Regal Princess- Rome Private Excursion timing question!

[cruisersince1986]

Hi there! 
 

We will be on the Regal in a couple of months (from Barcelona to Athens)and planning a private excursion for our Rome port visit.

We would like to plan a early start to Rome.  The port time is listed from 5am to 7 Pm. 

Does anyone know if you can leave the ship as early as 6 am to get into Rome early?

For the Regal Princess I know they will have some passengers ending their cruise in Rome as Barcelona, Rome and Athens are all points when they debark/embark

. So I am a little worried this will interfere with getting off early to head to Rome. What do you think? 

 

Also we booked this as a 14 day cruise so I presume we won’t have to go through the same process as B2B (with getting checked in). If anyone can confirm that would be great!

 

Thanks!

 

[Rick&Jeannie]

You absolutely *should* be able to get off the ship by 6:00am...assuming that the ship docks on time and the local customs authorities give the go-ahead.  That *usually* will take place within 30 minutes of actual docking time.  Since you will not be dealing with any bags like those who are disembarking you should be able to scoot right off!

[juniper berries]

Hi just make sure you take the card from princess that you are in transit so you can get back on the ship. 

Also it takes about an hour to get to Rome. Also plan to be back at least an hour prior to sailing. Traffic can be bad .Enjoy your day in Rome.

[nini]

How will you be getting to Rome? It is at least an hour by cab and based on what you described as this also being an embarking and disembarking port, the traffic will be crazy and the transfers in high demand.

We booked private transfers into Rome from the airport, to the ship and then back again to the airport. Our cruise was round trip Rome.

Have you asked anyone on your Roll Call about sharing a tour into Rome? Or are you just looking for a way to get into Rome and doing Rome on your own? Many tour companies will pick you up at the ship and bring you back as well.

 

[nini]

P.S. Rome is fabulous!

[cruisersince1986]

Nini- we are a group of four and I am arranging to book a private cab driver for the day. I realize there will be a bit of craziness at the port .I am thinking we that I would shoot for a 6:30am pick up. (Our ship is in port 5am -7pm.) 

That way we are not fighting to get off the ship as soon as we dock and clear but early enough to get to St Peter’s before it gets too crowded. 

Does that plan sound reasonable with those of you who have visited Rome via Civitavecchia?

 

Thank you to those who have replied!  I always appreciate the help fellow cruises give on these boards! 
 

 

 

42 minutes ago, nini said:

How will you be getting to Rome? It is at least an hour by cab and based on what you described as this also being an embarking and disembarking port, the traffic will be crazy and the transfers in high demand.

We booked private transfers into Rome from the airport, to the ship and then back again to the airport. Our cruise was round trip Rome.

Have you asked anyone on your Roll Call about sharing a tour into Rome? Or are you just looking for a way to get into Rome and doing Rome on your own? Many tour companies will pick you up at the ship and bring you back as well.

 

 

[wallyj]

Hi @cruisersince1986, this was my experience last time I was at Cruise port for Rome. I do not believe once you get off the ship, you can be picked up. You will need to catch a ship provided shuttle bus to the main ‘bus/port’ terminal. From here is where you can catch a taxi or city bus to the train station which many do who are doing Rome on their own.

 

I assume your private tour company knows this and will advise pick up location protocol. Just be aware, you should plan on this extra time, as the shuttle will wait till the bus is full before leaving for the main depot. Expect it to be quite busy as you are competing with disembarking passengers wanting to catch transfers to the city or airport.

 

Your tour company should be monitoring ship arrivals. Try to have a way to contact your tour company via cell service or WhatsApp for a little more peace of mind.

[nini]

Actually, we were picked up right at the ship in 2018. Maybe because we were disembarking and it was not as crazy?

[dog]

To our surprise on our 3 rd time at this port the ship docked in a different place. Can’t remember details.