City Passes and Entry Tickets
Entry tickets to various places of interest, can add up to a substantial amount. Most major tourist cities have a pass giving you free or discounted access to many of the sights. However, they are generally expensive. So you need to decide on the sights and museums you want visit, check their individual ticket prices and compare it to the price of the pass. Passes are generally cost effective when you are visiting more sights in less time. A pass may or may not be worth its price depending on your sightseeing plan. However, many passes provide other advantages such as free use of local transport, a separate and much shorter line to get in, discounts, etc.
A few examples -
Roma Pass - The highlights of the pass are :-
Entry tickets to various places of interest, can add up to a substantial amount. Most major tourist cities have a pass giving you free or discounted access to many of the sights. However, they are generally expensive. So you need to decide on the sights and museums you want visit, check their individual ticket prices and compare it to the price of the pass. Passes are generally cost effective when you are visiting more sights in less time. A pass may or may not be worth its price depending on your sightseeing plan. However, many passes provide other advantages such as free use of local transport, a separate and much shorter line to get in, discounts, etc.
A few examples -
Roma Pass - The highlights of the pass are :-
- Free entry to the first two museums you visit. Concessionary entry thereafter.
- Free use of city's public transport network.
- Valid for three days.
- Cost 36 Euros.
- Colosseum - 12 Euros.
- Castel D'Angelo - 10 Euros
- Assuming a bare minimum of three journeys every day, you will make 9 trips on the public transport network over three days - 13.5 Euros
- Total - 35.5 Euros
Firenze Card - This card, on the other hand, costs 72 Euros for three days. It provides one free entry in all participating museums, free transport and free Wifi. However, it is worth it only if you intend visiting a lot of museums. It wasn't worth it for us.
Cinque Terre Card - Usage of Trekking Trails + Trains for 1 day was 12 Euros. It was worth it for us.
Venezia Unica - You can create your own customised card from the various options. Whether it is value for money depend upon your plans. But remember that the tickets for the water taxi (Vaporetto) are expensive - 7.50 Euros per trip. Since we were spending only one day in Venice, we bought a pass which allowed us unlimited Vaporetto use over 24 hrs for just 20 Euros.
Vienna Card or Vienna Pass - In Vienna, you have a choice between the Card and the Pass. The Card costs just 18.90 Euros giving you free use of public transport for 2 days, but only discounts in the museums and sights. The Vienna Pass on the other hand costs a hefty 69 Euros, again allowing free use of public transport for 2 days, but free entrance to most major museums and sights. Roughly speaking, the Pass is a better option if you intend to visit as many sights as you can, in 2 or 3 days. A leisurely tour of the city may be better served by the Vienna Card. However, you need to do your own calculations, based on the places you plan to visit, to get the best deal. For us, the Pass was worth the cost.
Swiss Pass - In Switzerland, your travel options include buses, trams, trains, boats, funiculars, cable cars, gondolas, cogwheel trains, etc. And they can be prohibitively expensive. So, in order to confuse you further, they also have a slew of passes to select from. You have the Eurail Pass which gives you discounts on some transport options. You have the Swiss Travel Pass which allows you free use of most forms of transport across Switzerland and free entry to various museums and sights. You have the regional passes, the most popular among these being the Bernese Oberland Pass, which permits free use of all forms of transport within a region, except some private operators. And then you have the Swiss Half-Card which only gives you discounts, but is valid for a much longer period. So, all in all, it is a confusing landscape. In my opinion, for a short trip, the Swiss Travel pass is the best value for money among all the options. Damn expensive though.
Paris Pass - The Paris Pass is actually a Paris Visite Card and Museum Pass combined, with some extras thrown in. So, you need to decide whether you will use enough extras to make the expense worth it. In our case, we didn't think so and went ahead with the transport pass and Museum pass separately. The Paris Visite Card permitted us free use of all forms of public transport within Zones 1-3. This included all places we wanted to go except Versailles, Disneyland and the Airport which are in Zone 5. The pass for Zone 1-5 is much more expensive, and it is more economical to buy the single journey tickets for these places, rather than a pass. The Paris Museum Pass is excellent value for money, permitting you free access to most museums in Paris, including Versailles. You only have to decide the duration of the pass to buy depending on your plans.
Online Entry Tickets
And finally, you have the option of buying tickets of many attractions online. For a nominal extra charge, you can save hours of time as you don't have to stand in line for the tickets. We found this especially useful in Florence and Venice, where we did not buy passes. Here are a few places we bought tickets online.
