Our son Leo B. is very interested in travel and geography, and we've taken to sending our kids (the three-year-old is illiterate) postcards whenever we leave town without them. We were already planning to send one from Rome, but we had to hit the post office in Vatican City, which is, as Leo knows, the world's smallest country. The post office was conveniently located in St. Peter's Square, right outside the basilica, where we finished our morning Vatican tour. It was cute and inviting, immediately recognizable by the bright yellow post boxes outside, stamped with the words "POSTE VATICANE." Like everything else in Vatican City, the post office is a bit of a tourist attraction. It was busy when we went, on a Monday during low season, but no real lines to pay or send our card. The place was well stocked with souvenirs, including a large selection of postcards. We picked one with an image of St. Peter's Basilica, and it was nice and cost a normal amount of money, a Euro or thereabouts. Unfortunately, we did not have the foresight to bring a pen, and you can't just borrow one at the Vatican post office, which must see its fair share of the millions of tourists who visit the country every year. We had to buy one instead, and the selection was small and laughable. We ended up paying €4 for a cheap, flimsy pen printed with images of Vatican attractions. A souvenir, I guess, though not one I particularly wanted. We picked up a magnet, too, of the map of Rome we saw in the Gallery of Maps. The postcard, pen, and magnet came out to €12.50, and I was reminded, for about the 100th time that day, of the church's historic sale of indulgences. We literally got Protestantism because the Roman Catholic Church was greedy. See, e.g., St. Peter's Basilica, financed by indulgences. There were separate areas for the shop and the postal service, and we were able to write our card at a table (at least writing surfaces were freely provided) then buy a €2.55 stamp from the Città del Vaticano. We dropped the postcard in one of those yellow post boxes and went on our way. The card hasn't arrived yet, but assuming it does, eventually, make its way to our house, I was quite pleased with our visit to the Vatican post office. The postcard was a unique souvenir, one I know our little boys will appreciate. read more

I will never forget how excited I was to visit the Vatican with hubby. We knew that the Vatican has its own post office so I stayed up late at the hotel writing everyone a post card back home just so I could post it from the Vatican! So cool! The next day we toured the Vatican. It was not at all what I expected, it gave me the creeps. I couldn't wait to get out of there. Evil vibes all around. So when we got to the post office everyone was just whipped & emotionally drained. With all the crowds we expected to wait in a long line but there was no one there. We walked right up to the window, bought stamps & posted our cards & letters. When I was done, I bolted for the front exit as fast as possible, I just wanted to get out of there. As we were just leaving the front exit, hubby ran into some people from the hotel & stated talking to them & when I turned around to find him, he vanished in the crowd, we got separated. My phone was pickpocketed out my back pocket. I barely made it back to the Hotel on foot. Hubby said he went back all thru the Vatican looking for me. It was dark when he finally showed up back at the hotel. We thought we lost each other. The most horrifying experience. Will never return. read more

Poste Vaticane - posted all my postcards from the Vatican post office. - Post Offices Near Me - Rome, RM

A few reasons why: 1. Friends & family still haven't got postcards I mailed them in early August! 2. No boxes or envelopes at PO to mail in. Where do you get boxes or envelopes in country you don't know? Especially when poststaff send you looking for boxes in certain stores who don't even sell boxes? 3. PO was able to send mail within Italy but not not to New York, 5 wks after mailing. read more

If you're an ephemera nerd like I am, this post office is something of a Mecca. Pardon the word choice. After a grueling climb to the top of the dome in 100° heat, I just barely mustered the energy to go here (thanks, holy water) and send a single letter to a friend. A long-planned letter exchange, despite living three houses away. Sorry, this one'll be hard to top. It wasn't overwhelmingly crowded noonish. The queue to purchase a stamp was only one or two people deep. There's a small seating area where people fill out cards, there's a mini souvenir shop where cards and other stuff is sold. I enjoyed the experience. There is more than one post office inside the Vatican, this one is at the exit after the basilica. read more

Poste Vaticane - Post Offices Near Me - Rome, RM

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El 5 de julio depositamos dos tarjetas de la Capilla Sixtina.Hoy es 24 de julio y aún no han llegado a España

"And do everything in love." - Corinthians 16:14 Vatican City is a magical place! You don't have to be a pilgrim to appreciate the arts, the architecture, and of course the Vatican. Just do everything in love... Makes no difference if you're playing the Da Vinci Code or the chosen one for the Lord's prayer, sooner or later, you may want to mail that special Pope Francis postcard. I was told, from a higher source, that Poste Vaticane is the only official post office in all of Vatican City, which is kinda sorta, part of Rome, Italy, just don't dare say that in front of a Bishop, or the Swiss Guard! If you want the official "Vatican City" stamps posted with the "Vatican City" postmark you must mail it at Poste Vaticane! There's also a Vatican gift shop that shares space here. You can pick up religious icons here (found no where else) and other unique trinkets. For me, I picked up a leather bracelet with "Vaticani" and a leather key fob with the Holy See crest. In the end, I highly recommend Poste Vaticane if in Vatican City. It's located in the historic St. Peter's Square, so in a way, your trinkets are blessed by the Pope every Sunday! Cool huh? And remember do everything in love;) read more

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I am actually a huge fan of this Post Office. It represents an excellent tip-off that I received when I first moved to Rome, and came up against the problem of the Post Office Queue. This is an issue in many countries, but Italy, (I am afraid) takes it to a new level. If you're not paying bills, and need to send parcels or letters, the queues in regular post offices can really get out of control. Solution? Head for the Vatican, enjoy a stroll through St. Peter's Square, say hi to the Pope and then stop at Le Poste Vaticane to buy a stamp or two (in under two minutes). Yep, it's that easy. I've NEVER seen queues in this post office. Isn't that fabulous? You even get original Vatican stamps to lick and press on your mail, which adds to the souvenir value for the recipient! One important tip: don't sellotape up your parcels or even letters as the Vatican Post Office is quite strict about this - in theory, your letters should be "openable" for inspection. That aside, sending mail here is really a breeze and a fun experience. Really takes the pain out of post offices! Try it, you won't regret it! read more

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