Vatican Grottoes - Grotte Vaticane

Visitor Info Vatican Grottoes, St. Peter’s Basilica, Vatican City

The Grotte Vaticane or Vatican Grottoes are a series of catacombs and chapels beneath St Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican City. The grotto houses numerous papal tombs, including Renaissance popes and important works of art.

Visitors to the Vatican Grottoes can not only see the tombs of the popes, but also several chapels and shrines dedicated to different saints. The works and sculptures are truly impressive.

>>> Tours and guided visits of St. Peter’s Basilica and the Vatican Grottoes can be booked online. You can also save yourself hours of queuing at St. Peter’s Basilica and the entrance to the Vatican Grottoes. Various tours, such as with and without St Peter’s dome, are available on the website Getyouguide.

In addition to the tomb and chapel, the grotto also contains the Sancta His Sanctorum, a small chapel that was once the Pope’s private chapel. This chapel is considered one of the holiest sites in the Catholic Church and is said to contain the original image of Veronica, a cloth on which the face of Christ is depicted.

Overall, the Vatican Grottoes are an important part of Vatican City and worth a visit for anyone interested in religious history or art.

Important for travelers to Rome: We have only ever seen queues in Europe that are hundreds of meters long or several hours long in Rome. This is especially true for St. Peter’s Basilica, the Colosseum and the Vatican Museums. Be sure to buy skip-the-line tickets online beforehand and skip the queue!: There are such tickets on this link

Vatican Grottoes Opening Hours

They are always open when St Peter’s Basilica is open to visitors. This has opening hours in summer from 7am to 7pm. In winter, opening hours are one hour shorter in the evening – 7am to 6pm.

Vatican Grottoes entrance fee

Both St Peter’s Basilica Vatican and the Grottos do not actually charge an entrance fee. However, the queues and waiting times are often extreme, many hours. You can avoid this by buying tickets online in advance without queuing, often as part of a guided tour.

Vatican Grottoes Entrance

You go down a flight of stairs from inside St Peter’s Basilica. There are often long queues, at the entrance to St Peter’s and at the grottos.

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Important tip: Buy tickets for the Vatican Museum,without queuing on the Internet

In the Vatican Museum, you can theoretically buy an entrance ticket at the box office, but you usually have to queue for hours. Often, the queue along the wall around the Vatican is several hundred metres long, often even one kilometre and more. A lot of museum visitors meanwhile have tickets with preferential admission (without queuing). These are available in advance on the Internet.

—>>>> Here you can buy tickets for the Vatican Museum

Note: Sometimes tickets are slightly cheaper on this website.

A combination ticket for the Vatican with a museum and St. Peter’s Cathedral is also very popular. St. Peter’s Basilica is theoretically free, but there are also very long queues. We even waited 2 hours in December.

—>>>>> Here you can buy combination tickets for the Vatican Museum and St. Peter’s Basilica

Vatican Grottoes: Important tombs

The Vatican Grottoes contain the tombs of many important figures of the Catholic Church, including the Pope. Some of the most important tombs in the grotto are:

Pope Julius II:
Pope Julius II was a powerful Renaissance pope who commissioned many important works of art, including the rebuilding of the Sistine Chapel and St Peter’s Basilica. His tomb is in a cave and is adorned with sculptures by Michelangelo.

Pope John XXIII
Pope John XXIII was a popular pope who served from 1958 to 1963. He is best known for convening the Second Vatican Council, which helped modernise the Catholic Church.

Pope Paul VI
Pope Paul VI served as pope from 1963 to 1978. He was the first pope to travel widely and will be remembered for his commitment to peace and justice in the world.

Pope John Paul I
Pope John Paul I was Pope for only 33 days until his death in 1978. Despite his short tenure, he was highly regarded for his warmth and humility.

Pope John Paul II:
Pope John Paul II, who was Pope from 1978 to 2005, is one of the most popular figures in recent Catholic history. He was widely known for his commitment to peace, social justice and human rights.

Pope Benedict XVI, born Joseph Aloysius Ratzinger, was head of the Catholic Church from 2005 to 2013. He is buried in the Vatican Grottoes, a series of crypts and chapels beneath St Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City.

Tomb of Pope Benedict XVI It is located in a simple chapel in the grotto and is marked by a simple plaque with his name, date of birth and date of death. The tomb, decorated with flowers and lighted candles, is a place of pilgrimage for many Catholics who celebrate Pope Benedict’s scholarly contributions to the Church and his efforts for Christian unity.

Visitors to the Vatican Grottoes can see the tomb of Pope Benedict XVI. The visit is part of a tour of the grottos, which also contain the tombs of many other popes and important figures of the Catholic Church. The atmosphere in the caves is peaceful and reverent, and the works of art and sculptures on display are truly impressive.

Tomb of Pope Benedict XVI It is an important part of the rich history of the Catholic Church and worth a visit for anyone interested in religious history or art. The grotto is open to the public and can be visited as part of a guided tour of the Vatican Museums.

These are just some of the important personalities buried in the Vatican Caves. The caves also contain the tombs of many other popes, bishops, cardinals and other important figures of the Catholic Church.

All our articles on the Vatican Museums:

Vatican Museums Overview
Pinacoteca of the Vatican
The Sistine Chapel
The Creation of Adam fresco
The Last Judgement
Rooms of Raphael
Pio Clementino Museum
The Torso from the Belvedere
Laocoon
The Gallery of Maps
The Carriage Museum of the Vatican

Vatican Grottoes – Grotte Vaticane