Did you know that even though you are right in the heart of Rome, you cross the border of a foreign state when visiting Saint Peter’s Square or entering the Vatican Museums? The Vatican City State was founded after the signing of the Lateran Pacts between the Holy See and Italy in 1929 and is universally recognized under international law. It is the smallest state in the world (with a surface area of around 0,44 ha) with its own coins, stamps, daily newspaper, railway station, telecommunications, army, and police. The state includes Saint Peter’s Square, Saint Peter’s Basilica, Palazzi Vaticani with the Vatican Museums, the Vatican Gardens and other buildings inside the Vatican walls.

During the tour

Visit Saint Peter’s Square, a masterpiece of theatrical architecture created by Gian Lorenzo Bernini. An impressive ellipse 320m deep, 240m wide, surrounded by 284 columns and 88 pilasters. Witness 140 statues of saints, 3.20m high, looking down at you from above, and then admire the imposing Saint Peter’s Basilica, the largest church in the world able to host 20,000 people.

Follow your guide inside the basilica, the first temple of Christianity, and prepare to be even more amazed. The basilica is a treasure chest of art, an expression of papal patronage that seems to have no limits, retaining its ability to charm both believers and non-believers.

Take a guided tour of the Vatican Museums, one of the most famous museum complexes in the world, a unique collection of works by Caravaggio, Giotto, Leonardo, and Raphael. Be enchanted by beautiful frescoes in the sacred Sistine Chapel, an antique jewel of the Palazzi Vaticani, where “the truths of our faith speak to us from all sides.”

Discover the meaning of the word “conclave” and where the term “Jubilee” derives from. Learn who really designed the uniforms of the Swiss Guards, as well as facts such as the population of the smallest state and if it’s true that the next pope will be Greek and will have the letter “r” in his surname .