tip all to itself!
It can be found around 5 minutes walk South of the Ottaviano Metro station (on metro line A).
When we visited the Piazza San Pietro, the Christmas tree was still up, and they had a full-scale nativity setup.
The Piazza is lovely. It is surrounded by a wall of pillars. The roof on top of the pillars is lined with stunning statutes. I didn't count them, but I can confidently guess that there were around 60 - 70. The Piazza San Pietro also contains 2 fountains.....one to the left and one to the right.
It was reasonably quiet on the Saturday when we actually went to visit the Vatican, but on the Sunday, as we were walking past it again, there were quite literally thousands of people in the Piazza blowing whistles, chanting and waving banners. It actually took our breathe away.
Our only guess was that we had just missed a Sunday services.
The Piazza San Pietro is free to enter, however if you want to go any further you have to go through security.....which i guess makes sense.
Oh, and do not turn up with shorts and a vest on! They are very strict with what you can wear. You generally cannot enter if your shoulders or knees are showing. I think women wearing skirts will be ok, but shorts are a no no! Leave a Comment Address: The Vatican CityDirections: Entrance to the Vatican
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The walk from central Rome to the Vatican is very pretty, especially along the river. Not only do you pass several well known buildings and monuments, but the views of the Vatican are gorgeous. Don't bother taking buses or taxis in Rome, you'll miss out on a lot! Leave a Comment
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The be honest, the Vatican was weird! Not that we are particularly religious, but the impact of The Holy See did not hit us in that overpowering, epiphany-yielding sort of way one would assume it would. If anything, I felt more skeptical and suspect of this HUGE organisation. That being said, the Vatican is something that must be seen when in Rome. St. Peter's is nothing short of amazing. The work, detail and sheer size of this monument is really something to admire. Between climbing the dome, visiting the tomb of the Popes downstairs or walking around the inside of the basilica, you could easily spend an entire day here.
Costs:
St. Peter's Basilica - Free
Dome of St. Peter's - approx 7EUR
Tomb of Popes - approx 5EUR
**Vatican Museum (incl. Sistine Chapel) - 13EUR
**Please note that the last Sunday of each month is Free at Vatican Museum
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This is the famous and most beautiful sculpture ever - Michelangelo's Pieta - sculpted between 1498 and 1499. I'm happy to take a good picture of the Pieta though behind a thick plexiglas for vandalism reasons (it is known that it withstand at least two attack, one of which damaged heavily the nose of the mother). The Pieta is in San Pietro Basilica, in the first chapel of the right nave. Leave a Comment
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