LIVE from ROME! November 1-5, 2018

[DragonOfTheSeas]

I am not live yet, but I will be on November 1st.  I have had a very helpful thread on this board since January.  So many people helped me plan my trip.  Therefore, I decided to post this live thread to let everyone know how it turned out.  Please ignore any errors in spelling etc.  I am typing on the fly. 

 

This is the link to the previous thread: 

 

I am sitting at the gate at Washington/Dulles Airport for our flight to Rome via Frankfurt.  . . . So it is not long now.  Here is that plan of attack we have and the cost of some of the attractions. If you have questions let me know and I will try to fins an answer. 

 

Thursday November 1. 2018

 

• ·        Then we will take a taxi to Ostia Antica [8  € pp]

   

Friday November 2, 2018

 

• ·        9:00 am--Transfer to Albergo del Senato Hotel on Piazza Della Rotonda; Civitavecchia Cab Service Private transfer [55 € for 4 passengers + luggage]

   

• ·        Drop off luggage & taxi to Colosseum, Forum and Palantine Hill

   

• ·        Pre-purchased tickets to Colosseum, etc [20 € pp]

   

• ·        Return to hotel for a rest

   

• ·        Visit sites in immediate area; Pantheon and/or Santa Maria Sopra Minerva

   

Saturday November 3,2018

 

• ·        Taxi to Vatican for 10 am tour

   

• ·        Pre-purchased Vatican Museum and St Peter’s Basilica 3 hr tour [38 € pp]

   

• ·        Lunch by St Anne’s Gate –FYI many restaurants near Vatican have poor reviews on TripAdvisor

   

• ·        Return to hotel for rest

   

• ·        Visit sites near the hotel: Santa Maria Maddalena [church]; San Crispino del Pantheon [gelato]; Largo Argentina [oldest ruins]

   

Sunday November 4, 2018

 

• ·        Walk to Relais Trevi 95 Hotel near Trevi Fountain to meet tour [approx.10 minutes]

   

• ·        Rome Golf Cart Tour  9:30AM 4 hour tour, organized by member of roll call on Cruise Critic [55 € pp] meet at hotel near Trevi Fountain

   

• ·        Find a place near Trevi fountain for lunch when tour ends. . . or on the way to Spanish steps

   

• ·        Walk to Spanish Steps ~10 minute walk. May be included in the tour. Elevator in the metro station that goes to the top of steps. [may be on tour]

   

• ·        Either taxi/walk back to hotel for rest or visit Victor Emanuel Monument and/or Imperial Forums.

   

Monday November 5, 2018

 

• ·        Last sites before we leave Rome: Walk the first part of Rick Steve’s “Heart of Rome walk.” Pantheon to Camp di Fiori  .5 miles” Pass Madama Palace [1400’s Medici]--Italy’s Senate building; Piazza Navano w/ fountains, Four Rivers by Bernini is most famous; Pasquino statue—a talking statue-people post signs, strikes and use it as a billboard:  Piazza Farnese—fountain uses tubs from Baths of Caracalla and fed from ancient aqueduct; Campo di Fiori--Market, fruit and veggie stalls and lots of souvenirs—only open in the AM, Statue of Bruno  [there are a couple more interesting churches near the Pantheon if we are still interested in those]

   

• ·        10:45am --Private transfer to ship from hotel [149 € for 4 passengers + luggage] 

 

[Lanz]

You are the BEST😊👍🏻  Safe travels.

[DragonOfTheSeas]

It looks like we have liquid sunshine in our future.    . . . But, at least we will avoid the flooding that is taking place in Venice.  

 

 

 

 

[DELTABLUE]

Count me along for the ride!  Ready to go when you are.😉

[DragonOfTheSeas]

3 minutes ago, DELTABLUE said:

Count me along for the ride!  Ready to go when you are.😉

Great!

 

Did you get a replacement cruise for the cancelled March 16 Grandeur cruise? 

