Rome Metro

Why do you need to go to the Manzoni stop? Is the Manzoni stop near your hotel? I personally would take a taxi from the airport to your hotel for fixed fee of 48 euro. Rome is very easy to get around especially all of the tourist sites. We rarely ride the buses/metro more than one or two times each time we are in Rome. First, the metro really doesn't go anywhere handy. Second, the Leonard Express from the airport is a train and not a subway. We generally walk everywhere and few times just grab a bus.

Yes, I am staying at SHG, Portamaggiore Hotel, near the Manzoni metro stop, and taking a cruise that leaves Civitavecchia the following evening. Thank you much for your reply.

Unlike other cities we’ve visited, we have never used the metro in our many trips to Rome.

So it sounds as if you're only in the Rome for 1 night? What time does your flight arrive and what time do you need to be on the ship? And what do you intend to do/see while in Rome?

A 48-hour ATAC pass will not be helpful to you as it won't cover your transport into Rome from the airport nor your transport to Civitavecchia. If you are only staying one night, you wouldn't get the good of it.

Thank you very much. Hopefully, I will receive some additional replies from other travelers who are familiar with the Rome Metro and train services. I do appreciate your assistance.

Kathy, Thank you very much for your reply. I land in Rome at 9 am on October 14th, and the cruise leaves at 7 pm on the 15th. Yes, you are correct, just one night before the cruise. However, I did not think that the 24 hour train-bus-metro ticket would be useful for me because, if I use it on the morning of the 14th, it would expire on the morning of the 15th. This is why is I am considering the 48-hour pass. Will I be able to purchase either the 24 or the 48-hour pass at a newsstand at FCO ? Thank you, Gary

..... additional replies from other travelers who are familiar with the Rome Metro and train services.......

Not sure what you are asking? Over the years we have spent about a month in Rome and have made eight trips between Civit .... and Rome, and have taken two cruises out of Civit... Now what do you want to know????

You can buy metro card at Tobacco shops and there is a Tobacco shop in the same area as the ticket office for the Leonard Express. You cannot use it on the Leonard Express. Your hotel is two stops south of Termini and out of the walking distances to most of the sites. As I responded earlier, you can take the train and the metro to your hotel as you suggested. There is a TI in Termini and they might help you decided on the best ticket. I still think it might not be cost effective for a 48 hr pass but don't know the price either. A couple of years ago you needed at least eight trips to break even on a 48 hour pass.

Your hotel might be outside of the taxi's fixed rate zone.

Kathy, The ATAC train will not take me from the FCO airport to the Main Termini ? Thanks

Frank, Thanks very much. If I buy a pass at FCO, (either a 24 or 48-hour pass), will this pass allow me to take the train from FCO to the Main Termini, and then also allow me to take the Metro from the Main Termini to Manzoni metro stop ? Please bear with me, as I have not been to Rome before, and I am trying to learn. Thank you.

I am considering the 48-pass because I arrive at FCO on the morning of the 14th, and leave on a cruise on the evening of the 15th, and I am assuming that a 24-hour pass, purchased at about 10 am on the 14th will expire on the morning of the 15th. thanks

No, we all have been constantly saying the ticket to Termini is a separate ticket and the same for Civit..... From the airport you have the Leonard Express at about 16 euro/person and a local train at about 8 euro/person. When I say about, it has been a couple of years and the tickets always increase a bit from year to year. The taxi is not the cheapest option but it is the most convenient. It is a fixed rate for four people to the center of Rome of 48E. Don't know if you hotel would be within the center core.

PS -- Also thought that all passes in Rome expired at mid-night. Could be wrong.

Thanks, I am just trying to understand it. So, I may buy a train ticket from FCO to the Main Termini, and then purchase a seperate short distance Metro ticket from the Termini to the Manzoni metro stop, correct ?

There's also the process of leaving Rome to be on the ship in time.

Frank, you're an authority on catching cruises from Rome/Civitaveccia so can offer some words of wisdom there? For a ship departing at 7:00 PM, I wouldn't guess the OP will have a lot of time for afternoon sightseeing? glmorris24, how were you intending to get to the port?

If interested, this is where the hotel is at; near 2nd stop from Termini on Metro A.
https://www.google.com/maps/place/Hotel+Porta+Maggiore/@41.8930697,12.5064604,15.7z/data=!4m7!3m6!1s0x0:0x635d53e436efafad!5m1!1s2018-10-07!8m2!3d41.8913553!4d12.5138774

So again, a 48-hour pass will not be useful until you get IN to Rome, and will not be useful to get to the port. Realistically, you'll have maybe a little over 24 hours to use it. At € 12,50, you'd need to use it at least 8 times within the city to (almost) break even on it. With the little time that you have, I doubt you'll be able to accomplish that. Some of the more interesting areas are not served by metro and are more enjoyably (and quickly) walked than explored by public bus anyway.

So, I may buy a train ticket from FCO to the Main Termini, and then
purchase a seperate short distance Metro ticket from the Termini to
the Manzoni metro stop, correct ?

Yes, if you don't take a taxi. In fact, you can buy multiple single-ride, BIT tickets (€ 1,50 each) at one time and tuck them away for when you need them: they aren't time or date specific. Just remember to validate them before boarding transport and keep them until you exit a station or a bus in case of a check. Buy them at most metro stations (although doesn't look like Manzoni has a sales point) and many newsstands and tobacco shops.

