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Question regarding "Roma Express" excursion


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Has anyone recently taken this "excursion" while in Civitavecchia ? I am interested in what time it actually departs the ship, time of arrival at St Peter's Station, and what time it left St Peter's for the return trip? My family will be taking a cruise in April/2018 that includes a 8am - 8pm stop in Civitavecchia and was trying to do some preliminary planning regarding combining this train ride with several other tours not sponsored by Regent. Any first-hand information would be greatly appreciated.

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I can not answer all your questions, but I would point out that it is a long way from the ship docking area to the train station in Civitavecchia. It is not so far as the "crow-flys" but depending on where in the port the ship docks it is a very circuitous route through the port, which is commercial out to the main road and then about a mile south to the station. Even assuming that the might be a port shuttle bus from the ship to the main road, all this takes time.

 

Here is a guide about the port and how to get to Rome.

 

For me I find it easier to hire a car and driver for the day. Or use a car service they are only about 70 euro each way.

 

J

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We just did the Rome by Private Railcar in April and as I recall, we left the ship around 8:00 AM and the ride into Rome went about 45-50 minutes. Can't remember what time we left Rome, though, but it was a bit of a mess when we got back to the station in Civitavecchia - not enough busses. There were two rail trips, one was a paid excursion and the other was transportation only. We all agreed that the train only would have been the better choice.

 

I'd just say that you want to allow yourself enough time to get back, as the ship will leave without you. And the train isn't always 100% reliable. I agree with JMariner - private car and driver is probably your safest bet, especially if you have specific things you want to do and see in Rome.

 

Edit: I just checked the metadata on my photos and it looks like we boarded the train to Rome at 9:00 AM and were on board for the return trip at 5:15 PM. We were off the train at 6:20 PM.

Edited by UUNetBill
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Thx, UUNetBill -- I'm not overly concerned about getting back to the ship on-time via the Regent-sponsored train. I wouldn't envision the ship leaving one of their own excursions behind if the train runs into delays. That's the primary reason I was interested in using the Regent excursion train to get back and forth from Rome, and then do the sight-seeing on our own.

 

Here is the description of this excursion from the RSSC website:

"Depart the port in Civitavecchia with your escort for the brief transfer to your private train. After boarding the exclusive Roma Express, you will proceed for the 1-hour ride into Rome. Your escort will help you on board the train, and provide you with city maps. Upon arrival at St. Peter's Station, located near the town center and St. Peter's Basilica, you can let your instinct be your guide and you decide which beautiful monuments you would like to visit. St. Peter's Station is centrally located near the town center and St. Peter's Basilica, making it easy to reach the main monuments.

Please remember where you are dropped off, because the return train will depart for the 1-hour ride back to Civitavecchia from the same station."

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Earlier this year (same cruise as Bill) we used the transportation option on offer ‘Roma Express – Exclusive Train Transfer’, which we found suited our needs perfectly and avoided the notorious traffic jams in and around Rome.

 

The transportation comprised a coach from the ship to the rail station and then a private rail car for the 1-hour trip into Rome. We were accompanied by a guide who gave out Rome city maps and offered orientation advice. The railcar arrived at St Peter’s station and then the guide walked with us to Vatican Square (about 10minutes walk) and showed us the agreed meeting point for the return journey in the afternoon. From memory we arrived at Vatican Square around 10 to 10:30 am

 

We then set off on our own, using the metro to get around the town and see the sights. (We had pre-booked entry to the Coliseum on-line which meant we could skip the long lines queuing for tickets)

 

In the afternoon, the meeting time back at Vatican Square was around 4:30 to 4:45 pm, allowing time for the guide to escort us back to St Peter’s station and our railcar back to Civitavecchia, with a coach transfer back to the ship

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Just wanted to add that the train transfer is ideal if you want to see the sights in and around the Vatican as that is where the rail-car ends up in Rome.

 

We went further afield in Rome as we were there the Thursday before Easter weekend and therefore thought that some of the Vatican locations would either be closed or extremely crowded.

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Has anyone recently taken this "excursion" while in Civitavecchia ? I am interested in what time it actually departs the ship, time of arrival at St Peter's Station, and what time it left St Peter's for the return trip? My family will be taking a cruise in April/2018 that includes a 8am - 8pm stop in Civitavecchia and was trying to do some preliminary planning regarding combining this train ride with several other tours not sponsored by Regent. Any first-hand information would be greatly appreciated.

