Just blew $75 on a 'skip the line' pass for the Vatican that was a total scam

The pass was fake, the line was just as long, and the official site sells the real ones for 25 euros, so has anyone actually found a legit way to skip those crazy queues?

3 comments

3 Comments

kellyr183mo ago

That "skip the line" pass scam is way too common. The only real way is booking a timed entry ticket directly on the official museum website, and you have to do it weeks ahead. Even then you'll wait a bit, but it's a short security line, not the hours-long ticket queue. Guides with official licenses can also get you in faster, but you have to vet them carefully.

lucas_johnson1mo ago

The Louvre's timed entry system is a perfect example of what kellyr18 is talking about. I booked tickets three weeks out for a Tuesday morning in October and got through security in about 15 minutes. But if you show up at 10 AM without a reservation, you're looking at a two-hour wait just to get to the ticket window, and that's not even counting the line for the actual entrance. The official site does sell out fast, but if you check it at random times, cancellations pop up too. I grabbed a slot for the Vatican Museums the same way by refreshing the page every few hours for a week. So planning ahead is a pain, but it beats paying a third party fifty bucks extra for something that might not even work.

murray.cole3mo ago

Booking weeks ahead isn't a real solution for normal people with changing plans. The official site is a mess and sells out instantly, so those third party sellers fill a need. Sometimes you pay a premium for the chance to skip the line, and that's just how it works now. Calling everything a scam ignores that the real system is broken.