Advise on trip to Rome

We are a group of 4 booked on the Epic leaving on June 13th. We want to see Rome either pre or post cruise. I am having a lot of difficulty with trying to plan. We will be flying into and out of FCO. We can fly in early and do a day to 2 days of sightseeing or go directly to the ship and see Rome on our return. I'm trying to decide whether after flying for so many hours if we will be too tired to really enjoy sightseeing pre-cruise and maybe after the cruise would be better; we can sleep on the plane going home.

Have checked a few places and am very confused about once we get to Civ...how we get into the port and to the ship, Would a cruise line supplied transport get us there. I saw that it was quite a walk from the terminal to the ship.

If we choose to do Rome sightseeing after the cruise, how would you suggest we get from the departure into the City?? I see that there is a train but we will have luggage.

We are not 'newbies' to cruising but this one has me pulling my hair out. This is by far the most difficult to plan. H E L P !!!

The Italian ports thread can be your friend! Lots of good information there on all your questions.

We did the two days pre cruise in Rome and it worked well for us. We reserved a car service to the port and they dropped us off at the ship. I think the walk you read about is from the train station. We also hired a car service to take us to the airport after the cruise.

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I would save Rome for post-cruise when you are over jet lag. Fly in and get a car to your hotel in Civ, then get a car to take you into Rome post-cruise. That is certainly what we did. Our hotel arranged transport to the port itself.

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We did two days pre cruise as well and I think that was right. Afterwards we would have been tired and in the post cruise doldrums.

Thanks for the input. Head is still swimming. Shocked at the cost for a hotel in Rome and for transfer from airport to ship or Rome and from Rome to ship. Our dollar isn't faring too well to the euro I see.

Thanks for the input. Head is still swimming. Shocked at the cost for a hotel in Rome and for transfer from airport to ship or Rome and from Rome to ship. Our dollar isn't faring too well to the euro I see.

Check Airbnb... seriously! Four of us stayed in a fabulous 2br flat right off of Campo de Fiori for less than $150 a night total. If you haven't done it it might sound intimidating but I have never had anything close to a bad experience.

Whether to spend time in Rome before or after the cruise is a personal preference really. Personally, we prefer to do things beforehand as we usually just want to get home afterwards. We don’t have the air travel issues that you do though.

As for the logistics of Rome, it is a problem due to distances. As is often the case in big cities, the airport is a little way out, but also the port is as well. I have never travelled between FCO and Civitavecchia, but I believe it isn’t a direct route.

If you can manage your bags in the train then that can save you a lot of money. The train from FCO to Rome (it used to be called the Leonardo Express, probably still is) is pretty good and we had no problem carrying our luggage on it. Of course that only takes you to Terminii, so you still need to get to your hotel from there.

If you did decide to try the train to Civitavecchia then I would prebook something. The regular commuter train is quite slow and can be very busy. We prebooked on the faster train one year and got allocated seats in first class for a pretty good price. That would make dealing with your bags a lot easier.

For getting from Civitavecchia to FCO directly (or vice versa), I would probably just stump up for a transfer rather than mess around with the train journeys, but it is certainly doable my train.

As for Civitavecchia itself, there is a shuttle bus from the port entrance to the terminal, and they will deal with your bags (you probably won’t see them again after putting them on the bus, until they arrive at your oom). It is getting to the port entrance that can be an issue. It’s a mile+ from the train station, and you will need to walk a bit or get a transfer from wherever you are.

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Have you taken a look at the NCL hotels? I think it’s $145/night, includes breakfast and I think transfer to ship for Embarkation. The hotel isn’t right by the pantheon or anything but it has a shuttle to the sites and also an airport shuttle for arrival (extra fees) if a group on your roll call was all staying at same hotel you could perhaps arrange some great private tours. In fact your roll call may already have something arranged and be looking for a few extras.

I’d also vote for early arrival and touring Rome prior to cruise. The cruise is expensive and I’d prefer to be over jet lag when I got on the ship. it’s much less $ to cancel a hotel room for late arrival than missing the ship, should something happen with flights.

We do have our airline tickets and are going in 1.5 days early and spending the night at a B&B near the airport and plan to do some survey sightseeing during that time then will be back to Rome on the end of the cruise for a little more than 2 days, again staying in a B&B. I have tried to get onto the Roll Call for this site but it continues to say that I am not registered :) I am hoping to get some recommendations from people who have been to the ports of Pisa/Livorno, Cannes, Majorca, Barcelona and Naples for some input on what to do it each port and especially if they have done private tours at these ports and their recommendations. Since I can't log-on, I can't find any threads about any of these ports. FRUSTRATING.

