Civitavecchia transfer from Rome that includes a tour on the way

[anricat]

When we embarked from Barcelona last year, we used a tour company that picked us up at our hotel with our luggage and took us on a brief morning tour of a few hours and then dropped us off at the port around 1:30 PM where we boarded our ship. It was fantastic because we got in a little additional sight seeing and had a safe comfortable transfer with our luggage. 

 

For our next cruise, we're embarking from Rome. We've been to Rome already a couple of times and we've also disembarked there (we took the train into Rome, which was simple and straightforward) but I'm looking for something different this time. What I'd like is to be picked up at our accommodations in Rome with our luggage, taken on a tour (preferably outside of the city) and then dropped off at the port. I'm just not sure if there are interesting things to see that are generally on the way between Rome and Civi (it was hard to tell from the train) and I've tried searching the Internet, but all I really find are either shore excursions for a port day in Civi or straight up transfers to/from Civi/Rome. 

 

Has anyone done something like this? 

[cruisemom42]

I haven't done it personally but it is definitely doable and some have reported experiences here in the past. There are several major private companies based in Rome that offer this kind of arrangement and are well recommended. I haven't used them so this is not a recommendation but I know that RomeInLimo and Rome Cabs are two of them.

 

One place I would highly recommend considering on a trip like this would be a visit to Tarquinia. There are exquisite painted Etruscan tombs in a necropolis just outside the town, and I would also include a trip to the museum in the town itself (more beautiful Etruscan frescoes and sculpture) and maybe a short stroll around the town itself, which is fairly charming.

 

Cerveteri is another Etruscan necropolis that is entirely different (and it is even more "en route" to Civitavecchia, as a spot that would take less time than the above.)

 

Some people enjoy Lake Bracciano and the castle beside it: Castello Orsini-Odescalchi. I haven't done it but it is supposedly very scenic.

 

 

[frenchhorn]

We are boarding in Civitavecchia in December and with another couple have arranged with Italytours.eu for transport and touring between our Rome hotel and the port.  We will be picked up in the morning at our hotel, taken to Castello Orsini-Odescalchi, and then taken to our ship.  We plan to drop off our luggage on the ship and go out again with the driver to Tarquinia for the afternoon.  Our ship doesn't sail until 10:00 pm, so we still have plenty of time left to settle into our cabins and enjoy the evening.  With only 4 people we can adjust our day as we go along.  We think it's a great idea to use this day in that way.  

[Disneyfriend]

Hi Anricat,

 

I recognize you from the DIS boards.  🙂

 

I have looked into the same issue.  One option I found was My Best Tours. They primarily do golf cart tours in Rome, but after setting one up with them I was so pleased with their communication and customer service (and reviews) that I ended up hiring them for our airport-Rome and Rome-port transportation.  (They use minivans for their transfers.)  One option they gave us from Rome to Civitavecchia was a stop touring Ostia Antica, the old port of Rome.  It is very well  preserved and in some ways like visiting Pompeii, from what I gather.

 

If you decide to visit Ostia, make sure to read The Thieves of Ostia to your little  one. It's historical fiction set in Ostia circa 78 AD.  Very cute and appropriate (in my opinion) for maybe 6-16 year olds.  There is a whole series, if you  like it, and available  in both paperback form and on Audible.  

 

Which cruise are you taking again, if I may ask?  We're on the Rome-Barcelona this summer.  

[anricat]

5 hours ago, Disneyfriend said:

Hi Anricat,

 

I recognize you from the DIS boards.  🙂

 

I have looked into the same issue.  One option I found was My Best Tours. They primarily do golf cart tours in Rome, but after setting one up with them I was so pleased with their communication and customer service (and reviews) that I ended up hiring them for our airport-Rome and Rome-port transportation.  (They use minivans for their transfers.)  One option they gave us from Rome to Civitavecchia was a stop touring Ostia Antica, the old port of Rome.  It is very well  preserved and in some ways like visiting Pompeii, from what I gather.

