Iconic Mediterranean Treasures Jan 10, 2024 Rome shore excursions?

[JVC_NYC]

Hello,

We are scheduled to go on the January 2024 Iconic Mediterranean Treasures cruise - our first cruise on Viking and our first European tour.  My question is: has anyone gotten a satisfactory answer from Viking on why there are no shore excursions scheduled for the Rome port day on 1/10/2024?

 

Despite their "promise" of at least one tour in every port there are none on the website and none of the various (somewhat conflicting) answers from Viking make sense to me.  We are trying to plan our one day in Rome but the lack of information from Viking has made that very difficult.  If anyone has heard anything definite from Viking I would appreciate hearing from you.

 

First I was told that Rome as a "turnaround port" and that we would learn about tours once we were closer to Rome (!) and then that there would be a general sightseeing tour with lunch but what sights was left ambiguous.  Our main goal is to get to the Villa Borghese Gallery and Garden but Viking could not give me enough information to know whether I should make the effort to book tickets in advance or not.

 

We have been to Rome before and do not need really to see the Colosseum again, we were really hoping to get to see the Gardens.  Thank you for any help or advice you might have.

All the best,

John 

[OneSixtyToOne]

Villa Borghese Gallery is one of my favorite places to visit in Rome. Bernini's Apollo and Daphne is the most incredible sculpture I've ever seen. I hope you make it. Good luck.

Edited December 21, 2023 by OneSixtyToOne

[Reaniel]

My guess is that they're still trying to see if they can do something comprehensive for the included tour, or just a generic light "panoramic tour".  For our day in Rome on the Saturn (Cities of Antiquities & The Holy Land), it was one that involved running shuttle service between 3 points (Colosseum, Vatican, Spanish Steps) for about 5 hours and we get to decide how and where to spend that time for ourselves.

 

While it's best to book the tickets to Galleria Borghese ahead of time, there are usually tickets at the ticketing booth, and given Jan 10th is still the "off" season, it shouldn't be a problem if you're willing to line up for the ticket on that day.

 

I would recommend holding off until maybe a week before the Rome Port day to book the tickets, and hopefully there will be more info on how the included tour is organized for you.  Don't worry THAT much about not being able to get tickets.

 

Also, do you know the "back on board" time for you in Rome?  

[JVC_NYC]

Thank you, OneSixtytoOne, for the wonderful picture and the encouragement.

 

And, thank you, Reaniel, for your thoughts on this as well.  Good suggestions.  I do not know that "back on board" time - that is a great tip, I will check that out with Viking.  

[millybess]

11 minutes ago, JVC_NYC said:

Thank you, OneSixtytoOne, for the wonderful picture and the encouragement.

 

And, thank you, Reaniel, for your thoughts on this as well.  Good suggestions.  I do not know that "back on board" time - that is a great tip, I will check that out with Viking.  

Have you tried your roll call?  There might be people over there that have the same concerns and the same interests.  

[Reaniel]

1 hour ago, JVC_NYC said:

Thank you, OneSixtytoOne, for the wonderful picture and the encouragement.

 

And, thank you, Reaniel, for your thoughts on this as well.  Good suggestions.  I do not know that "back on board" time - that is a great tip, I will check that out with Viking.  

 

If you log into MVJ, and go under calendar, you would usually see a preliminary back on board time.

The reason I'm asking is because if it's not REALLY early like 6 PM, you should have plenty of time and can just tell Viking that you'll be off on your own after the included tour, and take the train back to Civitavecchia on your own.  There are trains from Roma Termini to Civitavecchia every 30 minutes or so for ~5 EUR per person, and the train takes about an hour to Civitavecchia.  So time yourself to leave Rome on a train 2 hours before the back on board time and you should be ok.

 

It still all depends on what kind of logistics Viking will run in the end for your Rome port day.  If it's something like what we had with our itinerary, then you should have no problem visiting Galleria Borghese, the Villa, and still come back with the shuttle to the ship since they're all close to the Spanish Steps area.  However, if it's a panoramic tour with little free time, you'll need to plan ahead with coming back to the ship on your own.

[Peregrina651]

Here is yet another take on your situation.  If it is the Borghese you want, then plan to do it on your own, without depending on Viking.  The calendar on MyVikingJourney.com or the latest edition of your Viking Guest Statement will tell you the currently scheduled arrival and departure times. Back on board time is usually 30 minutes before departure. Double the info once you are on board.  