 

[DELTABLUE]

Dragon...they found my cabin open on 5-30-19.  It is a 9 day to Bermuda, Nassau and Coco Cay.  Not the itinerary I would have chosen, and it will cost me more for 9 days than the 12 I had, but I have another booking!

[cruisemom42]

Here's hoping your weather is better than the forecast suggests. Think positive -- weather is very changeable.

Enjoy your adventure!

[karinad]

Looking forward to it! Have a great cruise!

[DragonOfTheSeas]

12 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

Here's hoping your weather is better than the forecast suggests. Think positive -- weather is very changeable.

Enjoy your adventure!

 

Yes--the forecast is not the best.  In fact, the storms this morning caused a slow down in air traffic to Rome. Our flight was delayed a little over an hour.  Also, it took a little longer than usual to get off the plane because everyone had to walked down a flight of stairs to the tarmac. Many had a heavy carry-on bag. [thankfully not us]  Then we took a bus to the terminal.  I am not sure if this is how all flights are handled.  

 

One of the Rome experts can confirm that.  If so, make sure you can handle your carry-on easily.

 

The casualty of the delay was our trip to Ostia Antica.  By the time we got our luggage and walked to the Hilton that is attached to the airport it was 3:30pm.  It closes at 4:30 this late in the season.  Those who visit in the summer/fall will find hours until 6pm. . . . But, hey! We are in Rome!!

 

*********************************************************************

One very positive note was immigration.  We had to show our passport in Frankfurt before we got on the flight to Rome.  There was 1 person in front of us. When it was our turn the agent asked 3-4 questions. Then we were finished. It took 2 minutes max. 

 

There was no customs or immigration in Rome.  If there was supposed to be we missed it.  There was a door that said "nothing to declare" [or something like that in Italian] and we took it.  This led to the area where  various tours and shuttle operators were holding signs with names on them.  So easy. 

Edited November 1, 2018 by DragonOfTheSeas

[TSUmom]

Following!!  Have a great time!

[marazul]

4 hours ago, DragonOfTheSeas said:

 

Also, it took a little longer than usual to get off the plane because everyone had to walked down a flight of stairs to the tarmac. Many had a heavy carry-on bag. [thankfully not us]  Then we took a bus to the terminal.  I am not sure if this is how all flights are handled.  

 

*********************************************************************

There was no customs or immigration in Rome.  If there was supposed to be we missed it.  There was a door that said "nothing to declare" [or something like that in Italian] and we took it.  This led to the area where  various tours and shuttle operators were holding signs with names on them.  So easy. 

 

You landed on the tarmac because your flight lost its gate due to the delay.  When there are many delays due to weather it is almost impossible to reschedule the gates, so the next best thing is the tarmac and bus.

 

There was no customs or immigration in Rome because you were flying in from another EU (actually, Schengen) country.  So, it is treated like a domestic flight would be in the US.  You went through immigration in Frankfurt.

 

Have a great trip.

Edited November 1, 2018 by marazul

[euro cruiser]

It's possible that your flight was never intended to come into a gate, it's a bit of a crapshoot at FCO.

 

Almost every flight I've ever taken on Alitalia landed on the tarmac, I just assumed they didn't have the money to pay for the gates.  The last time (which was three or four years ago) we did come into a gate, though.

[DragonOfTheSeas]

7 hours ago, marazul said:

 

You landed on the tarmac because your flight lost its gate due to the delay.  When there are many delays due to weather it is almost impossible to reschedule the gates, so the next best thing is the tarmac and bus.

 

There was no customs or immigration in Rome because you were flying in from another EU (actually, Schengen) country.  So, it is treated like a domestic flight would be in the US.  You went through immigration in Frankfurt.

 

Have a great trip.

Thanks. I agree the delay and flight scheduling may have been responsible for the tarmac/bus situation.  However, I saw several passengers struggle with luggage so I wanted to mention it.  

[DragonOfTheSeas]

5 hours ago, euro cruiser said:

It's possible that your flight was never intended to come into a gate, it's a bit of a crapshoot at FCO.

