What to do in Rome

I'm calling at Rome (Civitavechia) on a Holland America cruise in August. Never been to Rome before, and HA excursions are very expensive. Any suggestions as to what to do without overdoing it in August heat please. Not particulary interested in visiting museums, or too many churches etc! Thanks.:)

Rome has many treasures of all kinds, but suggesting an itinerary for someone else with no real idea of their likes and interests is sort of an exercise in futility.

I would suggest that you look at some of the online sites of well-known guidebooks to read about the highlights of Rome and figure out which ones you most want to see. Keep your expectations modest as you only have a day and part of that day will be eaten up in getting to and from your cruise ship.

Once you have an idea of what you'd like to cover, we can better help you figure out a plan. It's fairly easy to get to Rome on the train on your own and to get around once you're there.

In scanning your posts I notice you have not joined the roll call for your cruise where you can meet others cruising with you. There is a very good chance of finding private tours being offered by fellow cruisers there. Click here to go to the roll call search utility; enter your ship and month of embarkation in order to find your roll call.

Scan down this board to find topics of interest...

Hope you have some luck with your ship's roll call - they do very well organizing their own tours, saving a lot of money on sightseeing and making great friends along the way.

As another member pointed out, if you enjoy planning you can find a good guide book, read about what's there and customize your own itinerary! That's what I did and it worked out very well - Rome was easy to get around. I split the city into sectors and planned to visit places in each sector on different days...it worked out very well. Of course the transportation in Rome works very well too so if you wanted to traverse the city and do it differently, you can.

I like the Lonely Planet city guides and Frommer's too....they have never, ever let me down anywhere on the planet. Suggest browsing a few at bookstore or online to get a feel...then decide. I met people in Rome and other places that used other guides for hotels and such...completely disappointed and moving out of a hotel mid-stay in Rome.

As for churches or museums - I'd be leary of anyone telling you to visit too many. One or two on a visit is usually enough! Depends how long you're in Rome - if' it's just the day port call - stay outdoors or do a Vatican tour which is efficient - it's a church and a museum. Otherwise, unless one is an historian, or artist, academic, theologian or archaeologist, multiple visits aren't necessary. Perhaps there might be a difference between St Peter's...a basilica and say, a smaller Roman church - to a catholic but beyond that - not much ;)

Otherwise, the historic city "centro storico" is what so many want to see and IS worth seeing....Piazza Navona, the Pantheon, the Colosseum (go in or don't) the Forum (fascinating) Trevi Fountain, Campo dei Fiori, Spanish Steps, Vatican City, and more...again - read about it and see what YOU like. There's much to be said for taking a seat in a piazza for a wine or gelato or pasta and people watching, in the shade of course. It's Roma.

Enjoy :)

 

As for churches or museums - I'd be leary of anyone telling you to visit too many. One or two on a visit is usually enough! Depends how long you're in Rome - if' it's just the day port call - stay outdoors or do a Vatican tour which is efficient - it's a church and a museum. Otherwise, unless one is an historian, or artist, academic, theologian or archaeologist, multiple visits aren't necessary. Perhaps there might be a difference between St Peter's...a basilica and say, a smaller Roman church - to a catholic but beyond that - not much ;)

 

 

Enjoy :)

The main reason -- at least to me -- for visiting churches in Rome isn't because of their style or decoration so much as for the art inside. For many hundreds of years (before museums were common), many of the best masterpieces of art were commissioned for various churches.

For example:

-- Michelangelo's Moses in San Pietro in Vincoli

-- Bernini's Ecstasy of St. Teresa in Santa Maria della Vittoria

-- Michelangelo's Christ the Redeemer in Santa Maria sopra Minerva

-- The Basilica of Santa Maria del Popolo contains works from Raphael, Bernini and Caravaggio

And for an idea of just how different various churches can look, take a look at the photos in this article on the 8 most beautiful churches in Rome:

http://www.touropia.com/churches-in-rome/

As for churches or museums - I'd be leary of anyone telling you to visit too many. One or two on a visit is usually enough! Depends how long you're in Rome - if' it's just the day port call - stay outdoors or do a Vatican tour which is efficient - it's a church and a museum. Otherwise, unless one is an historian, or artist, academic, theologian or archaeologist, multiple visits aren't necessary. Perhaps there might be a difference between St Peter's...a basilica and say, a smaller Roman church - to a catholic but beyond that - not much

Wow, that's a lot of generalizations in one post.

