Roman Dilemma

[beer1234]

We seemed to have missed the ships quota for tours in Rome. Does anyone have suggestions for an off ship tour of Rome. You would think RCCL would have accommodations for as many as needed form the ship. Being Diamond Plus doesn't seem to help either. Thanks for any info offered.

[Clarea]

I suggest you look at TripAdvisor and the port of call forum:

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/464-italy-ports/

[swoopy2110]

Only one answer really, turf a Gold member off the tour so that a Diamond Plus Member can take the spot 🤷‍♂️

[Thisguylikestocruise]

I did a two week honeymoon in Rome. We stayed in a hotel and walked everywhere. There’s an ancient port town called Ostia Antica, it was really interesting. For those not seeing Pompeii, it’s a good option. Might be closer to the cruise port, don’t know for sure. A bus and train service that area.  Can’t remember the names of the tour companies we had in the city, all were excellent, it’s a great place to explore. 

Edited July 8, 2019 by Thisguylikestocruise

[bonsai3s]

11 minutes ago, beer1234 said:

We seemed to have missed the ships quota for tours in Rome. Does anyone have suggestions for an off ship tour of Rome. You would think RCCL would have accommodations for as many as needed form the ship. Being Diamond Plus doesn't seem to help either. Thanks for any info offered.

 

Would you consider DYI?  We've done it with two, 4, and 10 people in our group.  Relatively easy and simple.

Purchase a BIRG ticket (gives you access to the train to/from Rome and subway.)  Plan your day in Rome and just make sure you make it back on time. 

 

Here's a sample of a DIY we've done:

From Civitavecchia, we take the express train to Rome....local train will stop a few more times and will take a little longer than an hour.  We get off the San Pietro Station.  Outside the station, if you look up, you'll see the dome of St. Peter's Basilica...head that way.

From St. Peter's Basilica, walk towards the Tiber River and walk to Piazza Navona (where gladiators used to ride around where the fountains are now.)  From there, you can walk to the Pantheon...then Trevi Fountain.  If you are tired of walking, use your BIRG ticket and visit other sites...Colosseum, the Forum, perhaps the Spanish Steps.

We usually make our way to the main terminal (Termini) around 2pm or so....note: it's a long walk to the platform for Civitavecchia. 

[Hoopster95]

18 minutes ago, beer1234 said:

We seemed to have missed the ships quota for tours in Rome. Does anyone have suggestions for an off ship tour of Rome. You would think RCCL would have accommodations for as many as needed form the ship. Being Diamond Plus doesn't seem to help either. Thanks for any info offered.

 

Hi beer. I believe you are fortunate in this case... cruise line excursions normally cannot compare with private options which are usually less expensive and more encompassing than cruise line contracted tours. This is especially so for Europe from my experience. Google "Rome shore excursions" and you will find pages of options for various tours and companies on line.

[Tee & Chilli]

Try Rome in Limo. They have many tours to choose from and may you may be able to create your own.

Also, have you joined your roll call? Others may have space available.

[spunks]

the big question is why would you even consider taking a ships tour? You are on Cruise Critic....go to the thread of your cruise and you will find MANY private tours set up by your fellow passengers that are cheaper by half with less people and better guides.

 

Doug

[bobmacliberty]

If you would really prefer a ship's tour, they often hold spots on excursions for booking on the ship.  You'd need to wait until you board and then go immediately to the excursion desk.  Too risky for me.  We prefer to avoid ship excursions (see Hoopster's reply above), but I understand why some people like the comfort of the not missing the ship guarantee.  Technically though, you may be left at the port if your excursion is really late and it impacts the ship's ability to get to the next port on time.  Royal will just pay to transport you to the next port to meet the ship.

[ldasaro]

Try Viator.  I have used in other ports and have been looking at for Rome

[No Bananas]

There is an active thread on Italy Ports about several companies for off ship excursions. We used Italytoursharing in May for Naples and Rome. They were terrific. Good luck.

[Norwich Cruiser]

We suggest you try and set up a group we joined one from our roll call who had booked with Rome in limo eight of us in total they were a superb company and well worth the money.

We paid the extra for a guide who was superb we thought was a must she pre booked all entrance tickets on our behalf we had absolutely no standing in any lines and her knowledge was excellent.

Very highly recommend.

[little britain]

8 hours ago, bonsai3s said:

 

Would you consider DYI?  We've done it with two, 4, and 10 people in our group.  Relatively easy and simple.

Purchase a BIRG ticket (gives you access to the train to/from Rome and subway.)  Plan your day in Rome and just make sure you make it back on time. 

