Civitavecchia disembarking & when to schedule transport pickup and tour?

[jpmackaylive]

We will be on a Viking cruise in January that will end at Civitavecchia (on a Tuesday).  The published time of arrival is 5 am.  My husband and I will be spending a few additional days in Italy before flying home.  I am trying to figure out what a reasonable time is to schedule our transport to our Rome hotel, as well as scheduling a tour for the Vatican and either the Colosseum or Borghese museum that day. 

 

Not knowing how reliable the 5 am arrival time is (wish there were "on time" arrival reports like airlines have), I'm wondering what a reasonable time is to schedule: 1) private transport pickup from Civitavecchia to hotel in Rome (6 am? 7 am? 8 am?),  2) whether we should schedule the Vatican tour for a.m. or p.m.? (some reviews I've read say earlier is better/less crowded; some say mid to late afternoon is better/less crowded), and 3) what's a reasonable start time for our morning tour (i.e., "not before x" time), assuming we will first drop off our luggage at hotel that is less than 2 km from Vatican  and 24 min walk; 15 min car ride away? 

 

Thank you for any feedback and/or suggestions you might have.

 

p.s. a Vatican tour on our second day is not option because there won't be Basilica access that morning.

[CruiserBruce]

Given you don't have any tight deadlines, just have your pickup at 7, maybe 7:30.

 

I would be looking at the websites for the various locations and confirm what time they open. In January, the tourism isn't going to be as crazy as summer time, so I think you need to be informed as to any decreased access or operating hours for some of your sights.

[marazul]

4 hours ago, jpmackaylive said:

p.s. a Vatican tour on our second day is not option because there won't be Basilica access that morning.

There are two separate visits to the Vatican.  One is to the Vatican Museums and there are various tours you can take. 

https://tickets.museivaticani.va/home

The other one is a visit to St Peter's Basilica which is separate from the Museums and not included in that visit.  Admission is free and you have to stand in line to go through security.  Fortunately for you, the lines will not be long in January.  It is open daily from 7 am to 8:30 pm in winter.

https://www.vatican.va/various/basiliche/san_pietro/it/basilica/orari.htm

 

You need to take a taxi between the two or go on a very long walk.  The shortcut from the Sistine Chapel to St Peter's is no longer open.

 

I am not sure where you get that St Peter's is closed on Wednesdays.  There is a papal audience most Wednesdays in the Audience Hall, but that does not close the basilica.

 

If you want to split it up, you could go to St Peter's on Tuesday, at any time after you leave your bags at your hotel, and then go to the Colosseum or Borghese in the afternoon.  Then go to an early Vatican tour on Wednesday.  You should be done by 11 at the latest.

 

[jpmackaylive]

Thank you, Cruiser Bruce, for your helpful advice about transfer pickup times.

 

And, thank you also,  Marazul, for the two links and your helpful suggestions.  I have only been looking at 3rd party tour operators and hadn't thought to investigate tours directly with the sites themselves.   

 

I am also now more informed about the issue concerning no tour access on Wednesday mornings at St. Peter's Basilica.  The references to closures on many of these 3rd party tour websites didn't specify that they varied by weather.  I have now learned that the Papal Audience is held in either St. Peter's Square, St. Peter's Basilica, or the Audience Hall, depending on seasonal conditions and the number of visitors. Hopefully, we will be lucky and the Papal Audience will be held in the Audience Hall/auditorium on the Wednesday we will be in Rome.  

 

Again, thank you both.  I really appreciate your helpful assistance!