 

"On you own" can mean anything from hiring a car and driver to take you from Civi to the Borghese and back to taking the train to Rome and back and using cabs or public transit to get around Rome.  

 

Me, I'd be at the top of the gangplank ready to grab the first cab I see on the pier to take me to the Civi train station or else the port shuttle to the front gate, then cab to the train station.  In Rome, I'd take a cab because I would too excited to bother with subways and walking. If available and if I have an internet connection, I might consider Uber. But you know best what works for you.  

 

BUT, if you decide that heading into Rome is too much, I would heartily recommend either Ostia (Ancient Rome's seaport) or Taquinia (Etruscan Necropolis and quaint hillside town with Etruscan Archeological Museum).  Not the Borghese (because nothing else is) but quite fulfilling with somewhat less wear and tear.  

 

[bookbabe]

Our Iconic Med Treasures in March shows Rome times as 5am to 8pm.  We’ve been told an excursion will be offered once on board.

Please post back after you get on board, let us know what the offered Rome excursion turned out to be for your date.

[Peregrina651]

14 minutes ago, bookbabe said:

Our Iconic Med Treasures in March shows Rome times as 5am to 8pm.  We’ve been told an excursion will be offered once on board.

Please post back after you get on board, let us know what the offered Rome excursion turned out to be for your date.

 

Just keep in mind that port times can change from sailing to sailing.  

[JVC_NYC]

Thank you to everyone for your so very helpful suggestions.  I will post back after we return from our day in Rome and will let everyone know how it turned out.  Happy Holidays to all and Happy Sails to You All.

[bookbabe]

47 minutes ago, Peregrina651 said:

 

Just keep in mind that port times can change from sailing to sailing.  

And even from pre-cruise to day-of.  We had a bunch of ports on Wake of the Vikings where the port times changed at the last minute.

 

I anticipate lots of changes from what’s posted for our 36 day Iconic/Trade Routes B2B in the spring, with lots of last minute excursion announcements since there are 4-5 turnaround days with no excursions yet.  But that will be our fourth cruise in a year, so we have seen every type of port-related change you can see between our various trips.

Edited December 22, 2023 by bookbabe

[Reaniel]

I would highly recommend taking the train for Civ - Rome portion simply because it won't be impacted by traffic.  For our Rome port day just a few weeks ago, our shuttle was stuck in traffic both ways, and we ended up spending 2 hours each way.  I wouldn't really trust taxi faring better in such a case.

 

You might want to get a cab for the Civ train station back to the ship, but otherwise, train would give you the more consistent travel time.

 

As for booking tickets for Galleria Borghese, assuming the 8 PM back to ship time is going to be more or less accurate, I'd recommend booking the in 3 PM out 5 PM time slot ticket (or the 3:10 PM English Guided Tour).  This way, you would have ample time to get to Roma Termini for the train for Civ but still not eating up too much daylight time (the sunset time is ~4:30, but it gets dark and cold after 4).  So enough daylight time for you to cover the whole Villa on foot before going into the Palace.

 

And if you decide against booking the guided tour, I'd strongly recommend getting the audioguide, which is excellent (and probably the best of all Rome attractions).  You can just get one and share it between two people by just playing and listening to what interests you the most, and then pass it to the other person and replay it.

[JVC_NYC]

Reaneil, those are some brilliant suggestions, thanks!

[Peregrina651]

3 hours ago, Reaniel said:

assuming the 8 PM back to ship time is going to be more or less accurate,

 

10 hours ago, bookbabe said:

Our Iconic Med Treasures in March shows Rome times as 5am to 8pm.

 

Viking gives you arrival and departure times.  Back on the boat time would normally be 7:30pm. Allow at least half an hour, if not more, to get from Civi train station to ship, especially if you run into the problem that the cab cannot drop you at the dock and you have to wait at the gate for a shuttle to get you to the ship (there is no walking from the gate to the ship) or there are more people waiting for cabs than there are cabs.

 

4 hours ago, Reaniel said:

but it gets dark and cold after 4).

 

In Jan 2002, Rome was the coldest weather we encountered in a two week trip -- and it was a biting, to the bone cold.

[Reaniel]

16 hours ago, Peregrina651 said:

 

Viking gives you arrival and departure times.  Back on the boat time would normally be 7:30pm.

