The State of the Vatican City (Latin: Status Civitatis Vaticanæ), is a landlocked enclave surrounded by the city of Rome in Italy . The Vatican City is situated on the Vatican Hill in the north-western part of Rome , several hundred metres west of the Tiber river, on the latter's right bank. Its borders (3.2km in total, all with Italy ) closely follow the city wall constructed to protect the Pope from outside attack. The home of the Pope, this is where you can see his private chapel: the infamous Sistine Chapel, featuring the breathtaking Creation by Michelangelo. This is also where the bones of Saint Peter (considered by many to be the first pope) remain, housed in St. Peter's Basilica, a place packed to the teeth with internationally-recognized brilliant pieces of art.

The Vatican Gardens can be visited only by those on guided tours or bus tours. Tickets are available from the Tourist Information Office in St Peter's Square; it is advisable to apply two days in advance. To the right of St Peter's stands the Vatican Palace , the Pope's residence. Among the principal features of the Palace are the Stanze, the Sistine Chapel and the Vatican Collections, containing major works of art and valuable pictures. There is a restaurant in the museum and a bar and cafeteria on the roof of St Peter's. Other Vatican sights include the Apostolic buildings beautiful gardens the Piazza St. Pietro and the Vatican museums with its famous stairs. To many the highlight of the museums is the Sistine Chapel whose ceiling painted by Michelangelo has undergone a controversial restoration that revealed colors much brighter than seen previously. But the museums offer much more: The Etruscan and Roman collections are among the finest and most extensive in the world; the Raphael Stanzas are a series of spectacular frescoed rooms; the Gallery of Tapestries and Maps details the Earth as it was thought to be in the 16th century; and the Museum of Modern Religious Art highlights the 20th century.

For best viewing of the Vatican 's art and museums get in line before opening hours and be prepared for tremendous crowds. The Vatican Museum must be one of the World's worst museums. It does have an extraordinary collection but it is impossible to appreciate this because visitors are treated like cattle constantly shoved forward in a never-ending line following arrows saying 'Sistine Chapel'. There is a huge amount of artefacts, but there is no information at all displayed about the pieces. You can buy a guide book which is completely uninformative and costs 8.50 Euro!