We do have our airline tickets and are going in 1.5 days early and spending the night at a B&B near the airport and plan to do some survey sightseeing during that time then will be back to Rome on the end of the cruise for a little more than 2 days, again staying in a B&B. I have tried to get onto the Roll Call for this site but it continues to say that I am not registered :) I am hoping to get some recommendations from people who have been to the ports of Pisa/Livorno, Cannes, Majorca, Barcelona and Naples for some input on what to do it each port and especially if they have done private tours at these ports and their recommendations. Since I can't log-on, I can't find any threads about any of these ports. FRUSTRATING.

I'd email cruise critic admin to tell them the problems you are having-obviously with over 100 posts you are registered!

We are a group of 4 booked on the Epic leaving on June 13th. We want to see Rome either pre or post cruise. I am having a lot of difficulty with trying to plan. We will be flying into and out of FCO. We can fly in early and do a day to 2 days of sightseeing or go directly to the ship and see Rome on our return. I'm trying to decide whether after flying for so many hours if we will be too tired to really enjoy sightseeing pre-cruise and maybe after the cruise would be better; we can sleep on the plane going home.

 

Have checked a few places and am very confused about once we get to Civ...how we get into the port and to the ship, Would a cruise line supplied transport get us there. I saw that it was quite a walk from the terminal to the ship.

 

If we choose to do Rome sightseeing after the cruise, how would you suggest we get from the departure into the City?? I see that there is a train but we will have luggage.

 

We are not 'newbies' to cruising but this one has me pulling my hair out. This is by far the most difficult to plan. H E L P !!!

My wife and I flew from Miami to Rome. We got to Rome 10 am their time. We checked into a hotel in the city and walked to the Vatican and got our bearings of the city. I tell you this. The cruise to Greece and Turkey was more enjoyable knowing we had a few days in Rome t6o look forward to when we docked. That coupled with the fact that everyone who were scrambling to get from the ship to the airport seemed stressed while we took our time and booked a ride from the port to Rome. We stayed at the Hotel de la Minerve and it was the perfect location. We walked to the colloseum, the Vatican, the Fountains of Trevi and every where. It is a beautiful city and I would highly suggest seeing it after the cruise. Spring for a cab or van from the ship to Rome. It's a vacation!

My wife and I flew from Miami to Rome. We got to Rome 10 am their time. We checked into a hotel in the city and walked to the Vatican and got our bearings of the city. I tell you this. The cruise to Greece and Turkey was more enjoyable knowing we had a few days in Rome t6o look forward to when we docked. That coupled with the fact that everyone who were scrambling to get from the ship to the airport seemed stressed while we took our time and booked a ride from the port to Rome. We stayed at the Hotel de la Minerve and it was the perfect location. We walked to the colloseum, the Vatican, the Fountains of Trevi and every where. It is a beautiful city and I would highly suggest seeing it after the cruise. Spring for a cab or van from the ship to Rome. It's a vacation!

I think that there is a great deal to be said for this approach... disembark at your pace, watch everyone else stress out... Cab/van to your hotel. Once in Rome proper the 'metro' is a very effective way to get around; take a good pair of walking shoes... just wander!

Go to the Vatican toward the end of the day, crowds are much reduced and the sun is lower through the windows (kinder for photos too). Colloseum... big crowds, book in advance. Frankly - I'd spend a serious amount of time eat and drinking too, you're in Italy!!!

Rome is a really easy city to get around. If you're flying into FCO, taxis are a set fare into the walled city of Rome at €48 (the white coloured cabs) or cheaper on the train (Leonardo Express).

I took the train from Rome to Civitavecchia, then back to Rome, train travel in Europe is super easy and reliable. Out of Termini there was a "fast train" costing 12 euros, on the way back from the port I got a train for 5 euros as there was no rush (it was marginally slower than the train on the way there). Once at Civitavecchia there is a shuttle at the train station that takes you to the port for 2 euros per person, same for the return. If you arrive at a time when the shuttles are taking their siesta, there are drivers at the train station filling vans for 4 euros per person to the port. Once at the port you are shuttled at no charge to your ship where you will then check in, go through security and board your ship.

I've stayed at the De Petris Hotel in Rome a couple times, great location, 5 min walk from Trevi Fountain, 8 mins from Spanish Steps. Just be sure to book yourself a Superior room (these rooms were upgraded recently). Honestly I loved Rome. Going back to Italy again this year, but doing Venice this time!

We used Terravision airport shuttle. $5 a person and you get a schedule for pickup. You’ll walk right out of FCO through the ground transportation exit and find their nice, clean van. The shuttle took us straight to Termini and from there, you can take the subway anywhere. We got off our flight at 10 am and by 11:30, were walking out of Termini to our hotel.

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Thanks for the input. Head is still swimming. Shocked at the cost for a hotel in Rome and for transfer from airport to ship or Rome and from Rome to ship. Our dollar isn't faring too well to the euro I see.

