maxster

I could really use some ideas. Our cruise ends in Rome, and we are staying at a Rome airport hotel before flying out early the next morning. Our ship is not offering tours that day. With some mobility issues, I am not comfortable dealing with a lot of walking or the luggage on a train. If we arrange transport to airport hotel, is Ostia Antica a good option? Or if we arrange transport to Vatican/central Rome, will the luggage be an issue? Please help!

PalenQ

If we arrange transport to airport hotel, is Ostia Antica a good option?>

Yup - take a taxi there - not far but also express trains go from airport to central Rome and regional trains from it right to Vatican. Best bet staying in airport hotel then going to Rome for the day -or Ostia if you've already seen Rome enough.

massimop

I'm going to say this outright to get your attention: The advice PalenQ just gave you is very bad advice, especially if you have a mobility issue and are carrying a lot of luggage.

If by Ostia Antica you mean the small town next to the Ostia excavation site, it is not a good location unless you want to see the excavations. Depending on what kind of mobility issue that you deal with, the excavations might be difficult for you because of uneven walking surfaces and heat if your cruise is in warm weather months (or it is raining)..

Also, there are very few hotels in Ostia Antica. if you stay at an airport hotel, you will need another taxi to both take you to and from the excavation site. It is expensive (and not easy to figure out how to get a taxi back to your airport hotel from the excavations).

If you want to go to Rome, go to Rome in a taxi. Stay near the Vatican because that is where there are flat sidewalks. It no problem for the taxi if you have a lot of luggage. Those taxis at the cruise docks expect that. Take a taxi to the airport the next morning. It's a 45 minute ride & your hotel can arrange it to get one big enough for you and all your luggage.

I have no idea why PalenQ suggested that there are trains you could take from airport hotels to the city. Even if you stay right at the Hilton at the airport you would need to walk long distances to reach a train connection or take taxis to see sights.

PalenQ

Several gross misinterpretations of what I said:

Never said to stay in Ostia - but if staying at airport you could easily take a cab to the archeological site which I recall as maybe a bit hilly but nothing like the impossibly rugged and hilly places she/he makes it out to be.

<I have no idea why PalenQ suggested that there are trains you could take from airport hotels to the city. Even if you stay right at the Hilton at the airport you would need to walk long distances to reach a train connection or take taxis to see sights>

I have NO idea where I asaid you could take trains from airport hotels to Rome - meaning you stay in the airport area whose hotels all have shuttle buses to the terminals I believe and go to Rome by train from there.

So before visciously maligning me and my advice why don't you read what I wrote:

<If we arrange transport to airport hotel, is Ostia Antica a good option?>

Yup - take a taxi there - not far but also express trains go from airport to central Rome and regional trains from it right to Vatican. Best bet staying in airport hotel then going to Rome for the day -or Ostia if you've already seen Rome enough.

Where do you find I said any of those two things? Wow!

Jean

I wouldn't stay in Ostia, but not for the reasons mentioned/debated. I don't like the town and haven't heard of a hotel that I'd want to stay in. I'd stay near the airport or in Rome.

My travel agent once recommended Termeroma Spa and Resort when we thought we needed an FCO hotel, but we ended up with a different plan. It looks very nice, especially if you just want to relax for the rest of the day and not go into Rome. What time do you leave the ship? You might have to ask for an early arrival, or you could probably drop the luggage and head to the spa.

https://www.qcterme.com/en/roma/qc-t...d/3839/classic

5alive

So one place I have stayed is the Hotel Alimandi. I have also had relatives and friends stay there more recently than my trip.

It is across the street from the Vatican Museum entrance. I believe it has both an elevator and handicapped-access rooms. Please confirm. Most importantly, it has a shuttle to the airport. You have to pay extra for it, but it was really nice to have.

Wherever you decide to stay, I recommend that you book directly if possible. Also, send a separate, follow-up email a few days before your arrival reminding them that you will need a handicapped access room.

As to Ostia Antica--we loved it--but my aunt who had a bad ankle, did not. She sat on one of the ruins while we kept exploring. I would not recommend it for you.

PalenQ

With some mobility issues, I am not comfortable dealing with a lot of walking or the luggage on a train>

what do you mean by a lot of walking- few blocks - a mile - any archeological site requires walking over old paths -not smooth sidewalks. I may have underestimated your mobility issue in that regard but since you mentioned Ostia Antica I assumed you knew it would involve walking thru ruins.

