best option for family of 4 travel from Fiumicino Airport to Civitavecchia

We have made that run about five times. First, if the taxi fare is about $60, then take the taxi, but that sounds low by half. You are short on time and with four people you are close to break even with the train - total train cost is going to be in the range of 50 to 60E depending on train options. Four people with typical cruise luggage will be a very tight fit in the taxi. Probably have to hold some luggage. Work at reducing your luggage Using the train you are looking at least two hours and maybe three depending on wait time, etc. If you are going to use the train, option 1 is your best bet. The train change in Termini is more time consuming and complicated. Trastevere is easier - just a change of platform. And cheaper. The Leonard Express fare is 14E per person where the fare to Trastevere will be about 8E. Buy all your tickets at the ticket office in the airport. These will be open tickets and ABSOLUTELY MUST BE VALIDATED IN THE LITTLE YELLOW BOXES. Be sure you get on the correct train at the airport. At Trastevere you change platform and catch the next train headed in the opposite direction to Civit.... You will be riding all regional trains which will be slow but using the fast trains into Termini and back to Civit probably would not be faster. You cannot buy tickets in advance because regional train tickets are not sold on line. No point - no reservations, no discount. Just get on and go. But they are also the slowest trains. And that is why you are seeing "No solution" when you plug in the dates. For cruises we always go in two to three days just so that your time line works better. I assume at this point you cannot change your arrival day. What are your return plans?

thank you frank. yes indeed, it is a hot topic. =) in rick's mediterrenian cruise book, page 629, it says '... A taxi costs about 60 on way between civitavecchia and fiumicino.' perhaps the fare is higher now. the book was written in 2011. how is the traffic? if considering saving time and the fare is more and less the same as taking the train, would you recommend taxi? my other concern is the language, and what if ...(probably from watching too many horror movies) safty issue... if by train, i will definately take option 1 as you have recommended. i am in new york city, sometimes train is more reliable then taxi. plus now it is reasured by you, i feel more confident about the whole procedure from purchasing the ticket to getting on the trian. =) thank you so much for taking a look at the trenitalia website. i understand how it works now. unfortunately we cannot change the date due to my sister's work schedule. i hope the train system in rome is punctual and reliable. the travel agent told me there might be strike... from your experience, how likely is this? we will return on the 16th morning 7am, since there is no time pressure we will take train again. our hotel is close to subway station cipro. shall we go to rome termini first then transfer to subway? we plan to stay in rome for 2 days before returning to
US. our flight is at noon, on the day of departure (5/18) would you recommend taking taxi to the airport from cipro or take subway to rome termini then switch to the express train? thank you so much for your help! loretta

It struck me as low BUT just negotiate the price with the driver before you get in the taxi. If you look on a map you see that the airport is SW of Rome and Civit is NW of Rome along the coast. So using a train you go into Rome and back out. The taxi would be shorter so maybe 60 is correct. I know it will be well over a 100E from Rome. Even if it was 70 or 80 I would opt for the taxi because the marginal cost is not that much greater. There is always talk of train strikes but who knows? We have never encountered a strike. Then you use the taxi. Traffic would not be a problem since it is most rural area you are driving through. Haven't found a cab driver yet that didn't speak enough English to understand where you were going. Sometimes they are a great guides because they are trying for a good tip. They speak English about like most of the drivers I encountered in New York a couple of months ago. Somewhere before you get to Civit... buy your tickets from Civit to Rome because the ticket office in Civit... is a zoo when the cruise ships dock, especially if more than one which is often, and everyone is going to Rome. A taxi from your hotel to the airport would be 40E and the most economical way to go. Have you hotel arrange the taxi.

hi frank, thank you so much for your reply with in-depth explanation about each option feasible for us. we look forward to the adventure in may. =) have a great long weekend!
loretta

