How soon book a flight out of Rome?

[BuckeyeMark]

The Explorer docks at 5 AM. What’s the earliest flight you would be comfortable taking out of Rome? We dock in Cittavecchia.

[Clarea]

Do you plan to carry off your own bags?

[BuckeyeMark]

No. Will have a ton of luggage. 

[Clarea]

I would not book a flight before noon then.  I would also have a private transfer (no shuttle or cruise line bus) arranged for the airport trip.

[FloatMe]

I second Clarea, arrange for a private car for your transfer to the airport. It will cost between €110 to €190 for a privite car. Make sure that the company you hire has access into the port to meet you at the ship. Some do not have such access and you have to take a shuttle or walk out with your luggage to the outside of the port. We walked right off the ship, driver met us just outside of the building, 20 meters to the car. Perfect.

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[Norwich Cruiser]

2 hours ago, BuckeyeMark said:

The Explorer docks at 5 AM. What’s the earliest flight you would be comfortable taking out of Rome? We dock in Cittavecchia.

Earlier this year we docked at 05.00 walked off the ship at 07.15 were in our private transfer car at the appointed time of 07.30 were at the airport at 08.30.

Hope this helps.

I would recommend you book a private transfer definitely not the ships shuttle probably more expensive and definitely slower.

A shared shuttle I would also not recommend much better to pay the extra for your own private vehicle.

[sikegrad]

Definitely anything after 12pm will be fine.  It only takes 1-hour from the port to the airport, but we got to the airport too early, and could only check-in 3-hours before our scheduled flight.  Also, try not to fly into Canada if the US is your final destination.  Our flight from Rome to Montreal was delayed several hours, and little did we know that US Customs closes at 8pm.  Even though our flight from Montreal to home was still at the gate, we were not allowed to board because US Customs had closed for the evening.  All US bound travelers were forced to stay overnight, and it was a scramble to get flights the next day.

[Tapi]

We docked at exactly 8:00am and we were off the ship at 8:15am. We made it to the Rome Airport around 9:15am for an 11:25am flight. We didn’t have a lot of time to spare. We made it to our gate as boarding commenced. In the future, I wouldn’t book a fight unless I can have a minimum of 3 hours at the airport before departure. 

 

Things to consider:

 

- As others mentioned, use a private transportation company that can pick you up curbside as you exit the terminal. We used Stefano’s Rome Cabs and they were absolutely wonderful. Professional, courteous and efficient. We exited the terminal and our car was waiting for us 10 feet away. 

- We did self-assist debarkation. Contrary to the mobs of hundreds of people trampling each other doing self assist debarkation on Caribbean cruises, on this itinerary there were maybe a total of 20 people doing self assist, so that helped expedite our debarkation considerably.  
 

- Are all ports of call in your itinerary in the Schengen Area? If so, there won’t be any customs/immigration upon debarkation. You’ll be able to walked right off the ship and through the terminal without having to make additional stops. 
 

Have a great cruise! 

[lovemylab]

We booked an 11am flight a few years ago and had no issues.  We carried our own bags off the ship and had reserved spots on a shared shuttle that left at 7am.  We were at the airport with plenty of time.  We actually had to wait for the airline to begin accepting luggage as we were too early.