Rome for people who have been there before

[babyclaytonmom]

On 5/29/2024 at 12:53 PM, cruisegal415 said:

Great! Booked a SCAVI tour and the Galleri8a Borghese. Thanks!

How long did it take to hear back to Scavi? Emailed months ago about August and havent heard back.

[babyclaytonmom]

On 6/7/2024 at 10:35 AM, nadeki said:

It was very frustrating. We called and emailed. Then one day I magically got a response. 
 

I paid. 
 

Then a few weeks ago I got an email I had never confirmed and my reservation was canceled. 
 

I have no confidence when we show up in two weeks that we will find the mysterious excavation office or that we will have a reservation. 
 

I hope it works out for you. 
 

we booked directly I think !!

How far ahead of your booking date were you emailed to pay/confirm your time?

[nadeki]

11 minutes ago, babyclaytonmom said:

How far ahead of your booking date were you emailed to pay/confirm your time?

We will be there in two weeks. 
 

I got tickets in the fall. 

[cruisegal415]

OK well, I emailed them (Scavi tour) and filled out the form on line (twice, two different days) and then I found this tour from Travel Advisor (through Viator): https://www.viator.com/tours/Rome/Scavi-Tour-to-Tomb-of-St-Peters-in-Vatican/d511-115257P8

I checked it out and called and confirmed it did include the Necropolis as well as St. Peter's tomb, so I booked it for August 12 which is when I needed it.  It was non-refundable, but I knew that's when we wanted to go.

 

The next day, I got an email saying that my tour had not been confirmed. When  inquired, they said it was alI sold out, so I found one on August 24th at 9 or 11 am.  We were pulling in to port at Civitavecchia on the 24th, but not disembarking until the 25th. I figured we could disembark early and stay in Rome overnight.  I quickly realized that this wouldn't work, but if we took a train from Civitavecchia in the morning directly to the Vatican, we might make it. That would necessitate spending the day in Rome, then returning to the ship, then taking another transfer the next morning to the airport, but it was ok.

 

Then when I started figuring out what time we'd have to leave the ship to get to the train, take the train ride into Rome, and walk from the station to the Vatican, I started to panic that we wouldn't make the 10:45 meet time. Since my reservation was still "pending" I tried to contact the tour operator to say I misjudged the time and asked if I could cancel since it hadn't gone through yet.  Viator said I'd have to contact the tour operator, so I went on the website and found an email address for the actual tour operator, and sent them an email.  The response the next day was from Viator, saying I'd have to contact the tour operator! I sent back the email saying that's who I sent the email too, but by that time, the reservation had gone through and I'm now stuck with it.

 

I'm kicking myself because (1) I NEVER (except for this!) purchase non-refundable tickets for anything, and (2) I read the reviews on Travel Advisor and Viator and they are not good. My husband says, just chalk it up to a bad decision and let's just take the other tours that offer a tour of St. Peter's tomb and not the Necropolis, on one of the three days that we are there pre-cruise. I'm inclined to agree. It sounds like a lot of stress and aggravation for a tour that doesn't seem worth it.

[marazul]

@cruisegal415 - That is the trouble of booking with a consolidator, such as Viator, rather than directly with a tour company or directly with the venue.

[dce85]

I had tried faxing for a Scavi reservation and had no luck getting my fax picked up.  Then a few months later I found a form on the official site and sent it on April 2.  I actually got a reply yesterday (6/20).   It was a form email in 4 languages.  Because of maintenance, the archaeological area under St. Peter will be closed to tours from Aug. 19 to Nov. 3, 2024.   I guess I’ll be waiting until my next trip.

[Podie]

I've been to the catacombs outside the city walls and on the Scavi tour. I much preferred the catacombs. 

[euro cruiser]

9 minutes ago, Podie said:

I've been to the catacombs outside the city walls and on the Scavi tour. I much preferred the catacombs. 

 

Why?  What about the catacombs was more interesting, or what about the Scavi tour was not?

[Podie]

Well, the Scavi tour reminded me of a Disney production. Everything was behind glass, but it was set up to look like it was being worked on. It looked more like a movie set to me. The tour guide also talked forever. The catacombs were raw. The smell of the earth and walking through a narrow passage underground was something I'll never forget. There are many catacombs, and I can't remember the ones we toured, as we did it twice, but they were all incredible.

