Civitavecchia to Rome by train

[euro cruiser]

Second, what exactly do you plan to do at the Vatican? You need to be very practical. In the amount of time you have, you won't be able to see much if anything in the Museum, but if your hearts are set on the Sistine chapel, you will just have to rocket through. If you take the "shortcut" from the Sistine into St Peters, you may be able to take just a peek inside, then see the colonnade, then leave for the train station.

Good point Cynthia. I had assumed they were talking about the basilica, not the museums. I don't think even a run through the muesums is feasible in this plan, especially since I suspect they will take longer at the Colosseum than they expect.

[PC168]

We will have a plan B if we have time constraint in the Colosium, we will skip the Spanish Step; make quick through the Pantheon and the Trevi.(Can we actually walk from the Colosium to the Pantheon?)

 

On the side note, we are fast people as we travel all the time, my kids are used to it. (We did Disney world in MCO in half day with most of the good rides). Having said that, we still have to be very careful and not to miss the boat. We heard the cruise PA kept calling people's names all the time as the boat were ready to leave and people not able to make it back to the cruise, of course we don't want to be one of them. As for the St. Pietro/Vatican, we will do the basillica, and not the museum, knowing museum takes longer time. This is it, save money and see more things, if in future, we will spend at least a week in Italy...

 

Thank you very much for your comments. Appreciated...

[euro cruiser]

We will have a plan B if we have time constraint in the Colosium, we will skip the Spanish Step; make quick through the Pantheon and the Trevi.(Can we actually walk from the Colosium to the Pantheon?)

Yes, you can walk it. We did it this summer in the heat of July, we just needed more water than other times.

 

From the Colosseum, you might as well walk through the Forum since (a) it's right there and (b) you've already paid for the ticket (it's a combo ticket with the Colosseum).

 

At the opposite end of the Forum from the Colosseum there is a staircase that takes you up to the Campodoglio. From there you walk down Michaelangelo's cordonata, cross the street and walk along the edge of the Jewish ghetto toward Gesu, and on to the Pantheon. Maybe ten minutes, tops, from Campodoglio, less if you are fast walkers.

[bridling]

I have read that these sometimes can get crowded and walking is sometimes faster in Rome. We are coming on a cruise April 28, 2010 for the day. I had planned on taking the train into Rome and then to the termini station where the HoHo buses run. Is it better to take the metro and get the BIRG ticket instead. Sounds less money that the HoHo because I seen a price of 27.00 E for this and the BIRG ticket looks like 12E.

[euro cruiser]

The BIRG is only 9 Euro, significantly less than the HOHO bus. As long as you are able to walk, that's the best way to see Rome, with the occasional bus or metro thrown in.

[roninrome]

Since I ride the buses often, I'd propose it's much faster to ride the 85/850 to the 2nd stop on the Via dei Corso to get to the Pantheon... rather than walk from the Colosseo. Also, since the entrance to the Forum is now halfway down the Via dei Fori Imperiali (since March 2008) I'm not sure walking through the Forum is the best alternative unless you plan just to see the southwest side of it. But Campodoglio is GREAT and the views from teh Vittoriano are wonderful - especially if you do not have time to climb the cupola at St. Peter's. I would agree that seeing the Sistine Chapel on a "cruise day" is tough. Once you're in the Vatican Museums, you're in... and you have to be aware of the time.

 

Ron in Rome

[Softball20]

Since I ride the buses often, I'd propose it's much faster to ride the 85/850 to the 2nd stop on the Via dei Corso to get to the Pantheon... rather than walk from the Colosseo. Also, since the entrance to the Forum is now halfway down the Via dei Fori Imperiali (since March 2008) I'm not sure walking through the Forum is the best alternative unless you plan just to see the southwest side of it. But Campodoglio is GREAT and the views from teh Vittoriano are wonderful - especially if you do not have time to climb the cupola at St. Peter's. I would agree that seeing the Sistine Chapel on a "cruise day" is tough. Once you're in the Vatican Museums, you're in... and you have to be aware of the time.

 

Ron in Rome

 

We did the Vatican/Sistine Chapel on a cruise stop, but it was pretty much all we did. We took the ship's transportation to Rome, which dumped us off near the statue of Triton. From there, we had a little time before we had to be at St. Peters, so we walked past by the Trevi and Pantheon as we made our way. I think that we ended up getting a taxi for the rest of the way. We had a private guide already lined up that we met in a cafe across from the entrance. I believe that we did about a three or so hour tour. Three hours isn't a lot of time, but it certainly gave us a lot to see. Our guide was really good, and it's a good idea to have one, especially if time is limited. After we were done there we were able to have some pizza (great pizza place about six blocks from the Vatican - San Marco, I believe) before we made our way back to the meeting place.

