Hanging with His Holiness

How to get tickets to attend a Papal Audience at St. Peter's in Rome, Italy

The former pope (John Paul II) granting his weekly papal audience.

Tickets are free for the weekly mass audiences held in St. Peter's Square every Wednesday around 10am (sometimes 9am in summer—to beat the heat). Keep in mind, you'll be just one in a horde of thousands filling the plastic chairs in Piazza San Pietro (or, in the dead of winter or during inclement weather, in a grand audeince hall).

Now, I haven't been to an event with the Big Guy since Benedict XVI took over—last time I elbowed in with the crowds was back in John Paul II's day, during the summer of Jubilee Year 2000—but supposedly things still work pretty much the same way. (Also, Benedict seems to be upholding JPII's tradition of decamping to the Papal palace in Castelgandolfo, south of Rome, for a few weeks each summer, so audiences may not necessarily run year-round.)

The Blessing of Your Stuff
Make sure you bring something you want to have sanctified during the mass blessing the Pope performs as part of the ceremony. Most folks bring (or buy from a nearby gift shop) a handful of little Crucifix necklaces, either for themselves or to give to Catholic friends back home. Last time I went, I brought my group of Boy Scouts to the event—partly because it would be neat, but mostly because it was a Jubilee Year and they, being teenage boys, certainly could use the soul-cleansing. However, I forgot to bring anything to get blessed. In a moment of inspiration, as the Pope flung his blessing over the crowd, I held aloft my plastic bottle of water. It now sits in my fridge, with a hastily scribbled note around the top in Sharpie marker: "Holy Water: Do Not Drink."

The Pope usually wheels around the crowd filling St. Peter's Square his Plexi-glass Popemobile for a little while before heading to the steps to the basilica, which serve as his stage for the event. His Holiness sits upon a bishop's throne to oversee the ceremony—which consists largely of ecclesiastical flunkies reading out a list of groups in attendance that day, pausing for each to clap and cheer when their name is called.

There are also Jumbotron TV screens connected to cameras trained on His Holiness the whole time—to most of the crowd, the real thing is a white dot waaay at the other end of the piazza.

You can get tickets in person at the Prefecture of the Pontifical Household (+39-06-6988-4857), which is just through the bronze doors at the start of the curving part of the colonnade on the right side of Piazza San Pietro.

For more on all things Papal, visit the virtual Holy See at www.vatican.va.

Or you can fax (+39-06-6988-5863) or write (Prefettura della Casa Pontifica, Città del Vaticano, 00120 ITALIA), at least two weeks ahead of time—six weeks if you want to be sure the postal service gets them there and back in time—specifying your name, nationality, number of tickets, your home address, and the date you want to attend (remember: Wednesdays only) .

The Travel Store

 

Choose Rome section Rome homepage Best hotels in Rome Restaurants in Rome Rome Sightseeing  - Top sights  - Reid's List: Rome  - Rome for free  - Rome Churches  - Rome Museums  - Rome Sidetrips Rome FAQ  - Getting to Rome  - Getting around Rome  - Perfect itineraries Rome blog

Hotels in Rome

Destinations Africa Asia Australia / South Pacific Caribbean Europe North America South / Central America Worldwide / General