Italy Trip - First stop Rome

Wow. What a lot of questions. You might want to split them up and pose them separately. You'll probably get better responses that way.

I bought my sim card at Termini. I will defer to the experts on most of your questions. I travel very lightly and have taken the bus from Termini to the Pantheon area with my small suitcase. Normally I walk it during the day but not upon arrival. I would not take the bus if I was lugging large suitcases or small children.

Regarding transportation from the airport to your hotel, how many of you are there? On my first trip to Rome there were 5 of us, all inexperienced travelers coming off an international flight from the West coast. I elected to arrange a private shuttle as we would not all fit in a taxi and it worked out great for us. The number of people you have, the experience in travel, the amount of luggage and other factors will play in to what you choose to do. I would not want to walk from the Termini to the Pantheon with luggage.

I get some Euro from my bank before I go so I don't have to look for an ATM right away. The exchange rate is not as good, but for a few dollars I have some peace of mind and don't have to do any major thinking when I am tired, crabby and hungry. Others don't find it a problem to hop to the ATM right away and after I am more experienced I may be more comfortable doing that too. In my mind there is a difference in how I function as a novice to how I travel as I gain more experience.

You cannot vist the interior or St peter's during the Pope's blessing - it is closed. If you plan to get tickets and try for a seat for the blessing, you must arrive hours early. It is a mass of humanity at the doorstep of the church.

Sorry about all the questions. I thought it easier to post all the questions regarding Rome in one fell swoop! That being said It looks like I left off some vital information.

It will be my husband and I traveling with carry on bags...going to go as light as we can!
We have traveled alot but this is our first solo trip to Italy.

Thank you for that tidbit on St. Peters being closed on Wednesday.....did not even think about that. perhaps we will re arrange our schedule to do the Forum, etc. on Wednesday!

It is a lot of questions....I will tackle the one(s) about tours. I like Walk of Italy a lot. I have taken the Pristine Sistine tour twice and have sent many of my friends and family on it. Everyone has raved. It is a small group (12 max) and you go early to avoid the crowd int eh Sistine Chapel. I am confident they would do a great job on any tour. For the Borghese, I would lean on the self-guided audio tour. You an skip around if a particular work of art is crowded and come back to it. I find the group tours in the Borghese annoying when I go there. I do think a guided tour of the Colosseo and Forum is well worthwhile. They can be confusing sites. :-}

As to Siena, take the train. Yes, you have to change but the train trumps the bus any day in my book. You can catch a city bus in Siena from Train station to town center. Very easy.

Readng a good or just about any guidebook would have answered the majority of your questions. Try to make this brief -
1. For the Pantheon area use a taxi - 48E fixed rate from airport. About the same price as taking the train and then a taxi to the Pantheon area but probably twice as fast.
2. Any bank owned ATM will give the same rate whether it is in the airport, old Rome, or in France.
3 and 4 - have been answered
5. Either, the train would be more comfortable and quicker.

karen,

I have a few comments on your questions, presented in the same order as you listed.....

• I normally prefer using the Leonardo Express from the airport, as it's fast (35M) and not affected by traffic. Tickets are €14 PP, but DON'T forget to validate your tickets prior to boarding the train, or you'll face hefty fines which will be collected on the spot (the same is true with Bus or Metro in Rome). From Termini I often just use one of the Taxi's waiting outside the front door (there will be LOTS of them). You could use a Taxi from the airport which has a fixed rate of €48, but as I travel solo that's not cost effective for me.
• You could use ATM's at the airport. I normally want to get out of there as quickly as possible, so always travel with €50-100 (usually left over from previous trips), which provides travel money until I get settled. You could ask your local Bank for a small quantity of Euro and that way you wouldn't have to be concerned with ATM's until you get settled. You could also use ATM's at Termini station. As I recall, there's one or two downstairs in the shopping area (one floor down from track level), next to the Conad Drugstore (which is actually like a small supermarket).
• You can also buy phones and/or SIM cards at Termini. There are about four shops there representing the four major networks. TIM is the largest and their shop is in the Mezzanine of the ticket hall (which is on the way to the Taxi rank). If you're planning to purchase a SIM card for your phone, I'm assuming it's an unlocked quad-band GSM model?
• You can easily do the Borghese Gallery on your own, which will allow you a bit more time to admire the works of art, rather than being herded around by a guide. Note that reservations are compulsory. If you're not there on time to pick up your tickets, they'll be sold to the "standby" crowd. As I recall, they allow visitors two hours inside, but my memory is a bit foggy on that. Also note that you'll have to check anything your carrying such as Daypacks, larger Cameras, Purses or whatever.
• I don't have any information on Walks of Italy, so can't offer any comments. If you'd like a more private and very informative tour, I'd highly recommend Francesca Caruso. She's an incredible Guide and I think you'll really enjoy her tours.
• I'd prefer travel by train from Rome to Siena, but Bus should be good also. If you take the train, you'll have to take a Taxi up to the town, as the station is located on the bottom of the hill. I don't find that to be a problem as it's a quick ride. Some trains on that route use a Freccia high speed train to Florence and then Regionale to Siena. If you'd like to use that route, another option would be to use the Freccia to Florence and then transfer to the Corse Rapide Bus to Siena, which takes about an hour. In that case, you'll be dropped at Piazza Gramsci, which is right in the main part of Siena. There are a few options on that route. If you use the Bus, DON'T forget to validate your ticket prior to boarding on the day of travel, or you could face hefty fines! The same is true with Regionale trains.

