DESTINATION: ROME
THINGS TO DO AND PLACES TO SEE IN ROME
An overnight stay in Rome
In June 2022 I booked to sail on a cruise from the port Civitavecchia in Italy, a staple destination on the Mediterranean cruise circuit because it is the gateway to Italy’s capital city. I was going to Rome!!!
A lesson I have learnt from previous fly-cruise holidays is that if you fly in on the day you almost certainly don’t see anything of the port you are sailing from, so I always try to fly in at least one day before to do some sightseeing, which has the added advantage that you build in some wiggle room for flight delays on the way.
And the chance to spend more time in Rome, well it was not a difficult decision, although this time I was really limited to only having one night there. As it happened this would be my third visit to the Eternal City, both previous trips as a cruise passenger on a shore excursion from Civitavecchia, but it had been a while since I was last there, so I was happy to revisit the major sights and I had a new one on my list.
So here’s the story of my visit to Rome, which may have some ideas that you can build into your own itinerary for a city break, weekend away, or even an independent shore excursion from a cruise ship.
Planes and Trains : Getting there
I had an early morning flight from Manchester, England to Rome’s Fiumicino airport. That’s MAN to FCO in airport codes. Not always obvious when you are searching for Rome.
If you have a window seat on the plane definitely look out of the window while descending. We flew right over the city and it wasn’t too hard to spot the Vatican and Colosseum from the air.
The airport is also called the Leonardo Da Vinci airport, and is about an hour’s drive from the city itself, so once I arrived there was a question of how to do my airport transfer.
A taxi was an option, and is obviously more cost effective if there are a few of you, but as a solo traveller they tend to feel expensive, even if they are convenient.
As it happens, the airport also has its own train station, which is really well signposted from the luggage collection area, so it was easy to find after a short walk.
From here you can catch the Leonardo Express train. These leave every 15 minutes during the day and take just over half an hour to go directly to Roma Termini train station in the city itself. The price was €14, which converted to £12 on my credit card [June 2022 prices].
You can pre-book online, but not entirely trusting the flight to arrive on time (though in fairness it did!) I bought my ticket from the machine at the station. It had the option of instructions in English, and an easy one press button for the Leonardo Express trains. I paid by credit card, so didn’t check if cash was an option, but there was also a manned ticket office nearby.
An even cheaper alternative is a local train, that takes longer as they stop at other stations.
I’m all in favour of saving money, but here a few extra Euros for the Leonardo Express train meant more time in Rome later.
On board the train had comfy enough seats, USB charging points to top up your phone, and spacious luggage racks as everyone had suitcases. A very efficient way to transfer from the airport.
HELPFUL HINT: In Italy you have to validate your train tickets at a machine on the platform before boarding the train. I think mine was actually validated going through the barrier onto the platform, but I still used the machine on the platform to avoid risking a fine.
Where to stay in Rome?
In my case I knew I was only staying in Rome for one night, and transferring in and out from Roma Termini train station, so ideally I wanted a reasonably priced hotel close by.
A quick check on Google maps also showed the train station was only about a 25 minute walk to the historic centre of Rome, well within walking distance for me to go sightseeing later, so that settled the location.
There are actually quite a few hotels close to Roma Termini, so of course which to pick depends on your budget and what matters to you in a hotel. Its Rome, so like most major cities is that bit more expensive.
I chose the UNAHOTELS Deco Roma Hotel, which was less than a five minute walk from the station door, so easy to walk to dragging my suitcase, That avoided me having to pay for a taxi ride within the city itself. It was mid priced and had decent customer ratings online. They were good enough selection criteria for this stay.
I opted for a Classic double room, which was clean, functional and had a huge bathroom. The rate included a buffet style breakfast that was enough to keep me going the next day. I literally changed and slept in the room, so it didn’t need to be fancy. To be honest I would have happily stayed longer if I was having a city break (and I’m not being paid to say that!).
A point worth noting is that Rome has a City Tax that is charged by all hotels on a per person, per night basis. It ranges from €4 for a 2 or 3 star hotel, to €6 for four stars and €7 for five stars. The tax is charged by the hotel after your stay, so probably won’t be included in the price paid if you prepaid for your hotel in advance.
A WALK AROUND ROME
Things to do and places to see
Planning is everything! Thanks to an on time flight, the Leonardo Express, and my five minute walk to the hotel, I was checked in to my (already available) room by 1pm Rome time (an hour ahead of the UK).