 

Here's a sample of a DIY we've done:

From Civitavecchia, we take the express train to Rome....local train will stop a few more times and will take a little longer than an hour.  We get off the San Pietro Station.  Outside the station, if you look up, you'll see the dome of St. Peter's Basilica...head that way.

From St. Peter's Basilica, walk towards the Tiber River and walk to Piazza Navona (where gladiators used to ride around where the fountains are now.)  From there, you can walk to the Pantheon...then Trevi Fountain.  If you are tired of walking, use your BIRG ticket and visit other sites...Colosseum, the Forum, perhaps the Spanish Steps.

We usually make our way to the main terminal (Termini) around 2pm or so....note: it's a long walk to the platform for Civitavecchia. 

Exactly! Perfect day trip.

I add that the shuttle bus from the port to civitavecchia station is €2pp and runs very regularly.

Buy the train tickets on line... €9.20 return.   We didn’t buy BIRG as we didn’t want the subway. 

 

[SimplyMarvie]

I'd totally DIY this -- Rome is such a wonderful city to walk in, and relatively easy to get around. If you're not into all the walking, we had a lovely time on the Hop-on, Hop-off bus in Rome (which surprised the crap out of me, since I usually hate those things...). It was a really easy way to get to see all the places we wanted to see without over-stressing my preschooler and his short legs. 

 

If you don't want to go into Rome, Ostia Antica is a very short distance from the Cruise Port and is a lovely, under-appreciated option. It's like Pompeii, minus the murals and all the people -- you can wander about fairly freely and explore the ruins including the insides of many of the houses, and there are trees on the site so it's shady and park-like and not as sunbaked as Pompeii. They have a small museum and a lovely cafe, and several restaurants nearby. I think it cost us $8 per person to get in. Highly recommended!

[TinkBellaMom]

We have used Rome in Limo before and we were very pleased.  Go to the website and check it out.  Remember the port is pretty far from the city, about an hour train ride.  You may be able to get them to come to the port.

[Crazy planning mom]

We used RomeCabs for our precruise tour and they were excellent.

https://www.romecabs.com/shoreexcursions/

Edited July 9, 2019 by Crazy planning mom

[Clarea]

Another vote for RomeCabs.  We used them to go from the airport (FCO) to our hotel in Civitavecchia.  They were ontime and the driver spoke perfect English.

[Travelgrrl]

When in Rome, we generally pay for the ship to shuttle us to Rome proper from the port, then do our own thing. You'll have time to either visit the Vatican / St. Peter's / Trevi Fountain area, or else to head to the Forum and Colosseum.  (Hard to do both justice in the time you have.)  You're dropped off in a central area near St. Peter's Square.

 

This is cheaper than a full tour, likely to have spots (they just add more buses), and allows you the freedom cited above!

[Cruiser24]

3 hours ago, Crazy planning mom said:

We used RomeCabs for our precruise tour and they were excellent.

https://www.romecabs.com/shoreexcursions/

Another vote for Rome Cabs.  Our guide was wonderful and we saw everything we wanted to see.  He took us to a local restaurant where I ate the best tomatoes of my life.  I still think about those!!

[sgmn]

59 minutes ago, Travelgrrl said:

When in Rome, we generally pay for the ship to shuttle us to Rome proper from the port, then do our own thing. You'll have time to either visit the Vatican / St. Peter's / Trevi Fountain area, or else to head to the Forum and Colosseum.  (Hard to do both justice in the time you have.)  You're dropped off in a central area near St. Peter's Square.

 

This is cheaper than a full tour, likely to have spots (they just add more buses), and allows you the freedom cited above!

We've done this twice, RC provide the transport but you are totally free to do your own thing in Rome. Don't forget to get the skip the queues tickets in advance for Vatican or other popular sites 

[cindivan]

Rome in limo was also great for us. 

 

 Not sure what your interests are but we have used Context Travel several places including Rome. Their tour guides are super knowledgable, often phds or history majors. We did the Vatican and coliseum while in Rome with our then 12-15yo kids. Our guide had an iPad and several books and as we were touring she was pulling up artist renditions of various statues and pictures or architecture that depicted what it looked like when originally sculpted, painted etc.     Super interesting vs just looking at it now.   

 

If you can get an underground tour of the coliseum that adds an extra interesting level,  no pun intended. Hard to get though because numbers are limited. Or at least it was when we went several years ago. 

 

We have also spent several days wandering around Rome on our own and there is plenty to see and do that way.