I'm not an historian, or artist, academic, theologian or archaeologist but I appreciate great art and architecture. I love visiting various churches because they are all very different, even on the surface.

I'm calling at Rome (Civitavechia) on a Holland America cruise in August. Never been to Rome before, and HA excursions are very expensive. Any suggestions as to what to do without overdoing it in August heat please. Not particulary interested in visiting museums, or too many churches etc! Thanks.:)

Rome like others have said has many options for the first time visitor but generally 2 areas are the most visited unless you have specific interests.

1 Vatican City with both St Peters and the Vatican Museum as visitable but separate sites.

2 Ancient Rome which includes the Colosseum, the Forum and the Palatine Hill

Some people will "see everything" in a day. They do but it is literally see as you go by. If you really want to delve in in greater depth I would suggest one or the other but not both for a one day visit by cruise ship. Part of the problem is that a substantial part of your day is used up by travel to and from the port. Expect at least 90 mins each way. You do not say how long you are in port but you have to protect yourself on the way back if you DIY.

In the summer ancient Rome may be quite hot as you are basically outdoors so take that into account.

A reasonable DIY method is the train from CIVi to Rome getting off at the station nearest where you want to visit. A BIRG ticket costs 12Euros and will get you RT to Rome as well as all transit in Rome for the day.

If you do the Colosseum and have time you can easily walk to the Pantheon and then on to Trevi and the Spanish Steps putting you back at a Metro station.

Especially in August do not try to overdo things in the heat.

many thanks for the advice

Hope you have some luck with your ship's roll call - they do very well organizing their own tours, saving a lot of money on sightseeing and making great friends along the way.

 

As another member pointed out, if you enjoy planning you can find a good guide book, read about what's there and customize your own itinerary! That's what I did and it worked out very well - Rome was easy to get around. I split the city into sectors and planned to visit places in each sector on different days...it worked out very well. Of course the transportation in Rome works very well too so if you wanted to traverse the city and do it differently, you can.

 

I like the Lonely Planet city guides and Frommer's too....they have never, ever let me down anywhere on the planet. Suggest browsing a few at bookstore or online to get a feel...then decide. I met people in Rome and other places that used other guides for hotels and such...completely disappointed and moving out of a hotel mid-stay in Rome.

 

As for churches or museums - I'd be leary of anyone telling you to visit too many. One or two on a visit is usually enough! Depends how long you're in Rome - if' it's just the day port call - stay outdoors or do a Vatican tour which is efficient - it's a church and a museum. Otherwise, unless one is an historian, or artist, academic, theologian or archaeologist, multiple visits aren't necessary. Perhaps there might be a difference between St Peter's...a basilica and say, a smaller Roman church - to a catholic but beyond that - not much ;)

 

Otherwise, the historic city "centro storico" is what so many want to see and IS worth seeing....Piazza Navona, the Pantheon, the Colosseum (go in or don't) the Forum (fascinating) Trevi Fountain, Campo dei Fiori, Spanish Steps, Vatican City, and more...again - read about it and see what YOU like. There's much to be said for taking a seat in a piazza for a wine or gelato or pasta and people watching, in the shade of course. It's Roma.

 

Enjoy :)

many thanks Coleen

Asking what to do in Rome is like asking what to do in New York City, Paris, London, etc. You could easily spend a week in Rome and not run out of things to do or see :). So you need to do your own homework, prioritize your own wants, and set your own itinerary. This is what we love about independent travel (we generally avoid any tour). We think the best DIY guide is the Rick Steves Rome Travel Guide (found at many book stores and always on Amazon). The Rick Steves books are, in our opinion, the best publications for independent travelers from cruise ships :).

Hank

P.S. We do not get any promotional consideration for always recommending the Rick Steves books. We just like the darn things :)

ok we're just back from our cruise and did the best tour ever in Rome - a GOLF CART! I'd never been to Rome and wanted to see as much as possible (no stuffy car or bus....no crowded group).

I just did my review on trip advisor but MyBestTours was the best choice we ever made.