[euro cruiser]

Since I ride the buses often, I'd propose it's much faster to ride the 85/850 to the 2nd stop on the Via dei Corso to get to the Pantheon... rather than walk from the Colosseo. Also, since the entrance to the Forum is now halfway down the Via dei Fori Imperiali (since March 2008) I'm not sure walking through the Forum is the best alternative unless you plan just to see the southwest side of it.

I keep forgetting about the closing of the entrance to the Via Sacra near the Colosseum. I probably wasn't clear in my response that it would not be faster to walk the entire way, but if the poster was interested in seeing the Forum, once through it's an easy walk from Campodoglio to the Pantheon.

[PC168]

Colosseum, St. Pietro Basillica, the Pantheon & Trevi passes do we have to buy in advance? Can we buy at the entrance and what does it cover and cost for adults & youth? Thanks.

[MAKEM]

I'm sure someone who has done this will respond with accurate information; all I can tell you is that I've never been able to buy any kind of combination ticket at Fiumicino. The newstand at the train station at Fiumicino only sells daily tickets; I couldn't even buy a weekly or multi day ticket there the last couple of times I tried.

 

If you are only using the ticket to go to Civitavecchia, and will not be using it to travel in Rome, you'll be almost as well off to simply buy the one way ticket to Civitavecchia and pay separately for your transport from Ciampino to Termini.

 

You can take the train from Ciampino to Termini, but to get to the train station requires a ten minute (approximately) walk or a bus ride.

 

There is an easier option: a direct bus from the terminal at Ciampino to Termini. It's run by Terravision and costs 8 Euro one way. The trip takes 40 minutes (faster than the walk or bus to the train option) and you can read about it here (and buy your ticket on line, if you want): http://www.terravision.eu/rome_ciampino.html

 

thanks for that info,

 

the bus & train could be the way I go,finally depends which hotel I book for the night Near Ciampino airport,then onto Civitavecchia next day

[euro cruiser]

Colosseum, St. Pietro Basillica, the Pantheon & Trevi passes do we have to buy in advance? Can we buy at the entrance and what does it cover and cost for adults & youth? Thanks.

It is possible to buy the Colosseum ticket in advance on line, for an additional fee. Another option is to walk about a block beyond the Colosseum to the Palatine hill ticket office and buy it there; the line is generally shorter (or non-existent) there (the Colosseum, Palatine Hill and Forum are a combination ticket, there is no option to buy the Colosseum entrance alone).

 

The basilica, Pantheon and Trevi fountain are all free, no tickets.

[euro cruiser]

the bus & train could be the way I go,finally depends which hotel I book for the night Near Ciampino airport,then onto Civitavecchia next day

If you are staying near Ciampino, there are hotels within walking distance of the train station, so it will be easy to take the train to Termini the next morning.

 

Odds are you'll need to take the public bus into town (Ciampino) or a taxi from the airport to get to the hotels. Here in the States we take for granted that airport area hotels will provide free shuttle service to the airport and back, but that hasn't been my experience in Rome, it's hard to find one that does.

[MAKEM]

If you are staying near Ciampino, there are hotels within walking distance of the train station, so it will be easy to take the train to Termini the next morning.

 

Odds are you'll need to take the public bus into town (Ciampino) or a taxi from the airport to get to the hotels. Here in the States we take for granted that airport area hotels will provide free shuttle service to the airport and back, but that hasn't been my experience in Rome, it's hard to find one that does.

 

It is highly unusual for hotels in Europe to provide shuttle service, But found 1 near Ciampano Airport

[imru12]

I will be in Rome in November.So far all the information given is great. I plan on doing a lot of walking around Rome. I plan on taking the train from the port to Ostiense and then the metro to Colosseum.Which train station should I use to get back to the port? I was thinking of not going near the Vatican because I was told Wednesday is the Popes mass and it would be really crowded.:eek: Should I head towards St.Peters in the afternoon anyway and take the train back to the port there. Any advice would be appreciated.

[jay44]

Hi Ron, the links you gave on your excellent entry summing up getting from the Port to the Termini do not work for me.

 

Is there a problem with them or is it just me?

 

Thanks:)

[patrickmoran]

irmu12,

We were at the Vatican on a Wednesday afternoon and Thursday in November. The line to get into St Peter's was much longer Wednesday pm than anytime on Thursday. I am assuming that people that attend the Pope's appearance add to the usual crowds.

It took about 45 minutes to get into St Peter's Wed pm and it was a long line. So it moves. After doing St. P's,we walked over to the train station. Finding it was a little tricky but we just kept asking directions and people were very helpful and pointed us in the right direction. The train out of San Pietro will be very crowded and you will probably have to stand for a couple of stops (15- 30 minutes) before enough people get off to snag seats.