Vatican - tourist attractions

	The Apostolic Palace	The Apostolic Palace, also called the Papal Palace, is located next to the St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican city. It is an official seat and a papal residence in the Holy See. The palace is partially visible from the St. Peter's Square. It is actually the whole complex of buildings, such as Papal Ap...
	Saint Peter's Square	The Saint Peter's Square(it. Piazza San Pietro) -is located in front of the Basilica of St. Peter in the Vatican, connecting the temple with Via della Conciliazione. The square was designed in 1656 by Giovanni Lorenzo Bernini. It is surrounded with a portico, whose construction took 11 years. A mon...
	The Sistine Chapel	The Sistine Chapel (Capella Sistina) is probably the most famous chapel in the world. It is located inside the Apostolic Palace and was built between 1475 and 1483. It was designed by the architect Giovanni de'Dolci to order of Pope Sixtus IV. The initial purpose of the building was to create a fir...
	St. Peter's Basilica	Saint Peter's Basilica in Vatican (Basilica Papale Maggiore di San Pietro in Vaticano) is a Roman Catholic church located on the St. Peter's Square in Vatican City. It was built between 1506 and 1626. The Vatican is situated on hilly terrain. This area always was outside the city walls of Rome, in ...
	Swiss Guard	The Swiss Guard (Guardia Svizzera Pontificia) is an infantry military formation that can be found in the Vatican only. Its aim is to keep adjutant guard to the Holy Father. The Swiss Guard was established in the 16th century and is regarded as the smallest but also the oldest army in the world, exi...
	Gardens of Vatican City	The Gardens of Vatican City is a complex of gardens scattered around the Vatican. Near the palace-church complex there is a garden with a great variety of flora. Trees, shrubs and flowers coming from different continents create unique compositions. The area is decorated with many fountains (such as...
	The Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major	Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore (The Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major) is located on Esquilino hill in Rome. This is one of the four papal basilicas outside the torritory of Vatican, and therefore has extraterritorial status and belongs to the pope. According to the 1929 Lateran Treaty, the basi...
	Vatican grottoes	The Vatican grottoes are situated under the St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City. It consists of basements and crypts, in which popes have been buried and valuable works of art belonging to the Holy See, are stored. Grottoes are divided into two parts, the old and the new. Only Pope John Paul II is...
	Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls	The Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls (San Paolo fuori le Mura) is one of the four papal basilicas, located in Rome. However, it is a property of the Vatican having an extraterritorial status. St. Paul is buried inside the temple. The first basilica was erected on that site between 386 and ...
	The Vatican Observatory	The Vatican Observatory (Specola Vaticana) originally was established in Vatican City, but after the earthquake in the early 20th century, it was moved to Castel Gandolfo. This was also due to the fact that growing level of city lightning in Rome. It interferred with more detailed examinations of th...