 

Almost every flight I've ever taken on Alitalia landed on the tarmac, I just assumed they didn't have the money to pay for the gates.  The last time (which was three or four years ago) we did come into a gate, though.

Thanks, I think this is important to remember when packing. . . . I noted that there is a very modern/new section to the airport.  We passed by on the bus--but, I could not tell if it was in use. 

[DragonOfTheSeas]

Our plans for today are to move to a hotel in the city.  We picked the hotel Albergo del Senato on the Piazza dell Rotonda.  It is on the square with the Pantheon.  It had good reviews on 
Trip Advisor, it is very centrally located, includes a breakfast, and there are lots of restaurants nearby.  There is a taxi stand on the piazza.  We thought that was important, too. Nothing says you are in Rome more than looking out of your hotel on the Pantheon.  

 

We thought our hotel was a good price.  We prepaid 530 euros about 4 months ago to get a lower price.  That is approximately  $610.  We could not get a similar hotel in a great location in a US city for that. 

 

I got some good advice years ago from cruise critic about selecting a location for a European pre-cruise hotel. The consensus was to either select a hotel that was convenient to your transportation choices [to from airport/cruise and local] and/or near an important attraction you plan to visit.  

 

For example, in Barcelona we stayed in a B & B that was 2 blocks off Las Ramblas and backed up to the Gothic Quarter.  There was a HOHO bus stop 2 blocks away. In London we stayed a couple of blocks from the Tower of London and on a tube line. We were able to walk around in the evenings and really get the "flavor" of the city. 

 

Many pax on our roll call are staying near the Termini train station.  There is a large group staying at Hotel Nord Neuvo Roma. I am not making a recommendation, but I will let you know what they think. It is convenient to take the train in from the airport and to the cruise port in Civitavecchia. . . . but it is not centrally located and we are not using the train for our transfers. 

 

 

[euro cruiser]

10 hours ago, DragonOfTheSeas said:

I got some good advice years ago from cruise critic about selecting a location for a European pre-cruise hotel. The consensus was to either select a hotel that was convenient to your transportation choices [to from airport/cruise and local] and/or near an important attraction you plan to visit.  

 

Many pax on our roll call are staying near the Termini train station.  There is a large group staying at Hotel Nord Neuvo Roma. I am not making a recommendation, but I will let you know what they think. It is convenient to take the train in from the airport and to the cruise port in Civitavecchia. . . . but it is not centrally located and we are not using the train for our transfers. 

 

So what is their reasoning for choosing that location, if you're not using the trains?

 

I've stayed relatively near Termini a few times, when I was only in town for the night before a flight home or because I was with a group and that's where we got the best rates.  Even though the historic center of Rome is pretty small, Termini is up on a hill making it more of a slog for walkers, and the bus and car traffic is awful making it less than ideal for those who use buses or cabs to get around.

[DragonOfTheSeas]

What a good day. . . . Actually it is not over, but I will write about our visit the Palantine Hill,  while I can remember it. We arrived via transfer  and dropped off our luggage at the hotel by 10 am.  We got a taxi to take us to the entrance to the Palantine Hill.  There were only a few people [maybe 5] in front of us at the ticket office where we exchanged our online voucher. If you need to purchase a ticket on the day of your visit this is THE place to do it.

 

It is a very serene location.  Lots of trees, ruins and well placed benches. Look at the picture below.  You can see the layout of the three locations within the complex.  I know the text is small but you can zoom in on the map.  

 

 

There are many nice ruins in the Palantine HIll. 

 

 

I will add more later.  I think we are going out for some more touring. 

 

[DragonOfTheSeas]

1 hour ago, euro cruiser said:

 

So what is their reasoning for choosing that location, if you're not using the trains?

 

I've stayed relatively near Termini a few times, when I was only in town for the night before a flight home or because I was with a group and that's where we got the best rates.  Even though the historic center of Rome is pretty small, Termini is up on a hill making it more of a slog for walkers, and the bus and car traffic is awful making it less than ideal for those who use buses or cabs to get around.

