What to do with early morning arrival… later check in

Most hotels will hold your luggage. I’d drop it off then look for somewhere near your hotel for breakfast then walk in the sunshine.

I agree with Pam , that you should be able to drop your bags at the hotel, even if you can't check in yet. The only exceptions are the super budget hotels that don't have full time desk service.

We usually take that first morning and afternoon to familiarize ourselves with the immediate area, and if the weather is nice to do one of Ricks excellent self guided walks

Take a taxi from airport
Fixed rate I think 50 euros now
Just get in official taxi line and go
Hand the driver the address along with 50 euros

Drop your bags at Hotel
We’ve never not been able to do that, often room is ready
Go explore your new neighborhood
You’ll be hungry
Eat gelato

We’ve found we do better with a quick nap and freshen up so do go back to our room and get rested and settled
Wander out again and enjoy dinner on whatever piazza you are near

Don’t plan anything really important or taxing or time sensitive or expensive
Just enjoy the sights

We are planning to do the same. We arrive in the morning around 8:30 a.m. and emailed our hotel, asking if we can store our luggage before our check-in time of 2 p.m. They responded and said no problem. We have done the same in the past. We plan to get SIM cards for our cell phones at the airport hopefully and then walk around the area near our hotel, grab some brunch and enjoy our first morning in Rome. By the way, does anyone have any suggestions for which cell carrier to go with? I assume they all work pretty well? Thanks!

I'd fall asleep quickly if I tried to take a tour in a vehicle that first day. I definitely wouldn't want to pay the price for a private tour on Day 1.

We land at 7:40 and check in to the hotel at 2.

Well, maybe your flight is scheduled to arrive at 7:40...

Maybe it'll be on time (maybe even early). It may also arrive late. And it's going to take you a little time to get yourself together and get out of the airport. Then it'll take you a while to get to the city, and find your hotel. So you show up there sometime mid-morning, 8:30, maybe 9 am... Stop in at the front desk. Ask if they can tell you what time your room will be ready. (If you call or email them before the trip, you can put in a request for an early check-in.) They may or may not be able to do that, but it doesn't hurt to ask. Can't check in that early? No problem. Ask to leave your bags. Go out, enjoy a couple hours in the fresh air and sunshine, maybe grab some brunch. But try to keep moving, outside if possible. No museums, or other quiet indoor spaces. Before you know it, it'll be time to go check in. Pop back to the hotel and complete your check in.

The first thing you do is go to your hotel. They may have a room available and you can check in early.

If not, have them store your bags and get out into the sun. It's a good way to fight jet lag. Sitting in the back seat of a car will probably be a great place to take a nap. And an expensive one. Instead, walk around the neighborhood. Get some coffee and some breakfast.

And enjoy.

Thank you! Yes, the hotel can store our luggage. But I was just thinking with a car at our disposal I wouldn’t need to mess with making the extra stop. I was hoping for something more specific than “take a walk” or “go eat breakfast”. We have stayed at this particular hotel several times, and have had early check in before, but it is very small and they are full the night before.
I think I would get sleepy with a car tour as well.

I wish there was a nice lido not too far away.
Passing the time on the beach would be wonderful.
I’m any case, thanks all.

Does your itinerary for the week include Ostia Antica? If not, it should, and you could see it when you arrive, before heading to your hotel tgat afternoon. Kind-of oposite to you, on our next-to-last day, we had an early morning departure from Rome the next day, and were coming back to Rome from Naples. The train stopped a couple blocks from the Ostia entrance, and when we reached it, the guards let us stash our bags in their office while we toured the site. It was just 2 of us, not sure how many are in your group, or how much luggage. This was 10 years ago - maybe there’s a formal luggage storage option now.

Ostia was Rome’s ancient port, and lots of buildings, structures, mosaics, a tavern, and even an ancient, large, sophisticated public latrine are there to explore. It’s Rome’s answer to Pompeii, but instead of getting buried by a volcanic eruption, the harbor city silted up over time, waiting to be uncovered by archaeologists. It’s southwest of downtown Rome, like the airport, so a taxi ride could work (we took a taxi to get to our airport hotel that last afternoon, as Ostia was closing).

Just west of Ostia, on the modern shoreline, there is the Lido di Ostia, so maybe that’s your solution!

I've taken to booking my hotel room for check-in on the night I fly (and communicating this clearly with the hotel). This lets me go straight to the room for a nap and a shower, and I'm back on the street by lunchtime, much better positioned to take advantage of the day and adjust to the time change.

I was hoping for something more specific than “take a walk” or “go eat
breakfast”.

I would drop my bags early at the hotel, maybe grab breakfast, and then take a walk. 🙂

But since the consensus answer is not what you are seeking, I'll offer something along the lines of what you proposed originally...

