elaine

A friend is taking a first time trip to Italy, she will have a few days, on a group tour, in Rome. She has family history in Fornia, would like to find out if she can daytrip there.
I've done a Google on Fornia, didn't come up with much except that it's apparently in Tuscany.
Suggestions appreciated.

Eloise

Is your friend quite sure that her family's history is in Fornia and not in Formia (with an M)?

Formia (with an M) is one hour to one and a half hours by train from Rome. It is on the seacoast south of Rome.

StCirq

Are you sure she's not from Formia, a rather large town about halfway between Rome and Napoli, on the coast?

elaine

I'll forward this thread, and ask, thanks

elaine

You're right, it's Formia, my error.
Now what can you tell me?

Patrick

About all I know is that's where you can take the train to and then take a boat to Ponza.

cmt

I don’t know anything about it, but if you do a Google search for the words Formia and commune, you will get plenty of sites about the town. It’s close to Naples, but is in the region of Lazio, rather than Campania. It’s in the province of Latina (in Lazio). I think many people from that areea emigrated to the US.

Here’s a map of the area, showing Formia’s location and the boat routes leaving from there: http://www.comune.formia.lt.it/porta...f/mappa_04.jpg It’s between Naples and Gaeta, a little more than ¾ of the way to Gaeta.

It looks like it may be part of the area known as the Ciociaria, which sounded interesting to me when I reaad a little about it a few years ago.

How to get there: http://www.webshop.it/campodimele/come.htm
Also can look up how to get there from elsewhere in Lazio: http://www.turislazio.it/external/ex...e.php?lang=eng

Here’s some tourist info about it: http://www.turislazio.it/index.php/t..._latina/formia

There are a lot more sites that came up in a simple Google search, so I think your friend can find plenty of information. I’d suggest that she write to the town. Some friendly person might send her interesting info and may offer to meet her when she visits.

BATUFFOLINA

Formia is about 100 Km south of Rome, you can reach it by train or by car by taking the autostrada Roma-Napoli and exiting at Cassino.

Formia is near Gaeta and it's one of the seaside resorts of the coast south of Rome (together with Gaeta, San Felice Circeo, Sperlonga, Terracina, Sabaudia). Nothing exceptional about this town, apart from the fact that it's got Cicero tomb and that you can take the ferry that will take you to the Pontian islands of Ventotene and Ponza. In summer its population increases a great deal because of tourists and those that own or rent a house in the area. What else would you like to know?

elaine

she wanted to know, it being her first time in Italy, the logistics of doing a daytrip from Rome, and she thinks there may be some family records in one of the churches in town.
This has all been helpful, she can take it from here, thank you.

StCirq

We went to Formia a few years ago, but turned back and spent the day in Gaeta and inland instead. It seemed like a nice enough place - typical Italian seaside town/city, but it was more congested than we wanted. Now that you do have the correct spelling, I'm sure you can find a lot of info on the web.Maybe if we'd known you could take a boat to Ponza there we would have stayed, since we never did end up being able to get one from Anzio.

GeoffHamer

If you take the train from Roma to Napoli, Formia is the only stop on the coast and the only part of the line where you can see the sea. There are hourly trains to Roma or Napoli, so it's a convenient base if you want to visit both places. You can also visit Ponza and Ventotene, both delightful islands where few foreign tourists go (www.caremar.it).
Formia itself is a pleasant, lively town with a choice of restaurants and hotels, but I don't think there are any historic sights. Nearby Gaeta has, I believe, a US naval base.