 

If you decide to visit Ostia, make sure to read The Thieves of Ostia to your little  one. It's historical fiction set in Ostia circa 78 AD.  Very cute and appropriate (in my opinion) for maybe 6-16 year olds.  There is a whole series, if you  like it, and available  in both paperback form and on Audible.  

 

Which cruise are you taking again, if I may ask?  We're on the Rome-Barcelona this summer.  

 

Hi! 🙂 I'll check out the books for sure. We always need new audiobooks as my daughter does competitive gymnastics and we spend a lot of time in the car going to/from the gym (which is 20-30 minutes away depending on traffic)! 

 

I'm actually just thinking/planning way way ahead. We are doing Greece in 2020 (one of the 9 nights). We did Barcelona-Rome last year and spent several days in Rome after (and my DH and I visited Rome some years before that as well). We feel like we've pretty much done what we want in Rome so I'm definitely looking forward to something further afield. 

 

Thanks for the tour recommendation! 

[anricat]

Thanks all for the recommendations. I'm glad that there are options out there. I have plenty of time - this is for 2020. I'm just an uber planner and like to start thinking about the general itinerary and rough plans for the way things will go down. I usually start with hotels and transfer type thoughts first so I got to thinking about how well it worked for us in Barcelona last year. 

[Disneyfriend]

1 hour ago, anricat said:

 

Hi! 🙂 I'll check out the books for sure. We always need new audiobooks as my daughter does competitive gymnastics and we spend a lot of time in the car going to/from the gym (which is 20-30 minutes away depending on traffic)! 

 

I'm actually just thinking/planning way way ahead. We are doing Greece in 2020 (one of the 9 nights). We did Barcelona-Rome last year and spent several days in Rome after (and my DH and I visited Rome some years before that as well). We feel like we've pretty much done what we want in Rome so I'm definitely looking forward to something further afield. 

 

Thanks for the tour recommendation! 

 

Ah yes, audiobooks are my very favorite way to redeem our time in the car!  My kids have listened to a LOT of good audiobooks this way.  🙂  Sounds like we are very similar there.  

 

We are booked on the 2020 9 night Greek cruise as well, the earlier one that visits Sicily!  You  too, or  are you booked on the other one that stops in Croatia?

[anricat]

10 hours ago, Disneyfriend said:

 

Ah yes, audiobooks are my very favorite way to redeem our time in the car!  My kids have listened to a LOT of good audiobooks this way.  🙂  Sounds like we are very similar there.  

 

We are booked on the 2020 9 night Greek cruise as well, the earlier one that visits Sicily!  You  too, or  are you booked on the other one that stops in Croatia?

 

We are booked on the earlier one as well! 🙂 Yay! 

[Disneyfriend]

On 4/6/2019 at 6:52 AM, anricat said:

 

We are booked on the earlier one as well! 🙂 Yay! 

 

Oh good!  We'll have to stay in touch a bit over the next year and compare planning notes.  🙂

 

I thought of a good description of the Thieves of Ostia (and its sequels).  Think a Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys type mystery set in the Ancient Roman empire, with lots of historical details thrown in.  They are entertaining and a bit educational besides.

[anricat]

1 hour ago, Disneyfriend said:

 

Oh good!  We'll have to stay in touch a bit over the next year and compare planning notes.  🙂

 

I thought of a good description of the Thieves of Ostia (and its sequels).  Think a Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys type mystery set in the Ancient Roman empire, with lots of historical details thrown in.  They are entertaining and a bit educational besides.

For sure! I apparently don't have enough posts to send private messages. Are you on the FB group for the cruise? My real name is Summer. 

[Rubyroo20]

We will be doing this very thing on an upcoming cruise this May. I've just booked with mydaytrip.com and have chosen a 90 min stop at Ostia on the way to the cruise port. It cost €198 for three of us and luggage, the website was really easy to use and though there's not that many reviews on Tripadvisor specifically for Italy (the company operates throughout Europe), all their reviews are extremely positive.

