Earliest time for a tour in Rome?

Hi!

I have tried to search through the threads, but have had no luck on this specific topic.

We want to book a private tour that includes the Colosseum Underground, the Forum and Palantine Hill - we are crusing with Royal Caribbean and arrive in Civitavecchia at 7am. What is the earliest time we could get to the Colosseum for a tour start? I know that with RCI transport we won't get into Rome much before 10am...but I am wondering about just sucking up the cost of private transport to get us there earlier? Thanks for any information you can share!

Hi!

 

I have tried to search through the threads, but have had no luck on this specific topic.

 

We want to book a private tour that includes the Colosseum Underground, the Forum and Palantine Hill - we are crusing with Royal Caribbean and arrive in Civitavecchia at 7am. What is the earliest time we could get to the Colosseum for a tour start? I know that with RCI transport we won't get into Rome much before 10am...but I am wondering about just sucking up the cost of private transport to get us there earlier? Thanks for any information you can share!

Google "colosseum Rome". You will get to the official website with opening hours, time of tours, etc.

Google "colosseum Rome". You will get to the official website with opening hours, time of tours, etc.

Sorry - my question was not clear. I know what time the tour of the Colosseum is available (9:30am or 10am ONLY), what I am not sure of is whether I could get to the Colosseum for the 9:30am tour start time with a debarkation time of 7am in port.

Sorry - my question was not clear. I know what time the tour of the Colosseum is available (9:30am or 10am ONLY), what I am not sure of is whether I could get to the Colosseum for the 9:30am tour start time with a debarkation time of 7am in port.

contact well reviewed private Rome tour companies -we used rome-car -tours with Rudy and we met up with him on the pier a few minutes after docking and being given clearance for disembarkation

it takes between 1 1/2 hours to get from Civitiveccia to Rome so plenty of time to get to tour

The Rome guides usually cant accompany you into sites such as Colosseum or Vatican but I know Rudy is a licensed guide so would be able to

Price out his company versus DIY and independent travel to Rome to get a better idea of your options

You can certainly do a 9:30 AM tour if you have private transport from the ship

contact well reviewed private Rome tour companies -we used rome-car -tours with Rudy and we met up with him on the pier a few minutes after docking and being given clearance for disembarkation

it takes between 1 1/2 hours to get from Civitiveccia to Rome so plenty of time to get to tour

The Rome guides usually cant accompany you into sites such as Colosseum or Vatican but I know Rudy is a licensed guide so would be able to

Price out his company versus DIY and independent travel to Rome to get a better idea of your options

Thanks for the suggestion - here is my dilemma. My daughter and husband REALLY want to see the Underground tour of the Colosseum, but after 10 failed attempts to connect with them by phone and a rejected purchase of Underground tickets for a tour our only option to see the Underground is to book a tour with a private company that starts at 9:30am and goes for 3.5 hours....so I guess i really just need transportation to/from port and not a private tour since we know what we want to do..but I know that ships transportation timing does not work, and public transportation would be cutting it too close....

Meekins: We just got home yesterday from the Vision of the Seas cruise that included Rome, and we did a DIY tour to the Coliseum. YES, you can get there in time for the 9:30 tour and you can do it yourself on the train. However, you need to be ready to leave the ship before 7 am. We joined a short line near the gangway at 6:50, and were out the door before 7 am. You have to take the port shuttle, but if you are out early, you can be on the first bus. When you get to parking lot where they drop you off, grab a map from people near the exit, and then you have a 20 to 25 minute walk to the train station. There are no city buses operating at that time .... they don't start until 8 am, and that will be too late for you. You could take a taxi to the train station, but we didn't see any. Buy your BIRG tickets in the station, not at the travel agent just before the station (they add 2 Euros fee to each ticket). The BIRG ticket gives you unlimited use of the Metro, in addition to the train. We got on the 7:44 train at Civitavecchia, and got to Ostiense station at about 8:36. If you get on the 7:58 train, you won't get into Ostiense until 9:06, and that may be cutting it a little close. Follow the crowd inside the Ostiense train station to the Metro, and take it to Coliseo station (2 stops). When you come out of the Coliseo station, the Coliseum is right there. By getting on the 7:44 train at Civitivecchia, we were in line at the Coliseum before 9 am.

Here is a link to the train schedule:

http://traintorome.maxonthenet.altervista.org/index.php?lang=eng

Hope this helps.

Meekins: We just got home yesterday from the Vision of the Seas cruise that included Rome, and we did a DIY tour to the Coliseum. YES, you can get there in time for the 9:30 tour and you can do it yourself on the train. However, you need to be ready to leave the ship before 7 am. We joined a short line near the gangway at 6:50, and were out the door before 7 am. You have to take the port shuttle, but if you are out early, you can be on the first bus. When you get to parking lot where they drop you off, grab a map from people near the exit, and then you have a 20 to 25 minute walk to the train station. There are no city buses operating at that time .... they don't start until 8 am, and that will be too late for you. You could take a taxi to the train station, but we didn't see any. Buy your BIRG tickets in the station, not at the travel agent just before the station (they add 2 Euros fee to each ticket). The BIRG ticket gives you unlimited use of the Metro, in addition to the train. We got on the 7:44 train at Civitavecchia, and got to Ostiense station at about 8:36. If you get on the 7:58 train, you won't get into Ostiense until 9:06, and that may be cutting it a little close. Follow the crowd inside the Ostiense train station to the Metro, and take it to Coliseo station (2 stops). When you come out of the Coliseo station, the Coliseum is right there. By getting on the 7:44 train at Civitivecchia, we were in line at the Coliseum before 9 am.

