Rome Express - All In One Day Review, just got back

[PKFA]

I am not going to attempt to describe the attractions, there is already plenty of that to be found elsewhere. I am writing this for people who want to know how much walking is involved and how suitable it is for the more mature walker like myself. I am a seventy year old couch potato who drives the car just to the corner shop, so I was a little apprehensive about going. However I thought this guided tour was worth every penny of the £108 as it did reduce the actual walking considerably

We were Picked up by coach at the ship and taken to the station to get on the private luxury train, takes about 10 minutes to the station. The train has red leather upholstered seats and there is a toilet on board if needed. After about an hour the train arrives at St. Peter's station near the Vatican from where another coach took us to the Colosseum. after 30 minutes or so to take pictures the coach took us from the Colosseum to the centre of the city, from here we walked to the Trevi Fountain where there is half an hour or so to take pictures etc. From Trevi we walked at a leisurely pace to the Spanish steps and again plenty of time for photos. Next we walked to the Pantheon spent some time there 30/40 minutes and then on to Navona Square for more phots etc. Somewhere in the area but not in the Navona Square itself we stopped for our midday 4 course lunch which was excellent. After lunch we were again picked up by coach and taken to the Vatican where we walked into St. Peter's Square and, after a very short queue for security checks, we went into the Basilica where once again there was ample time to wander around. Throughout the whole tour we wore an ear piece as the excellent tour guide explained every interesting detail. There was also an assistant to the guide who kept count and made sure that nobody got left behind. Although it is very tiring walking in 27/29 degrees and a long way for a couch potato like me it was not as bad as I had imagined. I would say that we strolled rather than marched. Please forgive any spelling or grammatical errors, I don't normally write reviews.

[Rovers1]

Considering doing this trip, what did you get for lunch?

[ekco]

Thanks for that, it was very interesting. We are going next week and are considering the trip on the coach with lunch included. Your trip looks a bit different in as much as you were able to walk around the historic sites and the trip we are looking at they are seen from the coach with a tour around the Vatican sites. Just a couple of questions.

 

Were you guided the whole day or just part of it? Did you have any free time?

 

Did you go inside any of the historic sites in the morning, such as the Pantheon and if so were the entrance fees included?

 

Did you get to see the Vatican museums and the Sistine Chapel?

 

Is the lunch a set menu with drinks and what type of food did you get?

 

Thanks:):)

 

Jan

[PKFA]

Considering doing this trip, what did you get for lunch?

Please see my other answer to EKCO

[PKFA]

Thanks for that, it was very interesting. We are going next week and are considering the trip on the coach with lunch included. Your trip looks a bit different in as much as you were able to walk around the historic sites and the trip we are looking at they are seen from the coach with a tour around the Vatican sites. Just a couple of questions.

 

Were you guided the whole day or just part of it? Did you have any free time?

 

Did you go inside any of the historic sites in the morning, such as the Pantheon and if so were the entrance fees included?

 

Did you get to see the Vatican museums and the Sistine Chapel?

 

Is the lunch a set menu with drinks and what type of food did you get?

 

Thanks:):)

 

Jan

 

Hi Jan,1/ We were guided the whole day with free time at each stop. We were told the meeting point at each stop in case we got seperated but the two guide were never far away.

2/ We went inside the Pantheon with free time to wander and inside the Basilica with free time to wander, but as I said the guides were never far away. Everything we did was included in the £108 price. We did not go inside the Sistine Chapel on this tour and not in the museums, only inside the main part of the Basilica. The Colosseum is seen from the outside only but we were off the coach walking around it.

3/ Lunch was a set menu and started with Bread, cheese cubes and Olives, next came a plate of Lasagne which was followed by Roast Pork with vegies, and finally Tiramisu. On the table there was red and white wine and also water. We were asked on the way there if there were any vegetarians on the tour, they would be catered for but I didn't see any.

Hope this helps you.

[PKFA]

Oh yes I forgot to say that the lunch was also included in the price of the tour..

[ekco]

Oh yes I forgot to say that the lunch was also included in the price of the tour..

 

Thanks PKFA, that's really helpful to me. I was almost persuaded to go on this trip but we really want to see the Sistine Chapel and museums, even though I believe they are horrendously crowded. Perhaps I need to do a meditation class before we go, lol, as I'm not the most patient person and can't abide pushing and shoving. As for the guides, they are helpful some of the time but we found in Turkey when visiting Ephesus and Gallipolli that they do like the sound of their own voice a bit too much. The guide at Gallipolli didn't actually shut up for 7 whole hours,:eek:, much too much information at a place that is entirely a war grave and needs quiet reflection at times.

 

I think the bus trip that drives around the historical sites, lunch, then the Vatican and museums is probably the way to go.

 

Glad to hear there is a vegetarian option on the meal though as we find it's often a more palatable option for us.:):)

 

Glad you had a good trip though. Did you take a trip in Corsica as that's our other non DIY choice and haven't seen much in the way of posts on that one?:):)

 

Jan

[PKFA]

Thanks PKFA, that's really helpful to me. I was almost persuaded to go on this trip but we really want to see the Sistine Chapel and museums, even though I believe they are horrendously crowded. Perhaps I need to do a meditation class before we go, lol, as I'm not the most patient person and can't abide pushing and shoving. As for the guides, they are helpful some of the time but we found in Turkey when visiting Ephesus and Gallipolli that they do like the sound of their own voice a bit too much. The guide at Gallipolli didn't actually shut up for 7 whole hours,:eek:, much too much information at a place that is entirely a war grave and needs quiet reflection at times.

 

I think the bus trip that drives around the historical sites, lunch, then the Vatican and museums is probably the way to go.

 

Glad to hear there is a vegetarian option on the meal though as we find it's often a more palatable option for us.:):)

 

Glad you had a good trip though. Did you take a trip in Corsica as that's our other non DIY choice and haven't seen much in the way of posts on that one?:):)

 

Jan

 

Hi Again, Yes we did the Panoramic Gulf of Valinco & Taravo River trip.

We were picked up by coach and driven along the coast road to Porto Pollo where there was a comfort break of 20 minutes or so. Then we were driven through the valley up to Petreto Bicchisano, we crossed the river and came down to Casalabriva, beautiful scenery throughout. After another comfort break, (2 Pints of Lager) we were taken to a spot that gave a panoramic view of the gulf and was a good spot for taking a photo of the ship. As it says in the Brochure it is mainly a coach tour with only a couple of stops for photos and a coffee, or whatever. At 3 hours it is long enough to see the sites mentioned, any longer would, for me, have been a bit boring. However I found it a nice relaxing trip before the early start needed for Rome.

 

Easy Pisa...........

We were driven by coach to a trolley train terminal. The little trolley train then took us around the town and to a small cafe a hundred yards or so from the leaning tower. All trolley trains appear to stop at this cafe, ? ? ? but the proprietor is very nice and comes out to meet the train offering free toilets, 20% off the list price of goods, with no obligation to purchase which I thought made a nice change to some places I have been to. We had about one and a half to two hours to see the Cathedral and the tower which I thought was more than enough. The train then took us through the town and across the river (I think it was the river Arno) back to board the coach. Again at only 4 hours it was long enough to stop any boredom setting in. Another tour that I thought was good value for the price, in fact they all were.

[ekco]

Thanks for that, I'll go and have a look on Thomson website, trips section. I saw your trip to Pisa as I accidentally pressed the 'Quote' button and there it was. Kruzseeka has given me a detailed description of doing the Cinque Terra from La Spezia which looks really straight forward so we might DIY that.:):)

[skioncruises]

Just bumping this up as there are queries about this trip on 'T' forum