I'd be happy to report back and let you know how it goes if that would be helpful to you. 😊

[anricat]

2 hours ago, Rubyroo20 said:

We will be doing this very thing on an upcoming cruise this May. I've just booked with mydaytrip.com and have chosen a 90 min stop at Ostia on the way to the cruise port. It cost €198 for three of us and luggage, the website was really easy to use and though there's not that many reviews on Tripadvisor specifically for Italy (the company operates throughout Europe), all their reviews are extremely positive.

I'd be happy to report back and let you know how it goes if that would be helpful to you. 😊

 

Sounds great! I'd love to hear back when you return, if you think about it. 🙂 

[tobyt]

Wow this is exactly what I was looking for! Would you mind sharing how things went when you get back!

[Rubyroo20]

Hi anricat and TobyT!

I'd be happy to let you know how it goes and will put a reminder in my diary to report back on my return from hols. I hope it turns out well as I love the idea of squeezing in a bit more sight seeing whilst being taken door to door to the port! 

 

Having now done a little research, Ostia seems like a bit of an unsung gem.... it was originally the port for Ancient Rome and seems to have been pretty well preserved (for an ancient city!). There's a short clip on YouTube from a Rick Steves programme that gives you a good idea of what to expect. 

 

Can you tell? I'm in the excited full on pre cruise planning stage! 😃

[tobyt]

Rubyroo20, Thank you so much! I am deep in planning mode for August and quite frankly stressing which is kind of awful and usually I love the planning parts! Hubby has only agreed to this trip as “beginners Europe “ trip with much trepidation so I need to get the plans right!

Ostia is exactly the add on site I was considering as well it looks very neat!

[Rubyroo20]

Tobyt,

No problem at all! I really appreciate all the information I've been able to get from Cruise Critic over the past few years, so I'm more than happy to pass some on myself.

I know what you mean about the stress of organising. I do love this aspect of cruising - doing all the research on the ports we visit, but sometimes it feels like a little bit of a weight on your shoulders, especially when, as in my case, you're the 'go to' in the family for organisation! 😊

If, as your message possibly implies, this will be your first trip to Europe, have no fear, you and your hubby will love it I'm sure. Italy especially is just mind blowing in its culture, scenery and cuisine .. oh, and the lovely weather. As a Brit used to very changeable weather, I'm always so envious of my fellow Europeans who are lucky enough to live in Italy, France, Spain and Portugal.

 

Good luck with all your planning!

 

[Sunkissed Mommy]

Tha

On 4/9/2019 at 1:57 PM, Rubyroo20 said:

We will be doing this very thing on an upcoming cruise this May. I've just booked with mydaytrip.com and have chosen a 90 min stop at Ostia on the way to the cruise port. It cost €198 for three of us and luggage, the website was really easy to use and though there's not that many reviews on Tripadvisor specifically for Italy (the company operates throughout Europe), all their reviews are extremely positive.

I'd be happy to report back and let you know how it goes if that would be helpful to you. 😊

 

I am also interested in hearing your feedback.  This looks like a good option for us as well.

 

I am sad though that the same company doesn't have an option for FCO to the center of Rome.  I was hoping to tour around a bit in the morning once we land and before we can check in.

[Rubyroo20]

Hi there!

We just got back from Rome and Med Cruise a few days ago, so thought I would share my views on our transfer to Civitavecchia with mydaytrip.com

Well, I'm glad  to say that everything went extremely smoothly and we were very happy with the service we received. 

A couple of days before the transfer I received an email from the company with the details of our driver and car, including a photo of our driver, Vlad. On the day Vlad WhatsApp'd me to let me know he was on his way and also attached a tracker which showed me exactly where he was. The car we had was a very comfortable Mercedes or BMW, not sure which! 

As it was raining as we left Rome, and Ostia, where we had booked our stop off on the way to the port is an open air site, Vlad helpfully offered an alternative site to visit instead (a castle and beach) where he thought we would not get as wet! However as we had really wanted to see Ostia and we had raincoats etc (we are English and therefore quite used to a bit of rain 😉) we decided to go ahead with Ostia.

