As a global project, Postcrossing welcomes people of all beliefs (or none at all), and we know that moments of religious or cultural significance can also have unexpected relevance for postcard and stamp lovers. With the recent passing of Pope Francis, Vatican City has entered a rare sede vacante period — a special moment that brings with it unique stamps and postal traditions, making it an interesting time for postal lovers.
To mark this occasion, we’re sharing a special travel report from Monika (aka MonikMary), a longtime postcrosser and frequent visitor to the Vatican, who found herself in Rome during this historic time. Here’s her story, in her own words:
"Easter Monday, April 21, 2025, brought the sad news of the passing of Pope Francis, aged 88, the beloved leader of the Catholic Church. As a Catholic, this news deeply saddened me. Yet, it also offered a meaningful opportunity to travel once again to Vatican City – not only to attend the funeral of the late Pope but also to commemorate him through postcards and share this unique moment via Postcrossing.
This wasn’t my first trip to the Vatican, nor my first time sending postcards from there (I personally sent 12% of all the official Vatican cards). So you might wonder: what made this visit special?
When the leader of the Catholic Church dies, the Church — and Vatican City as a state — enters a period called sede vacante, Latin for “the empty seat.” This special time follows centuries-old traditions, one of which is the issuance of unique sede vacante stamps. Imagine a country releasing stamps that are only valid for 2–3 weeks — that’s exactly what the Vatican does! The last sede vacante was in February-March 2013, following the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI.
Before my trip, I reached out to the Postcrossing team and asked for help sending cards with the Vatican ID (VA). Connecting to local Wi-Fi is nearly impossible in Vatican unless you are a priest or official worker, so this step was necessary.
It took eight days for the Vatican to make the stamps available, and I was finally able to buy them on Monday, April 28, despite asking for them as early as Thursday. But it was possible – and what a joy it was! I got to send postcards not only featuring views of the Vatican or images of Pope Francis, but also adorned with one of the rarest stamps in the world.
There was, however, a challenge. Since October 2024, there’s been an official rule limiting purchases to 10 stamps per person. I showed the postal clerk that I had written over 200 cards (35 of them official Postcrossing postcards) and explained how much I hoped to use sede vacante stamps. She made a phone call, and after reviewing the situation, kindly allowed me to buy the stamps for all my cards. What a relief and a blessing!
Postcrossing is truly about connection, kindness, and respect. I believe Pope Francis would have appreciated our community and the values we share. I like to think he would have enjoyed reading our profiles and getting to know us. Maybe we should invite the next pope to one of our meetings!
PS: If you have any questions about where to buy postcards in Vatican City, stamp prices, or anything about the Vatican Post, Monika would be happy to help — just send her a private message!
100 comments so far
Philatelic or postal history in the very making with a genuine purpose: send those ♥ fantastic postcrossing cards out, departing from a special place at a special moment in time! I hope for you, Monika, that not too many cards had to be sent to Australia, huge price @ € 3.20☺. It must be awesome to be one of few among us to get your Sede Vacante postcard, your idea to send so many cards will truly be a great and unforgettable part of your historic trip to the Vatican in the April 2025. Me and - undoubtedly - many of us wish to thank you for telling your story here.
Wow, interesting, I didn’t know that. Thank you for sharing your story 😊.
Best wishes, Aileen
Wish I can get one ^_^
I imagine 200 people smiling looking at the postcard, a real time capsule! :)
What a great idea to send out your cards with this rare stamp to Postcrossers and your friends!
Thank you Monica for sharing about this unique piece of history and Vadican culture ( that personally I had not a clue was even a thing!)
I was in the Vatican a few months ago and I had the same issue as you: can’t connect to a local WiFi, and roaming service showed I was in Italy. I think this is an issue that Postcrossing should address (pun non intended) since I spent 3 days on Rome and I didn’t knew in advance which one I would go to Vatican. At the end, I sent Vatican postcards and stamps with an Italian ID
Thanks for sharing your very interesting story! There will be some very happy card recipients very soon. It was very kind of you to take so much time to make this happen!
Very cool.
Thanks for sharing this special moment with us! Congratulations on participating in this unique time in church history. How considerate of the Vatican to sell the volume of stamps to you under this exceptional situation. I would love to receive one of those stamps as I have several Vatican stamps from local seminarians who are studying there. Happy travels to you and happy PostCrossing!