What a super way to zip around town....down narrow alleys and up close to all the sites! We took the train in to Rome and our tour guide Victor met us at the station...then for the next 4 hours he made sure we saw all the highlights. (My daughter and I are independent travelers but we never could have seen everything if it weren't for this tour.....it was so hot, and so crowded - we would have spent most of the day in the middle of crowds looking at our map). If you have ANY kind of walking issue they even have room on the cart for a wheelchair or walker). He made sure he kept to a schedule to show us sights before they closed in the afternoon (i.e. the fresh food market).

At the end of the tour he made reservations for us to have lunch and pointed us in the direction of the Vatican and the train station. Highly recommend this option.....especially when we do so much walking at the other ports!!

Asking what to do in Rome is like asking what to do in New York City, Paris, London, etc. You could easily spend a week in Rome and not run out of things to do or see :). So you need to do your own homework, prioritize your own wants, and set your own itinerary. This is what we love about independent travel (we generally avoid any tour). We think the best DIY guide is the Rick Steves Rome Travel Guide (found at many book stores and always on Amazon). The Rick Steves books are, in our opinion, the best publications for independent travelers from cruise ships :).

 

Hank

P.S. We do not get any promotional consideration for always recommending the Rick Steves books. We just like the darn things :)

many thanks Hank, I'll get myself a copy of Rick Steves guide book.

We will have a day in Rome during our August cruise, and we are going to take it easy and enjoy "La dolce vita." I've been to Rome before, but my husband has not. I don't feel like I can do the incredible city justice by trying to rush through any sites during the high season. Instead, we're taking the train to Trastavere and walking to the Pantheon area and Campo di Fiori. I already have lunch reservations so we can have cacio e pepe, and I'm going to introduce my husband to my favorite espresso and gelato places nearby. We love walking around cities and getting a little lost while enjoying the scenery.

I echo all the recommendations for Rick Steves' books. They are incredibly helpful.

Who did you book with and was it easy on the train

We will have a day in Rome during our August cruise, and we are going to take it easy and enjoy "La dolce vita." I've been to Rome before, but my husband has not. I don't feel like I can do the incredible city justice by trying to rush through any sites during the high season. Instead, we're taking the train to Trastavere and walking to the Pantheon area and Campo di Fiori. I already have lunch reservations so we can have cacio e pepe, and I'm going to introduce my husband to my favorite espresso and gelato places nearby. We love walking around cities and getting a little lost while enjoying the scenery.

 

I echo all the recommendations for Rick Steves' books. They are incredibly helpful.

Thank you, that sounds like a good plan. I don't fancy rushing around trying to see too many places in the heat and crowds in August, so may do something like that too.

Instead, we're taking the train to Trastavere and walking to the Pantheon area and Campo di Fiori.

Just one suggestion, take the #8 tram from the Trastevere station rather than walking. It's not a bad area, it's just not very pretty for the first mile.

The next to the last stop on the tram is Arenula/Cairoli, the second stop after you cross the river. From here to Campo di Fiori is only two-tenths of a mile.

#8 route info here: http://viaggiacon.atac.roma.it/?service=trovalinea&linea=8&percorso=8A

We will be in Rome on the 30th of September and are looking for advice on the best way to do the biggies on our own.

We will have purchased a BIRG ticket to get from Civitavecchia Port so will have access to the local transport systems for the day.

Ideally the Big ones for me to see and do is probably the Colosseum, Pantheon, the Forum and the Trevi Fountains.

Now I'm aware that booking "skip the line" tickets to some like the Colosseum are really the done thing, but where will we find the best price for that? and once there, how do we find the skip the line place lol

Ive thought of one of the hop on hop off bus tour thingies but we will have already spent the money on the BIRG ticket and we already have access to the busses and trams. Why spend more ?

Thoughts? Ideas?

Thanks!!

The "Big Four" you mentioned can be walked easily in one day. Do you have mobility issues?

Hop on hop off for Rome is usually not recommended, due to the streets not allowing close approach to some sites.

What you propose is pretty straightforward and should be doable. Here's what I'd suggest:

First, see the info I posted in your other thread about the BIRG. That should get you as far as boarding the train to Rome. Get the earliest start you can. The trains run frequently in the mornings, about every half hour.

