Post Cruise Travel in Rome and Venice

[cruising bears]

My husband and I will be spending a week in Rome and Venice staring April 24, 2010 as a post cruise add-on. We wish to visit Venice and Rome before flying home on May 1 from Rome. We plan to FedEx home one suitcase and carry two small rolling suitcases while in Italy.

 

We plan to get a rail pass to use for travel between Rome, Venice and Rome's port. I would like a hotel near the St. Lucia Station or just off the canals in Venice and near the airport in Rome. Also restaurant suggestions would help.

[cruisemom42]

There are many, many hotels near Santa Lucia station; Piazzale Roma is also very close by with numerous hotel options. I suggest you look on venere.com for locations and price range (simpler than trying to give you suggestions without your budget...)

 

In Rome, I would strongly suggest a hotel in the central historic area. Staying near the airport means you will not experience any of the charm of Rome in the evening; also it is so convenient to be able to walk to most all the tourist sites from your hotel, as Rome is a city best experienced by foot. Try looking in the area of the Pantheon, Trevi, or Piazza Navona.

[hylasgirl]

My husband and I will be spending a week in Rome and Venice staring April 24, 2010 as a post cruise add-on. We wish to visit Venice and Rome before flying home on May 1 from Rome. We plan to FedEx home one suitcase and carry two small rolling suitcases while in Italy.

 

We plan to get a rail pass to use for travel between Rome, Venice and Rome's port. I would like a hotel near the St. Lucia Station or just off the canals in Venice and near the airport in Rome. Also restaurant suggestions would help.

 

 

Oh, please do not stay by the airport in Rome. There is NOTHING out there and the experience is nothing like staying in the centre of Rome.

 

I would also advise against a railpass. It is not needed and is SO much more money than buying your train tickets in Italy when you arrive.

 

We had a great hotel by the train station in Venice. Hotel Abbazia, http://www.abbaziahotel.com/ It was just off the station and it was so NICE! We were right by a water bus stop and it was a great experience to shuttle all our luggage to the train on our way to Rome.

 

We just did Venice to Rome as a pre-cruise trip this year... if you have any questions just ask.

 

Also... if you want to stay at the most fantastic place in Rome, try the Albergo del Senato. http://www.albergodelsenato.it/

It truly ended up being part of the experience in Rome. If I can afford it, I will always stay here.

 

Have fun!

[euro cruiser]

My husband and I will be spending a week in Rome and Venice staring April 24, 2010 as a post cruise add-on. We wish to visit Venice and Rome before flying home on May 1 from Rome.

Can you help us understand your itinerary? Does your cruise end in Venice or in Civitavecchia? How much time do you expect to spend in each city?

 

We plan to get a rail pass to use for travel between Rome, Venice and Rome's port.

As Hylasgirl already said, a rail pass is a waste of money. You will be much better off buying point-to-point tickets once you are in Italy.

I would like a hotel near the St. Lucia Station or just off the canals in Venice and near the airport in Rome. Also restaurant suggestions would help.

Spend some time digging around the threads on this board, you will find lots of hotel and restaurant suggestions.

 

Here are five in Venice, all in the area of Piazzala Roma (near the cruise port) to get you started:

 

Ca' Doge http://www.cadoge.it/eng/benvenuti.htm

 

Best Western Olimpia http://www.hotel-olimpia.com/

 

Hotel Arlecchino http://www.hotelarlecchino.com/

 

Hotel Santa Chiara http://www.hotelsantachiara.it/en/

 

Locanda Marinella http://www.locandamarinella.com/

[mattie00]

Can anyone provide a critique of the Hotel Golden in Rome?:confused:

[cruising bears]

Can you help us understand your itinerary? Does your cruise end in Venice or in Civitavecchia? How much time do you expect to spend in each city?

 

Arrive at Civitavecchia on 4/24. Plan to travel to Venice first and then return to Rome on 4/27. Leave Rome on 5/1.

 

Cruising Bears

RCCl -47

NCL -10

Carnival -9

[D4]

Can anyone provide a critique of the Hotel Golden in Rome?:confused:

 

We spent 3 nights at the Hotel Golden just 3 weeks ago after our cruise. We loved it. It was family run and they were very helpful. Our room was spotless and it was in a very safe location. Do you have any specific questions about it?