As your trip isn't until October, you've still got lots of time to work out the details. I'd recommend packing along a copy of the Italy Guidebook, as I find that's a valuable resource to have when touring.

You can easily do the Borghese on your own (reserve far ahead to get the date/hours you want). Each room has description pages in various languages.

I used Walks of Italy in March for a tour of the Colosseum and Forum and was very happy with them. Wouldn't hesitate to use them again.
Have fun,
Cynthia

Thank you all very much for the information. I do have the Rick Steves' book on Italy and though it does offer a lot of information and options it is still nice to hear personal preferences. Thank you Ken for your personal thoughts and how you handle your own trip. This is an amazing forum and every time I post a question I pick up at least one or two tidbits I had not known/thought about. I will have to think a bit on the mode of transportation from the airport and how to handle the cell phone but we have decided to stay away from the Vatican on Wednesday and to do the Borghese Gallery on our own. Thank you again!

You've gotten plenty of advice. I'll just second Walks of Italy we did 3 different tours with them, including Pristine Sistine and all were well done.

As for Rome to Siena, we actually took the bus. Went to Tiburtina, bought a ticket, and off we went. It's pretty straightforward, no changes, hop on and relax. And the stop at Piazza Gramsci, the main bus area in Siena, is in town and just a few blocks from the Campo.

We did take a train from Venice to Rome and Florence to Venice and loved the train travel, but bus to Siena offers several advantages.

We are taking our first trip to Italy Aug- Sept. I booked 3 tours with Walks of Italy- based on reviews here and my daughter's recent experience with their tours just last month- very much looking forward to them. Be sure to ask for the Rick Steves discount before you book - you must book all tours at same time as the discount is just a one time use.

Thank you for the information on the Walks of Italy. It is very re assuring to know that so many have had a great experience with them! Also, thank you for the information on the bus to Sienna.

I don't have all of the answers but here is what I do know:

Our apartment set up a private car to pick us up from the airport which was great. Not sure how you get a car, but it was 50 euro, same price as taxi.

We added international data, talk and text to our phones - only about $100, worked great, and happy to avoid the sim card hassle.

We did the walks of italy pristine sistine and it was awesome. My only advice is to take your own earbuds, especially if you have kids with you. We did Pristine Sistine, some time at St. peter's, done around 1pm. The line to climb the dome was too long at that point, so if you really want that, you might need 2 mornings. Otherwise, both together was fine.

I would not go near the Vatican on Wednesday - even on Monday they had out all the chairs, etc... all over the plaza, maybe they are out all the time, I don't know. But wow that will be a ton of people.

Underground/3rd ring tour of colosseum was awesome. You have to call them to add it.

Have fun!
Kim

Thank you everyone for the information. I just love this forum!

In my opinion the best way from the airport to your hotel is Taxi. Cost's more, but getting right to your front door with your luggage is money well spent. Most hotels can arrange this for you.
As for going to Sienna, my preference is by bus. No transfers and you avoid Termini Station.
Enjoy yourself. Rome is great and Sienna is a great next stop.

Thanks, all.