I didn’t need to unpack and despite the very early start decided not to risk sleeping my afternoon away. After a quick freshen up I set off to explore.
I had collected a paper map at reception and already knew that my number one must see was The Pantheon, which was one of the main landmarks that had never made it onto the itinerary of my other tours. I could see that the Trevi Fountain was vaguely in the same direction, so I could visit that on the way. Then the ancient Roman Forum could make a nice end to the day if I ran out of time. I had a plan!
TOP TIP: While you are waiting for your luggage at the airport check for stands with free city maps. I often pick them up at hotel reception desks too.
Initial distractions
Almost straight away I was distracted. I could see the Piazza della Repubblica, with its historic fountain, the Fontana delle Najadi, in the middle of a roundabout down the road. Walking to that took me past the ancient Roman Baths of Diocletian, which were closed on a Sunday or I may never have got to anywhere else! Within ten minutes I knew Rome was back on my list of places to return to and I had only just arrived.
From there I seemed to pass all sorts of buildings with elaborate monuments and statues, as I followed side streets all leading in the general direction of the Trevi Fountain. I stumbled upon an ordinary road junction with four fountains decorated with statues, one at each corner of the crossroads. As it turned out the imaginatively named Complesso delle Quattro Fontane. Just beautiful.
Piazza del Quirinale
Google Maps was sending me one way, but I could see another needle like monument further down the street. I followed my nose and after a longer than it looked walk, down a moderately interesting street, I reached the monument and found myself walking into a huge open piazza. This was in front of the Quirinal Palace, one of the official residences of the President of Italy.
I recognised this. I had been here before, and so knew to immediately turn around for the view. Across the city was the dome of St Peter’s Basilica, which stood on the other side of the River Tiber, in Vatican City.
I had visited the Vatican before. It was full of tourists being herded through its art treasures. We passed through the underwhelming Sistine Chapel, which has its masterpiece of a ceiling, but when I visited we were crammed in like sardines, making it was hard to appreciate. You end up at St Peter’s Basilica, before stepping out into St Peter’s Square which I found wonderful. You don’t have to be a Catholic to appreciate that. Despite all of the crowds I would highly recommend you visit at least once! But this time I was going to catch glimpses from afar as I wandered around the city.
The Trevi Fountain
Eventually I did reach the Trevi Fountain. Have I mentioned the crowds of tourists? This is one of the ultimate “Instagram versus Reality” destinations. A place to capture that perfect shot of a building that is a fountain, a monument, a spectacle of sculpture; that is quite superb. Behind the cameras, a thousand other tourists are all jostling to get that same picture. It is still worth the effort. Indeed, as I did the first time I saw it, I made my way to the front and threw a coin over my shoulder into the fountain. Legend has it this ensures you will return to Rome again, so I thought I would top up my credit.
At this point, mid afternoon, hunger was kicking in, but with sights to see I opted for lunch on the go. I have to say my culinary experiences of Italy were very stereotypical. Lunch was a slice of pizza, which I’m sure was overpriced being in the heart of this tourist hotspot. But it was good.
Later that evening I found a cool restaurant near the hotel, which had a nice atmosphere and decent beer. I ordered a delicious lasagne, that was nothing like I have ever tasted at home. I felt like I’d had something authentically Italian at least.
The Pantheon
The Pantheon is a domed building, with a columned facade, that looks very much like an ancient temple from the outside, which is actually what it began life as. The word Pantheon derives from the Latin and Greek words for “all the gods”. Oh and it was built around 125 AD by the Roman Empire, yet even in the 21st century has the largest unreinforced concrete dome in the World.
Inside the dome has a central hole, called the oculus, that is the main source of natural light. I was mesmerised by the beam of light reflecting on the inside of the dome. It apparently also lets the rain in, and there are drain holes in the floor to clear it. On the scorcher of a day I was there that was not a worry.
The building has survived and adapted over the years, and is now also the burial place of the first modern Kings of Italy.
Best of all it is free to visit, although at weekends and public holidays you need to book a free online reservation the day before. It is certainly one to try and plan in advance, especially if you are on a weekend break in Rome.
This was the place that I had heard of, but never visited on either of my previous trips. It was smaller than I anticipated, so really didn’t take a huge amount of time to see. I was not disappointed by my visit at all.
HELPFUL HINT: The Pantheon is free, but you need to make a reservation online the day before at weekends and public holidays.
