Civitavecchia (port) // Rome by Train 2024: Your questions answered here!

[euro cruiser]

9 minutes ago, taymiss2 said:

I have been eyeballing the 1357 train. Is that a terrible idea? 

It depends on what time you have to be on board.  If the train is on time, it arrives to Civitavecchia at 14:44 (2:44 PM).  It takes some time to get from the train station to your check-in terminal, so the earliest you can count on reporting to the ship, if everything goes right, is 3 PM.  Is that early enough?  It seems late to me, given that most ships require boarding at least two hours prior to departure, but if you have a later departure it could work.

[taymiss2]

The ship leaves at 8pm.  I need to double and triple check that but I think all aboard is at 6 pm.  I think it is later because half the ship gets on in Barcelona so it is a port day for them and they need time to get back from Rome and their excursions. 

[euro cruiser]

Oh, that's great.  If you don't have to be there until 6 PM you have options.

 

Going to Termini in this case makes more sense, because there is a left luggage office right at the station where you can safely leave your bags while you spend some time in Rome.

 

I would consider the 16:57 Frecce that arrives to Civitavecchia at 17:44, if you buy the ticket to Civitavecchia Porto it also includes the bus to the cruise terminal.  It gets you to the terminal at 18:05, if the ship isn't going anywhere until 20:00 I don't think the five minutes will make a difference.

 

If that feels too risky there's also the 16:23 Civitavecchia Express train from Ostiense (arrives at 17:35 with the bus to the terminal).  You'd need to add the time to take the metro from Termini (assuming that you checked your bags there) to Ostiense but even with that it gets you another hour or two in Rome.

 

 

[TheHawk1]

2 hours ago, euro cruiser said:

I would consider the 16:57 Frecce that arrives to Civitavecchia at 17:44, if you buy the ticket to Civitavecchia Porto it also includes the bus to the cruise terminal.  It gets you to the terminal at 18:05, if the ship isn't going anywhere until 20:00 I don't think the five minutes will make a difference.

That's the train I am also thinking of taking back to the ship.  However, when I choose the Frecce option and then select Civitavecchia Porto, it says "we don't find any travel solution".  I have to choose just Civitavecchia as the arrival in order to get the 16:57 train to show up as a selection.  Even then, I'm seeing the strange behavior where the web site is trying to book you a day ahead of the actual day you choose in your Search criteria.  Very strange.

[euro cruiser]

Yeah, as I think I said yesterday, the Trenitalia website is screwed up and has been for a couple of days.  You can pay for the bus in cash on the bus (6 euro).

[taymiss2]

10 hours ago, euro cruiser said:

Oh, that's great.  If you don't have to be there until 6 PM you have options.

 

Going to Termini in this case makes more sense, because there is a left luggage office right at the station where you can safely leave your bags while you spend some time in Rome.

 

I would consider the 16:57 Frecce that arrives to Civitavecchia at 17:44, if you buy the ticket to Civitavecchia Porto it also includes the bus to the cruise terminal.  It gets you to the terminal at 18:05, if the ship isn't going anywhere until 20:00 I don't think the five minutes will make a difference.

 

If that feels too risky there's also the 16:23 Civitavecchia Express train from Ostiense (arrives at 17:35 with the bus to the terminal).  You'd need to add the time to take the metro from Termini (assuming that you checked your bags there) to Ostiense but even with that it gets you another hour or two in Rome.

 

 

 

[taymiss2]

You are amazing. Thank you so much. Lots to consider.

[spicykimchi]

This has been an incredibly helpful thread - thank you euro cruiser and others who have contributed!

 

My wife and I will be on our first ever cruise next month (Norwegian Viva - 9 day cruise), and we have a port stop in Civitavecchia. We are trying to plan our own transportation so we can maximize our time in Rome and had a few questions:

 

1) How much buffer time should we build into our morning? If our port arrival time is 7:00am, then what is a realistic train time we can make? We don't have NCL status and did not buy the Priority upgrade (sold out), so I don't expect to be the first ones off the ship (our ship fits 3,250 passengers). The Port Mobility website states that the €6 direct shuttle (from ship to train station) takes approximately 15 minutes. Are there long lines to get on those shuttles?

 

We were thinking about taking the 8:19am train (Regional train) - is that realistic, or should we shoot for an earlier or later time? Since Regional tickets are good for 4 hours, should we just buy the earliest ticket (e.g., 7:18 or 7:44)?

 

2) Like the above, how much buffer time should we build into our afternoon / evening? I am unable to purchase Express tickets (they may be sold out - TrenItalia website says "We are sorry, this travel solution cannot be purchased on this sales channel"), but there is a Frecce train that leaves Roma Termini at 4:57 and arrives at 5:44 (and to the port by 6:05). Is that fine or cutting it too close? Our departure time is 7:00pm.

 

Appreciate the help!

[euro cruiser]

The return Frecce timing is fine, I would nail that down as they can sell out.