Thank you for sharing this unique story on navigating Vatican City's postal system during a historic moment. I also appreciate hearing the challenges Postcrossing users have when using travel mode there. I wonder if Vatican City's post office could put in a WIFI hotspot to help facilitate communication, and certainly to help Postcrossing users obtain mailing addresses?
I do love the moment of grace she receives when her request to buy more stamps for the sake of mailing 200 postcards is approved by a kind employee.
There will be 200 very fortunate individuals who will be receiving a rare stamp and postcard for sure!
Fabulous MonikMary, to be at this remarkable time in the mystical city of Vatican!
This is the frist card sent in Travel Mode from Vatican.
https://www.postcrossing.com/postcards/VA-207
Monika, you are 😇 blessed! I, too, was saddened by the Pope’s passing. You are so fortunate to be there and send forth those postcards in his honor ❤️ The Conclave now begins, let’s hope for a new beginning of faith and leadership.
Whoa that is amazing!! Thank you for sharing this with us.
I would absolutely love to receive one and swap with you, should you be interested. ✨ 💜
Thanks for sharing this Monika!
Most interesting story and lucky you! Thank you for sharing. I hope the Cardinals will make another excellent choice for Pope.
Thank you for sharing. I will have my fingers crossed for the next week or two hoping that I was one of the lucky 35 officials.
I'll post back here when I receive it. ;-)
Wow, finde ich cool, danke für die Infos
That is so cool, so far (and please correct me if I'm wrong) Malta are the only country to have released Pope Francis in memorandum stamps. But it's crazy to think that we could have a new pope any day now which would invalidate these stamps.
200 postcards? Your hand must be so sore
I am Italian and I didn’t know this! How interesting.. I wish I could get this special stamp too! Only a minor correction: sede vacante is actually Italian 🙂 I can imagine the surprise of the Vatican postal officer when you asked stamps for 200 postcards 🤣
Very cool story, thanks for sharing! Lucky recipients!
Thanks for sharing! Very interesting!❤️
Thank you for sharing this story, Monika! It was really intersting to learn about these special stamps and I am glad to hear everyone in the Vatican was so nice and helpful. All the best!
What a wonderful historic gift to receive. Thank you for the story & for your heart!
Amazing story love this
Love they valued your story and helped you spread joy around the world.
Amazing history. Thanks for sharing
Thank you Monika for sharing your story
🖤🖤🖤🖤
Thank you for telling us all about this. This is a special time in the Church. When I get to Vatican City I will be sure to use that post office.
That's amazing! Very interesting to hear, Monika. My sincere respect to the postal worker who helped. How wonderful you are that so many people will receive such a rarity thanks to you!
How I would love to receive such a postcard :)!
Again a special story. Thank you!
Thank you for sharing this story! I was also in the Vatican two days after the Pope's passing and unfortunately I was unable to pull an official address due to lack of WiFi. At least I was able to send a card to myself. I hope a solution will be found for this!
Good timing! I'm going to Rome this sunday and I'll visit the Vatican as well. I booked my trip a couple of months ago so this Pope situation came as a surprise. 😅
Thank you for sharing the story.
What a remarkable story!
Wow, this gives me the chills! Thank you so much for sharing your experiences and postal love! Watching Conclave coverage from Pittsburgh as I type. Sara
This is fantastic! I loved reading this! And I see that 5 of Monika's postcards have already been registered today, all in Germany! Lucky Germany! :)
Thank you for sharing this remarkable story!
I've been in Rome + Vatican 3 times (each time with a different Pope, so I guess I have to be back again soon...) and the first time Postcrossing didn't exist, the 2nd time Travel Mode didn't exist, the 3rd time I couldn't connect to Vatican WiFi to send officials :D but I bought stamps and sent mail to friends. I wish I was there now to get this special stamp.
Thanks for sharing this nice story with us, I had no idea. :)
thanks for this interesting insights!
Good article! I had the pleasure to use Poste Vaticane when I visited Rome. I sent cards from a mailbox inside the Vatican museums
Thank you very much for you interesting story! What a special occasion!