 

[euro cruiser]

That makes sense, but it's unfortunate.  I went on the Scavi tour about 15 years ago, and only the place where they believe they found the bones of St. Peter was behind glass.  I guess it's a necessary evil, because people cannot be trusted to keep their hands to themselves.

Edited July 16 by euro cruiser

[cruisegal415]

Update-I had booked a so-called Scavi tour through Viator, only to have received (3) different emails from the Vatican because I inadvertently sent three requests for the Scavi tour because I didn't think it went through.  I got three responses from the Vatican offering the tours! I took one, and felt bad that I had the non-refundable one booked through Viator for the 24th. Then, lo and behold, got an email from Viator saying the non-refundable tour we booked on the 24th was cancelled! Apparently the Vatican is shutting down the Scavi tours from August 19th to sometime in September I think.  So we didn't lose out on that $ after all!

[cruisegal415]

If anyone will be in Rome on Sunday afternoon, are you interested in sharing a golf cart tour of the city?

[marazul]

8 minutes ago, cruisegal415 said:

Update-I had booked a so-called Scavi tour through Viator, only to have received (3) different emails from the Vatican because I inadvertently sent three requests for the Scavi tour because I didn't think it went through.  I got three responses from the Vatican offering the tours! I took one, and felt bad that I had the non-refundable one booked through Viator for the 24th. Then, lo and behold, got an email from Viator saying the non-refundable tour we booked on the 24th was cancelled! Apparently the Vatican is shutting down the Scavi tours from August 19th to sometime in September I think.  So we didn't lose out on that $ after all!

It is closed until Nov 3.

[cruisegal415]

2 minutes ago, marazul said:

It is closed until Nov 3.

I did email them to confirm that it would be open for our August 12 tour but never received an answer so I'm assuming they would have let us know if it was cancelled.

[euro cruiser]

By "them" do you mean the Vatican directly, or Viator?  Viator has no vested interest in getting back to you, they are known to sell tickets and tours that they do not have, only to cancel days before.

[cruisegal415]

1 hour ago, euro cruiser said:

By "them" do you mean the Vatican directly, or Viator?  Viator has no vested interest in getting back to you, they are known to sell tickets and tours that they do not have, only to cancel days before.

The Vatican.  Viator did let us know that our non-refundable tour was cancelled which we were thrilled with since we ended up getting the Vatican tour, and would have lost money on the Viator one.

[capecruzer]

On 5/28/2024 at 3:31 PM, PatMunits said:

Ten days ago we rented a small car (manual transmission) in Civitavecchia. The cost was 75 Euros for the day, which I found to be acceptable. We drove to the thermal baths of Saturnia in Tascany. Access is free, parking is a few Euros.



Then we spend the rest of the day in Pitigliano (aka Little Jerusalem of Italy) just wondering the streets of this beautiful medieval town on top of a hill. This day end up being more fun, relaxing and enjoyable than both Mykonos and Santorini days later.

This day sounds very interesting!  Could you tell me how far/travel time to both areas from the Civitavecchia area please?  We arrive FCO very early and will have a full day before retiring to our hotel for the night.

[euro cruiser]

It's about 90 minutes of driving from Civitavecchia (approx. 85 km/55 miles).

 

[Steerpike58]

On 5/20/2024 at 4:03 PM, Hlitner said:

... Perhaps the OP might want to consider a day trip (or spending a night) at Tivoli.  It is not far from Rome, there are day tour options or one can simply head to that area DIY.  Rather than boring folks with the details, just Google "Tivoli, Italy" and read about the related tourist info.  It is certainly worthy of an entire day.

...

We're on our third return to Rome, and looking for a more peaceful alternative. We've decided on Tivoli; specifically Villa D'Este.   We are going to the Vatican Museum in the morning, then taking the train to Tivoli from Termini. We plan to visit only Villa D'Este before returning to Rome for dinner.  What would you recommend as a second destination, should we wrap up at Villa D'Este early? 

 

Edit To Add - we made a mistake with our online booking at Villa D'Este; we booked the morning (10:00am) not realizing we had the Vatican Museum reservation that morning.  If we show up in the afternoon at Villa D'Este with a 10am ticket, will they honor it or will they refuse? We don't mind paying again if necessary (~$20 each), but obviously would prefer not to. We've heard that Villa D'Este is not overly crowded so we shouldn't have any issues 'getting in' if we show up at 2pm without a reservation. 