 

We have taken the Roma Express several times, once was a full day Regent tour and on the other occasions just the train itself. The guided tour was great and provided enough highlights that we postponed a planned trip to Rome for a few years. On three other occasions we took advantage of the Roma Express for transportation only to do our own site specific destinations and/or tours in Rome. Roma Express beats bus or car and the schedule is perfect for a full day either with or without the Regent tour, provided your own guide meets and returns you by 4:30 to St. Peter's Station. FYI, on our Regent tour there were two families and both parents mentioned this was a "worry free" excursion for them not having to herd everyone around Rome.

Enjoy your cruise and Rome.

 

R

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Two trips ago we skipped going into Rome because of the long bus ride, which was a shame as we enjoy Rome. Having discovered the train, we won't have to skip it in the future - it's definitely the way to go if you're doing the sights on your own.

 

PS - the time we skipped Rome, we took the cooking class at the local osteria and it was awesome. Not sure if it's still offered, but there are some good 'non-Rome' options in Civitavecchia, too.

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Two trips ago we skipped going into Rome because of the long bus ride, which was a shame as we enjoy Rome. Having discovered the train, we won't have to skip it in the future - it's definitely the way to go if you're doing the sights on your own.

 

PS - the time we skipped Rome, we took the cooking class at the local osteria and it was awesome. Not sure if it's still offered, but there are some good 'non-Rome' options in Civitavecchia, too.

 

The cooking class sounds better than anything. However, if you want to see Rome, another way to do it is to book your own pre-cruise hotel at the Hilton Airport. They have "free" (really free - not included:-) shuttles into Rome where you can wander and do your own thing. Rome is not one of our favorite places simply because of the number of pick pockets and crowds but think that everyone should do the "tour thing" once. We now book a hotel in Civitavecchia which is less than a mile from the ship.

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The cooking class sounds better than anything. However, if you want to see Rome, another way to do it is to book your own pre-cruise hotel at the Hilton Airport. They have "free" (really free - not included:-) shuttles into Rome where you can wander and do your own thing. Rome is not one of our favorite places simply because of the number of pick pockets and crowds but think that everyone should do the "tour thing" once. We now book a hotel in Civitavecchia which is less than a mile from the ship.

Good idea, if you're embarking/disembarking in Civitavecchia. If you're passing through, it doesn't work as well...

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  • 1 year later...
  • 7 months later...

Instead of starting a new thread on this topic I thought I would try resurrecting this old one. 

 

We selected the “Roma Express - Exclusive Train Transfer” excursion for our visit to Rome, and arrange our own touring. We decided to book entry to the colosseum and go there first then work our way back to the Vatican and our return train ride. 

 

For or those who have done something like this, what are the chances that we could make it to the colosseum in time for a 11:00 tour?  We’ll be in Rome on April 23, the Tuesday after Easter.

 

Does anybody know if there is a taxi stand at the San pietro train station?  It would probably save us some time heading to the colosseum from the train station rather than walking to the Vatican first. 

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I'm sure taking a cab would be the easiest way.  Trouble is the metro doesn't go across the Tiber in the midst of the city, so to get there by metro you have to go up and around, which as I remember takes considerable time and involves a change.  Reliable, but not speedy, and then you have a walk I think from the station.  There is apparently a bus that goes across the city, and I remember researching this but have lost the information.  Many tourists take it.

 

Since we have this excursion on our future WC, I'll have to think about what we'll do.  Spending the day in the Vatican wouldn't be a bad idea I guess.  We surely didn't see everything last time, indeed never even got into the church, just spent all our time in the museum (which includes the Sistine Chapel.)

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On ‎7‎/‎2‎/‎2017 at 8:34 PM, Travelcat2 said:

 

 However, if you want to see Rome, another way to do it is to book your own pre-cruise hotel at the Hilton Airport. They have "free" (really free - not included:-) shuttles into Rome where you can wander and do your own thing. 

 

Thank you for this great information.

 

We took the train last summer - ship sponsored tour. Did you all have an antique train like we did? I didn't think it was comfortable, but it did the job.

 

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20 hours ago, jeb_bud said:

Instead of starting a new thread on this topic I thought I would try resurrecting this old one. 

 

We selected the “Roma Express - Exclusive Train Transfer” excursion for our visit to Rome, and arrange our own touring. We decided to book entry to the colosseum and go there first then work our way back to the Vatican and our return train ride. 

 

For or those who have done something like this, what are the chances that we could make it to the colosseum in time for a 11:00 tour?  We’ll be in Rome on April 23, the Tuesday after Easter.

 

Does anybody know if there is a taxi stand at the San pietro train station?  It would probably save us some time heading to the colosseum from the train station rather than walking to the Vatican first. 

We arrived into the train station in Rome around 9:30am so you would have time to research and take a bus and the bus is at the bottom of the hill.  There is no taxi stand here but you can also take Uber. You should have plenty of time to make it to the Colosseum for a 11am tour.  

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