The Vatican, its customs and the process of the selection of the Pope has always fascinated me! Thank you for sharing this something so interesting and I am very happy for everyone who is going to receive your postcards.
Intresting topic and sure, let's represent the idea of PC to a new Pope and to become one of our members :D
Very interesting that the stamps aren't valid anymore after the period ends.
Thank you for sharing this experience.
I’m waiting for Vatican postcard from Monika now - thank you ❤️
Thank you for sharing this inspiring moment...
Very interesting to learn about this special time and the relation to stamps. Now that a new Pope has been chosen today, I sincerely hope you got all your cards mailed before they were no longer valid!
A very timely post as well as so interesting. I am among those quite surprised to hear that an American has now become Pope Leo XIV and after only a very short time following the beginning of the Conclave session. Thank you, Monika.
What amazing love for postcards and communication. Thanks for sharing your experience, and I imagine the surprise of the ucky people that will get a VA in their mailboxes!
Thanks for sharing this special moment with us! who would know about the WiFi and stamps buying limitation, glad you pulled through and you managed to send out 200 postcards, wish I would get one too . As a Catholic I took the pass away of the late Pope Francis really heavy cause he was not only hubmle and devout, but also he was the only pope who managed to visit my home (Iraq), well today Habamus Papam and it's the very first US Pope (Leo XIV) so Happy PostCrossing
nice experience, I hope I can get 1 post card from Vatican ^_^
Thank you, Monika, for sharing your unique and fascinating story with us! I'll be thrilled if I'm one of the lucky 200 to get your Vatican card with the special stamp!
Wow! What an amazing moment! It must be a happy thing to receive a postcard from you from the Vatican, and envy those who receive it!
I hope I can get a postcard like this! What should I do? This postcard is very meaningful!
Super, MonikMary! What a great story! I admire your knowledge and determination and hope the recipients of your precious cards/stamps will reallize what a treasure they have received! :-)
nice story)) thank you for positive)
And reading this, its almost unbelievable, that I'm one of the happy few who recieved one of the cards with a sede vacante stamps. Thanks a lot Monika!
Thank you, Monika, for sharing this incredible story. Stories like this make me thank my lucky stars for discovering the wonderful postcrossing community - one of the rare corners of the internet that still feels meaningful and cheerful! Love you, my postcrossing brethren!
Very interesting, thanks for sharing and God bless.
Monika, ja bardzo żałuję, że nie zamówiłam u Ciebie pocztówki z tym rzadkim znaczkiem. Mam już kartki wysłane z Watykanu, więc nie zamawiałam, a teraz mi żal d.... ściska. Jesteś wielka! Pozdrawiam.
Thank you for sharing this special (stamp) moment with us. I really want to visit Rome and the Vatican city once again and to send cards from Vatican city with travel mode, but I haven't thought about the problem with the WiFi... How do you managed that? Is there a wifi connection when you visit the Vatican museum?!
First time hearing about the sede vacante. But how exactly do we get an Vatican ID if we cannot connect to the local WIFI? Do we also have to contact the Postcrossing team in advance?
O great, thank you for sharing this with us 😍.
What an interesting story!! And may the postal clerk who sold you the stamps be blessed!
Thanks for having shared this fascinating story.
Thank You
Very cool to hear about! I had no idea sede vacante stamps were even a thing.
Thank you so much, Friends for your warm words regarding my article and all the information I shared! <3
I saw people asking here some aditional questions:
- I have never connected to the Vatican WiFi, it is impossible for us mortals ;) I'm using my private Internet Data while in Rome/Vatican City. But the Italian signal works well so there is Internet of course for all the tourists to use.
- Yes: every time you'd like to send postcards with Vatican ID (VA) you need to contact Postcrossing Admins who will guide you step by step through what needs to be done to be able to send official VA cards. It is not difficult and I am grateful that Postcrossing helps with that! :)
- Yes: I was able to mail all cards on Monday, April 28th
- Sede Vacante stamps were vailid for ONLY 10days! :D They lost their validity on Thursday afternoon once Pope Leo XIV has been chosen.
- Yes: I am so grateful to the lady at the post office who made a call and made it possible for me to buy so many stamps! <3 Bless her heart!