Loretta, not sure where you're coming from into FCO... but if it's from NYC you'll be beat after an overnight flight. I would not even attempt the train route with children, luggage, jet-lag, and the "limited" time frame that you have. First, you have to get out of the airport, which -with checked luggage - could take an hour of your time. Taking a taxi from FCO airport to the Civitavecchia port is an option, but may be a little complicated then it first appears. First, many Roma Taxis DO NOT want to drive to Civitavecchia. It's basically a one-way fare for them as they have few options to get a return passenger to Rome at approx. 15:00 - 16:00. So that will definitely escalate the price. Fiumicino city taxis are more likely to want to make this route, but their rates are often higher than Tariff 2 rates from Roma taxis. I'd sure know EXACTLY the price before I left the airport taxi queue area. That could be an expensive ride. I'd recommend a private shuttle service. Anyone who knows me knows that I ALWAYS travel to Civitavecchia by train or motorino, but those aren't valid options given your situation. The private shuttle guarantees "peace-of-mind", no hassles, a fixed-fee, and payment in advance by credit card if you like (depending on the vendor). There are many reputable companies that make this trip daily. Knowing that this lifeline is waiting on you - and can handle the HUGE amounts of luggage folks bring on cruises - will start your cruise in the proper frame-of-mind. Yes, it may cost €20-40 more(??) but how does that compare to the price of 4 airline and cruise tickets?

No, I'd take the "safe" out and book a shuttle. The incremental cost is small compared to the gain. On your return trip into the city, ride the train! And frankly, I'd be surprised (like Frank) if you could find a taxi that would take 4 people to Civitavecchia for €60, much less $60. Currently, the train in from Civitavecchia to the Roma Termini Station is €4.50; to the Roma Trastevere Rail Station it's €4.10 per person. You can buy tickets in advance online for Regionale trains, but only 7-days in advance. That's why when you look at ticket prices for your time-frame "NA" appears. They are not available online yet. Since they never sell out -as it's open seating - then there's no real advantage to purchasing online Regionale tickets. In addition, online Regionale tickets lock you to a specific train... whereas those purchased in a station are good for any train on that route for up to 2 months! For your return journey into Rome, you might look at this post. Although geared towards one-day cruise visits, it does show you maps and photos of the path you'll take to the train station. And Frank makes a great point; if you can get your shuttle driver to stop at the Civitavecchia train station (or any train station) so you can pre-buy your Regionale tickets for your return route, you'll save yourself some time and hassle. Good Luck!

wow, this is interesting. i thought the shuttle bus over charges, something like $100 per person. could you please recommend a resonable shuttle bus company?
loretta

Ron, as usual, raises some good point. But I just had another thought. Got to Cruisecritic.com Sign up. Cruisecritic allows you to sign into a chat room for your specific cruise, date and time, and you can discuss various arrangement with fellow passengers who will be on that cruise. It is used a lot of this purpose. Maybe you can connect with someone who has similar needs and share a big van.

Great point Frank! The joint shuttle is often the cheapest! There are many great companies out there. I like Alfredo's group at www.romashuttle.com - €135 for four people from Civitavecchia; or Stefan's outfit at the always popular www.romecabs.com - €150 for four people from Civitavecchia. There are many other options you can research.

Seems to me that the cost of getting to the ship from FCO is pocket change in the context of the total trip cost. Do it the easy, reliable way and book romecabs. Then forget about it.

For some people it is pocket change and irrelevant but we are always watching our pocket changing so we always have a little extra regardless of the total cost. Maybe that is why we have always booked the least expensive cabin and have been on six European cruises. Pocket change adds up.

yes, i agree with frank. eveything takes careful planning so we can stay within the budget and have fun at the same time. =)

I understand about economical travel. I've done it most of my life, though I wouldn't take an inside cabin on a cruise ship unless fleeing for my life. But there are times when saving a few euros isn't worth the stress and/or hassle. Having only 4-5 hours to get to a ship from the time of a scheduled landing at FCO would be one of those times for me. If the flight is late, romecabs will wait. They will deliver you shipside. No schlepping bags and tired children through train stations (been there, done that). btw there are no porters in Italian train stations. But everyone is different and you have to do what works for you. I hope the trip goes well.

Do the private shuttle or Romecabs particularly on top of the jetlag and 4 people! I don't think you could get the 60 rate, that's similar to expecting the hotel prices to be the same as when the book was published as when you read it.