Piazza Venezia and a Wedding Cake!
On a previous visit to Rome I did a shore excursion from the ship, that included a visit to the Colosseum, before visiting the historic centre of Rome. I remember getting on and off the coach at each destination, then driving on to the next one.
A guided tour of the Colosseum, wonderful! Next stop a walk through the Forum Romanum, looking at the remains of this one time centre of Roman life. I like history, so this was right up my street.
Then back on the coach, through the crazy modern day traffic. We eventually passed a monumental, white marble, building, that our tour guide called the “wedding cake”. That description has stuck in my head ever since.
This time, on foot, I left the Pantheon in the direction of the Forum, which I knew I wanted to see again. That was about a 15 minute walk away. Halfway there I was surprised when I turned a corner to see the wedding cake in front of me.
It is actually the monument to modern Italy’s first King, Vittorio Emanuele II, as well as the site of their Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, which has its own honour guard and eternal flame.
As I walked past an official looking lady was ushering people through the gates and up the steps. I presume this is a regular occurrence, maybe it was just getting late, but as I was there, and it was free to enter, in I went. Up the steps, past the Tomb, and further on to the terrace where the King’s mounted statue overlooks the impressive Piazza Venezia, with another view of the Vatican on the skyline too.
But there were more steps, which led up to a terrace at the side of the building. Here there were clearly views to be had given the number of people gathered along the balustrade. So I waited for my space, got my camera ready and was greeted with a view of the Forum next to us, and further down the road in the not too far distance the Colosseum in all its splendour.
Maybe my memory was playing tricks on me, but my impression of Rome as a sprawling city, formed in those continuous coach stops, was overturned in an instant as I discovered that these places were all laid out in a relatively short straight walk.
So walk it I did!
Forum Romanum and the Colosseum
Now actually at this point it was late afternoon, though still very hot and sunny, and it had been a long day. I had enjoyed my impromptu visit, but decided not to take the elevator to an even higher viewpoint at the top of the wedding cake. Not least because that wasn’t free and there was a queue.
The Forum too had an admission charge. I chose instead to stand overlooking it from the road above and took in the view from a distance. I think it needed time I didn’t really have to properly explore it, but I was quite content.
Then I carried on down the road and walked around the outskirts of the Colosseum, remembering back to my visit inside. That is another one of those things that I’m very glad I have done. It is rightly one of Rome’s most recognisable landmarks. Worth just going for a look, but I would recommend the inside tour if you have the time.
From there the road that took me on a fairly direct route back to my hotel was far less interesting. After an afternoon of history everywhere you looked, I could cope with a bit of ordinary modern day Roman life.
After clocking up 20,000 steps that day I really didn’t have the stamina to check out the Roman nightlife. Dinner and a couple of beers was quite enough to round off my day.
After all I had a ship to catch the next day!
ROME TO CIVITAVECCHIA
The train from Rome terminated at Civitavecchia after several stops, so was not quite as direct. However it only took an hour to get there, and at less than €5 was a bargain. They run quite frequently. Once again I had bought my ticket at a machine in the station in Rome and this time you definitely could pay with either cash or cards. The ticket needed to be validated on the platform too.
TOP TIP: Watch out for pick pockets (its busy) and scammers. A guy in a polo shirt matching the maroon colour of the station staff and with a “Roma” lanyard around his neck, was helping tourists to buy their tickets, but then demanded a tip for his help. Clearly not an official!
At Civitavecchia train station the return train to Rome was waiting as I got off, so this would definitely be an option if you wanted to risk a DIY day trip to Rome on a cruise.
This train was quite comfortable too, with screens detailing the next stops and the train’s speed and progress. I kept my case with me, but that was no issue.
Outside the train station I was reading a large sign detailing taxi prices for the short trip to the port, certainly costing more than the train fare from Rome. Looking up I noticed a shuttle bus across the road, that happened to be heading to my ship. The €3 fare saved me quite a bit, once again much more cost efficient than a taxi for one.
ARRIVADERCI ROME
And so I sailed away from Italy a day and a half after I arrived, but that is another story.
This experience, added to those from my previous visits, has given me even more memories to look back on. The Pantheon in particular was nice to tick off my to do list. It reaffirmed a real wish to go back and spend even longer in Rome, maybe with enough time to make it worth paying a few more of those entrance fees.
Lets hope that coin I threw into the Trevi Fountain works its magic!
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