Early flight from Rome back home
 

We are planning on going to Italy in the beginning of March. We are flying into Venice and out of Rome. My only problem is that the flight leaves Rome at 6:30 am. Is this going to be a big problem? Will we have a hard time as far a transportation to the airport so early in the morning?

Please HELP!!!!!

I recommend you stay near the airport on your last night in Rome. If you stay within the city, be prepared to make a long 30-45 minute drive to the airport. So if your flight leaves at 6:30 you would need to be at the airport at least by 4:30 to be safe, and since you'll have a long drive prior- you'll need to leave your hotel at least by 3:45...which to me is extremely early....you're better off staying at the hilton airport which is literally inside the airport and you'd only have to walk with your bags in the morning and not worry about transportation. You stand a better chance of not missing your flight. Hope this helps :)

You'd have to pay for a cab at that time in the morning and I'd allow at least as much time that L-Garabito suggests.

Airport hotel would be the best option IMO unless you haven't booked your flights yet then I'd try for a later departure which would be my preference.

That early in the morning, the streets are empty and I have found the taxi ride to FCO to be around 20-30 minutes. Have your hotel arrange for the taxi (or a car service) the night prior to departure. I recommend staying in the city your last night and enjoying the evening. It will be much better than staying at an airport hotel.

We stayed at the Rome Airport Hilton which was fine. The only problem is that as soon as you enter the property, you feel like you are already back in the US.

One more alternative suggestion if you're night owls..

On your last day in Rome have a long lie in then check out of your hotel but leave your bags.
Enjoy the rest of the day and evening in the city then pick up your bags and head to the airport around 11pm.
Hang out at FCO until your 6.30am flight.

You save on the cab fare and the hotel room (which you'd be sleeping in for 3 hours or so) OR party for longer in Rome until the wee hours and then take a cab to the airport.

I've not tried this in Italy so can't comment on the overnight facilities at FCO BUT it is likely to be a viable alternative.

We had a similar situation on a trip last year and considered staying near the airport. In the end, we opted to spend our last night in Rome and just get up ridiculously early to catch our flight (at least there is no traffic in the wee hours!). I think the drive to the airport took 30 minutes. We had a rental car, so we just drove that, but there was another couple at our hotel who were taking a taxi around the same time.

We stayed here, FYI, and would recommend it - it is nothing fancy but well located in Trastevere (and we found parking to be very easy):
http://www.hotelsanfrancesco.net/inglese/hotel.htm

I frankly would rather enjoy my last night in Rome IN Rome, not at some airport hotel. Zoecat's right - at that hour of the morning the ride to the airport is a breeze, so just schedule a taxi or limousine. We used http://www.romelimousine.com/index.html and the driver was outside waiting for us 10 minutes early - cost was 50 euro.

Where is your 6:30 am flight to? It certainly can't be a flight from FCO to the US at that hour, so I'm guessing it's a domestic/intra-Schengen flight to AMS, FRA or some other hub with a connection onwards. If that's the case there is no need to be at the airport at 4:30 in the morning as check in desks may not even be open yet.

Find out the check-in desk opening times and check-in cut-off time for the airline you are flying and plan accordingly.

Regardless, I recommend you stay in Rome your last night and get a taxi early in the morning. Traffic to the airport won't be a concern at that hour. If you are staying in a hotel have them call a taxi for you. If not, then become familiar with the closest taxi queue or jot down the telephone number for a taxi co - it's written on the side of every taxi.

We flew out of FCO at 6:30 am on Oct. 1. The terminal does not open until 4 am, and the check-in desks opened whenever the clerks got around to it after 4:30. The only advantage we had by arriving at 4 was that we were third in line, so we were checked in and easily got a seat at the gate.

NOTHING is open in the airport until about 6, so you cannot get coffee or food.

But be aware that when you get to your transfer point (ours was Amsterdam) you have to go through an exit from Schengen through passport check, which involves waiting in line, and then at your gate for your Intercontinental flight you have a US style security check, so you stand in line again.

But it just occurred to me that if you are flying direct to the US from Rome, yup would be flying out of a different terminal with possibly different opening hours. In that case I would check with the airline about when the terminal opens.

Spend as much time as you can in Rome and take the cab to the airport early. I just flew out of Rome on a 6:30 flight two weeks ago. I left my hotel at 4:00, and arrived at the airport with time to spare. There is no traffic at that time of night and the taxi ride wasn't a problem at all. Arrange for your taxi in advance and it will be there waiting for you when you go. You are fortunate to have the early flight. My friend had a later one the morning we left and hers was delayed. She missed the connection and was stuck in Amsterdam on a cold and rainy day. Not a great experience in her book of travels.