 

We now are trying to plan a trip back to Rome in 2010. 3 nights was not enough for us! And we'll stay at Hotel Golden again.

[euro cruiser]

Can you help us understand your itinerary? Does your cruise end in Venice or in Civitavecchia? How much time do you expect to spend in each city?

 

Arrive at Civitavecchia on 4/24. Plan to travel to Venice first and then return to Rome on 4/27. Leave Rome on 5/1.

Lovely!

 

With three nights in Venice, there's no need to stay near the train station, it's probably the least attractive part of the city (but it's still pretty nice, it's hard to go wrong in Venice). You will have a long day of travel (about 5 - 6 hours, including a change of trains at Termini in Rome).

 

Also, in Rome, please stay in town, not out at the airport. Even if you have an early flight on your departure day, that last night in Rome is worth getting up a half hour earlier for the cab.

 

I'm curious about Fed-Exing luggage home. I've heard that it's wickedly expensive to do that, do you have a sense of what it might cost? An alternative, since you'll need to travel through Termini in Rome twice, would be to leave your bag (or bags) at the left luggage office in Termini, then pick it (them) up as you leave town.

[TLCOhio]

Agree with most of the other posters. Fortunately you have a full week after your cruise to do BOTH Venice and Rome. Staying in the heart of Venice is a must. You can check these two websites for hotel options on your specific dates there:

http://www.tripadvisor.com

http://www.hotels.com

 

Here are my key notes and suggestions for Venice and Rome:

 

Relax and enjoy! The Romans already controlled the world once and are not in that much of a hurry. It will all work out. Be patient! That's their approach to life!

 

FOOD: It's hard to have a bad meal in Italy! If you like seafood, you'll find lots of great dishes there. But most everything is wonderful. Enjoy the food!

 

VENICE (pop. 299,000), best options/priorities of St. Mark’s Basilica (Sun. 2-5:30, M-S 9:45-5:30) be sure to take stairs/steps and go up to the higher second level for both great inside and outside views, wonderful 1000-year old church; Doge’s Palace (9-6 daily), see the jail area, great outdoor pictures from the balcony off of the grand ballroom-reception area on the second level; do sunrise walk, enjoy the “battling bands” at night on San Marco Square; Grand Canal boat ride; Rialto Bridge and its area is wonderful; Gallerie dell’Accademia (9-10, Sun 9-6) has very good art, but not as great the Uffizi in Florence, nice stuff by Leonardo DaVinci; wonderful shopping options, including silk, such as ties for $8.50 on San Marco Square; just walking around Venice is the total joy, no cars, truck or motor scooters, just lots of interesting people in a great, historic setting! You’ll walk where Marco Polo walked after being in China!

 

VENICE DINING

Suggested and Highly Recommended by Us from May of 1999:

Taverna La Fenice, Campiello de la Fenice 1938; next to fire-damaged, but re-opened Opera House, wonderful food; if nice, can dine outside

Restoranti da Raffaele, Calle larga XXII Marzo 2347, phone: 041/523-2317, right along side of canal, wonderful food and great setting; if nice, hopefully can dine outside.

 

ROME (pop. nearly 3 million) This vivid city has so many unforgettable images: St. Peter's Dome against a pink-and-red sunset, the city's silhouette from Janiculum Hill at dawn; the array of broken marble columns and ruins of temples of the Roman Forum; a Bernini 17th-century colonnade resting against an Egyptian obelisk carried off from Heliopolis while Jesus was still alive; Renaissance frescoes in a papal palace built on top of the tomb of a Roman emperor.

 

Rome went all out to spruce up for 2000 and the Jubilee with decades' worth of grime from pollution scrubbed from the city's facades, revealing the original glory of the Eternal City. Many of the most popular areas (such as the Trevi Fountain and Piazza Navona) are sparkling and inviting again.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

[mattie00]

We spent 3 nights at the Hotel Golden just 3 weeks ago after our cruise. We loved it. It was family run and they were very helpful. Our room was spotless and it was in a very safe location. Do you have any specific questions about it?