Get off the train at the Roma-Ostiense station. There are several Rome stations, but this one will save you time. Be alert and don't miss it!

Walk through the train station to the connecting metro station (called Pyramide), following the signs for Metro Linea B. Here you'll use that BIRG pass again. Get on the metro going in the direction of either Rebibbia or Concha d'Oro. If you are in doubt, study the maps on the walls that list the stops. The stop you want is Colosseo.

Get on the metro and go two stops to the Colosseo station. Walk up the stairs to exit -- and the Colosseum will be right in front of you!! If you have pre-reserved tickets, bring your voucher and look for the separate, shorter line. You will still have to go through security.

The Roman Forum is right next to the Colosseum and your ticket is good for both. Be sure to take some kind of information or guidebook (or audio tour) with you, as there is little signage and it is a quite confusing jumble of WONDERFUL ruins.

After spending time in the Forum, you can easily walk to the Pantheon. Put the two endpoints into Google maps, select Walking mode and you can get directions. Another important thing to bring with you is a GOOD map of Rome, one that shows the Centro Storico in full detail. Street names are found on buildings, at about the second-story level.

At the Pantheon, you may be ready for some lunch. There is a good place to grab a quick sandwich (and other assorted goodies) very close to the Pantheon. If you are facing the entrance, this shop is to the right, I believe it is called Salumeria Antica (or maybe Antica Salumeria....!)

After you visit the Pantheon, it is another easy walk to Trevi Fountain. (Another good thing to look up in advance on Google maps.) The main route will have lots of tourists walking to and from the two places, as well as shops, restaurants, gelateria, etc. Every so often a brown sign will indicate you're headed in the right direction.

Toss your coins into Trevi and admire it. Then walk to the Barberini metro stop, which is the closest one to Trevi (a few blocks). When you find it, you'll get on the Metro Linea A (the only line) in the direction of Anagnina, and get off at Termini, which is only two stops.

At Termini, you'll enter the main train station and you have a LONG walk to the auxiliary platforms toward the back, which is where the regional trains depart to Civitavecchia. It's best to check the train schedule in advance and have an idea which train you'll want to aim for. Most people figure out which train will get them back at the latest reasonable time from which you can still make it to your ship, THEN they aim for the one before that -- this way you have a fallback option.

Don't forget to factor in the actual all-aboard time (usually half hour before sailing) PLUS the transit time from the train to the port entrance and from the port entrance to your ship...

I 100% agree with CruiseMom. As long as your able to walk reasonable distances, walking is the way to go between the sites you ask about.

And the website to buy the advance tickets can be found here:

http://www.coopculture.it/en/colosseo-e-shop.cfm

Thanks for such detailed info! I'm going to save that for my trip kit so i know just where to find the things we need!

Its gonna be a fantastic trip!

We are celebrating our 10th Wedding Anniversary, my 42nd and His 54th birthdays all that same week.

The advice you got was perfect. If you do not want to prepurchase tickets when you exit the train station go right, instead of left where the coliseum is, to the shorter line for Palentine hill which is the combo ticket mentioned. This avoids any fee and if its raining a good place to skip. (In March when we visited we did the hill and Colosseum and it poured all three days we were there. Besides the cute pictures of my kids touring in boots and umbrellas it was miserable.)

You can walk or take the train back toward the fountain and with any extra time see the Pantheon, other squares p, and Spanish steps which are not too far away ( and toward the direction you need to head back to the ship).

Have fun a full but busy day!

The only thing I would add is be sure to buy advance tickets for the colosseum, otherwise the queue is horrendous.

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I got back from Rome yesterday (we stayed a couple of days post-cruise) and agree with everything said above. Definitely book tickets to the Coliseum in advance. Otherwise you will spend all day waiting in line. You might also think about booking a Colisuem/Forum tour. We used City Wonders.

The Pantheon is free - or to be fair - has an optional admission, should you choose to pay. Our hotel was near the Trevi Fountain and I can tell you that it is always very crowded - so be prepared for that.

Cruisemom42 - you always have such wonderful info, I was wondering if you have any experience with entering the Roman Forum from Palantine Hill and getting the tickets there too. Another board member suggested that as a less congested entry when I had asked about buying tickets in advance. I know the tickets include the Colosseum but we did that last time. Thanks.