Time to allow from landing FCO to train station

Personally I wouldn't try it. Even if the plane is on time (which may not happen) and everything goes perfectly, that's cutting it awfully, awfully close. If the amount of the advanced tickets is small and you don't mind losing it, then go for it. But several of our trips from Atlanta to Europe have been two hours late. The extra cost of waiting to buy tickets after arrival would be worth it to me just to avoid the stress factor. I really don't mean to rain on your parade, just food for thought.

Cutting it that close is as you said "...really just crazy"

If I knew/thought I were going to be that lucky, I would chose to buy a lotto ticket.

I'd probably do it if you can get the tickets cheap. The ticket you need to buy in advance is the long IC train from Rome to La Spezia. I see in early September that you can get for 19.90 Euros on some days. The other tickets (FCO to Rome, La Spezia to Vernazza) are regional tickets that are the same price day of purchase as in advance.

At worst, you are throwing away about $20 USD per person if you miss it and have to buy a ticket on the next train at full price. Looks the next train is about two hours later.

I would not even try it. Trains leave for La Spezia every half hour to hour. If time is the priority, get to Termini and buy the next departure, if cost is prime, then buy a ticket for later in the day.

Not counting any potential flight delays, if you land at or before 8:00, figure a half hour to one hour to get to the station at FCO. Trains leave from there every half hour, so your wait will be at most that, then the ride in on the express is a half hour. Once there, just getting from the drop off point to your next train is easily 15 minutes. That is at best a 1.5 hour effort, more likely at least just over 2 hours. At best I might look at about an 11:00 departure.

Paul, his 9:12 departure is from the airport, not from Rome Termini. So he's got 1:12 to get from his airport gate through immigration to the airport train station, with no checked bags. Sure, it's a risk, but I don't think it's crazy at all.

And checking Trenitalia's website, direct Frecciabianca trains from Rome to La Spezia don't leave that often - looks like once every two hours.

bruce,

Many of us here don't recommend buying train tickets to connect with an inbound flight. If tickets are for express trains (Freccia, Intercity) and you miss the train because the flight was delayed, it takes longer to get through Passport control or whatever, the tickets are worthless and you'll have to buy more at full price (Base fare). The "safer" policy is to buy tickets after arrival for the next train departing for your destination.

I think it's safe to say that with a flight arrival at 08:00, I highly doubt that you'll be able to connect with the 09:12 departure. You'll have to allow time to de-plane, walk to Passport control, wait in a queue and then walk to the airport rail station. Each part of that sequence may take more time than expected.

The quickest method is probably to take the Leonardo Express from the airport to Roma Termini, and from there take the next train to Vernazza. There are departures from Termini at 09:57 and 11:57 and you should be able to connect with one of those. With the Leonardo Express, don't forget to validate your ticket prior to boarding the train or you'll risk hefty fines! Also, there are two trains departing from the airport (Leonardo Express and FM1) so be sure to board the right train!

Ken, he's trying to connect to that 9:57 from Rome Termini- connecting from the 9:12 Leonardo Express. (Actually his connection isn't even at Termini but at Roma Ostiense which gives him a little more time to connect.)

Andrew,

Yes, the 09:12 departure does connect at Ostiense, but I doubt that's a realistic scenario. Therefore in the same situation I'd go to Termini and just buy a ticket on the next train to Vernazza.

What’s your risk tolerance? Catching the 9:12 train is “possible” if your flight lands on time, if you’re not sitting near the back of the plane, if the flight parks at a gate and not remotely, if there’s no long line at passport control, etc. Once you’re through passport control, it’s a 10-15 minute walk to the train station. My experience when I have only carry-on luggage and everything clicks is that I’m generally at the train station within 45 minutes of landing, but all bets are off should anything not click. Only consider buying advance tickets if they’re deeply discounted, you’re totally OK with losing the amount paid and you don’t mind potentially starting your trip with some stress. If you’re at all uncomfortable with the risk, then it’s better to wait and buy your train tickets upon arrival.

All this said, I hope you arrive on time and are able to catch the 9:12 train, as it gets you to Vernazza much earlier than later trains.

Thanks everyone for the advice. We decided to buy our tickets now for the train leaving Roma Termini at 11:57 which is a direct train to La Spezia. It gets to La Spezia just an hour and 20 minutes later than the 9:12 train from FCO.

With almost 4 hours to get to Termini, bus is an option. Trip takes an hour and usually costs 5 euro compared to 14 euro for Leonardo Express. A couple of different companies run similar bus service from the airport to Termini, so you can just pick the one with next departure.

On the issue of using the Leonardo Express from the airport or a Bus, I'd suggest using the train, as it only takes 32 minutes and no concerns about traffic. Use the waiting time for your next train to have a meal at Termini. If you want a sit-down meal, try the Roadhouse Grill. There's also McDonalds if that appeals to you, or just get a Panini or whatever. You may want to obtain €50-100 or so for "travelling funds" to last until you get settled in Vernazza.