Vatican City, the smallest state in the world, sits inside Rome on the west bank of the Tiber. Visitors come for St Peter's Square and Basilica, the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel, usually as part of a stay in Rome. The Vatican is not part of the EU, so on paper it is not covered by Roam Like at Home, yet in practice a phone here usually connects to an Italian network, which changes how your bill is worked out.
Key facts for Vatican City
- EU roaming: not covered by Roam Like at Home
- Local networks: Iliad, WindTre and Vodafone (depending on the plan)
- Emergency numbers: police 112; ambulance 118; fire 115
- Embassies: consular help comes from embassies and consulates in Italy; the British Embassy to the Holy See does no consular work
A non-EU state on Italian networks
Because your phone normally registers on an Italian network inside the Vatican walls, operators bill your data as Italy, which for an EU SIM means home allowances apply as they do in Rome. Glance at the network name on your screen to be sure, and if anything unusual appears, switch data roaming off on that SIM. Travellers with UK or other non-EU SIMs pay whatever their operator charges for Italy. Telcomia's Vatican City plans run on Italian networks as well.
Tickets, queues and security checks
The only official place to buy Vatican Museums tickets online is the Museums' own ticket website; lookalike sites with similar addresses can charge far more. The Museums open from Monday to Saturday and on the last Sunday of each month, with extra closures on some dates, so check the calendar before you go. Expect metal detectors at the entrance: knives, scissors and metal tools must go in the cloakroom, as must large bags and rucksacks, but visitors who continue into St Peter's Basilica are told not to leave luggage behind in the Museums, so it is easier not to bring large bags at all. For the Basilica itself, the Italian State Police run the security checks on the right-hand side of St Peter's Square as you face the Basilica. Inside the Basilica, an emergency and ambulance service can be called by radio by the staff.
What to wear and how to behave
Entry to the Museums, the Sistine Chapel, St Peter's Basilica and the Vatican Gardens is allowed only to visitors dressed appropriately: no sleeveless or low-cut tops, no shorts above the knee, no miniskirts and no hats. In the Sistine Chapel you must stay silent and may not take photos or film with any device, and guards can ask you to delete pictures on the spot. Elsewhere in the Museums personal photos are fine, but without flash, selfie sticks, tripods or drones. The Basilica asks visitors not to take photographs at all, to keep phones on silent and not to eat, drink or smoke inside.
Pickpockets and Rome's rules
The UK Foreign Office warns of bag-snatching and pickpocketing at major tourist attractions and on public transport, so keep your valuables close in the crowds around St Peter's Square and on the way there. The Museums are near Ottaviano and Cipro stations on metro line A, and there is a taxi rank in the square in front of the entrance. Validate any ticket bought from a kiosk or machine before you travel, or inspectors can fine you on the spot. Rome also fines people for bathing in public fountains, and some cities ban eating or drinking next to major churches and sitting on monument steps. Italian police can check your identity at any time, so carry photo ID.
Getting connected
A travel eSIM set up before you leave home connects the moment you land in Rome. The Vatican City plans use Iliad, WindTre or Vodafone, depending on the plan, with 5G where available, and a World plan also covers the Vatican together with Italy and the rest of a longer trip. Keep your usual SIM in the phone for bank codes, with its data roaming switched off, and download your museum tickets before you join the queue.
Consular protection: who to call in Vatican City
- Call 112 for the police, 118 for an ambulance and 115 for the fire service; these are the Italian numbers.
- The British Embassy to the Holy See handles relations between the UK and the Holy See and does not provide consular help, so British nationals turn to the British Embassy in Rome. Other visitors are helped by their own embassy or consulate in Italy.
- Look up in the Telcomia app which of your country's missions in Italy covers the Vatican, and keep its address and phone number on your phone.
- If your EU country has no consular office covering the Vatican, the embassy or consulate of any other EU country must help you on the same terms as its own nationals (Article 23 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU).
- Italian is the everyday language of Vatican City.
Questions travellers ask about Vatican City
Will my EU SIM work in Vatican City?
Yes. The Vatican is outside Roam Like at Home, but phones there normally connect to Italian networks, so operators bill your usage as Italy. Check the network name on your screen.
Can I take photos in the Sistine Chapel?
No. Photos and filming are banned with any device, and silence is required.
Which network does a Telcomia eSIM use in Vatican City?
Iliad, WindTre or Vodafone, depending on the plan, with 5G where available.
Where should I buy tickets for the Vatican Museums?
Only from the Museums' official ticket website. Lookalike sites can charge much more.
The short version
Install the eSIM before you fly to Rome, buy museum tickets only on the official site, cover shoulders and knees, leave knives and large bags at your hotel, keep silent and put the camera away in the Sistine Chapel, guard your pockets on the metro, and save 112 and 118.
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