Civitavecchia, Italy (Rome)

After our rather hectic run-around in Livorno/Pisa/Florence, we decided that for Rome we would use Princess' Rome On Your Own excursion. Pretty much all that means is that you get a bus ticket to Rome with a local guide on the bus that will help with some history, advice and a map of Rome. Their information is very good though as they can provide you with details of which sites to see, what kinds of wait time/lines you should expect, distances between sites and bus routes to take. They drop you off in the morning at a specified location and expect you to be back at that location by a certain time. The ride to Rome from Civitavecchia takes about an hour depending on traffic.

Our drop off point was very near the Vatican and St. Peter's square. Since we had to come back this way for pickup later we decided we would head over to the Colosseum, make our way back and see sites along the way. Our tour guide told us we could take one bus from our present location and go to the Colosseum.

When you get to the Colosseum, you will be immediately approached by tour guides offering tours and entrance to the Colosseum for about 20 euros, which is really not so bad because the entrance ticket is already 11 euros. You should ask how long the tour is, especially since you will probably be tight for time. There are several things to see in walking distance around this area such as the Forum, Palatine Hill, and Circus Maximus and the Monumento Nazionale a Vittorio Emanuele II.

We made some mistakes at the Colosseum which you can avoid. We noticed when we got there that there are two lines to get in. One was to purchase tickets for individuals and the other was for tour groups and ticket-holders. The ticket to the Colosseum cost 11 euros and includes entrance to the Forum and Palatine Hill.

The line to purchase tickets was very long and we didn't want to wait. So in a bid to save time in exchange for cost, we thought we could sign up with a tour, get our tickets and desert the tour when we got in. This backfired on us because after we signed up for a tour, the guide told we would be on our way in "few minutes". But the truth is that the tour won't start until they gather enough people together for a suitable group. In our case, this took a while and we ended up waiting for about 30 minutes anyways!

I did some reading on bulletin boards after our trip, and some travelers have noted that you can avoid the ticket line at the Colosseum completely by going to either the Forum or Palatine Hill entrances. There you can buy the same ticket (Colosseum, Palatine Hill and Forum for 11 euros) and face minimal lines.

After finally getting in and ditching our tour group, we took in the awe-inspiring sites of the Colosseum. It is truly an amazing marvel of ancient architecture and a grand piece of history. Inside you will also find a mini-museum of sculptures and other artwork.

As mentioned before, make a visit to the other sites in the area as well. Really, there is enough to see here that you could spend several ours visiting.

Our next destination in Rome was the famous Trevi Fountain. We had our trusty map with us and decided to walk the distance to enjoy some of the neighborhoods and find a snack along the way. The fountain was packed that day and the square where the fountain sits is small so it was shoulder-to-shoulder. We took pictures and made our obligatory wish and were on our way again.

We took the bus (the same one we took to the Colosseum in reverse) back to the Vatican and St. Peter's square. Surprisingly, the lines to enter the basilica were quite short and we got in and past the security check points in less than 10 minutes. Entrance to St. Peter's is free (but not to the Sistine Chapel).

By the time we were finished, we had time to leisurely walk to our nearby pickup point and have a gelato on the way.

Again, as with many of the sites on this cruise, there just isn't enough time to see everything in Rome. You have to pick and choose which are your must see locations and stick to your schedule. But most importantly: don't forget to have fun and enjoy your visit along the way!

Please feel free to leave comments and helpful suggestions for other travelers.

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Resources:
* Rome on Wikitravel and Wikipedia
* Civitavecchia on Wikitravel and Wikipedia