Rome Port Transfer Time — Help!

[Ejmil]

Hello Cruisers,

I have stupidly booked an 11:15am international flight from Rome FCO airport on the same day as my cruise docks. The ship is scheduled to return at 6:00am.

What are my chances of getting to the airport by 9am?

There are no later flights to change to and non the following day so I really want to take the flight.

 

Thank you :)

[jodaytona]

The ship should be able to help you off first but seems testy to say the least

 

 

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[paul929207]

I would be sure to be in the first walk off group. You will have to carry all your luggage. Have a car service pre-booked.

 

Say your prayers for a little help from above.

[CruiserBruce]

Welcome to Cruise Critic!

 

If you look on the Italy board, here:

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=595

 

You will see this topic discussed almost daily. As others have mentioned, this will be stressful, but it is doable. You need to arrange your own transport (a car service, like the Wonderful Rome in Limo), and be off the ship ASAP.

 

If you are on a flight direct to the US, you need to be there closer to 3 hours in advance.

 

And, hopefully you understand the issue of knowing and understanding the logistics required before you book the flight. For some reason, flights out of Rome tend to have schedule changes that tend to move the flight up (make the departure earlier).

[Hlitner]

We have often taken an earlier flight with more then enough time. Our normal flight out of FCO departs at 10:50....although we have also made a flight at 10:20...with little problem. Its generally a good idea to arrange for a private transfer (we use Romecabs.com) and have your pick-up time arranged for about 7:30. Your driver will then be waiting. You should then use Express Disembarkation which means you must carry off all of your luggage...but this puts you in the first group to leave the ship. In most cases you can be off the ship by 7 (if you want). If you meet your driver around 7:30 you should be at FCO by 8:30.

 

There are a few factors which really help at this particular port. Civitavecchia does not have any immigration or customs hassles so its generally just a matter of walking off the ship and finding your ride. And the drive to FCO is normally pretty easy as most of its on a fast Autostrade .

 

For those that broker in negative thoughts..,yes things can certainly go wrong. It is always possible that any ship can dock late due to mechanical problems or awful weather. or...perhaps a flaming meteor could hit the gangplank and delay disembarkation. And then there is the chance of a major 40 car/truck accident on the Autostrade. I guess it is also possible that something happens to your booked car/driver and he/she does not get to the port (if this happens you simply grab a taxi from the port). If you want to reduce the risk of missing your flight...why not spend a month in Rome...and head out to FCO 1 or 2 days before your flight.

 

Hank

[shipgeeks]

We used the ship transfer both times we did this, and in both cases we got to the airport in plenty of time (even before our airline opened, the first time). It was nice having that priority disembarkation, assistance with luggage at the airport, and transportation to the correct terminal.

[CruiserBruce]

We used the ship transfer both times we did this, and in both cases we got to the airport in plenty of time (even before our airline opened, the first time). It was nice having that priority disembarkation, assistance with luggage at the airport, and transportation to the correct terminal.

 

But without knowing what time your ship docked and what time your flight was, we can't apply this to the OP's situation to determine if it helps or not.

[jdvmd]

I think it will be fine. Carry off your own luggage and have transfer prebooked and waiting for you. Don't dilly dally and go the dining room for breakfast.

[Hlitner]

But without knowing what time your ship docked and what time your flight was, we can't apply this to the OP's situation to determine if it helps or not.

 

Bruce, the OP did state that their ship was scheduled to dock at 6am. Based on this, the norm would be that those carrying their own luggage would likely be able to start disembarking by 6:30...as this port does not generally delay the start of disembarkation (unlike here in the USA where delays are too darn common). My suggestion for them to book a private transfer for about 7:30 would normally give them plenty of time to get off the ship and meet their driver.

 

Hank

[CruiserBruce]

Bruce, the OP did state that their ship was scheduled to dock at 6am. Based on this, the norm would be that those carrying their own luggage would likely be able to start disembarking by 6:30...as this port does not generally delay the start of disembarkation (unlike here in the USA where delays are too darn common). My suggestion for them to book a private transfer for about 7:30 would normally give them plenty of time to get off the ship and meet their driver.

 

Hank

 

Generally, I agree. I have to note the last time we were at Civi...it has been a few years...we docked at 4:45. Nobody was allowed off until 7:15. The cruise lines and the port seem more cooperative today with the fact most flights to the US depart in the 10:30-11 time frame.

 

The comment you quoted was about a different poster who said everything worked just fine for them, without giving any details to as exactly what happened. They could have had a 2pm flight, and I am sure everything would work fine. But we can't compare without knowing if we are comparing apples to apples.

[Ejmil]

Thank you all so much for your replies and advice. My flight is just to Croatia and at 11.15.

I think I will ask to disembark first, pre book a transfer for 7:30, check in online for my flight and say my prayers!

 

Wish me luck!

[CruiserBruce]

Thank you all so much for your replies and advice. My flight is just to Croatia and at 11.15.

I think I will ask to disembark first, pre book a transfer for 7:30, check in online for my flight and say my prayers!

 

Wish me luck!

 

That is a nice thing to know. You should be fine.

[NCHPcruiser]

Our return flight after a cruise ending is also at 11:10 am. We will self-disembark and have a car waiting for us. We have done this before (different airport) and were almost the first to leave the ship. It was still dark!

[VMax1700]

April last year we disembarked in Civitavecchia and our timetable worked out like this:

 

Expedited were called at 7.20 and we left our room then and made our way to disembark.

We were through the terminal 'building' and met our driver by 7.50 am

Arrived at FCO at 8.40am (it was a Sunday morning of a long holiday weekend and still very little traffic on road).

Checked in bags and we were at gate for 9.15 for our 11.15 flight. Time to go get breakfast!