Princess Rome on Your Own

[luv2sweat]

I'm going to be taking back to back cruises in November. The turn around port is Rome. Excursions are being offered for those on the 29 day cruise that treats these two as one booking. I can't get any pricing information since I'm booked on the two cruises (12 and 17 days) not the 29 day. Does anyone know the price per adult for the Rome On Your Own excursion?

 

Thanks,

Wendy

[saratoga]

I'm going to be taking back to back cruises in November. The turn around port is Rome. Excursions are being offered for those on the 29 day cruise that treats these two as one booking. I can't get any pricing information since I'm booked on the two cruises (12 and 17 days) not the 29 day. Does anyone know the price per adult for the Rome On Your Own excursion?

 

Thanks,

Wendy

 

We will be in Rome on the Ruby Princess in October. The cost is $59.

 

Here is the description:

Rome On Your Own

Travelers familiar with Rome may opt to spend a full day sightseeing, shopping or dining on their own.

 

 

ROME ON YOUR OWN

You will disembark your motorcoach at a designated point near St. Peter's Square in Rome. Wander through the shops or sample Italian cuisine at restaurants nearby. Or venture further and discover as many of Rome's treasures as your pace allows. At the time specified by your hostess, the motorcoach will depart from the same point for the return drive to Civitavecchia.

 

Please be mindful that this excursion is non-guided and is exclusive of lunch and entrance fees. City maps will be provided on the motorcoach, and local transportation in Rome is readily available.

[sultan_sfo]

There is also a Rome on your own by a reserved train. Last year, the price was the same as the bus.

[pris993]

We did Rome On Your Own, in 2009, on May Day, May 1st. Rome was overrun with people, wall to wall people because it was a Friday on a long weekend for locals as well as tourists.

 

Mention this because I would avoid Rome on a "holiday" like May Day in the future.

 

We made the best of it because we have been to Rome previously -- so tried to go off the beaten track, visited neighbor churches vs the Vatican. We had visited the Vatican years earlier before the days of long lines for security.

[caribill]

I'm going to be taking back to back cruises in November. The turn around port is Rome. Excursions are being offered for those on the 29 day cruise that treats these two as one booking. I can't get any pricing information since I'm booked on the two cruises (12 and 17 days) not the 29 day. Does anyone know the price per adult for the Rome On Your Own excursion?

 

Thanks,

Wendy

 

a) Do you know for sure what the people on the 29 day booking have available for turnaround day tours?

 

b) If you know for sure tours are being offered to those on the 29 day booking, call Princess and ask how you can book.

 

c) Normally tours for disembarkation/turnaround days are not offered until on board the ship and will not be the full range of tours normally offered for a port in the middle of a cruise. This is because there will be relatively few passengers available to take these tours.

[jfv379]

We did Rome On Your Own, in 2009, on May Day, May 1st. Rome was overrun with people, wall to wall people because it was a Friday on a long weekend for locals as well as tourists.

 

Mention this because I would avoid Rome on a "holiday" like May Day in the future.

 

We made the best of it because we have been to Rome previously -- so tried to go off the beaten track, visited neighbor churches vs the Vatican. We had visited the Vatican years earlier before the days of long lines for security.

 

We were in Rome, years ago, on May Day and had the wonderful experience of the being in St Peters Square and seeing Pope John Paul II give has May Day address. Yes it was a mad house, and they didn't know until the last minute if he would appear. I guess word travels fast.

[wobblybob74]

I'm going to be taking back to back cruises in November. The turn around port is Rome. Excursions are being offered for those on the 29 day cruise that treats these two as one booking. I can't get any pricing information since I'm booked on the two cruises (12 and 17 days) not the 29 day. Does anyone know the price per adult for the Rome On Your Own excursion?

 

Thanks,

Wendy

 

Hi Wendy,

 

We did the 'Rome On Your Own' when we were on the Grand last month. As another poster says, we paid $59 each for it, and we very pleased. The coach got to St Peter's Square at around 1000 and left at about 1545. We didn't have time to see anything other that the Vatican museum and St Peter's Basilica but that was fine by us - we'll just do the rest next time!

 

One word of advice though - if you do wish to visit the Vatican Museum (and the Sistine Chapel) then book your tickets in advance on the Vatican Museum's website: http://biglietteriamusei.vatican.va/musei/tickets/do?action=booking&codiceTipoVisita=26&step=2

 

It costs an extra 4 Euros each but is well worth it as we saved ourselves at least two hours of queuing - it took us a good ten minutes to walk past the queue to the 'pre-booked' entrance.

 

Have a fantastic cruise!

[Maryandi]

We took the train for 8E each round trip fro Civita... and got off at the S. Pietro stop, walked over to the Vatican. Then came back on the train. You can also stay on the train to the Termini stop and walk or taxi to the Colosseum.

 

The Port of Call section of Cruise Critic has alot of info. about doing this .

 

MaryAnn

[pris993]

We were in Rome, years ago, on May Day and had the wonderful experience of the being in St Peters Square and seeing Pope John Paul II give has May Day address. Yes it was a mad house, and they didn't know until the last minute if he would appear. I guess word travels fast.

 

That would be a memorable experience for sure. Sometimes the best travel experiences are those that are unplanned.

 

The contrast between the peaceful and quiet experience we had in years past at the Vatican, the mad house we experienced this time was a distraction. So we try to avoid such scenes.

 

By contrast going to a local church in the neighborhood -- where there were only a few locals was much more of a spiritual experience.

[sultan_sfo]

We used the Princess Train On Your Own.

 

An Alternate Way to See the Museum & Vatican:

We had read in the Ports of Call that one could get a guide outside the Museum. As soon as we passed the Basilica on our way to the Museum, we found "many" agents offering tours. We negotiated with one of them -- a student from Nigeria. These agents sign you up, tell you the cost, give you a slip, and escort you to the guide. The guide collects 10 or 12 persons, takes you to a small room where we pay. Then the guide took us directly to the entrance of the Museum without any waiting in line.

 

Hi Wendy,

...

One word of advice though - if you do wish to visit the Vatican Museum (and the Sistine Chapel) then book your tickets in advance on the Vatican Museum's website: http://biglietteriamusei.vatican.va/musei/tickets/do?action=booking&codiceTipoVisita=26&step=2

 

...

Have a fantastic cruise!