Arriving in Rome @ 10:30 and cruise next day w. 2 kids

Nope, don't think so - that does not seem to be reality-based to me. Not even close.

We land in Rome at 10:20am...

From where? Long flight? Will everyone be able to get a good night's sleep on that plane, and all will arrive feeling wide-awake, cheerful, and 100% ready to charge out into the world?

Most folks (those who fly in from far away) arrive feeling exhausted, and spend the rest of that arrival day jet-lagged, miserable, and mostly just wishing to find a bed to crash and burn in. It's hard enough to just stay awake until after dinner. Major sightseeing on your arrival day? I wouldn't count on it.

The next day - which is actually your first real day in Europe - you need to get checked out of your first hotel and onto your ship. I don't do cruise ships so I don't know how complicated that is, but if it's anything like getting on an airline flight, your first day in Italy will be consumed by sleeping in later than you probably should, dealing with breakfast, getting everyone assembled, checked out, and out into the world. You will not be efficient, you'll still be a bit tired, stressed, disoriented. And that's probably not going to leave you enough time to do much before you need to do "get on the boat stuff".

I would write off that time. You're going to need it to just (begin to) recover from the flight and the stress of being on the other side of the world in a foreign country. Don't forget that your 10 and 12 year olds will be along...

I'm going to guess that this may be your first trip to Europe. After an overnight flight, you'll all be jetlagged on that first day. No NOT try to do too much. It's going to be at least lunch time before you even get to your hotel in Rome to drop your bags. So you would have time to do one thing starting in mid-afternoon. My vote would be the Colosseum- the open air and sunshine will help combat the fatigue of jet lag. Then perhaps a walk through the Forum before returning to your hotel area. Your family will undoubtedly want a relatively early dinner (many Italian restaurants don't even open for dinner until 7pm) and then to bed for a good night's sleep.

You might have time to see the Vatican the next morning if you book one of the very early private tours. Then hurry back to your hotel to pick up your luggage in time to travel out to Civitavecchia. But as David says, I doubt you could be out of bed, dressed, packed and breakfasted that early on your first day. You'll want to check out the Ports if Call forum on Cruise Critic for recommended car services.

If you mean the Vatican museums, I do not see that as possible. If you mean St Peters you could do that one day. You could a 'walk by' of the Colosseum.

Doing a tour of either the Vatican Museum or of the Colosseum the day you land is just too much.

Agree with the others. You don't have much time. With a 10.30 arrival you will be lucky to be at your hotel by 1 or 2 pm. You need to clear immigration and customs. Sometimes quicker and sometimes a couple of hours.

I would stay at a hotel in the Termini area (Sonya and Aberdeen are good choices). If you have to be on board at 2 - that is early for most ships - you don't have much time that day either. It is an hour train ride to the port. The train station at the port is near the cruise ship docks but it will still take a couple of hours or more from leaving your hotel and arriving at the ship's check-in. You could walk the Vatican ground and walk by the Colosseum the afternoon of arrival. Good for the jet lag. But that is about it. You need a ticket to enter the Colosseum grounds.

If coming in from a long flight, I would just catch a shuttle.up to Civitavecchia to a hotel.

Wait until the next day coming out of Rome and time can get away from you. Italy runs on Italian time.
You will have to get to Rome Termini and then take a 1 hour local train ride. Then you catch a city bus to the front of the port. A port bus will take you out to your ship, and they often just have one or two buses running for many ships--inefficient.I
Just don't push your luck. We always go into a city a couple or three.days early so we can visit local sights. We have been to Rome 3 times recently, and it is not a city we tire of.

You don't say where you're coming from or what time of year it will be, so I'll assume you're arriving on an overnight flight outside of peak tourist season. Not everyone is equally affected by jet lag but, unless you already know you're family is only mildly affected, assume you'll have to deal with it. You might consider the following plan. Stay at a hotel in the Vatican area. Friends with children stayed at Fragrance Hotel St. Peter, on a quiet street near the Vatican and San Pietro railway station, and thought it was great. Take a taxi or shuttle directly from the airport to your hotel. Cost will be about the same as other less convenient options. Once settled into the hotel, take a taxi to the Colosseum area. If lines aren't too long and you feel up to it, visit the Colosseum and maybe walk through the Forum (same ticket). You'll want to be active but not overdo it. After dinner, you'll probably just want to relax. Next morning, go to St. Peter's. My friends said it was a short easy walk from the hotel where they stayed. Late morning, take the regional train that goes directly from the Roma San Pietro station to Civitavecchia station in 40-60 minutes - cost 4.60 euro per person. Imo this is a very workable plan that can be tweaked once you arrive and see how everyone feels.

In theory it can be done but you will be tired and who knows when you can check in to your hotel.
When you say Vatican do you mean the museum?
The Colosseum can be done in about 2 hours unless are also seeing the underground.
The Vatican without the Museum can be seen in a couple of hours also (IMOHO).
The problem I see about doing something the day you board is "where are you going to leave your luggage"?