If you are looking more for something along the lines of a driver to pick you up and store your luggage while looking at new things away from your hotel, consider using Daytrip. They offer transfer from the Rome airport to Rome for 52 euro and will add on side trips in the general area for what I think is a not an unreasonable price. Just plug in Rome Airport to Rome, your date/time, and click the "Search" button. The website will offer some options. If you have something specific you want to see, you can create a custom trip, and they will price it for you. This gets you a driver... not a true guide... but that might work out well for what you are seeking.

There are beaches within 30-40 minutes of Rome's airport (https://www.rome-airport.info/rome-beaches.html), but they will lengthen your total travel time on the day of arrival because you will be headed away from Rome. The logistics of lying on a beach in a swimsuit sipping an adult beverage while a driver holds your bags in his trunk on arrival day seems a bit daunting, but maybe a few hours exploring a beach town and walking on the beach would work for you.

I've used Daytrip and found them reliable and easy to work with (sorry about ending a sentence with a preposition -- easy with which to work sounds even more awkward).

www.mydaytrip.com

You can check with local transportation/tour companies, too.

Since you didn't tell us this is a retun trip to Rome, and you didn't tell us you had stayed at this hotel before, and you haven't told us what you have already done and seen in Rome, and you haven't told us what area of the city you are in, how are we supposed to make specific recommendtions?

Here's my recommendation....go to the Spanish Steps and walk up and down a few times. That will help you get rid of jet lag.

Maybe go to the Pantheon and then wander around that area for food and gelato. There's also a lovely church in that area-I think it's called Sophra Minerva.

The only problem with Sopra Minerva is that it is very dark inside, and downstairs is darker still. A sleepy person sitting down for a break may accidentally nod off.

Everyone is different of course. For us a short (couple of hours) nap in mid afternoon allows us to enjoy dinner and walk about - maybe one of Rick's walking tours. I literally "hit a wall" about 3-4 in the afternoon and become non-functional.

Hmmm...what to do in Rome...hmmm...
The possibilities are endless. I am thinking by the time you actually get to the Hotel it could be closer to 10:30-11:00 ish...Have you ever done a walking food tour? We have been on two with the company Eating Europe and I see that they have a mid-morning tour of Testaccio, which is a wonderful way to visit a new neighborhood, learn some history, walk and eat!
The only problem would be if your plane was delayed/cancelled then your out the $$$.

Thank you!! I am looking into Daytrip now, I have not heard of them..
And the walking food tour of Testaccio sounds amazing too!

I apologize for not being clear that this wasn’t my first time to Rome or the hotel.

I appreciate all of the input for sure and love getting ideas for how others manage time and experiences. Each trip is different and this one will be in particular for me because I am traveling with two that have never left North America and I feel responsible for making sure the details are all perfect for them (I know they don’t expect that, it’s just my personality) so I’m trying to cover everything.

We actually live part time in Romania, so I have been able to travel quite a bit to Italy, but I certainly don’t feel like an expert. Sorry if I offended anyone by being “vague”. I was just trying to avoid making the question too long.
Thanks again!

Anything with wheels would put us to sleep, although we’ve never fallen asleep on the way in from the airport. But, you know your group better than we do. Not knowing which part of town you’re staying in makes a bit harder to be specific, but there are certainly different parts of the city that would work. A food tour of either Testaccio or Trastevere, a walk around the Borghese gardens,or taking them to the top of Victor Emmanuel for a view of the city might be exciting for a first-time visitor.

Our trip to Rome had similar timing. We got to the hotel a little after 9 and were pleasantly surprised our room was ready. After stowing our stuff, we started walking. Honestly, I don't remember much about that day. Our hotel was centrally located and I know we went to the Pantheon, Campo di Fiori (memorable for the wild boar salami we bought), and a bunch of other fountains and squares that melded together. Coffee and lunch was in there somewhere. We hit a wall, went back to the hotel, unpacked, organized and took a quick nap. Then we started walking in the other direction. Trevi Fountain and gelato was involved and I think I bought a scarf. After an early dinner, some wine and showers, we literally did crash.

The next morning, we woke up early with the jetlag mostly gone and had a very productive day. Later, we retraced our first day paths because everything was a blur. I'd stay out of cars and trains because you will just nod off. Don't plan anything big but just soak up the ambiance. Don't make yourself miserable and remember, everybody handles jetlag differently.

We took the Eating Italy food tour back in October, and it was fun, and delicious. We met outside the Oasis of Beer cafe/liquor store at 9:15 in the morning, so you’d need to be able to get through passport control, into Rome, stash your luggage, and get to Piazza Testaccio in an hour and a half.

They have an option for five additional alcoholic beverages during the tour, in addition to the wine at lunch, but we skipped the extra fee for the prosecco and other extra drinks so early. If you do take the Testaccio food tour, say “hi” to guide Domenico from Cyn and Scott!