DIY Rome on a Wednesday - Oct 2012

[holiday07]

I've been reading a lot of information about doing a DIY in Rome. We wanted to go to Vatican in the morning but my understanding is that St Peter's may be closed on Wednesday mornings. We are in port from 7AM to 7PM.

 

Please let us know if this plan is doable:

 

Civi -> St Pietro -> Metro to Spagna -> Spanish Steps -> Trevi -> Pantheon -> Piazza Navona -> Vatican Museum -> St Peter's Basilica -> St Pietro -> Civi

 

Is the St Pietro train station connected to the Metro so we can go to Spagna? We did not include the Colloseum because we may not have enough time. What time should we return to Civi? Are there buses that we can take instead of the metro?

 

Thank you so much for your help.

[cruisemom42]

If you want to start out at the Spanish Steps, it would perhaps make more sense (timewise) to take the train all the way to Termini, where you can hop on the metro to Spagna (the metro stop at the Spanish Steps) very easily.

 

The San Pietro station is NOT connected to the metro and it is a long walk to the closest station. Eurocruiser could probably provide options for taking the bus from San Pietro.

 

Other than that, I think the day is doable, but you'll have to watch your time and not linger too long anywhere. I'd suggest pre-ordering tickets for entry into the Vatican museums to avoid the line. (You have to select a time.) You can order them here: http://mv.vatican.va/3_EN/pages/z-Info/MV_Info_Orari.html

 

My advice for selecting a train back to Civitavecchia -- I always look at the schedule and see what is the LAST train that would get me safely back to the ship on time (I calculate that time based on being on board about an hour before sailaway, rather than the required 30 minutes, to provide a cushion). Then I pick the train BEFORE that train, so I always have a fallback option.

[MeHeartCruising]

 

Civi -> St Pietro -> Metro to Spagna -> Spanish Steps -> Trevi -> Pantheon -> Piazza Navona -> Vatican Museum -> St Peter's Basilica -> St Pietro -> Civi

 

Is the St Pietro train station connected to the Metro so we can go to Spagna? We did not include the Colloseum because we may not have enough time. What time should we return to Civi? Are there buses that we can take instead of the metro?

 

St. Pietro train station is NOT connected to the Metro and it is quite a walk to the nearest Metro station. You would probably only want to get off at the St. Pietro train station if you are indeed going to do St. Peters and/or Vatican Museum first. Otherwise continue on to Ostiense Station where you CAN connect to the Metro at the Piramide stop. Personally, I think a trip to Rome without stopping to at least do a close up view of the outside of the Colosseum would be a shame. I would at least stop there briefly before moving on to the Spanish Steps and Trevi fountain. Or if you truly want to start with the Spanish Steps, take the train to Termini station and connect to the Metro there to get to the Spagna stop. Are you able to walk a mile or two thru the day? or are you trying to do this all via buses/metro?

[euro cruiser]

I could give you a bus option from San Pietro to the Spanish Steps but it really makes much more sense, and takes less time, to follow Cruisemom's advice and stay on the train to Termini and get the metro there. You'd be taking line A, direction Battistini, for three stops to Spagna.

 

From there it's a nice walk to Trevi (about a third of a mile). From Trevi to the Pantheon and on to Piazza Navona is also an easy walk, along a well marked pedestrian walkway (look for the brown signs), for a little over a half mile.

 

From Piazza Navona you can take a bus over to the Vatican area. The #492 (see bus route map here: http://trovalinea.atac.roma.it/zoom_in.asp?VediSemafori=off&VediMeb=off&VediParcometri=off&VediFermate=off&VediLinee=off&VediRivendite=off&percorso=492AT&idmtram=52362&xmax=2315533&ymax=4643365&xmin=2307946&ymin=4640905&tipologia=URB&linea=492&circo=NO) takes you the closest. You can get the bus at either of two stops on Corso del Rinascimento (the street just east of Piazza Navona); near the southern end of Piazza Navona is the Rinascimento stop or near the north end is the Senato stop (if you make a google map this stop is in Piazza delle Cinque Lune).

 

You'd get off the bus at Bastioni di Michelangelo (either eight or nine stops, depending on which one you got on at ... print out the route map and you can follow along the stops as you go).

 

From this stop it's a fast two block walk around the corner (just follow the Vatican walls, which will be across the street when you get off the bus) to the entrance of the Vatican museums.