 

Regarding the Vatican Museum/Sistine Chapel tour, will we be able to check in a backpack? We're going to need a small backpack as we'll be out-and-about all day. Also regarding the Vatican Museum, I presume a taxi from our hotel (Radisson Blu GHR) will be pretty speedy at 7:30am on a Saturday morning.  Since we have a reservation already (for 8:30am), do we need to arrive much earlier for the 'appointment'? 

Edited August 23 by Steerpike58

[Hlitner]

11 hours ago, Steerpike58 said:

We're on our third return to Rome, and looking for a more peaceful alternative. We've decided on Tivoli; specifically Villa D'Este.   We are going to the Vatican Museum in the morning, then taking the train to Tivoli from Termini. We plan to visit only Villa D'Este before returning to Rome for dinner.  What would you recommend as a second destination, should we wrap up at Villa D'Este early? 

 

Edit To Add - we made a mistake with our online booking at Villa D'Este; we booked the morning (10:00am) not realizing we had the Vatican Museum reservation that morning.  If we show up in the afternoon at Villa D'Este with a 10am ticket, will they honor it or will they refuse? We don't mind paying again if necessary (~$20 each), but obviously would prefer not to. We've heard that Villa D'Este is not overly crowded so we shouldn't have any issues 'getting in' if we show up at 2pm without a reservation. 

 

Regarding the Vatican Museum/Sistine Chapel tour, will we be able to check in a backpack? We're going to need a small backpack as we'll be out-and-about all day. Also regarding the Vatican Museum, I presume a taxi from our hotel (Radisson Blu GHR) will be pretty speedy at 7:30am on a Saturday morning.  Since we have a reservation already (for 8:30am), do we need to arrive much earlier for the 'appointment'? 

Villa Adriana.  But, without a car you would need to either take a taxi or local bus from town (outside Villa d'Este.   I do not know the answer to your other question about reentry to Ville D'Este.

 

Hank

[marazul]

18 hours ago, Steerpike58 said:

Since we have a reservation already (for 8:30am), do we need to arrive much earlier for the 'appointment'? 

Read the instructions on your ticket.  You need to be there 15 minutes ahead of time.  Make it 20.

[Steerpike58]

On 8/23/2024 at 8:23 PM, Steerpike58 said:

We're on our third return to Rome, and looking for a more peaceful alternative. We've decided on Tivoli; specifically Villa D'Este.   We are going to the Vatican Museum in the morning, then taking the train to Tivoli from Termini. We plan to visit only Villa D'Este before returning to Rome for dinner.  What would you recommend as a second destination, should we wrap up at Villa D'Este early? 

 

Edit To Add - we made a mistake with our online booking at Villa D'Este; we booked the morning (10:00am) not realizing we had the Vatican Museum reservation that morning.  If we show up in the afternoon at Villa D'Este with a 10am ticket, will they honor it or will they refuse? We don't mind paying again if necessary (~$20 each), but obviously would prefer not to. We've heard that Villa D'Este is not overly crowded so we shouldn't have any issues 'getting in' if we show up at 2pm without a reservation. 

 

Regarding the Vatican Museum/Sistine Chapel tour, will we be able to check in a backpack? We're going to need a small backpack as we'll be out-and-about all day. Also regarding the Vatican Museum, I presume a taxi from our hotel (Radisson Blu GHR) will be pretty speedy at 7:30am on a Saturday morning.  Since we have a reservation already (for 8:30am), do we need to arrive much earlier for the 'appointment'? 

We recently completed our Vatican museum visit and our Tivoli/villa d'este visit.  We managed to get a cab with some difficulty outside our hotel. The hotel desk made a half assed effort to call a cab but nothing showed up. But we managed to flag one down outside on our own.  The Vatican museum was incredibly crowded and it was incredibly hot.

 

We then took the Metro to termini station, grabbed a snack (there are sit down cafes on the second floor).  Train to Tivoli was uneventful, and the walk to the villa d'este not too difficult despite it being extremely hot still. They had no problem letting us in in the afternoon with a morning ticket. Villa d'este is worth the visit, especially if you like fountains and less crowds.

 

My phone was stolen in the Metro, but that's the subject of another post ...