Kathy,
Thank you for walking me through the process, and helping me to better understand it. And I will appreciate some additional information as how best to get from the hotel to Civitavecchia on the afternoon of October 15. I am supposing that it will be wise to give myself plenty of time, and leave the hotel by 3:30 or 4:00 ? Or should I leave hotel earlier ? Thanks very much. Gary

What time is your cruise line telling you that you should be there to embark?

Just called the cruise line, and they recommend that I be there at least by 5 pm. In such case, I will likely leave hotel by 2:30 or three. thanks

Kathy, Is a BIT ticket a pass which is good on the train, metro or bus ? thanks

Is there a particular reason you have chosen Porta Maggiore Hotel? It is not really close to a metro stop nor is it convenient for most of the tourists sites in Rome. From the Trip Advisor linkage that Kathy provided it looks like a nice hotel but Rome is full of nice hotels. For a one night stand, I would have stayed within walking distance of Termini just for the convenience.

The trip to Civitavecchia can taken from 45 mins to an hour and 15 depending on the train with three to four trains an hour. The slower times are Regional trains (cheapest fares) and will taken an hour and fifteen or so. There are no seat reservations on Regional trains all of the other trains have assigned seats - comes with the ticket. When you arrive in Termini I would go to the ticket window and buy the ticket for the next day. If you ship departs at 7 pm I am guessing they will want you on board by 5pm or maybe a little earlier. But they will tell you. I would plan to be in Civit... no later than an hour to a hour and half prior to the close of boarding. A Regionale train ticket will allow you to take any Reggionale train but all of the other train ticket will be specific to that train at that time. Miss the train and the ticket is dead. So you might want to catch a train around 1430 -- starting think in Europe times, dates, and euro.

Once you arrive in Civit .., you probably can see you ship to the west. The port entrance was recently changed so I am not familiar with the new port entrance. It is about a mile from the train station, follow the flow, lots of people headed in that direction or take a city bus or a taxi to the port entrance. Once inside the port entrance a free shuttle bus will take you to your ship's check in point.

There ticket for the metro is the same price whether you ride for one stop or ten. There are no short distance tickets.

The ticket must be time stamped and is good for 90 mins (I think) from the time stamped. What the locals do it in the little box on the bus or train platform.

No, a BIT is a 100 minutes ticket that can be used on all means of transport inside Rome. Transfers in all directions are included, but during those 100 minutes you can enter the metro system only once.

Please note that travelling with a BIT ticket that has not been time-stamped is like travelling without a ticket: you'll be fined on the spot. A BIT is cheap, easy to use, sold almost everywhere and lets you travel for 100 minutes on Rome's buses, trams and metro lines. The only caveat is that you MUST start the clock.

Neither FCO nor Civitavecchia are part of the city of Rome, these 2 towns are served by Trenitalia's national trains. Airport trains can't sell out. The FL1 from FCO to Roma Tiburtina costs 8 € per person, one way. The no-stop Leonardo Express from FCO to Roma Termini costs 14 € per person. Roma Termini is the name of Rome's main station, not the italian translation of Terminal.

all of the other train ticket will be specific to that train at that time. Miss the train and the ticket is dead

This is true only for discounted tickets with a reserved seat. Full price tickets, called BASE, can be exchanged up to one hour after the departure of the booked train.

Transfers in all directions are included, but during those 100 minutes
you can enter the metro system only once.

Just to clarify a bit further, you can change from metro line A to B (or vice versa) at Termini without a new ticket as long as you don't go outside of the turnstiles. Get off at the station and follow the signs to the platform for the line that you want. A reason for changing lines would be, say, if a visitor's hotel is near the Colosseum (Colosseo stop on Line B) and they want to go to the Vatican (Cipro or Ottaviano stop on Line A).

Metro map here ("B" is blue line, "A" is red line, ignore the line in green):
https://www.rome.info/metro/

That map is a little outdated, it doesn't show the C line. You can change from Metro A to C (and vice versa) at San Giovanni station.
www.atac.roma.it/files/doc.asp?r=4
www.atac.roma.it/files/doc.asp?r=3

You have given a great deal of useful information, and I am appreciative. You have also given me some things to reconsider. I only selected this hotel because it is near a metro stop, and reasonably priced. However, you make an excellent point about the convenience of staying near the Termini. I beleive I will find a different hotel near the Termini, and I appreciate your advice very much. I will likely post more questions, and will appreciate your continued assistance. Gary

Hotel Aberdeen http://www.hotelaberdeen.it/en/ is a 10 minute walk from Termini.

Be sure to check it out.

Stayed there before and would do so again

That map is a little outdated, it doesn't show the C line. You can
change from Metro A to C (and vice versa) at San Giovanni station.

You are absolutely right, Dario. I just didn't include a newer map with "C" it as I didn't the think the OP would be using that line at all. But I could be wrong! :O)

Thank you to all of you who have replied to my many inquires. Your advice has been great. I have accepted your advice and booked a different hotel room that is just a few blocks from Roma Termini, and this should be much more convenient. (I was able to cancel my other hotel with no fees). Thanks again, Gary

Dario, thanks for the atac map links. They will be very helpful for my pre-tour stay in Rome next May.