Civitavecchia with kids

[martodd]

We will be cruising on the Millennium leaving Barcelona June 30 with our three children 7, 10, 14. They are very good travelers and avid history buffs. What would you suggest for seeing Rome. Should we go with a ship tour(I do not know if I want to be at the mercy of a set tour and 40 other toursits) A private tour or do we attempt to take the train and see it on our own? If anyone could give advise that has done any of the above and how it would be with kids, it would be great. We will be going back to Rome for 2 days after the cruise ends in Venice so we do not need to see it all. Also, any hotel reccomendations in Rome. Thank you so much for your help and I am so happy I found these boards in time.

[BrenGina]

Check out www.driverinrome.com We used them with our kids (9 and 12) and had a blast. Took the Exclusive Best of Rome Tour. You will not be disappointed, especially if Remo is your driver!

[MorganTravel]

We were on the Millennium in the summer of 2001 and had no problem taking the train from Chivetavecchia (sp?) to Rome. It was a 3-block walk (or so) from the cruise port to the train station. I think we used a Rick Steve's book for touring Rome and it had clear enough instructions in it for catching the train.

 

The Vatican and all of the major sites in Rome were easily accessible to us via train.

 

Have a wonderful trip!

[I&MsMom]

Hi! We'll be in Rome with kids 4 and 8 in April. Since you will be returning for a post-cruise stay, I would suggest one of two strategies.

 

Either plan the day getting an overview of the city, possibly via the Hop-on, Hop-off bus or with a private driver. That way, you can see the things that don't require a great deal of time (Trevi Fountain, Spanish Steps, etc.), and you can spend your time after the cruise seeing things which require a bit of time (such as the Vatican).

 

Conversely, I would focus on one thing you know you would like to tour (the Collossem and the Roman Forum or the Vatican) and plan to spend the day doing just that.

 

Whatever you decide, enjoy your time and Rome and Happy Cruising!

[mpb43]

We spent a week in Rome this past summer with our three kids, ages 10, 8, and 3. Their favorite things were the Piazza Navona in the evening, gelato (of course) and surprisingly, the Vatican tour. We took the oldest two on a private tour of the Vatican with Vatican Tours and Beyond. We had a guide who was specifically kid-friendly. I was worried my children would not tolerate a 4 hour tour of a museum, but they loved it. The guide was great, and told wonderful stories about the artists and the history of the Vatican. They were sorry when it was over.

Enjoy your trip!:)

[martodd]

Thank you for the suggestions. I think we may try to go with the overview of Rome on our own the port day, and book a tour for our post cruise days. Thanks for the suggestion on the private tour and guide, I am going to check it out. It is so overwhelming, there is so much to see and so little time, and I want the kids to get the most it.