Not sure what your needs and preferences are, but we have done this cruise or a similar one a few times, and we long ago decided the price of hotels in Rome was not worth it for the tiny rooms. We now always rent an apartment via Air BnB or VRBO. Last time we had a one bedroom with full kitchen and large balcony on campo d'fiori, with air conditioning, WiFi and an elevator, for 120E a night, and it was lovely. It also allowed us to stay 4 nights in Rome, instead of 2. If you go that route, make sure you identify clearly your needs, i.e., air conditioning (many are not air-conditioned), elevator (if you are unable or willing to walk up a couple of floors - many bldgs (and many hotels) do not have elevators) wi-fi. etc. And look carefully at the reviews posted. We never select a place that has less than 10 or so reviews, and we check the location very carefully to make sure we are where we want to be, i.e, in the Pantheon, navona or campo dfiori area, which we think are the most central locations. Although many hotels include breakfast, we still find it much more cost effective to stay in an apartment, and pick up local stuff for breakfast and snacks. Especially when we stay on a square and I can get my husband to run downstairs in the morning for fresh baked pastries and expresso....

I agree about using AirBnB. We booked our transfers with Rome Cab Booking - reasonable and courteous. We booked private tours with Italytours.eu and were very pleased with the service.

If you haven't already done so, get the Rick Steve's Rome book. We used it to find a good place to stay. Our preference was near Termini because we use public transportation. Of course he offers recommendations for other locations as well.

Regarding jet lag, you're going to face that whether you're in Rome or on the ship. Which do you prefer ? The first day out of Rome is not a sea day so you won't have a sea day to acclimate. We flew in about 4 days early so we could get over jet lag and then see Rome. YMMV.

As others have said, go to the European port of call board...lots of info there. Here's a link:

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=19

I've gone there and I can see that there are threads but even though I am logged in, they won't open :evilsmile: I checked by previous thread to a cruise we took in December and it works just fine. So puzzling. I've sent a message to Admin but no help yet.

The only advice I can give you is to try and spend as many days as possible in Rome. We only had two days pre cruise last time and there is so much to see and do that we felt rushed and just could not relax and soak it all in. The next time we go we are spending 3 days precruise and one post.

The only advice I can give you is to try and spend as many days as possible in Rome. We only had two days pre cruise last time and there is so much to see and do that we felt rushed and just could not relax and soak it all in. The next time we go we are spending 3 days precruise and one post.

I agree. We spent 4 days pre cruise (one of which was jet lag recovery day) and we could have used at least one more.

I've gone there and I can see that there are threads but even though I am logged in, they won't open :evilsmile:

Yeah, sometimes sub forums are slooooow to load on my computer. If I clear my cache, shut down and restart it helps.

We’ve been to Europe a few times and suggest you get in a day early and go straight to the port. Better to shake off some of the jet lag overnight in Civitavecchia than expensive Rome. We fly into Europe from the west coast and are usually vegetables on arrival day. We took the the train to Civitavecchia. Just prebook the frecciabianca nonstop train a couple of months in advance for a reserved 1st or 2nd class seat. I brought a cable bike lock to secure my luggage in the event that there was no room near our seats. There’s a lot of hotels in Civitavecchia just outside the train station and cheaper than Rome. It’s a 20 minute walk from the train station to Lago Della Pace shuttle area. It’s a flat walk straight down the main street. You’ll have arrival day and embarkation day on the ship to get over the jet lag.

All this is leading to my suggestion of staying post cruise. You’ll be able to see Rome without any jet lag. We stayed 3 nights and booked Rome cabs for a 4:00am transfer to the airport. It was $75eu for 6 people with luggage.

I agree. We spent 4 days pre cruise (one of which was jet lag recovery day) and we could have used at least one more.

I agree with this also. We spent three nights prior to our Epic cruise and I wish we had more. We left New York City at 8 pm. I was able to sleep on the plane. Hubby not so much. When we arrived In Rome we reserved a car to take us From airport to the hotel. Checked in and then went out again. We had a dinner and Rome by Night tour in the evening. We also took a car to Civitavecchia. We are in our sixties so this was easiest for us. Doing Rome pre or post cruise is a personal option.

My family used RomeInLimo for pre-cruise tours and also in some other Italian ports. I honestly can not say enough good things about them! All of the drivers spoke English, were professional, helpful and gave us great tours! If I were going back, they would be my first call to book something with. They will tailor tours to your needs - for instance, they picked us up at the airport and the driver sweet-talked his way at our hotel front desk to check in early and drop off our bags and quickly change, gave us a light tour of the city that day. We did a full day tour w guided Vatican guide the next day that was amazing! The third day we did a short morning tour on our way out to the port. The parking and driving in Rome is INSANE and I'm so glad we didn't try to manage it ourselves. Our driver would drop us off right in front of the attraction and often help us get past the queue:D