We were lucky and the sun came out just before we got there and we had a lovely visit at Ostia for about 90 minutes. I would highly recommend Ostia - the ancient port town  for Rome when it was at the peak of its glory. The site was huge, hardly any other visitors there, lots of amazing mosaics and more than enough structures still standing to really be able to imagine how the town worked. 

Vlad waited whilst we visited Ostia and then took us on to Civi. He drove right in to the port and to the area where the porters were, so our luggage was literally taken out of the boot / trunk and given to them to take on board. 

The whole experience was very smooth and hassle free and it was really neat to be able to fit in a little sightseeing on the way to board the ship.

In short, based on our experience, I would not hesitate to recommend mydaytrip.com and indeed a visit to Ostia.

Hope this feedback helps with your pre-cruise planning!

[anricat]

2 hours ago, Rubyroo20 said:

Hi there!

We just got back from Rome and Med Cruise a few days ago, so thought I would share my views on our transfer to Civitavecchia with mydaytrip.com

Well, I'm glad  to say that everything went extremely smoothly and we were very happy with the service we received. 

A couple of days before the transfer I received an email from the company with the details of our driver and car, including a photo of our driver, Vlad. On the day Vlad WhatsApp'd me to let me know he was on his way and also attached a tracker which showed me exactly where he was. The car we had was a very comfortable Mercedes or BMW, not sure which! 

As it was raining as we left Rome, and Ostia, where we had booked our stop off on the way to the port is an open air site, Vlad helpfully offered an alternative site to visit instead (a castle and beach) where he thought we would not get as wet! However as we had really wanted to see Ostia and we had raincoats etc (we are English and therefore quite used to a bit of rain 😉) we decided to go ahead with Ostia.

We were lucky and the sun came out just before we got there and we had a lovely visit at Ostia for about 90 minutes. I would highly recommend Ostia - the ancient port town  for Rome when it was at the peak of its glory. The site was huge, hardly any other visitors there, lots of amazing mosaics and more than enough structures still standing to really be able to imagine how the town worked. 

Vlad waited whilst we visited Ostia and then took us on to Civi. He drove right in to the port and to the area where the porters were, so our luggage was literally taken out of the boot / trunk and given to them to take on board. 

The whole experience was very smooth and hassle free and it was really neat to be able to fit in a little sightseeing on the way to board the ship.

In short, based on our experience, I would not hesitate to recommend mydaytrip.com and indeed a visit to Ostia.

Hope this feedback helps with your pre-cruise planning!

 

This is extremely helpful! Thank you so much for taking the time to come back and write such a detailed review. This sounds exactly like what we're looking for. :)

[tobyt]

Rubyroo20, Gosh I have been hoping you would pop back on! Thank you so very much for the details! We actually ended up booking a private tour for 2 hours with our airport transfer. We know and understand it will be a drive by quickie tour of Rome and just a couple of sights. I did not do my normal pre booking research on this trip and had no idea of the distance and challenge on port and airport in Rome.

They have a 24 hour cancel policy so very happy to have kind of a back up option in mind if we change our mind!

Thank you again, I hope you had a fabulous trip!

[anricat]

On 4/5/2019 at 2:21 PM, Disneyfriend said:

Hi Anricat,

 

I recognize you from the DIS boards.  🙂

 

I have looked into the same issue.  One option I found was My Best Tours. They primarily do golf cart tours in Rome, but after setting one up with them I was so pleased with their communication and customer service (and reviews) that I ended up hiring them for our airport-Rome and Rome-port transportation.  (They use minivans for their transfers.)  One option they gave us from Rome to Civitavecchia was a stop touring Ostia Antica, the old port of Rome.  It is very well  preserved and in some ways like visiting Pompeii, from what I gather.

 

If you decide to visit Ostia, make sure to read The Thieves of Ostia to your little  one. It's historical fiction set in Ostia circa 78 AD.  Very cute and appropriate (in my opinion) for maybe 6-16 year olds.  There is a whole series, if you  like it, and available  in both paperback form and on Audible.  

 

Which cruise are you taking again, if I may ask?  We're on the Rome-Barcelona this summer.  

 

Just checking in to see how your cruise went. Did you end up enjoying your tour/transfer? 🙂