Vatican - The official website of the Vatican for buying everything from museum tickets to tours to meeting the Pope. We took an official tour of the Vatican Museums, St Peters and Sistine Chapel. It is extremely cheap compared to private tour operators and is very well conducted. However, bookings start 60 days in advance and the best times get booked early.
Florence - We bought our tickets for the Uffizi and Accademia here. It is the official website for all Museums in Florence. You pay 4 Euros extra as a service charge. But it is worth it, just to avoid the serpentine lines outside these museums.
Venice - The Visitmuve site is the official website of the Venetian Museums. You can buy tickets online, including combination tickets, such as one for all museums in St Marks Square. I also bought Skip-the-Line tickets for the St Marks Basilica from the Venetoinside website. It was like taking an appointment, and certainly saved me a lot of time.
A Warning - While buying tickets online, be sure to check the official website. There are many commercial websites, which sell the same tickets at a much higher price. Be careful.
Shortcuts and Hidden Entrances
It is very useful to do a search for the best time and place of entry for various popular sights. It can save you a lot of time and more importantly, give you the satisfaction of having outwitted the hordes of tourists :-). Again, the best way of finding these gems is by googling for phrases like "best time to enter....", "how to avoid lines outside......", etc. Here are a few tips we picked up during our trip.
Swiss Pass - In Switzerland, your travel options include buses, trams, trains, boats, funiculars, cable cars, gondolas, cogwheel trains, etc. And they can be prohibitively expensive. So, in order to confuse you further, they also have a slew of passes to select from. You have the Eurail Pass which gives you discounts on some transport options. You have the Swiss Travel Pass which allows you free use of most forms of transport across Switzerland and free entry to various museums and sights. You have the regional passes, the most popular among these being the Bernese Oberland Pass, which permits free use of all forms of transport within a region, except some private operators. And then you have the Swiss Half-Card which only gives you discounts, but is valid for a much longer period. So, all in all, it is a confusing landscape. In my opinion, for a short trip, the Swiss Travel pass is the best value for money among all the options. Damn expensive though.
Paris Pass - The Paris Pass is actually a Paris Visite Card and Museum Pass combined, with some extras thrown in. So, you need to decide whether you will use enough extras to make the expense worth it. In our case, we didn't think so and went ahead with the transport pass and Museum pass separately. The Paris Visite Card permitted us free use of all forms of public transport within Zones 1-3. This included all places we wanted to go except Versailles, Disneyland and the Airport which are in Zone 5. The pass for Zone 1-5 is much more expensive, and it is more economical to buy the single journey tickets for these places, rather than a pass. The Paris Museum Pass is excellent value for money, permitting you free access to most museums in Paris, including Versailles. You only have to decide the duration of the pass to buy depending on your plans.
Online Entry Tickets
And finally, you have the option of buying tickets of many attractions online. For a nominal extra charge, you can save hours of time as you don't have to stand in line for the tickets. We found this especially useful in Florence and Venice, where we did not buy passes. Here are a few places we bought tickets online.
Vatican - The official website of the Vatican for buying everything from museum tickets to tours to meeting the Pope. We took an official tour of the Vatican Museums, St Peters and Sistine Chapel. It is extremely cheap compared to private tour operators and is very well conducted. However, bookings start 60 days in advance and the best times get booked early.
Florence - We bought our tickets for the Uffizi and Accademia here. It is the official website for all Museums in Florence. You pay 4 Euros extra as a service charge. But it is worth it, just to avoid the serpentine lines outside these museums.
Venice - The Visitmuve site is the official website of the Venetian Museums. You can buy tickets online, including combination tickets, such as one for all museums in St Marks Square. I also bought Skip-the-Line tickets for the St Marks Basilica from the Venetoinside website. It was like taking an appointment, and certainly saved me a lot of time.
A Warning - While buying tickets online, be sure to check the official website. There are many commercial websites, which sell the same tickets at a much higher price. Be careful.
Shortcuts and Hidden Entrances
It is very useful to do a search for the best time and place of entry for various popular sights. It can save you a lot of time and more importantly, give you the satisfaction of having outwitted the hordes of tourists :-). Again, the best way of finding these gems is by googling for phrases like "best time to enter....", "how to avoid lines outside......", etc. Here are a few tips we picked up during our trip.
