Vatican City Travel Forum

We want to book tickets in advance for the Vatican museum but we don't want to join a guided tour - we just want to go round by ourselves (as we've visited many times before). So far as I can tell, the fax process for booking through the Vatican is for guided tours only. Does anyone know how or if this can be done?

On another forum I noticed a comment that you can join a guided tour but slip away and the guides don't pay that much attention to keeping their group together. Is that right?

Thanks to anyone who replies - I'll appreciate it.

There is no way to book tickets in advance for the museum through the Vatican. If you want to purchase tickets through a ticket broker, then bear in mind they will most likely charge you more than the face value of the ticket. It is not necessary for you to take a guided or group tour for your visit, unless you want to. There is a ticket office to the left of St. Peter's Square that sells tickets, as I'm sure you've probably seen since you say you have visited many times before. If it is in your schedule and time allows drop by ticket office first thing in the a.m. then you can go the next day or so. Tue-Wed are far better days to go to the museum, as there is less traffic than weekends and Monday.