 

As for the morning train, regional trains cannot sell out as they are not capacity controlled, so there's no need to purchase those tickets in advance.  You can use the Trenitalia app and buy the ticket while you're on the bus headed to the train station, but you are correct that the ticket is good for four hours so one purchased for the earliest possible train would still be good on several later ones.

 

After a long, hot day on your feet in Rome, that seat assigned Frecce is going to feel very good.

 

There is a morning Frecce that departs Civitavecchia at 9:16 and arrives to Rome Termini at 10:03.  That's only a half hour later than the 8:19 regional and it's earlier than the 8:57 regional.  You might consider that in order to get a seat and working air conditioning.

Edited July 15, 2023 by euro cruiser

[spicykimchi]

Thanks a lot! We booked the Frecce return train. Do the regional trains often have issues with working air conditioning? For now, we booked an early regional train (~7:20am) since our first stop is the Vatican (Roma S. Pietro), but given the heat wave in Rome / hot summers generally, we could consider switching our itinerary around.

 

Not to get off topic, but are you also familiar with the Livorno port? We plan to do the same thing there (plan our transportation to/from Florence ourselves), but not as certain since there are no Frecce trains / return trains are rather infrequent.

[euro cruiser]

There is air conditioning on the regional trains but due to the intense overcrowding, and the fact that the doors are opening every five minutes or so to admit/disembark passengers, in this kind of heat it's impossible for the AC to keep up.

 

If you are heading to the Vatican area you're correct that a regional train is required for the S. Pietro stop.

 

Lots of us here have experience with Livorno, why not start a new thread so we don't confuse other readers?

 

Or better yet, just look at this current thread:  

 

Edited July 16, 2023 by euro cruiser

[spicykimchi]

Thanks euro cruiser! I saw that thread shortly after and posted there. Appreciate the help!

[Tfred99]

My wife and I are staying in a hotel across from Trevi Fountain for a few days before our cruise out of Civitavecchia.  How far of a walk is it to the train station from Trevi Fountain. Is it a doable walk with luggage, or should we Uber it. (or taxi, if no Uber) Also, the same question would apply for getting to the hotel from the airport. Should we take the train from the airport to the station closest to Trevi and walk? Or just take a taxi straight from the airport??

[d9704011]

41 minutes ago, Tfred99 said:

My wife and I are staying in a hotel across from Trevi Fountain for a few days before our cruise out of Civitavecchia.  How far of a walk is it to the train station from Trevi Fountain. Is it a doable walk with luggage, or should we Uber it. (or taxi, if no Uber) Also, the same question would apply for getting to the hotel from the airport. Should we take the train from the airport to the station closest to Trevi and walk? Or just take a taxi straight from the airport??

Take a taxi from/to your hotel from/to Roma Termini.  It's a hilly half hour walk between the train station and your hotel neighbourhood.  Take a train to/from FCO and Roma Termini.

[euro cruiser]

Yes, I agree.  While it's not far (a little over a mile), it is significantly uphill and not an easy walk with luggage.  

 

Uber in Rome connects you to a car service, which will cost more than a taxi.  Your hotel can call one for you, or you can go to the taxi stand at Piazza Poli (one tenth of a mile from the Trevi Fountain).

 

If you have more than just carry on size bags, I would seriously consider opting for the slightly more expensive, but far more comfortable Frecce trains to Civitavecchia.  They travel non-stop from the main trackhead at Termini to Civitavecchia, and you get an assigned seat.  There is one at 11:57 (arrives Civitavecchia 12:44) or another at 13:57 (arrives 14:44).

 

If you choose Civitavecchia Porto as your destination they will add 6 euro to the fare and include the port bus from the train station to the cruise terminal (or to the ship, if not at a terminal).

[Tfred99]

49 minutes ago, euro cruiser said:

Yes, I agree.  While it's not far (a little over a mile), it is significantly uphill and not an easy walk with luggage.  

 

Uber in Rome connects you to a car service, which will cost more than a taxi.  Your hotel can call one for you, or you can go to the taxi stand at Piazza Poli (one tenth of a mile from the Trevi Fountain).

 

If you have more than just carry on size bags, I would seriously consider opting for the slightly more expensive, but far more comfortable Frecce trains to Civitavecchia.  They travel non-stop from the main trackhead at Termini to Civitavecchia, and you get an assigned seat.  There is one at 11:57 (arrives Civitavecchia 12:44) or another at 13:57 (arrives 14:44).

 

If you choose Civitavecchia Porto as your destination they will add 6 euro to the fare and include the port bus from the train station to the cruise terminal (or to the ship, if not at a terminal).

Thanks, this seems very helpful.

