Transfers from Civitavecchia

[3girls]

Just booked transfers with Rome Limousine. They are requesting payment for the return trip to the airport from Civitavecchia at the time they take us to the port. They also talk about "paypal". Could someone explain "paypal" and is it the norm to pay for the return trip before the cruise? I guess they want to make sure we have enough money left.:o

[Aussie Gal]

We used Bob of RomeLimousines for our transfer two years ago from Civitavecchia to the airport. No way would I pay for any transfer or tour before we received it. Bob did not need any deposit. He was most reliable and his emails were prompt.

 

I have used paypal when I had to send a deposit for a cruise we are doing in South America next year. It is very easy to use. You do have to join up and they take out money before the actual payment goes through and then credit it back to you. That is a bit complicated.

 

Again I wouldn't be bothered with that as most tour guides in Europe do not require a deposit or payment in full before receiving their services.

 

Jennie

[Juliadlf]

I also checked with this company for transfers from the port to our hotel in rome.They told me the same thing to prepay through paypal if we decided to book with them. I assumed this was normal practice to prepay. From the message from Aussie Gal, I guess not:confused:

[Cleopatra]

Though others seem to think a private and, by the way quite costly way to transfer to Rome from Civitaveccia is to hire a private driver, I suggest you consider taking the train. It is really quite painless as well as inexpensive. When you disembark, look for the free shuttle bus that circles the port. It will deliver you to the train station in Civitavecchia where you can purchase tickets to Rome Termini and/or the airport. We had little luggage, but our friends travel quite heavy and even with 6 suitcases, the transfer was easily accomplished. The savings is substantial. We paid about 7 Euros for two (second class) to travel to Rome. From Termini we took a cab to our hotel near the Roman Forum which cost 11 euros. As an additional note, we are in our 60's and have both had back surgery. No ill effects noted using public transportation.

[md1jw]

This is exactly what we did. We got a train from Rome to the port, however, we then got a taxi from the port railway station to the ship - it was painless. It was just as easy on the return.

[Juliadlf]

:rolleyes: I've heard that sometimes in Italy there are strikes. Have you had any experience with encountering this problem?

[3girls]

My concern with that is our return trip. Our flight home is the same day we disembark at 1:50pm at FCO. I'm concerned about the added stress of making it to the airport in time. This is our first cruise (and our first trip to Italy) so we are a bit (very) inexperienced.

[Cleopatra]

If getting anywhere in Italy in a timely way is a concern, the train runs on schedule and is not subject to traffic jams on the Autostrada as cars are. Rail strikes as well as other walkouts do occur, but usually for a limited number of hours well announced. Trying to cover every possible contingency will make you crazy which I assume is something you'd like to avoid on a pleasure trip to Italy. Hire a car transport or take a train and consider your decision the right one for you. Enjoy your trip!

[Leejnd4]

There was a train strike on the day after we disembarked last week, which was a real problem for us as we were staying in a hotel about 90 min. north of Rome, and wanted to go back into the city the next day in order to meet up with friends from the cruise. We would have been able to take the train easily, but due to the strike we ended up driving into the city in our rental car, apparently along with half of Italy. Note to self: NEVER try to drive in Rome again! The old adage that "all roads lead to Rome" is simply not true -- all roads lead OUT of Rome, one-way, the WRONG way!

 

Anyway, this is a bit off-topic, but just to let you know train strikes do happen, although as mentioned they do give notice. However, you may not hear of that notice yourself -- we only found out because when we went to pick up our rental car the day before the strike, the office was jam-packed with people trying to rent cars in anticipation of the train strike the next day.

 

The transfer provided by your ship isn't a bad option, although they don't take you right to your hotel, however as mentioned, cabs are easily obtainable in the city.

 

LeeAnne

[reanbr2000]

Cleopatra, thanks for posting those train prices. Is there a website for the trains that you used? I looked at raileurope.com, and it showed two tickets for $77.

 

This is our first cruise (and first time in Italy) so any info is appreciated!