You may be best staying at airport area hotel and taking some kind of personal driver into Rome and take you around. Walking in Rome is not always a piece of cake.

maxster

Thank you all for such great insight! To Jean, I had looked at staying at Termeroma Spa hotel, but they were full. As far as mobility, I have a bad back & tire after walking more than an hour or so, so prefer to save my walking for sightseeing rather than dragging luggage to a train, so the idea of a cab sounds great. My concern was paying a cab from Civitaveccia to an airport hotel to drop luggage, then another cab back into the Vatican.

From the website, I wasn't sure how difficult Ostia Antica was. We were in Pompei a couple years ago, and I was able to see part of it before tiring. This will be at the end of a 3 week trip, so I may be worn out.

Any other ideas of a several hour day trip in the area that does not require hours of walking? We have seen many of the features such as Spanish Steps, Trevi fountain and the coliseum on previous trips, as well as some of the beautiful countryside and Orvieto.

Thank you so very much for your help. I am not used to traveling with limited mobility & it certainly makes it more difficult.

massimop

Have you looked at the Cruise Critic travel forum? It might be helpful in that you can find lots of posts from people who have taken many cruises, gotten off in Rome and taken taxis to hotels in central Rome (people who've done it more than once). You can post specific questions like you can here, and that forum is a place where people make arrangements with other people who are taking the exact same cruise to share the costs of taxi rides. Even if you don't luck out that way, you can get tips about what to expect when you disembark in Civitavecchia and recommendations for limo companies & hotels in Rome.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=595

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2515010

As for what to do if you are not too tired, perhaps take a taxi from your hotel to the area of the piazza della Rotonda to see the Pantheon, which is very simple to tour in 15 minutes, not much walking. From there, it is less than a 10 minute walk to the piazza Navona with all its beautiful fountains. SInce there are also several fabulously painted churches in the immediate area which are also free to enter, you can go in and sit down in a pew as often as you want to rest, no problem and look up at the ceiling at the great art work Plus, there are many cafes right there where you can people-watch to your heart's content (they are not the cheapest cafe's in the city, but the show is free.)

Specifially, I would take a taxi to the church of Sant'Ignazio di Loyola, then walk 5 minutes to the Church of Santa Maria Sopra Minerva. Then walk 3 minutes to the Pantheon. From there, it is 8 minutes or so to the Piazza Navona. If you're up for one more, it's 5 minutes to the Chistro del Bramante.

You might even want to get a hotel in this area if you don't absolutely need flat sidewalks, although if you need an elevator in your hotel, they are harder to find, but not impossible.

massimop

made a typo -- it's Chiostro del Bramante.

You can sit and rest at any of these places as long as you like. Even though the Pantheon does not have seats inside (it is very small, and you see everything you need to see just waking in the door), there are many cafes just a few steps away.

5alive

It sounds to me like you only scratched the surface in Rome.

Massimop gave you great ideas. Maria Sopra Minerva is unlike any other church in Rome. If you go to Piazza Navona, about 1-2 blocks from the square is the lovely little San Luigi dei francesi, which has the amazing Caravaggio paintings.

http://content.time.com/time/travel/...850167,00.html

Here are a few more ideas:


So if you have not visited the catacombs, I would not recommend the larger set of them south of Rome (Sebastian, Calisto etc). I've seen them and I think they'd be a tiring trip, plus you need to pay for a tour or a driver.

Instead, consider a different set of Catacombs di Priscila. They are a shorter cab ride in northern Rome. The tour was a nice amount, not overwhelming, fairly even footing. It wasn't so long that it bored my kids, if that is an indicator. Afterward, we walked down a small hill to the piazza where we ate lunch at a tiny cafe and took a taxi to other places in Rome.

I would also recommend the Galleria Borghese. It is really an incredible museum. You should reserve a ticket ahead here though.

Have you seen St. Clement's? I really liked this church because it was an 11th century church on top of a 4th century church on top of a 1st century house church and finally an altar/temple to the god Mithras.

http://www.fodors.com/world/europe/i...lemente-155156

Another thought is the Vatican gardens. They have a 45-minute open-top bus tour. The gardens are said to be lovely, but I have not seen them. You would be sitting.

Also on my to-do list are the Palazzo Doria Pamphilij and the Palazzo Farnese. The Farnese you have to book ahead because it is the French Embassy and they only give tours on certain days.

http://www.fodors.com/world/europe/i...amphilj-140284

http://www.fodors.com/world/europe/i...-farnese-98512