[Runwritecoffee]

Hello! We are on Celebrity Reflection and in Civitavecchia port on 30 August. I was looking at independently booking the Express train but it says 'Unavailable' on the Trentalia website. Does this mean that the train is sold out? Here I was thinking I was being good at advance planning 🤪 (but to be fair, our cruise only confirmed last week). We were hoping to get off at S. Pietro for the Vatican, hence why I preferred that option over one going direct to Rome Termini. We will be travelling with a 6mo in a stroller, so an assigned seat (and air con!) was a plus - but we will get a commuter train otherwise. That might be a bit crazy with a baby but hopefully OK.

[euro cruiser]

I'm not sure what's going on with Trenitalia.  There have been website problems for the past week but they may or may not be related to the issue with Civitavecchia ticket sales. 

 

The detailed information on how to buy tickets on line, in English, is here:  guida_acquisto_online_nuovo_pda_2_mar_ENG.pdf (trenitalia.com)

 

I would reach out to them directly using the contacts here:  Our Call Centres - Trenitalia

[Runwritecoffee]

Thank you @euro cruiser. As with the above poster, when attempting to purchase the Express train tickets, it says "We are sorry, this travel solution cannot be purchased on this sales channel". But I can't seem to find an alternate sales channel so there we are! I will reach out to their contact team and see what's happening.

[NCteacherlovescruising]

On 8/7/2022 at 9:30 PM, euro cruiser said:

On August 18th, a weekday, there are seven regional trains between 7 - 9 AM.

 

Given the size of the ship and the disembarkation procedures I would not count on getting anything earlier than 8 AM. 

 

As noted above, the regional trains stop at several different stations in Rome. Unless your first stop in the city is right near Termini station it's a waste of time to stay on the train to that stop, get off at one of the earlier stations instead.

 

For timing perspective, the 7:58 regional train arrives to Termini at 9:18.

 

The first train with assigned seats is the 9:16 Frecciabianca that arrives to Termini at 10:03 (non stop).

 

The first train with assigned seats that stops before Termini is the 9:24 IC train that arrives to Roma Ostiense at 10:15 (non stop).  From Ostiense you can get the metro for two stops and be at the Colosseum.

 

You can see the train schedules here:  EN - Trenitalia

 

Note that even on the English language pages you must use the Italian names for the cities.

I’m so confused. I tried putting in Civitavecchia and several places popped up. Which one do I select?  I will be going from the cruise port to Naples via the IC or frecce. 

[euro cruiser]

The station is Civitavecchia.  If you choose Civitavecchia Porto they will include the cost of the 6 euro bus from the ship/terminal to the Civitavecchia station in the ticket price.  The only other choice is Civitavecchia ( Tutte Le Stazioni ), which mean all stations in Civitavecchia.

[NCteacherlovescruising]

3 minutes ago, euro cruiser said:

The station is Civitavecchia.  If you choose Civitavecchia Porto they will include the cost of the 6 euro bus from the ship/terminal to the Civitavecchia station in the ticket price.  The only other choice is Civitavecchia ( Tutte Le Stazioni ), which mean all stations in Civitavecchia.

Thank you! 

[bigsky]

So many questions....where do we get off at going to the Colesseum? I don't know what time we'll get to the station, so not sure what time to get our tickets for in advance? Our ship docks at 7am. I was thinking of purchasing (over priced) shuttle to the train station so we don't have to worry about walking in the heat. Figuring this might give us some priority to gettig off the ship. ??? 

[mapleleaves]

1 hour ago, bigsky said:

So many questions....where do we get off at going to the Colesseum? I don't know what time we'll get to the station, so not sure what time to get our tickets for in advance? Our ship docks at 7am. I was thinking of purchasing (over priced) shuttle to the train station so we don't have to worry about walking in the heat. Figuring this might give us some priority to gettig off the ship. ??? 

 

I would have gladly paid 6E for a bus to Civi station!   well worth it for the time and convenience of ship to Civi station. It's a new option this yr so it wasn't available for us. 

But if you don't want to pay the 6E, you can do what we did; take the free shuttle to the port entrance then catch a city bus to Civi station for a euro or 2.

 

We ended our day at the Colosseum. Took a cab to the Ostiense station. $10-$15, maybe 10 minutes..  I'm sure we could have found a bus or subway, but again, the time and convenience were important. Plus the comfort!

We took 2 or 3 cabs that day, well worthwhile. 

Edited July 20, 2023 by mapleleaves

[euro cruiser]

2 hours ago, bigsky said:

So many questions....where do we get off at going to the Colesseum?

If you take a Frecce train to Rome Termini, get off there and go downstairs to the metro, line B, direction Laurentina.  Get off at the second exit, Colosseo.  As you exit the station you'll be staring at the Colosseum, right across the street.

 

Map of regional rail and metro lines here:  mappa ferro e tram (giu 2022) (atac.roma.it)

 

If you take a regionale train, get off at Roma Ostiense and follow signs for the Piramide metro station (there is an underground passage).  Take the metro, Line B, direction Jonio or Rebibbia, for two stops to Colosseo.