 

We now are trying to plan a trip back to Rome in 2010. 3 nights was not enough for us! And we'll stay at Hotel Golden again.

Thank you for the information on Hotel Golden. We plan to stay there for 6 nights post-cruise in June 2010 and have reserved one of the larger rooms. We are walkers/hikers. Is it possible to walk to Vatican City from the Hotel Golden and, if so, how long will it take us? We would like to be able to walk to all of the major sights. Do you think that is doable? Any tips you can give us on possible restaurants for dinner where informal dress is acceptable would also be much appreciated.

[euro cruiser]

Hotel Golden ... We are walkers/hikers ... Is it possible to walk to Vatican City from the Hotel Golden and, if so, how long will it take us? We would like to be able to walk to all of the major sights. Do you think that is doable?

Rome is a very walkable city, if you enjoy walking you can get to pretty much everything on foot.

 

From the Hotel Golden to the Vatican is about two miles, downhill at the beginning and then flat the rest of the way. If you don't want to walk (or want to ride back), the #116 bus (a small electric bus that only seats about 12 people) is a great option. You can pick it up only a couple of short blocks from the hotel (at Porta Pinciana) and get off only a couple of blocks from Piazza San Pietro.

[mattie00]

Rome is a very walkable city, if you enjoy walking you can get to pretty much everything on foot.

 

From the Hotel Golden to the Vatican is about two miles, downhill at the beginning and then flat the rest of the way. If you don't want to walk (or want to ride back), the #116 bus (a small electric bus that only seats about 12 people) is a great option. You can pick it up only a couple of short blocks from the hotel (at Porta Pinciana) and get off only a couple of blocks from Piazza San Pietro.

Two miles is definitely doable for us. We may take some form of transportation back though after wandering around the museums for a few hours. Or, maybe we will need the walk back to work off what we plan to eat! How much of an uphill walk is it back -- fairly slight incline or more like a hill climb?

[euro cruiser]

It's mostly a slight incline, at least until the last couple of blocks. There it gets a bit more challenging, but nothing the average walker couldn't handle.

[mpb43]

cruising bears,

We stayed at the Hotel Antiche Figure in Venice, just across from the Santa Lucia train station pre-cruise. We loved this hotel and I recommend it highly. I will say that we enjoyed the location of our post-cruise stay in San Marco (in an apartment, not a hotel) better for location, but the Antiche Figure was excellent.

I concur with the others--in Rome, stay in the city center. We just returned from our fourth visit to Rome in November. We never tire of it. Enjoy the evenings there if you can.

[mattie00]

It's mostly a slight incline, at least until the last couple of blocks. There it gets a bit more challenging, but nothing the average walker couldn't handle.

Thanks so much for the info. Happy New Year to you and yours!

[arkansasnanny]

Don't know what you would like to spend, but we always stay in convents. They are immaculate and lots to choose from in Rome.Go to the Santasusanna website . Julie You can e me at clydeketcham@sbcglobal.net

[newcruisers04]

Don't know what you would like to spend, but we always stay in convents. They are immaculate and lots to choose from in Rome.Go to the Santasusanna website . Julie You can e me at clydeketcham@sbcglobal.net

 

thank you so much for that link...I had never thought of that for accomodations post cruise...some very nice places.

[BazCranleigh]

Hi Mattie00,

TripAdvisor at http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g187791-d557956-Reviews-Hotel_Golden-Rome_Lazio.html gives plenty of reviws of the Hotel Golden. On the whole it looks a pretty decent place to stay. I have used TripAdvsor quite a lot and found it to be reliable (providing you ignore the comments by those who have arrived grumpy after a bad hair day or a row with the wife).

[mattie00]

Hi Mattie00,

TripAdvisor at http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g187791-d557956-Reviews-Hotel_Golden-Rome_Lazio.html gives plenty of reviws of the Hotel Golden. On the whole it looks a pretty decent place to stay. I have used TripAdvsor quite a lot and found it to be reliable (providing you ignore the comments by those who have arrived grumpy after a bad hair day or a row with the wife).

 

Thank you. I have reviewed Trip Advisor but know there are also people who do not post reviews so was hoping to get further insight. We have booked 6 nights there post cruise due to the mostly positive reviews.:D