- Rome - The ticket for the Colosseum includes entry to the Roman Forum and the Palatine Hill and is valid for a single entry to each place over two days. So instead of standing in a long line outside the Colosseum, buy your combination ticket at the entrance to the Palatine Hill, which is never crowded. You can thereafter see the Colossuem and Roman forum at your leisure, skipping the long ticket lines completely. Of course, this tip is not required if you have a Roma Pass, as you have a separate line in all these places. Other sources - Rick Steves, Italylogue, goItaly
- Versailles - Buy your tickets online if you are not taking a Paris Museum Pass. Try to arrive at the Palace by 9 AM when it opens. However, do not enter the Palace. take the bus and proceed to the Triannon Complex, which is a few kilometres away, and work your way back through the Triannon, Marie Antoinnettes Estate and the Gardens, to arrive at the Palace in the afternoon, as late as possible. Most visitors walk the other way round, starting with the palace and ending at the Triannon. This strategy should help you avoid the crowd. Other sources - Conde Naste Traveler
- Louvre - The Louvre, with the Mona Lisa, is one of the biggest draws of Paris. The lines outside the Glass Pyramid, which is the main entrance to the museum, are serpentine. So what should you do? Take any of the other lesser known entrances, at the Passage Richelieu or the Porte des Lions. These entrances also lead you to the ticket counters under the Glass Pyramid. The Porte Des Lions is especially useful if you have a Museum Pass as you can reach under the pyramid and enter the museum in minutes. A second tip - try to visit the Louvre on a wednesday or a friday, when it is open till 9:45 PM. You can reach the museum by 3, after lunch and a siesta, and still have a solid 6 hours to wander around the museum. By 5, the tourist bus crowd would have left, leaving you to wonder why your friends couldn't take a selfie with the Mona Lisa. Other sources - The Telegraph, cntraveler, Tom's Guide.
- Eiffel Tower receives over 32,000 visitors every day during summer. So there is no way you can avoid a line. You can only make it shorter. Option 1, buy tickets online, from the official website. You are given a time slot when you have to be present to board the elevator. However, the slots are limited and sell out like hot cakes. And, of course, you also pay a premium. Option 2, is to head for south west pillar, which is for those who want to go up by stairs. The lines are much shorter, and move faster, here. Don't worry, you do not have to climb to the top; you can go up to the second level, taking 674 steps, and take the elevator to the top from there. Apart from the thrill of walking up the tower, you would have completed your tour of the first and second levels, while those waiting for the elevator would still be standing in line below. You save a little money, as an added bonus. The climb is quite enjoyable. We, in spite of climbing at a leisurely pace, with selfie pitstops, did it in about 15 min. Other sources - The Telegraph, a blog, another blog.
Finally, Europe is filled with tourists. There will be a queue at every place of interest. So, if you want to avoid the crowds, you have to either go to unconventional places, or at unconventional times. However, if you visit when the weather and time is perfect, be prepared to bump into a lot of people who think likewise.
One advice I can offer is to leave early everyday. The lovely squares of European cities have a totally different look when empty. Be there at the entrance of the cathedrals and museums by 9 AM, and you will have a much shorter wait. Delay by an hour, and a serpentine queue will await you. Most tourist buses, with the hordes, arrive around 10 AM. If you enter before they arrive, it will be a much more memorable visit.
Here is what you see if you arrive early......
Conclusion
One advice I can offer is to leave early everyday. The lovely squares of European cities have a totally different look when empty. Be there at the entrance of the cathedrals and museums by 9 AM, and you will have a much shorter wait. Delay by an hour, and a serpentine queue will await you. Most tourist buses, with the hordes, arrive around 10 AM. If you enter before they arrive, it will be a much more memorable visit.
Here is what you see if you arrive early......
And an hour later..........
Conclusion
Entry tickets to various museums and sights will be one of your major expenses. Any miscalculation in these expenses can really cause you a lot of heartburn and put your budget in trouble. It is worth your while to spend some effort to consider various options, decide whether to buy certain passes or to go online and buy tickets, as this can save you a lot of money and more importantly, time. It can be a frustrating experience to plan a day full of museums visits and fun activities, and then spend half the day, waiting in queue, outside the first museum.
With this post, we come to the end of the series on planning of the trip. Hope to begin the next series on our actual travels and experiences soon.
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Other posts in this series......
Eurotrip 2015 - Our Grand Tour
Eurotrip 2015 Episode 1- Genesis
Plan a European Holiday in 5 Easy Steps
How to Fly to Europe on a Budget
Hassle-free Bookings to Stay Within Budget
Planes, Trains and Automobiles - How to Travel Across Europe on the Cheap
Low Cost Airlines in Europe : A Budget Travelers Guide
Places to Visit - A Guide to Creating your Own Local Itinerary
How to Move Around Town Like a Local
Visa - The Key to the Beckoning Gates
You can buy st marks basilica tickets directly from https://dotravel.com/ticket/show/1240/venice-st-marks-basilica-tickets
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