2 Days in Rome

Hotel is free and since there is an early evening flight to Venice, my thought was to take advantage of free hotel for two nights, utilize as much of the day on Wednesday with sightseeing and then fly to Venice that evening. I can research and plan my own itinerary but thought a guide would help me make the most of my short time in Rome.

The train from FCO to Rome costs EU15 each way,per person as I recall. So figure out how many train trips each day and see if that makes up for the free room and the inconvenience. If it does, great! I'd prefer the train to Venice, and stay IN Rome if it were up to me.

I personally would much prefer to stay in Rome and take the train to Florence. Much less hassle, more convenient, and cheaper. The big issue you have is getting in and out of Rome since the airport is about 30 minutes or so south west of the city. You will waste a lot time going in and out of Rome and the area around the airport hotels is pretty bland. A private guide would work but very expensive from that location but expenses may not be an issue for you. What you suggest would not give you much of a feel for Rome. Is there a particular reason you have chosen this approach? It is not an option that most posters on this site would recommend.

Concur with Frank. If you need to stick to this transportation itinerary, I would hope you can change your lodging. If so, pick a well located accommodation in Rome for Monday and Tuesday nights, and have them hold your bags on Wednesday after check out. This will give you the most time & opportunity to experiencing Rome on this timeline. Under your current plan, Monday you fly in to FCO, go through all airport checks, get bags, etc., then get transportation from FCO to hotel, check in, bags, then get transportation from hotel to Romeo and return back to near FCO. Tuesday you get transport to Rome and return to near FCO. Wednesday, you check out, check bags at hotel, get transport to Rome, transport back to hotel near FCO, then transport to airport. By staying in Rome, rather than 3 round trips to/from FCO & Rome, you have one, which would be a substantial savings of time and aggravation IMHO. On arrival, you do the necessaries at the airport, then head straight to Rome. Plus, as Frank noted, there's really not anything around the airport, whereas with a well located hotel in Rome you can stroll in and out of the hotel at will to experience Rome, throw coins in the fountain, get gelato, etc. Additionally, although I don't do tours much, on this tight time table, I would look for a good tour company to make the most of my visit.

Hey, have fun! Great to have the free lodgings!! I'd definitely do either a guide or plan to do a couple of individual tours. There is an evening tour of Rome that includes dinner- that may be great for Monday night. I did a cooking class in Trastevere that was great with Chef Andrea, which was a blast.

That 'free' hotel will cost you €28 r/t by train for each day's trip into Rome (and that only gets you to FCO); a taxi will cost around €45+. You can stay in Rome proper instead and, if your hotel won't keep your luggage for you after check-out, you can store it at Roma Termini train station. You could then take one of several Roma-Venezia trains (3h40m) and pay as little as €29 with an advance purchase ticket (if you're sure of your travel date/time). Go to Trenitalia.com (click on British flag for English; use Italian spelling for city names) for train info. Definitely spend some serious time on RonInRome.com! Sometimes free isn't.

For a free hotel it might be worth all of the inconveniences of being at the airport. For me I would use that free hotel somewhere else. You just need to recognize the limitations for what you are doing. A private guide is always the best way to go.