I will ask them.  I have always read that while the Termini area is convenient to the train it is not the most interesting part of the city.  Many do not recommend it. I have no personal experience with it.  I agree that if you are not taking the train that other areas seem better. 

 

We looked at taking the train to the port.  However, it is very complicated.  The tracks to Civitavecchia are not near the entrance to Termini [so long walk with luggage].  Then when you arrive in Civitavecchia you need to take a bus to the port entrance or walk there.  Then you need to take a port bus to the ship.  [Loading luggage each time you change]  I can see that a solo traveler might do that.  But for 4 of us sharing the cost we have a private transfer. 

Edited November 2, 2018 by DragonOfTheSeas

[DragonOfTheSeas]

Palantine Hill --Part 2:  Rome is doing more excavation work in this area.  We saw a mosaic floor they were uncovering.  You can see the white squares and how much they had to remove to uncover them.

 

 

They had rebuilt much of the theatre.  While it is not original it gives you a good view of what it was.  It is quite nice. 

[DragonOfTheSeas]

Next was the forum.  

 

 

The Forum was the area the public buildings were located in Rome.  

 

 

It was an incredible area. I have no idea how I got blue font. . . sorry.

[DELTABLUE]

Dragon...great pictures!  Thanx for sharing so many of them with us at home.  BTW...I like blue.😉

[DragonOfTheSeas]

Of course what everyone wants to see in Rome is the Colosseum.  While the sheer size of the structure and the fact 60,000 Roman participated in a spectacle  is impressive, I enjoyed the Forum more. 

 

The best views of the Colosseum are from the Palantine Hill and the Forum.

 

 

We had skip the line tickets.  When we go to the correct line there were at lesst 300 people in front of us.  We felt this was not really skip the line.  However, the line moved quickly.  We go to the front by around 1.15pm for a 1:30 tour time.  They had us move aside and asked for 1;-1:15 pm tickets.  You can see there were not any.  When she announced our time several hundred people were let in.  So--do not let the line scare you. 

 

The people standing in the dungeon area had special tickets. 

 

 

 

 

This was as far as we could go down.  It was enough. 

 

Rather than a tour with a person we chose an audio visual guide.  It came with s small phone-like tablet. [smaller than my Galaxy Phone. It was OK.  . . .  I do not think I would have wanted one of the tours.  We were tired by then.

 

 

 

[Alaskanb]

We will be there early November next year so following your adventure. 🙂

[Kittie Ladie]

Looking forward to following your adventures in Rome after reading your other thread preparing for this trip. Next August we are on a Venice to Rome cruise, spending two nights in Venice pre-cruise and two nights in Rome post cruise. Got great ideas from your other thread and even booked the Albergo del Senato for our two nights in Rome. So thank you and those who participated in offering suggestions. Now can't wait to read all about it. Wishing you a wonderful time and dreaming about our vacation next year. 

[DragonOfTheSeas]

7 hours ago, Kittie Ladie said:

Looking forward to following your adventures in Rome after reading your other thread preparing for this trip. Next August we are on a Venice to Rome cruise, spending two nights in Venice pre-cruise and two nights in Rome post cruise. Got great ideas from your other thread and even booked the Albergo del Senato for our two nights in Rome. So thank you and those who participated in offering suggestions. Now can't wait to read all about it. Wishing you a wonderful time and dreaming about our vacation next year. 

 

Thank you for following along.  This trip has been an adventure for many on this cruise.  One person on the roll call ended up with 26 hrs worth of flights and delays.  

 

Another group on our roll call  is in Venice pre-cruise and taking the train to Rome tomorrow.  The post below is from her. Yikes. 

•  

Posted 16 hours ago

Hi everyone! I bet no one had as wet of an experience as we did! We got caught in the flooding in Venice! Our rental house had 3" of water on the lower level. Plus, Karen and I stayed out a bit longer the worst day and ended up walking back in water up to the top of our thighs!  We had bought the booties,  but it went over our knees, and eventually thigh high!  Quite the experience

Edited November 3, 2018 by DragonOfTheSeas