 

Thanks! :)

 

Rebekah

[TT]

We are cruising from Rome on 10/7 and we used the roll call boards and have #1. found great new friends and #2. will go in a group for transfers at a lower rate. Who knows maybe your going with us this fall.

 

Enjoy your trip. I know the CC Board members and I will enjoy our first Europe cruise.

 

Toma

[Cleopatra]

reanbr2000

The website for Italian train schedules, similar to Amtrak in the US is: www.trenitalia.com Look for English on the upper left of the site and then put in the place names you want to leave from and arrive at. When I last looked, a ticket for one person from Civitavecchia to Rome was 4.10 EU.

[Aussie Gal]

When we disembarked in September, 2003 there was no shuttle bus to the station. In fact it was quite a long walk and with suitcases it would be impossible for us anyhow. Italy is notorious also for train strikes, they can happen at anytime and it would be horrific if you missed your flight home because you were trying to save some dollars. Think how much your cruise and airfare has cost. The cost of the car is such a small percentage of that money.

 

 

There were also no taxis and I was pleased that we had booked our driver who was waiting for us. We had a 12.30pm flight, so couldn't mess around as you need to be at the airport at least 2 hours prior and Rome airport is not the most efficient.

 

I didn't consider the amount we paid to be excessive as the ship's transfer was a lot more than what we paid and that is with 40 other people. We were in a lovely airconditioned Mercedes and we were also given a present of a bottle of Italian wine for booking that company.

 

As I mentioned I did not pay up front. I probably gave him my credit card number in case we didn't turn up. I know we paid cash and it was a cheaper rate than using the credit card.

 

Jennie

[mtl]

This is exactly what we did. We got a train from Rome to the port, however, we then got a taxi from the port railway station to the ship - it was painless. It was just as easy on the return.

 

Would you mind telling us how much you paid for the taxi ride from the Civitavechia port station to the ship? My husband says we should walk instead, but I'm worried (I'm not in my best shape) Besides we would be carrying all our luggage. How far would it be to walk?

Thanks,

Maria

[Cleopatra]

The distance from the train station in Civitavecchia to the point where the port shuttle bus picks up and drops off is three blocks. The bus circles the port so no matter where or how far out the ship is docked, the bus is available. The only walking is the three blocks. We travel very light - carry-ons only, so luggage isn't a problem.

[3girls]

Just to clarify...I wasn't asked to prepay the transfers from the hotel or to the cruise ship, only the trip back from the port to the airport.

[Aussie Gal]

I would go for the private transfer from the port to the airport. As I mentioned our driver was waiting for us when we disembarked - he was 30 minutes early which was great. We headed for the airport just after 8.30am and our flight was leaving at 12.30pm. We were held up in a traffic jam for 40 minutes but we arrived at the airport with time to spare. In fact we were able to claim our VAT back and that usually takes ages.

 

Have you suggested to Romelimousines that you give them your card number and they take out the money only if you don't show up at the dock. Obviously they can book their cars for transfers and sightseeing on that day and therefore want to make sure that you are going to use their services.

 

If they have been recommended on this Board, then I don't think you have anything to worry about. As I mentioned earlier I have used Paypal to pay a deposit to a firm in Ecaudor and that went through beautifully.

 

Goodluck and have a great cruise.

 

Jennie

[dbh62ark]

We’ve done this route many times, so maybe I can help to answer some of the questions. Like Cleopatra, we had no problems with luggage or with using the train from Civitavecchia to Rome as recently as May of last year, but each passenger should evaluate their luggage situation and physical situation independently to make a decision because I’ve read complaints from some board members about stairs, etc. I know this is not a problem in Rome Termini but assume that some have had problems in Civitavecchia.

 

The taxi drivers were charging 10 Euros per vehicle (not per person) to go from the ship’s docks in Civitavecchia to the train station in Civitavecchia. It’s a rip off, but we weren’t going to drag our luggage uphill, and the dock there is a dirty, busy industrial dock, so it’s not a great idea to be walking around there anyway.

