When is Easter 2027 in Rome, and when should you go?
Easter Sunday 2027 is March 28, so stay in Rome from Wednesday March 24 to Tuesday March 30, and book the hotel now. The Vatican Museums 2027 calendar marks Sunday March 28 and Monday March 29 as Easter and Easter Monday, and closes the museums both days. Counting back, Palm Sunday is March 21, Holy Thursday March 25 and Good Friday March 26.
The Vatican has not posted the 2027 papal Holy Week schedule. Its liturgy calendar for March 2027 is empty as of October 29, 2026. In 2026 the Holy Week notice appeared on March 7, three weeks before Palm Sunday, so expect the 2027 times in late February or early March.
Book the room before you know the times. Easter week is one of the busiest weeks of Rome's year, and a refundable rate near the Vatican costs nothing to hold.
What are the posted dates for Easter week 2027?
| Date | What | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Friday, March 19 | Vatican Museums closed (St. Joseph's Day) | Vatican Museums calendar |
| Sunday, March 21 | Palm Sunday. Vatican Museums closed, as on ordinary Sundays | Vatican Museums calendar |
| Thursday, March 25 to Saturday, March 27 | Vatican Museums open, 8am to 8pm, last entry 6pm | Vatican Museums calendar |
| Sunday, March 28 | Easter Sunday. Vatican Museums closed; the last-Sunday free opening does not apply at Easter | Vatican Museums hours |
| Monday, March 29 | Easter Monday. Vatican Museums closed | Vatican Museums calendar |
| Through Sunday, March 28 | St. Peter's Basilica open 7am to 7pm, its winter hours | Basilica hours |
| Sunday, April 25 | Next free Vatican Museums Sunday, 9am to 2pm | Vatican Museums calendar |
Papal liturgy times are not in this table because the Vatican has not posted them for 2027.
What papal services are held in Holy Week, and at what times?
The 2027 times are not posted; the 2026 schedule is the best guide to the shape of the week. The 2026 notice listed these services with Pope Leo XIV:
- Palm Sunday: Mass in St. Peter's Square at 10am.
- Holy Thursday: the Chrism Mass in St. Peter's Basilica at 9:30am, and the evening Mass of the Lord's Supper at the Lateran Basilica, St. John Lateran, at 5:30pm.
- Good Friday: the Celebration of the Passion in the basilica at 5pm, and the Way of the Cross, the Via Crucis, at the Colosseum at 9pm.
- Easter Vigil: Saturday night in the basilica at 9pm.
- Easter Sunday: Mass in St. Peter's Square at 10:15am, then the Urbi et Orbi blessing, the pope's Easter address and blessing to the city and the world, from the central balcony of the basilica at noon.
Treat these as a pattern, not a promise. Check the Vatican calendar again in late February, and do not book a non-refundable dinner on Holy Thursday or Good Friday evening until the times are out.
How do you get tickets for the Easter Masses?
Request them free from the Prefecture of the Papal Household, the Vatican office that issues tickets for papal Masses and audiences, on its online request site. The Prefecture's own page says the tickets are always free, and Rome's tourism office says they are limited in number and given until the places run out. Anyone selling them is not the Vatican.
- Register on the request site now, so the account is ready.
- When the Easter services appear, request the one that matters most first, with the exact number in your group.
- Wait for the Prefecture's confirmation, and follow its collection instructions for the day.
The services inside St. Peter's Basilica, the Chrism Mass, the Passion and the Vigil, have far fewer places than the Masses in the square, so request those as soon as you can. For the square on Easter Sunday, arrive early whatever your ticket says, because security lines start well before the Mass.
What closes or gets crowded at Easter in Rome?
The Vatican is the crowded part of the city all week, and the museums close for two days in a row.
- Vatican Museums: closed Sunday March 28 and Monday March 29. The last days to see the Sistine Chapel before Easter are Thursday to Saturday, March 25 to 27. Tickets are €20 plus €5 for booking on the official site, cannot be refunded, and are valid only on their date.
- St. Peter's Square and the basilica: expect access to be limited around each papal service. See the basilica on a morning without one.
- Good Friday night: in 2026 the Via Crucis was at the Colosseum at 9pm. Unless you are going, have dinner away from the Colosseum that evening.
- Restaurants: Easter Sunday lunch is a family occasion in Rome. Book it when you book the hotel.
What does a good Easter week in Rome look like?
- Wednesday, March 24: arrive, a walk through the center.
- Thursday, March 25: Vatican Museums at 8am, before the evening service at the Lateran.
- Friday, March 26: the Colosseum and Forum in the morning; the Passion at St. Peter's in the late afternoon or the Via Crucis at night, if 2027 keeps the 2026 times.
- Saturday, March 27: a quiet day across the river in Trastevere; the Vigil at night if you have a ticket.
- Sunday, March 28: Mass and the blessing in the square, then a long lunch.
- Monday, March 29: a day away from the Vatican on the Appian Way, the old Roman road south of the city walls, on foot or by bike.
The Vatican Museums tickets guide has the route through the museums, and the Vatican day plan joins the museums and St. Peter's. The where to stay in Rome guide compares Prati, near the Vatican, with the center, and the four-day Rome itinerary has the rest of the city. For the Sunday, the what is open in Rome on Sunday guide covers the closures.