Have you looked at any maps? Are you landing at FCO? It is actually outside of Rome. Also, keep in mind Civitavecchia is an hour by train from Rome.

Does your cruise line provide any transportation from Rome or are you on your own? Will you have any time in Rome when you return?

If you land at FCO at 10:20, I'm guessing it will be after noon before you get your luggage, go through customs and get transportation to Rome. If you can splurge, I highly recommend taking a Walks of Italy tour. The skip the line tickets are included and they do a great job. The VIP Coliseum night tour (after it's closed to the public) would be great! I'm one for pushing through jet lag.

If you stay in Rome, I'm thinking your cruise departure day will be filled with checking out of your hotel and getting to Civitavecchia. Have you cruised before? If you are supposed to be on board by 2:00, the process may start much earlier than that. Check with your cruise line.

Whatever you do, don't try to see the Vatican Museums the day of your arrival. I can only think of a few people I hate enough to put them through that ordeal!

I might get flack for this but I would suggest considering buying tickets for one of the Hop On Hop Off Bus Tours for your family. The tickets aren’t inexpensive but it’s a nice way to be able to view the city. You could hop off at the Colosseum site to see the outside of it. Potentially, you could even buy an open ticket online pre trip for that day to go inside. And again, it’ll give you a nice overview of the city without using public transport. We did this on our first day in Rome last month and shockingly enjoyed it. We are generally not hop on hop off people. It also was fairly low key, which was nice after a nine hour plane ride.

We also did San Clemente, which is a really cool church with an ancient crypt, which is near the Colosseum. We then road the hop on bus up to Piazza Venezia to do Rome from the Sky, at Victor Emmanuel. It was a nice relaxed cluster. Just giving you an example of some things you could do rather in your limited time vs a major museum.

I don’t believe any of the buses cross the river to the Vatican, but as other posters suggested, that might be something to save for another time. The only way I could see you being able to fit it in would be if you booked one of the really early (ie like 730) morning tours for the museums. There are multiple tour operators that do this. You would likely have enough time to get to your cruise after it finished but I would still be very careful about timing.

Not sure about a hop on/off on the day of arrival. We did that once, a long time ago, and missed most of everything because we just sat on the bus --- asleep. Between the warm sun, motion of the bus, and sitting down we could not stay awake. To have a fighting chance with jet lag you really need to to moving and active in the sun. Hard to fall asleep when dodging traffic cross a street in Rome. The scare factor alone keeps you awake for two hours after each street crossing.

Here is my take.

Plan for a hotel either near Termini (taking the Leonardo express from FCO) or in the Trastevere near the Tiber, (taking the regionale FL1 train to the Trastevere station then the tram).

If you want to see the Colosseum for a full tour, it would have to be that afternoon, getting tickets well ahead. For a walk by, you could view it from the outside, then walk through the Forum, then continue on to the Rick Steves Heart of Rome walk (see the guide or podcast) that hits Trajans forum, Campo di Fiori, Piazza Navona, Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon, Spanish steps plus more.

Have a few snacks along the way, then finish up with a good meal before bed.

That would be your best use of time, seeing the best of Rome.

The next morning, depending on the day of week, I would show up at the Vatican early, no time to see the museums, but do St. Peters Square then into St. Peters, getting to Termini before noon to catch a train to Civitavecchia. The only problem with certain days is if there is an audience with the pope, then St Peters will be closed until later in the morning.

@Frank. Eh, to each their own. I’m not saying there were no sleepy moments that day but sitting in the sun and breeze on the bus with an interesting, vibrant city before us, we managed to stay awake just fine. And this was not our first international trip, so we aren’t novices when it comes to jet lag. I truly think it probably depends on age, state of shape, when you caught the plane, where your from, ect.

We did get a coffee before doing all that but I think most people do that, regardless of what they are doing. Plus, as I said, we did hop out at the Colosseum and Piazza Venezia. Our Air Bnb was near the Piazza Navona as well, so we were able to get off easily. It gave us a good lay of the land for what we had planned for our 7 days their too.

With such a short time and no time at all to figure transport other than likely a taxi, I think it’s still a good way to view the city and something the kids might like too, which avoids a ton of walking. Was just a suggestion. shrug

(I do agree on Rome traffic though. We always walked with the locals, haha.)

I love Laura's suggestion of the hop on hop off bus...we actually did something similar in Paris as I thought it would be a great way to keep everyone alert and awake during those dreadful hours of first day arrival. My two preteens, husband, and I climbed to the top on a beautiful day with a slight breeze. We were in Paris!! Ten minutes later all 3 of them fell asleep and then were VERY cranky when they awoke. I was cranky too...because they had fallen asleep...and because I had wanted to do so but did not out of pride!! So, Laura's idea was spot on and yet Frank's prediction came true. Hee hee.