Here is a link to the train schedule:

http://traintorome.maxonthenet.altervista.org/index.php?lang=eng

Hope this helps.

THANK YOU!! This helps immensely in our decision making process. The tour we want to take starts at 9:30am at the Colosseum, but I figure we would have to be there by 9:15am to join the group and now I know there is a DIY way to do it. I appreciate you taking the time to reply and with such great detail.

ican:

I too found your information valuable as I have been debating about using a private tour or doing it myself with public transportation.

Do you feel with (general common city sense) that the trains/Metro from the port to Rome & in Rome are safe? Is there generally a Metro close to most of the major attractions?

Thanks,

Susan

Meekins: We just got home yesterday from the Vision of the Seas cruise that included Rome, and we did a DIY tour to the Coliseum. YES, you can get there in time for the 9:30 tour and you can do it yourself on the train. However, you need to be ready to leave the ship before 7 am. We joined a short line near the gangway at 6:50, and were out the door before 7 am. You have to take the port shuttle, but if you are out early, you can be on the first bus. When you get to parking lot where they drop you off, grab a map from people near the exit, and then you have a 20 to 25 minute walk to the train station. There are no city buses operating at that time .... they don't start until 8 am, and that will be too late for you. You could take a taxi to the train station, but we didn't see any. Buy your BIRG tickets in the station, not at the travel agent just before the station (they add 2 Euros fee to each ticket). The BIRG ticket gives you unlimited use of the Metro, in addition to the train. We got on the 7:44 train at Civitavecchia, and got to Ostiense station at about 8:36. If you get on the 7:58 train, you won't get into Ostiense until 9:06, and that may be cutting it a little close. Follow the crowd inside the Ostiense train station to the Metro, and take it to Coliseo station (2 stops). When you come out of the Coliseo station, the Coliseum is right there. By getting on the 7:44 train at Civitivecchia, we were in line at the Coliseum before 9 am.

 

Here is a link to the train schedule:

 

http://traintorome.maxonthenet.altervista.org/index.php?lang=eng

 

Hope this helps.

Hi Susan:

Yes the trains and Metro are safe ..... the train was just like a GO train here in Toronto, and the Metro was just like our subway.

Metro stations are fairly close to most of the other attractions. If you wanted to go to the Vatican after the Coliseum, you would need to take two connecting trains, but it is pretty straightforward. Google Rome Metro for a map.

We decided to just do the Coliseum, have lunch and then head back to the ship because we were tired from the Cinque Terre the previous day, but it's not too hard to get to a few attractions. Just be aware of the times for the return trains, and remember that you will probably be in the rush hour.

Ian

contact well reviewed private Rome tour companies -we used rome-car -tours with Rudy and we met up with him on the pier a few minutes after docking and being given clearance for disembarkation

it takes between 1 1/2 hours to get from Civitiveccia to Rome so plenty of time to get to tour

The Rome guides usually cant accompany you into sites such as Colosseum or Vatican but I know Rudy is a licensed guide so would be able to

Price out his company versus DIY and independent travel to Rome to get a better idea of your options

I was reading about Rudy on his website and it was a bit unclear on how his touring works. He mentions he could do it as a walking tour and then he could accompany us inside the Vatican but otherwise he would just let us out at the stops. Can you explain how this worked and what you paid for an all day tour that picked up at the port.

I was reading about Rudy on his website and it was a bit unclear on how his touring works. He mentions he could do it as a walking tour and then he could accompany us inside the Vatican but otherwise he would just let us out at the stops. Can you explain how this worked and what you paid for an all day tour that picked up at the port.

in 2012 we paid 550euros for a 7 seater minivan with pick up and drop off at port -obviously the more of you the less cost per head

Rome really needs several days to explore properly so on a 1 day port visit you have to prioritise what you want to see

a visit inside the Vatican with Rudy as a guide will take up at least a couple of hours so less time at other sites

we chose just an outside view at Vatican and short visits at many sites but Rudy will take time to cater the tour to your requirements and will tell you what is realistic

for us a sit down meal at lunch was time we could have spent sightseeing so opted for a slice of pizza at place frequented by businessmen on the run-for other people they want an authentic Italian meal-mileage varies:D

if you click on the link at bottom of my post "spiriting around the med" that will lead to my full review of the trip and exactly what we did at each port

Hi Susan:

Yes the trains and Metro are safe ..... the train was just like a GO train here in Toronto, and the Metro was just like our subway.

Metro stations are fairly close to most of the other attractions.

Use the same caution you would in any crowded mass transit situation.

The metro in Rome is not particularly useful for tourists other than for the Colosseum, the Vatican Museums, the Spanish Steps, and maybe Trevi fountain. Other than that the metro isn't much help as it doesn't go under the heart of the historical center of Rome.

I was reading about Rudy on his website and it was a bit unclear on how his touring works. He mentions he could do it as a walking tour and then he could accompany us inside the Vatican but otherwise he would just let us out at the stops. Can you explain how this worked and what you paid for an all day tour that picked up at the port.