Being tasked with helping to choose a new pope is one of the biggest decisions the 133 cardinals in the midst of the conclave will make in their lifetimes – so a good night’s sleep and a decent breakfast is highly important.
The vast majority of the cardinals currently taking place in the centuries-old ritual, which will at some point see a puff of white smoke leak from the chimney on the roof of the Sistine Chapel, are staying in the same Vatican City guesthouse.
The Domus Sanctae Marthae is a 129-room ‘hotel’ inside the walls of Vatican City that has traditionally been used by the papacy to host visitors.
Its thick-of-the-action location – right next to St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City – ensures the cardinals’ commute from their suites to the Sistine Chapel is mercifully brief.
The guesthouse, known as Casa Santa Marta in Italian, was also the residence of Pope Francis and the place where he died on Easter Monday at the age of 88.
The property was commissioned by a previous pope, John Paul II, at a cost of around £15 million in 1995 to ensure that the cardinals could reside in comfort during the conclave process.
It stands on the site of an ancient hospice for the poor and is considered luxurious compared to the cramped and often draughty accommodation cardinals were once offered in the papal palace.
The latest cohort of cardinals, the most geographically diverse conclave in the faith’s 2,000-year history, sequestered from the outside world on Wednesday and will remain at the guesthouse – or inside the sacred walls of the Sistine Chapel – until a new pope is chosen.
Checking in: Domus Sanctae Marthae is a guesthouse just a few hundred yards from the Sistine Chapel, with many of the cardinals staying there until a new pope is chosen
Pope France pictured with the Daughters of Charity nuns from the Domus Sanctae Marthae at Vatican City; the late Pope lived at the guesthouse, and died there on Easter Monday at the age of 88
A sparsely decorated room at the Domus Sanctae Marthae where the cardinals are currently staying; the property has 108 suites and 23 single rooms
Who runs the property? Domus Sanctae Marthae is the domain of a dedicated team of nuns who help with everything from ensuring the bed linen is fresh to the meals served at the end of each day.
The kitchens were deep-cleaned in advance of the papal election and an underground garage converted to provide room for fresh linens, additional food and any other comforts the cardinals may require.
At the helm in the kitchen, according to OSV News, are two native Italian cooks alongside a female chef from Africa.
Dishes to sustain the upper hierarchy of the Catholic church during the process will be served by the sisters, known as the Daughters of Charity, with local Italian favourites from the Lazio and Abruzzo regions likely on the menu.
Italian staples such as spaghetti, minestrone and simple meat dishes including lamb skewers, known as arrosticini, with vegetables will be prepared for the 133 men, although they won’t be allowed napkins for fear of secrets being penned and squirrelled out.
Diets will also be taken into account with intolerances and health conditions, including diabetes, considered in the carefully thought-out menus.
Bedrooms are simple but high quality, with a double bed, simple furnishings and traditional linens.
Room service? Not an option, a Vatican insider told OSV news, saying: ‘There’s no minibar or room service. Some residents had small fridges, but during the conclave, the focus is simplicity and security, not convenience.’
The kind of meals eaten by the cardinals during the historic rituals were depicted on several occasions in the film adaptation of Robert Harris’ book Conclave.
The late Pope Francis’ room at the guesthouse, known as Casa Santa Marta in Italian – Pope Francis chose not to live in the more lavish papal apartments in the Apostolic Palace
The guesthouse has high quality but simply furnished rooms – with room service not an option for those checking in
The property, which was built on the site of an ancient hospice for the poor in 1996, has some of the highest security in the Vatican, with rooms checked and sealed before the cardinals return each day from the papal elective process
133 men may be charged with choosing the next pope as the conclave gets underway at Vatican City – but women play a significant role in proceedings too. Pictured: Isabella Rossellini playing Sister Agnes in 2024 film Conclave
133 cardinal-electors gather in the Sistine Chapel in Rome as they consider who will be the next head of the Catholic Church following the death of Pope Francis
133 cardinal-electors enter the Sistine Chapel in solemn procession
Isabella Rossellini played Sister Agnes in the 2024 film, which scooped best picture at this year’s BAFTAs.
The kitchen and dining room scenes in the film, which starred Ralph Fiennes in the lead role, showed the quiet power possessed by the nuns, who enable the conclave to happen without a glitch.
Days before the conclave process began, the guesthouse underwent a painstaking final spruce up, with everyone from engineers, decorators and handymen employed to ensure the property greeted its guests in it finest state.
Security has been ramped up too, transforming the normally unassuming property into a fortress that can’t be breached.
Vatican officials will check each room every day before cardinals return ensuring it is ‘inspected, secured and sealed’.
The Catholic conclave will again gather today to vote on who will be the new Pope as the priest brother of a TV megastar popped up live on the news to discuss the candidates.
Thick black smoke billowed from the chimney in Rome last night after 133 cardinal-electors who congregated in the Sistine Chapel failed to agree on the next Pontiff.
Voting will continue today with two rounds in the morning and two rounds in the afternoon with Vatican officials saying smoke should be expected around 1pm local time and again at 7pm.
