Rome in 2012 – a quick visit.
A visit to Rome in February 2012 was interesting, and fairly enjoyable. Here are a few tips for the Rome tourist who wants to spend their money on a good time, good wine and good food rather than additional unnecessary costs. I will add some pictures later.
Travel was from Gatwick to Rome Fiumicino, using Easyjet. This company adds additional charges for extra luggage, and no food. The return from Rome was not only painful due to their ineffectual and disorganised booking system, it was also a bad end to a nice holiday, Their staff both in the booking area and on the aeroplane were ineffective and totally apathetic.
At Rome airport, the taxi fare is 40 – 45 Euros. You can also get a regualar coach to Rome termini for just 4 euros per person. Both take similar lengths of time – about 35 minutes. The coach runs hourly, and tickets can be purchased on the coach or in the airport. There is also another service costing 6 euros which runs every thirty minutes.
The Termini in Rome is the bus and train station. From here, buses serve the entire city. A day pass costs 4 euros, three days is 11 euros and 7 days is 17 euros. The pass ends at midnight of the last day, and is not operational according to a 24 hour clock.
We stayed at the Hotel Fiume, Via Brescia which is a twenty minute walk from the Termini and five minutes on the bus. This was a quiet residential area served by many local restaurants and local stores. It was a good choice of venue, high class and very friendly. Thank you. The hotel was chosen due to good feedback from the many trip advisor sites. Local restaurant was also good, but double check that the fish is fresh. A bottle of wine for about 15 euros will not be wasted on the palate.
To get around Rome, we used the local buses day and night. From the Termini, there are services to all of the better sites to visit. The most popular bus was the #64 to St Peters and the Vatican. You can also take the #40 which is less busy and serves a similar area. These buses also served the Colosseum and other areas nearby included the Trevi fountain, Spanish Steps etc.
Do not get conned by the tour guides. There is always a cheaper option. It often means queueing, but considerably cheaper. Youngsters from EU countries also get heavily discounted, so ensure that you have proof of identity. Even when you do not want to wait, make your own way to the pay desks, which can avoid an incredibly high mark-up on the tour guide costs. We were quoted 25 euros each for the Colosseum, it was 17 euros if you walked to the pay booth yourself, plus discounts for EU children. We paid 12 euros each, and an EU youth under 18 was free (I think). The queue was not so bad, but this was in February. Later we realised that the same ticket can be purchased at the Roman Forum, where there was a very short queue, and the tickets last for two days.
The Vatican was quiet expensive (38 euros for three of us). The museums are probably the reason why, and do NOT miss the map room, I preferred it to the Sistine chapel. A tip. in the Sistine chapel is an exit only used by the tours and their guides which takes you straight into St Peters. It is not a saving in cost, just a whole lot of time. Just tag along behind a tour, nobody appears to check.
St Peters was great. We were there the day before 22 new cardinals were to be ordained bringing the total to 125 – I believe. There are 551 steps to the top of St Peters, and takes about 45 minutes round trip. Or you could be sensible, and stay in the square and wait for others in the party to go climbing. They can then take a picture of you in the square.
Free entry to the Pantheon is recommended, a very old and stylish church from Hadrian times, with a massive hole in the roof which lets the rain in!
Spanish steps were a little over estimated. Trevi fountain a must see, and the famous and best ice cream is in a little side street near to here, as are cheaper souvenirs.
Overall, do not attempt to drive or park in Rome, use the local transport. And lastly avoid using easyjet who win the best award for sloppiness and total lack of apathy.
Kevan