First day arrivals can be great....or brutal. I know as a parent you are probably feeling as if when you are so nearby it is your duty to ensure they see the Colosseum and the Sistine Chapel. But really truly I don't think most 10/12 year olds will care if they see the inside of the Vatican. I have 2 "nerdy" types and they were much more impressed with the hole in the ceiling of the Pantheon. And on arrival day, all they usually want to do is sleep. Any chance you could ditch the site seeing the first day, and go to a hotel near the cruise ship and do the sightseeing after the cruise?

Sounds like you have a wonderful trip planned so don't lose focus on the terrific vacation you have planned.
SuzieeQQ

Just to input to the Hop-On/Hop-Off bus conversation, I have used those in Rome, Paris, London, and a couple other cities; but for a limited Afternoon and 2 adults and 2 kids it is an expense, and I found Rome to be less optimal for that type of tour. Most of the best Rome is on pedestrian areas that the buses do not go near (the major piazzas, the Pantheon, the fountains, the Spanish steps, most of the Forum, the Vatican from only a distance, etc...

A walking tour would be more active and get you where you need to go.

I wouldn’t try it if the kids are the grumpy kind when not getting enough sleep. No way would I have done it with my boys! Who knows what time you can get into your hotel rooms?

Could you change your flights to arrive a day or two earlier?

Yes it's possible IF you prebook tours AND your flight is on time :)
On our first family trip to Europe the kids were 7 and 14. Both slept on the plane overnight so they were far better rested us. My 7yr old slept across me on the plane so for 6 hours I was pinned in my seat afraid to move. We also landed at about 10am, got to the hotel by noon (request early check in), and slept until 2:30. We had prebooked 3pm entry to the Borghese Gallery so we jumped in a taxi to get there on time. Then we walked to the Vatican and climbed the dome. Then we grabbed dinner at a sidewalk café, and then after dark we did the Rick Steves walk across town to see the forum, Trevi fountain etc. In hindsight it was way too much for the arrival day but the 2.5hr nap helped. On all our returns to Rome we plan something for day one, but nothing that requires prebooked tickets. This way if our flights are delayed or we just don't feel like it we don't waste money.
Since you have very limited time and your kids are old enough not to whine about being tired, you could check in at the hotel, have a nap, then taxi to the courtyard of the Vatican to take it all in from outside, then supper, and then do the night tour of the Colosseum (prebook - limited spots and avoid the line). Next day it will depend when your train to the coast departs. Get a hotel near the train station to save time. Last time we were in Rome for a cruise departure we mostly prepacked the night before and at ~8am we went to the early market in Campo Dei Fiori (daily except Sunday). After wandering for an hour or two we went back to the hotel, checked out and walked to the train station.
I know there are mixed opinions on packing but our family of 4 did a month all over Italy, Greece, Germany with carry on only. We got out of the airport and did the train into Rome fast (get to your nap faster...) Walk from the train station to your nearby hotel (preplan the route on your GPS so you don't waste time). On cruise day, unless we're running really late we walk to the train station with our carryon bags. When you get to Civitavecchia no need for a shuttle or taxi to the port, just walk along the boardwalk following the shoreline (turn right out of the station). Do NOT give your carry on bags to the cruise people to deliver to your room - instead take them to the room yourself and you have everything you need to start enjoying the cruise (bathing suit, fresh clothing, etc). Can't tell you how many people show up for dinner the first night in the same clothing they've been wearing for 24hrs if they came straight from an overnight flight and then handed over their giant suitcase to the cruise staff. Sometimes they don't deliver your large suitcases until later in the evening. FYI they leave them in the hallway not in the room so if you must go this route make sure you have locks on them and nothing you'll need before bedtime in case you're the last to get your bag. When walking back from dinner or the evening theatre show we always get a good chuckle seeing the size of some of the bags in the hallways. Lots of jokes about people bringing extra passengers without having to pay for them ;)
If you'll be doing carryon only (highly recommended) with kids I suggest you do a prepack and make sure they can maneuver their own loaded bags without crashing into people or walls. It looks crazy but go for a walk around your neighbourhood or even a mall. See if they can manage a loaded bag on stairs. For our 7yr old we took her bag on escalators, and to put it in the overhead bin on the plane. Otherwise she had to be able to manage it on her own. She did just fine for the entire month with the exception of a little help getting up and over a couple of bridges in Venice, and one time we had to run to catch a train. I took her bag, tossed it from the platform to the top of the stairs onto the train and then hoisted her up rather than waiting for her to climb the steps.

You may want to check with the cruise folks to confirm the 2ish boarding. Most cruises we've been on leaving from European cities sail around 5:00 pm (or even later). If you do have to board the ship at 2:00 pm, I'd vote for finding a hotel near Termini (as others have said), then booking a night "private" motor tour of the city (if you're lucky you might find one with an open top). You'd only be driving by places, but it would be better than spending the night in the hotel. Maybe get up early the morning your ship sails and visit Trevi Fountain, Piazza Navona (there's a good gelato shop nearby), and if you're able, the Pantheon.