We plan to take the ferry from Civitavecchia to Olbia and return in mid-June. We want to do the overnight and get a cabin. However, TripAdvisor's reviews for the three ferry companies are uniformly bad. Cleanliness, in particular, seems to be a problem. Any recommendations?
I have not experienced that ferry, though my opinion of ferries in Europe have typically been that they are basic transport, think bus trip, not a luxury cruise. Some are certainly better, many worse, but the purpose is they all get you there. From a ratings standpoint, I can see they just do not get much love, but that really is not their purpose.
Honestly, I have a Sardinia trip roughly outlined, I looked at flying from Rome, given the trip from Rome to Civitavecchia, then ferry to Sardinia. Flying just seemed quicker, easier, and maybe cheaper.
It’s a one hour flight from FCO to either Cagliari ($187 rt) or Olbia ($160 rt). For the convenience, I would definitely fly and not take the ferry.
Why do you need to take a ferry? That’s something that one does only when you have to transport your own car across. Since I presume you won’t have your own car in Italy, but rather you will need to rent one, the most logical choice is to fly and rent a car on the island.
Why do you need to take a ferry? That’s something that one does only when you have to transport your own car across.
That is not at all true. For those like me who actually care about my carbon footprint and the future of the world it would be ferry every time. And that is why the ferries take foot passengers. By all accounts the foot traffic is pretty vibrant.
And on an overnight sailing it is not even wasted time as it is time that would otherwise have been in a hotel. In fact it is the reverse of wasted time as flying would be by day- time to and from the airport, then at the airport etc.
Also I believe that if I am going to an island then the right way to arrive is by sea. It is not just another destination to tick off a list that just happens to be an island
What is not in doubt is that the ferries in the Med are workaday ferries, not the high quality ones seen in much of Northern Europe, and especially in the Baltic. Just this week there has been a You Tube video from someone who is pro ferry on the Civi to Barcelona route of Grimaldi. A lot of issues- cleanliness, a party boat vibe (with a lot of unberthed passengers), lacklustre service, poor quality food being the main ones. Grimaldi are better known for their car carrying freight ships. And for passengers on their freighters the opinion was also always split like Marmite. They were workaday in that trade, compared to the likes of say Horn Linie or CMACGM.
Grandi Navi does have a reputation below that of Grimaldi.
Tirrenia from what I have heard (no experience) seem to be the best of the three- which is not saying that they are anything like luxury or even the Western English Channel or Baltic ferries- just the best of the three.
On a short overnight crossing such as Corsica I can bring my own food and drink.
But I personally wouldn't even entertain the idea of flying to Sardinia.
That is not at all true. For those like me who actually care about my
carbon footprint and the future of the world it would be ferry every
time
Ferries have a higher carbon footprint than flying. If you have to cross a body of water a flight is actually the best way to do this.
Regarding the bad reviews: Mostly only people who were unhappy write reviews. Just see the reviews excellent companies like SBB or OBB get...
This was my experience of a return trip to Sardinia by ferry.
I think the reviews are so bad because very few people would bother writing a review of taking a ferry unless they need to let off steam and complain. Also, the situation is likely to be worse in high season (July-August). I found it a relaxing way to get to Sardinia, but I travelled during the day this time:
https://slowtravelitalyspain.blogspot.com/2024/06/sardinia-by-ferry-livorno-olbia-livorno.html
Time has value, and spending at least 8 hours on a boat (6 for a day journey) plus at least one hour to drive to Civitavecchia from Rome is neither time efficient nor emission free, compared to less than one hour flight. Ferries don’t use solar panels to travel, they use bunker fuel which is the dirtiest of fossil fuels. And ferry overnight accommodations aren’t cheap either.
Wengen did you get a look at the cabins? Sleeping during the journey and waking up there is appealing (especially regarding time-saving). Though cabin during the day, with good weather, is also attractive. We're in Italy 6 weeks, so baggage (of wife and daughter) adds considerably to the cost of air tickets.
RE the baggage issue: a long trip need not require more luggage, just plans to do laundry at regular intervals. I believe they will eventually thank you if you convince them to believe this before the trip. Schlepping luggage around is not fun, and Italian hotels are usually small. (Maybe they'd be convinced about having room to carry any stuff they buy!)
You could also leave some stuff stored in Rome if you stick with the ferry, and carry smaller bags for the Sardinia portion of the trip.
Wengen did you get a look at the cabins? Sleeping during the journey
and waking up there is appealing
I love ferries. We actually use them a lot (wife hates flying). But I will not claim that they lower my carbon footprint. However I am not to worried about that as I do not drive a car...