 

In this case, the 3 PM time slot for Galleria Borghese should still be OK, but OP might need to be a little bit more vigilant with regards to time.  

 

I'd hold off on buying the train tickets though.  You can just buy them once you're at Roma Termini at one of the kiosks.  Upon checking the train schedule for that day, I'm seeing the 4.6 EUR trains to Civ at 17:12, 17:27, 17:42, so you shouldn't have any problem catching a train if you watch your time.  There's also a direct train at 16:57 for 9.9 EUR.  Plenty of choices, and you'll be at the Civ train station before 7 PM.

[Peregrina651]

2 hours ago, Reaniel said:

Upon checking the train schedule for that day,

 

Can you share the URL for this information?

[Reaniel]

44 minutes ago, Peregrina651 said:

 

Can you share the URL for this information?

 

I just put in the date and to/from stations into the TrenItalia (the regional and IC train operator) official website. 

https://www.trenitalia.com/en.html

 

Here's the screenshot of the search result.

 

 

Edited December 23, 2023 by Reaniel

[Jammy Bun]

We are onboard Venus at the moment, sailing from Athens to Tilbury UK, via Civitavecchia ( for Rome) at which point some guests will leave and others join the cruise.  In our cabin on boarding in Athens was a list of tours available to us in Civitavecchia  - all are to Rome and are 8.5 hours long, leaving the ship between 7:30 and 8:00am.  The included one is a Rome on your Own one, so that might be one you could use?  

[Peregrina651]

42 minutes ago, Jammy Bun said:

We are onboard Venus at the moment, sailing from Athens to Tilbury UK, via Civitavecchia ( for Rome) at which point some guests will leave and others join the cruise.  In our cabin on boarding in Athens was a list of tours available to us in Civitavecchia  - all are to Rome and are 8.5 hours long, leaving the ship between 7:30 and 8:00am.  The included one is a Rome on your Own one, so that might be one you could use?  

 

In the past, the OYO bus dropped you off and picked you up at the Vatican. I assume that it remains the same (but you know what is said about assuming). I do suggest staying with the bus all the way to the Vatican so that you will know exactly where you have to be and at what time you have to be there.

 

Taking the OYO is a good suggestion. It saves the wear and tear of getting to the Civi train station and back (no mad dash to get back on board before they haul up the gangway). It saves the worry that you won't make the train in time. You only have to worry about getting to and from the Borghese.

 

The should make a toilet stop coming and going (but just in case, use the facility at the museum before you head back to the Vatican; toilet at the Vatican is a bit more complicated and the Viking rep will be able to help you find it).

[Reaniel]

With regards to the WC, your shuttle should make 1 WC stop before heading into Rome, and I'd say that's the best opportunity to use it.

As for the Vatican, if you do visit St. Peter's Basilica, there's one located right after the security check (and where the cloak room is located).  There's also one inside Galleria Borghese, located next to the stairways between the ground and first floor I believe.

 

Good luck and have fun with your Rome port day!  Hope everything works out and you get to visit everything you want to see!

[LindaS272]

WC= World Cruise=World Cafe=Water Closet 😎

[Peregrina651]

7 hours ago, Reaniel said:

As for the Vatican,

 

There is no need to stand in line to get through security at the Vatican unless you are planning on going into St. Peter's. Viking has a relationship with one of the shops at the meeting point and the multiple Viking guides/escorts who wait there while their bus-loads tour the area will be happy to point you in the right direction. Viking knows its demographic and understands the importance of having facilities available for us. 😉

[bookbabe]

On 12/25/2023 at 9:17 AM, Jammy Bun said:

We are onboard Venus at the moment, sailing from Athens to Tilbury UK, via Civitavecchia ( for Rome) at which point some guests will leave and others join the cruise.  In our cabin on boarding in Athens was a list of tours available to us in Civitavecchia  - all are to Rome and are 8.5 hours long, leaving the ship between 7:30 and 8:00am.  The included one is a Rome on your Own one, so that might be one you could use?  

If you get a chance, could you please post a pic of the Rome excursions list?  I know it won’t necessarily be the same in March on our Rome stop, but it will at least give us an idea of what type of offerings to expect.  Thanks.

[JVC_NYC]

I will do that either once we get on Board and find out (Jan 3rd) or once we arrive in Rome (Jan 10th).  

[Peregrina651]

Two threads are discussing pretty much the same topic and someone has shared the list of tours on the other thread.

 

See (comments 22 and 23):