- And no: I am not in Rome anymore, I was only there for 4 days this time. So greetings from Poland! :) <3 And may love live our Holy Father, Leo XIV - let's see if he'd be interested in setting a PC account for himself :D
Thank you for sharing this interesting tradition! Glad you got on it, since our new Pope has already been named! Now I really want to get one of these :) I want Pope Leo to serve a very long time. But if you do this again sometime, maybe you should have a "Postcrossing meetup" in Vatican City so each person can buy stamps. :) I expect I will never see one "in person," so thank you for showing us-- and for your dedicated postcard sending! Happy traveling!
Why limit to ten? That's just stupid and bad business.
Thank you Monika for sharing your experience. This was indeed a historic moment and one full of religiosity too.
I was in Rome in March and sent postcards of Papa Francesco from the Vatican to my spouse and my aunt. It felt quite special because he'd just come home from the hospital. People talked about whether he'd preside over this year's Easter mass in St. Peter's. He didn't. I have a little stack of Papa Francesco and Sistine Chapel postcards I'm sending out for Postcrossing now.
Thank you for sharing this interesting story.
if the Vatican Post actually keeps the print run small as planned, and those cards she mailed are properly canceled, they will be nice bits of postal history! Sounds like she had a lot of fun with the project!
What a wonderful story!And I'm sure that the recipients of these postcards know how truly special these postcards are!
Thank you for sharing details and information on such a rare and fascinating postal experience, Monika. And it is so generous of you to take the time and effort to send so many unique and special cards to others.
Amazing and inspiring. I literally was just making an itinerary for Rome and Vatican City hours ago, and then I see this. Love it, it's a sign. I'm going for my birthday
Thank you for sharing! What a great experience it will be to receive a postcard with this special stamp from you.
Thanks for sharing .. I visited Vatican city year 1999.
What a beautiful story and a blessed time to be there. Wow, I hope the recipients of those cards feel just as blessed to get one! Thank you for sharing.
Such a great story, I'm very happy for you, dear Monika, that everything worked out so well 😁.
This was neat to learn about since I've never been to Vatican City. Thanks for sharing your story, Monika.
That's so beautiful , I never been to Vatican City , wishing everybody happy postcrossing! , it's just beautiful postcard that's all
Thank you for the great report. You were in a special country during a time of change! Soon there will be 200 lucky recipients from different places! Happy postcrossing!
Just to be clear, the Sede Vacante stamps are still valid for postage - it's just that they were withdrawn from sale upon the election of Pope Leo XIV.
You are truly dedicated and those are 200 very lucky recipients!
That's so amazing! Thank you for sharing this great story, Monika!
Hello Monika - I Have received , this morning, your @ but not or where is my repley will be there <I will be > - Thank - Congratulation MonikMary for on the initiative !!! :-))) Now that you can not stamp-postal Vatican Cross Keys, also the number seat is a Merit . ( and lovely)
eine wunderschöne Briemarke, dankeschön. Ja ich war auch schon 2 mal im Vatican und habe von dort aus Postkarten geschrieben.
a beautiful stamp, many thanks. I have been to the Vatican twice and have written postcards from there and bought a lot of stamps.
This is interesting. Thanks for sharing and the folks who receive your special postcards will be very blessed.
Wonderful story! ❤️
Wow nice! How nice to be visiting there, there's no place on Earth like Rome, truly magnificent and capital to possibly the most astonishingly beautiful and culturally rich country in the world. Wow really, and how magical it is to switch to the VA- code while still being in Rome. I must say it is always magical to send postcards from Rome, Italy and the Vatican in the same day.
What a challenge !
Nice facts!
This is a nice story, Monika. The post office in Vatican is actually really nice.
I have been to Vatican a few months ago and had the same problem. There is NO WiFi for visitors or non-officials. It’s strictly forbidden, so also not in the museum. Therefore I was unable to draw Vatican addresses. I only sent postcards to my friends in the end and was wondering how it could ever be possible to get a Vatican ID. I think that’s why there are so few cards mailed from VA. If there was an easier way connect to travel mode except on a local WiFi, I think more postcrossers who visit Rome&Vatican would be able to send official postcards from there…
Thank you for sharing, Monika. This is fascinating stuff. I had no idea.
Interesting blog, I didn t know that.
What a pleasure to read your Blog on the same day that I received your Postcard from the Vatican with the special stamp.
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