Rome: what to do

[jlwhitney]

DCL run excursion, DCL Rome on our own or a private excursion

Can't determine what is the best to do.

The private excursions sound great but for only 2 of us kinda pricey

DCL run ones don't have one that does all we want to do and give us some free time.

DCL Rome on our own: no idea how to get around and might miss have some type of guide.

Help, from anyone who has some ideas.

Thanks everyone!

 

[Andrew DEREK UK]

DCL run excursion, DCL Rome on our own or a private excursion

Can't determine what is the best to do.

The private excursions sound great but for only 2 of us kinda pricey

DCL run ones don't have one that does all we want to do and give us some free time.

DCL Rome on our own: no idea how to get around and might miss have some type of guide.

Help, from anyone who has some ideas.

Thanks everyone!

Personally, I wouldn't do Rome on your own, there are long queues, you have to get your own tickets, this eats away at your effective time. Underground is good, but its in Italian, Rome can get very hot, and the air con on tour buses helps.

And without a guide you do not know what you are looking at.

 

[Anjelica]

Personally, I wouldn't do Rome on your own, there are long queues, you have to get your own tickets, this eats away at your effective time. Underground is good, but its in Italian, Rome can get very hot, and the air con on tour buses helps.

And without a guide you do not know what you are looking at.

I second Andrew's advice. I've done Rome a few times non-cruising by myself but I've had 3-4 days each time. Since you have limited time I would go with a guide/tour. The guides are fluent in Italian - which is very beneficial IF you don't know Italian fluidly. Sadly, even though I was born in Italy and raised the first several years of my life there I have "forgotten" alot of how to speak Italian - I can stumble along fairly well but no where near the locals/guides.

Have fun in Rome - I LOVE the history there.

 

[eva]

If you have never been to Rome before, you definitely need to have a guide. A private tour would be great. But if the cost is too much, you should go with one of the tours that DCL offers. You are never going to see everything you want in one day. We were there for 3 days with ABD and still had a couple things on our list. The Vatican will take about half a day. The other half day you will be pushing it to do more than The Coliseum, The Forum, Trevi Fountain, maybe the Spanish Steps, and some lunch. Without a guide you won't see much at all. You need to have a licensed guide if you do not want to wait hours on end in line for everything. If you decide to use DCL, make a list of your top three things to do and pick a tour that includes at least those three things.

 

[marlower]

If you do decide to do Rome on Your Own it is doable, you just have to do some research. You can purchase tickets online for the Vatican (3 month in advance) and tickets can be purchased online for the Colosseum which includes entrance into The Forum and Palatine Hill. You definitely won't be able to do it all but by having pre-purchased your tickets, you will avoid the long lines and get in at a specific time. I have already purchased our tickets to The Colosseum and have a lunch reservation. Although we are not doing Rome on Our Own, we hired Bob's Limo Service, they do not offer tickets with the tour, so we need to purchase them on our own as well. You can also download free podcasts from Rick Steves via iTunes that have some great references for these destinations. Happy Planning!!

 

[Andrew DEREK UK]

If you do decide to do Rome on Your Own it is doable, you just have to do some research. You can purchase tickets online for the Vatican (3 month in advance) and tickets can be purchased online for the Colosseum which includes entrance into The Forum and Palatine Hill. You definitely won't be able to do it all but by having pre-purchased your tickets, you will avoid the long lines and get in at a specific time. I have already purchased our tickets to The Colosseum and have a lunch reservation. Although we are not doing Rome on Our Own, we hired Bob's Limo Service, they do not offer tickets with the tour, so we need to purchase them on our own as well. You can also download free podcasts from Rick Steves via iTunes that have some great references for these destinations. Happy Planning!!

A litte trick if you do not pre purchase is to go to The Forum / Palatine Hill, buy the ticket there, ( no queues) and walk back to Colosseum, and avoid its long queues!

 

[smoof]

I don't know how much time you have in Rome or what the transportation is like from Chittaveccia (sp?). Rome is a wonderful walking city. You can absolutely do it with a map and no guide. My first time is Rome, I was limited to only one day. I did have a full day. I think I got to Rome at about 9:00am and had to leave at about 4:00 pm. It is a city, it wasn't built in a day, you can't see the whole city in a day, but you can do the highlights.

On my one day trip, we started at the Vatican. You could spend a week theres, but to beat crowds, go there first if it is something you want to see. Then, I think we went to the Coliseum, and stopped at Trevi Fountain and Pantheon on the way. I know by the end of the day we had been to Piazza Novona and the Spanish Steps too.

As I said I don't know how much time or what the transportation is like between Rome and the ship, but when you find these things out, consider doing it yourself. Taxis in Rome are not very expensive and very abundant too, if you aren't a big walker.

 

[Anjelica]

A litte trick if you do not pre purchase is to go to The Forum / Palatine Hill, buy the ticket there, ( no queues) and walk back to Colosseum, and avoid its long queues!

Palatine Hill - is absolutely my favorite in Rome. Some pics from my last trip - absolutely breathtaking (OP - you guys are going to have so much fun!!!)

http://www.themcmurphys.com/2007_2008_Trip_Italy.html

(I originally posted the pics in my post here but the pics are throwing off the format).

 

[char-lottie]

As long as you have a map and do your research on Rome you can definitely do it on your own and see everything. We have been twice and the only tour we did (which included A LOT) was the Angels & Demons tour which took half a day and can be booked online

Rome is a beautiful place, I'm so jealous!

 

[alltheparks]

Something that hasn't been mentioned, is find your cruise meet thread, and see if any of your fellow cruisers would like to share the cost of a private tour. We are doing this in Malta, Rome, Naples, and Villefranche with different groups. It is a bit cheaper than Disney, you customize the day, and you get great information and stories from your driver / guide.

For Rome we are using, Rome Connnections, and we will see the highlights and have 3 hours at the Vacitican. Enjoy your holiday!