Travel time from Civitavecchia to Rome

I need some help in planning my day in Rome. My ship docks at 7:00 AM in Civitavecchia. How long will it take for me to actually get off the ship, get to the train station, buy my round-trip ticket and actually arrive at the first Rome Metro stop near the Vatican?

I really need details about:

-Port shuttle

-Bus to train station

-etc.

My ship leave Civitaveccha at 8:00. What time should I be leaving Rome to be back on board... I don't want to cut it too close and stress about missing my ship!!!

Thanks so much

Lido S

There are many, many variables here, including what train station you get off at. You can get exact train travel times by looking at the schedule.

Going to train station from ship and vice versa can easily take 30 minutes, allow an hour. All depends on dock, demand for shuttle, etc.

This past Saturday we made it from the port to the airport in 50 minutes.

This past Saturday we made it from the port to the airport in 50 minutes.

The OP is going port to Rome and back on a single day visit. Airport is not involved.

This past Saturday we made it from the port to the airport in 50 minutes.

What does that have to do with anything the OP asked about? :confused::confused:

I need some help in planning my day in Rome. My ship docks at 7:00 AM in Civitavecchia. How long will it take for me to actually get off the ship, get to the train station, buy my round-trip ticket and actually arrive at the first Rome Metro stop near the Vatican?

 

My ship leave Civitaveccha at 8:00. What time should I be leaving Rome to be back on board... I don't want to cut it too close and stress about missing my ship!

If you are up for some walking and if your ship docks at one of the southern berths at Civitavecchia you can walk from the ship to the train station. If not you need to take the port shuttle to the vehicle exit and then a local bus or walk from there. If you can walk from the ship to the station I would allow 30 minutes, if you need to use the shuttle bus I would allow an hour.

Purchase your ticket, the 5-zone BIRG (€12) at the newsstand in the station, there's no need to wait on the Trenitalia ticket line.

The station closest to the Vatican is Roma S. Pietro. From this station to the basilica is three quarters of a mile, to the entrance of the Vatican museums is one and a quarter miles.

The last train back that you could comfortably take would be 5:42, arriving to Civitavecchia just before 7 PM. The best advice is to the the train before the last one so you have some pad, just in case. That would be the 5:27 arriving at 6:44.

Took the train once to save money, with fellow travelers. Awful experience. Save money elsewhere, is my advise

Took the train once to save money, with fellow travelers. Awful experience. Save money elsewhere, is my advise

We have, on the other hand, traveled by train around Italy a good number of days, as well as in other areas of Europe. In fact have a 14 day France/England trip in just 10 days, all on train. With a little research, it works very well.

The actual train journey is about an hour to San Pietro station (for Vatican), about an hour and ten to Ostiense (for transfer to metro for Colosseum), or about an hour & twenty to Rome Termini station, the end of the line.

Can't comment on ship-to-station because the port exit has changed since our last visit, but you have your answers above. If you walk, there are booths along the seafront which sell train tickets (same-day BIRG return tickets). Or the tobacco/news stand at the station, as per E/C's post. Both sell at the same price as the ticket office in the station but that often has long lines.

A big variable is how long your wait at Civi station for the next train, and because of getting from ship to station it's difficult so gauge. Do check train times on the Trenitalia site - but beware, train times do seem to change, just by a few minutes, every so often. So it's important to double-check.

.........and even more important to double-check the times of the return trains!!! It's common-sense not to rely on the last possible train, but instead leave that train as a fall-back.

Tulsa Cats didn't like their train journey :D

That'll be because at the popular times for cruisers the trains are packed.

No, it's no fun. But it's part of the experience. And they do seem able to squeeze everyone on, so you won't be left on the platform.

JB :)

Took the train once to save money, with fellow travelers. Awful experience. Save money elsewhere, is my advise

If you're talking about the regional train from Civitavecchia to Rome, it's probably best to consider it more like a metro/subway or commuter rail line than a train.

Yes, it can be crowded. Is it "awful"? Not in my experience, but I am youngish (so fine with standing) and used to cities (so I know how to deal with public transport). For a day trip to Rome and back, it's really just fine to use the train. Doing it with luggage -- well, that's perhaps not as pleasant, but not so bad if you can avoid the biggest rush hours.

Personally, I'm not a fan of seeing places through the windows of an air-conditioned fancy private vehicle that literally separates me from the real people and real-life experiences in the countries I'm visiting. I like riding local buses, metros, trains and "people watching".