We took a guided tour which was well worth the money. We learned a ton of historical information, as well as the many stories behind the pictures, rooms, and buildings. We were able to go through in less than 4 hours, and the crowd was really my too heavy in the afternoon. St Peters was the highlight!

The Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel are fantastic to see. So glad we went. I had read about the 2 to 4 hour waits in line but decided to give this a whirl with my family of four anyway. We did not book a tour and we did not book our tickets in advance. We said no to the hawkers trying to sell us tours while we waited in line. We went early in the morning on a Thursday. We were in line at 8:00am and the line was not huge yet. The entrance opens at 9:00am. At 9:00am we entered, went through security, then upstairs to buy our tickets *Note, our kids, one is14 and the other a 19 year old university student are half price if they show student ID* and then we were in. Walking through the museums. Yes, lots of people, yes, tours are good if you like that, but we got in on our own with no hassle and not much wait time. When we left in the afternoon, the line up was long (and hot). Early in the morning, it was cool and shady.

The roof of the entire museum like most basilicas are outstanding detailed and one wonders how on earth it was done in their time age. However, the rest of the museum after our opinion was boring because of the repetiveness of the same art. During the end we almost ran for the exit because it felt like we have already seen everything 10 times. In addition, the massive queues and amount of people there i will advise you to pre-order tickets, go without a guide and visit early or late. Also, do not(!) Listen to a word any salesman says as the will decieve you into upgrading your pre-ordered ticket or into buying a tour tour.