euro cruiser

There is a Trenitalia station in Chioggia, about 1.4 km/nine-tenths of a mile from the cruise port. Only a few trains each morning depart from Chioggia, and all trains from there to Venice require a change along the way, at either Adria (35 km/22 miles away) or Rovigo (53 km/33 miles away). With luggage, this is not going to be an easy trip. If you are light packers who can manage a mile walk with your bags, the train is a great budget option. Otherwise, I would contact at least a couple of car service or taxi companies and get estimates for (1) a car to Venice Piazzale Roma and (2) a car to the Rovigo train station (I chose this one because there are more trains from here to Venice than from Adria, and it's a faster train ride). Unless the car to Rovigo is significantly less expensive than to Venice, I'd probably bite the bullet and pay for the ride the entire way, posting on the roll call for your cruise to see if you can share the cost with others. If there is a big difference, then I'd take the ride to Rovigo and the train from there. Whatever you do for this first part of the transfer, there will be another segment once in Venice. Pack your patience because it's going to be a cumbersome morning.

Great, I'm happy you're going to have your day in Florence, and thanks for sharing the process.

Do you mean Piazza del Popolo? I don't know that I've ever heard it used in translation before. CoopCulture is the official ticket seller for the Colosseum.

According to what you've quoted, only the morning train is at issue. Although it would leave Termini before the strike begins, it would be en-route so they won't leave, rather than stop along the way. I don't have any experience with the app but if this is important to you, follow their suggestion to call them and change to an earlier train that will arrive to Florence before 9:00. If you don't move quickly these trains will be sold out. There are two options, at 6:40 and 6:55.

No! Italia rail is a reseller, buy directly from the train operators. Check both national lines to find the best combination of time and price for your trip. EN - Trenitalia Italy high speed train tickets| Italotreno.it - Official website Train prices vary based on demand, similar to airfares. That's why it pays to check both operators, the service they offer is comparable.

Yeah, I thought of that but you and I are probably the only two who would choose that over the palace.

Either the car service or taxi will work, if both big bags won't fit in the trunk they'll simply place one in the front passenger seat. The train is fine but unless you are staying near Termini, you'll have the additional cost of a taxi to your hotel from Termini. At that point you might as well pay for the taxi from the airport. Also consider that you'll be coming off a long flight, with a six hour time change. This is probably not the place to skimp, especially if you don't speak Italian and/or don't know where you are going.

If you really want to see the Amalfi Coast, you could hire a car service to pick you up at the port and spend the day along the coast, ending in Salerno where you could get a direct high speed train to Rome. Both Trenitalia and Italotreno have trains on this route. If you decide to drive to Rome, the most obvious stopping point along the way would be the royal palace and gardens at Caserta.

If this is the hotel (Hotel San Giuliano – Venice – Official Website) it's not at San Marco, it's in Mestre about 2.2 km/one and a half miles on foot from the train station. That may be a bit too far to walk with luggage, you might ask the hotel to call you a taxi. The Feel Inn is a little further away but it's on the route of a local bus that you could take to the train station, they give directions on their website: From the train station of Mestre - Feel inn Venice Hotel

Would you share the name of the hotel? Mestre is on the mainland while San Marco is out among the islands, two different places. The Venice Mestre train station is easy to find, not too hard to navigate. The address is Viale Stazione 8/8c, 30171 Mestre Italia. If you make a google map you'll see a large bus depot.

I have taken the ferry, but in the off-season so crowding wasn't an issue. As I said, I would only buy a day or two in advance when you have a good sense of the weather. Especially with such a large group, waiting until the day of may mean waiting for a later ferry, or not getting a return ferry at the time you need. Unlike the regional trains, the ferries do have a strict limit on capacity.

You're not allowed to walk out of the port, it's a combination military and industrial port. The shuttle bus is required (or so we were told).

You shouldn't have any problem, based on your self description. I would as about the specifics for this excursion as cruise lines are notorious for obfuscating with their descriptions. Many cruisers discover that their stop at Positano is nothing more than a photo opportunity from the road above, with no time in the village itself. Buses cannot enter the village.

According to the web site, a daily ticket is 40 euro for adults (those 12 and over), 15 euro for kids between 6 - 11, and free for infants to 5 years of age.

There is a bus that takes you from the ship to the cruise terminal in La Spezia, located at Largo Michele Fiorillo. From there to the ferry pier is 600 meters/four-tenths of a mile along the waterfront, an easy walk. You should have no problem making the 9:15 ferry. With a group that large, I would look into a group rate. It may be advantageous to buy a full day "hopper" kind of ticket, but it would be best to reach out to the company and ask about it. They have contact information here: Navigazione Golfo dei Poeti - Contact our admin offices and billing

There may be some confusion caused by rail passes, which are almost never a good economic decision in Italy. For those, even with the pass, you must make a reservation for a seat-reserved train (IC, Frecce) and pay the reservation fee on top of the pass.

It never has been in the past, but with record numbers of visitors last year (and so far this year), I'm not sure how informative past performance is. If it's critically important to you, then I would make the reservation but not until a few days before, when you have a good sense of the weather, which could impact your decision. Navigazione Golfo dei Poeti - Cinque Terre Ferry Schedules

The cruise port in Palermo is quite close to the historic part of the city. Palermo Centrale train station, for example, is 2.7 km/one and a quarter miles from the port, and is just past the historic center area. The cruise port for Salerno is at Molo Manfredi, you can get some ferries from there to the Amalfi Coast or walk 2.3 km/1.4 miles along the waterfront promenade to the Concordia docks for a larger selection of ferries. Salerno train station is about the same distance as the Concordia dock, for trips further out of town.

There is a port link bus to the station for 6 euro per person. Shuttles | Port Mobility Civitavecchia

I don't know if they offer ebikes. It wouldn't make a big difference anyway, as Lucca is completely flat and not very big. At any rate, here is the list of bike rental places on the Lucca tourism website: Bicycle rentals | Turismo Lucca

Genoa is marginally closer to Cinque Terre than Livorno, about twenty minutes less travel time. Which to see is down to your personal interests and preferences. Of course, with the longer travel time (vs. Portofino etc.) you'd have less on-the-ground time in Cinque Terre, so that's a factor to consider as well.

No, these are one-day only tickets. And they only make economic sense if you'll be needing round trip train fare between Rome and Civitavecchia. If you'll be staying in Rome there are day tickets for just the city itself.

On the FCO airport web site they state that Fast Track is available at Terminal 1 and Terminal 3: Priority access to the Fast-Track gate in Terminal 1 and Terminal 3 for travellers wishing to go through security without queuing. Service cost: 7 euros per passenger (free for passengers from 0 to 12 years old when accompanied by a paying adult). If you wish to buy the Fast Track service for priority access to security checks at Rome Fiumicino, please go to the Rome Airports portal at the following link. The above is copied from here.

If you were docking in La Spezia I would say go for it, as there is a ferry connection very close to the cruise port. From Livorno, however, it's a long and expensive trip just to get there and back and it's simply not worth it.

Italia Rail is a reseller, deal directly with the train companies. Both Trenitalia and Italotreno offer service on this route, check both to find the best combination of time and price for your trip. When you purchase from the train operator you'll get everything you need with one purchase. EN - Trenitalia Italy high speed train tickets| Italotreno.it - Official website