 

The train strikes don’t occur frequently, but if it happens to you, it’s 100%. The taxis frequently go on strike in Rome, and it’s just a big game because then the other taxi drivers charge more. I always recommend that passengers have a back-up plan, especially when leaving the port to catch a flight. 3girls, you and you alone can evaluate your risk tolerance, and you may be able to resolve the whole issue by checking on your roll call board to find others to share a transfer with you. I enjoy riding the trains, and some others do it primarily for the cost savings; however, since you have a plane to catch, if you split the cost of a transfer, it will be about the same as the taxi drive plus two train fares (Civitavecchia to Rome Termini and Rome Termini to the airport). I just take it case by case and think that a door-to-door private driver transfer at the end of a cruise might be more appealing to me than a 3-step journey to the airport. The ship’s door-to-door transfer to the airport might also be a good option for you to ensure that you don’t take a chance on missing your flight, but I think the going rate for the ship’s transfer is about $100 per person, and you can surely reduce that by hiring a driver with some other passengers.

 

Last May and on several previous trips to the area, the taxi drivers were charging $200 U.S. per car to drive passengers from Civitavecchia into Rome or to the airport. I just don’t think that’s the best option.

 

Rebekah, the 7 Euros each for 2nd class last May (for some reason, I noted that our train had only 2nd class cars because we would have booked 1st class based on our experiences traveling the trains in Europe and being a bit uncomfortable with lots of people in the train car and our luggage being in the luggage area at the end of the car for security reasons). That http://www.raileurope.com site is a mixed bag. It is quick and easy to use to check a lot of different routes (we are very creative with our itineraries), but I’ve found that the trains run more frequently than listed on the site and the prices are often cheaper when buying tickets directly overseas. I assume you are paying some sort of a mark-up by using the site’s services because it is kind of like a travel agency. There is absolutely no need to buy train tickets in advance for the route between Civitavecchia and Rome, and there is no cost savings for booking in advance. (You do need tickets in advance for some trains in Europe like the Eurostar chunnel trains.) Try http://www.trenitalia.com/en/index.html.

 

3girls, PayPal is a money transfer service, and it is very widely known to eBay users. :) I think eBay bought PayPal. A lot of businesses now use it for the convenience of consumers (my cousin who owns a photography studio uses it). If you are uncomfortable with the money situation, I use my credit card through PayPal, and you can dispute a credit card charge within 60 days from the date on your statement. So if you’re not comfortable paying ahead, just pay within that timeframe, and you can dispute, but I doubt that you would need to so that’s just insurance for you. So I just wanted to let you know that PayPal is a well-known and reputable company. Generally, I don’t recommend paying private drivers in advance because other drivers don’t require that, but do what you think is best and what fits your comfort level.

 

Happy travels to all,

Donna

[dbh62ark]

Rebekah, sorry--I was trying to be very clear in my post to avoid any further misunderstandings and realize that I overlooked one item. We paid 7 Euros for the train from Civitavecchia to ROME TERMINI, but if you are then going on to the airport, you would need to change to another train to go to the airport for about 10 Euros. So the combined fare would be about 34 Euros for 2 passengers plus the 10 Euro cost of the taxi from the dock to the train station in Civitavecchia, which you can probably share with some other passengers (we had 4 in our vehicle last year). But the 34 Euro charge will give you an idea of the mark-up on the http://www.raileurope.com site.

 

Donna

[mtl]

The distance from the train station in Civitavecchia to the point where the port shuttle bus picks up and drops off is three blocks. The bus circles the port so no matter where or how far out the ship is docked, the bus is available. The only walking is the three blocks. We travel very light - carry-ons only, so luggage isn't a problem.

 

Thanks for this information. Three blocks is a perfect distance for us. I'll tell the kids to pack lightly as we are each carrying our own piece of luggage. I feel much better now!

Thanks again :D :D :D

[rinny]

:confused: How much time should I allow to get to the train station from the airport(fcm)? I'd like to book the train ticket i nadvance, but don't want to make it a rush to make a tight schedule.

 

 

Thanks!