Pre-cruise tour of Italy out of Rome

[VPMJ]

Hello, we have never been to Italy and are considering a cruise that leaves out of, and returns to Rome in August. There are stops in Naples and Florence/Pisa (Livorno) plus Greece and Croatia. My husband is Italian and would like to spend some time in Italy. Does anyone have suggestions for spending some time in Italy prior to the cruise. Probably touring some of the towns (mentioned above ) that we are not visiting on the cruise. Suggestions please… I don’t even know where to start!

[CruiserBruce]

How much time do you have? You could easily spend a couple days in Rome or many other cities. Traveling by train, city center to city center is very easy.

[euro cruiser]

Does your husband know where his ancestors lived in Italy?  Maybe he'd be interested in seeing that area.

 

 

[cruisemom42]

As a place to start, I would maybe check out a few guidebooks from your library or do some reading online and decide how much of Italy you want to see vs how much time you have.  What interests you?  As eurocruiser suggests, it may be important to visit the area where your husband's family comes from.

 

Also think about how you want to get around. There are fully guided bus tours where you only have to show up and almost everything else is taken care of.  There are also travel agencies that will arrange some of the basics (hotels, transportation from city to city) but leave you more on your own in terms of how to spend your time.  Or you may be more independent sorts who want to get around on our own via the Italian train system, which is extensive, or even by car. 

 

Fair warning, if you are mainly planning to visit larger cities where lots of tourists flock, having a car is generally more of a hassle than a help. Most cities have traffic zones (ZTL) where you can get a ticket if you drive without the proper authorization. Also, many cities now have a significant number of pedestrian zones around the city center. And third, parking is very expensive and may not be available near your hotel.

[VPMJ]

2 hours ago, CruiserBruce said:

How much time do you have? You could easily spend a couple days in Rome or many other cities. Traveling by train, city center to city center is very easy.

Time is somewhat flexible and I think it would depend on the cost involved. Estimating 5 days or so?

[VPMJ]

2 hours ago, euro cruiser said:

Does your husband know where his ancestors lived in Italy?  Maybe he'd be interested in seeing that area.

 

 

His family is from Calabria and Aquilonia. It looks like maybe we can get there by train from Rome....am I right? Or is it too far for a few days of travel?

 

 

[VPMJ]

1 hour ago, cruisemom42 said:

As a place to start, I would maybe check out a few guidebooks from your library or do some reading online and decide how much of Italy you want to see vs how much time you have.  What interests you?  As eurocruiser suggests, it may be important to visit the area where your husband's family comes from.

 

Also think about how you want to get around. There are fully guided bus tours where you only have to show up and almost everything else is taken care of.  There are also travel agencies that will arrange some of the basics (hotels, transportation from city to city) but leave you more on your own in terms of how to spend your time.  Or you may be more independent sorts who want to get around on our own via the Italian train system, which is extensive, or even by car. 

 

Fair warning, if you are mainly planning to visit larger cities where lots of tourists flock, having a car is generally more of a hassle than a help. Most cities have traffic zones (ZTL) where you can get a ticket if you drive without the proper authorization. Also, many cities now have a significant number of pedestrian zones around the city center. And third, parking is very expensive and may not be available near your hotel.

Thank you! Ideally, we would like to see quite a bit, but wondering about the cost of a long trip for 4 (includes our 2 teens). So maybe just a few days, around 5 or so to add on to the cruise. I don't want to add too much cost to the cruise cost. 

 

We would probably like a guided tour, but would consider other options. Do you have recommendations for who could help arrange budget friendly travel in Italy? Thanks!

[euro cruiser]

With only five days I would probably just stay in Rome the entire time, there is so much to see and do there that you can only scratch the surface in five days.  Also, if that five days includes your arrival day, it's less time since you'll lose at least half of that first day to arriving, airport, transfers, etc. and likely be somewhat jet-lagged as well.

 

Calabria is not a day trip from Rome but you could get there for an overnight, how easy or difficult that will be depends on exactly where in Calabria you are headed.

 

Aquilonia is closer but you can't get all the way there by train.   You could take a high speed train to Foggia (three hours from Rome) and drive about 50 miles from there to Aquilonia, or you could take a train to either Caserta (one hour train ride plus 90 mile drive) or Naples (one hour, ten minute train ride plus 90 mile drive). 

 

In an area like Aquilonia I think you'd want a car to explore, you could also drive the entire way from Rome, it's about 200 miles each way.

[VPMJ]

5 minutes ago, euro cruiser said:

With only five days I would probably just stay in Rome the entire time, there is so much to see and do there that you can only scratch the surface in five days.  Also, if that five days includes your arrival day, it's less time since you'll lose at least half of that first day to arriving, airport, transfers, etc. and likely be somewhat jet-lagged as well.

 

Calabria is not a day trip from Rome but you could get there for an overnight, how easy or difficult that will be depends on exactly where in Calabria you are headed.

 

Aquilonia is closer but you can't get all the way there by train.   You could take a high speed train to Foggia (three hours from Rome) and drive about 50 miles from there to Aquilonia, or you could take a train to either Caserta (one hour train ride plus 90 mile drive) or Naples (one hour, ten minute train ride plus 90 mile drive). 

 

In an area like Aquilonia I think you'd want a car to explore, you could also drive the entire way from Rome, it's about 200 miles each way.

OK, thank you. I have to price some options out and run them by my husband. Your info is very helpful! 

[CruiserBruce]

You could easily spend 5 days in Rome, or maybe split between Florence, which is 90 minutes away by high speed train.

[cruisemom42]

Looking at where you are going on the cruise versus the major highlights in Italy, I see Venice not a stop on your cruise -- do you want to go there?

 

If so, I would suggest you budget 6 days pre-cruise:

• Fly into Venice
• Spend two nights in Venice and sightsee
• Take the high speed train (about 4 hours) from Venice to Rome at the end of your second day
• Check into Rome hotel on night 3 and spend days four and five sightseeing in Rome. You can also fit in something on the morning of day 6 before heading to the port to get on your ship
• Fly home from Rome following the end of your cruise

With some planning you can see a number of highlights in Rome but nothing in depth. On your cruise you will be able to get to Florence (which I would suggest, but do realize that Florence is a 90-minute drive from the port of Livorno) and Naples (you will have to choose from among Pompeii, Capri and the Amalfi Coast).

 

This doesn't give you any time to visit areas related to your husband's ancestry, but given your limited time, only so much is possible and you have to decide what matters most to your family.