Cunard Cruises - Queen Mary 2 Cruises Answers

We've just come back from a med cruise on the QM2. The ship was wonderful but the tours are expensive. 'Rome on your own' where you get dropped by coach in Rome and picked up again is $79. 'panoramic rome ' duration 5 hours ,where you tour Rome and sight see from the bus is $79 also. Next is 'Intro to Rome 9.5 hrs with 3 hrs free time on your own in $99. We heard on the ship that people were generally disappointed with the tours. Before we left home,we decided to take the train from Civitavecchia to Rome, though I was a bit nervous about missing the cruise !. We are 50 and an elderly chap (70 ish)we were speaking to on the ship said he always takes the train, so I thought if he can do so can we. It was fine. Train station is about 10 mins walk from Port entrance. Return tickets were 9 euros. It took about 50 mins , 8stops and we got off at St Pietro. Trains are approx every half hour, but on the way back they are every hour after 4pm i think. We got the 8.57am train there andwe got the 3.25pm train back from St Pietro . Great day, just make sure you check the timetables in the station as we couldn't get a copy for ourselves and also a good streetmap so that you can get back to the station. Save yourself some money!

Hi. We have taken organized tours, but found you are tied to their timetable and had too long in some places and not enough in others and they can be very expensive. Last October we took the train. We were off the ship as soon as it docked and caught the shuttle bus to dock gates. Turn right and walk about 10 mins, station on other side of road (pink and white building - unless its been painted again!), Buy 9 euro return ticket and don't forget it must be validated in the yellow machine before you get on the train. This ticket also covers bus and metro in Rome. The trains are very clean and punctual. We caught the 8.41 (no. 2335) arriving 9.24. The next one is 8.59 (12233) or 9.41 (3263). Get off at St. Pietro. You can walk to Vatican or catch No. 64 bus (runs every 5 mins) from station. Get off 2nd stop. Tourist bus is an excellent option. Piazza Navona is a wonderful buzzy square to have lunch - plenty of options. You can walk to many of the major sites with a map. Catch train back from St. Pietro or from main station, Rome Termini, but this one is huge so allow 15 mins to find your train. Allow plenty of time to get back to ship. 14.59 gets back 15.57 and 15.59 at 16.57. Enjoy your cruise.

It's all down to what floats your boat (sorry). But we cruised into Rome last year and one or 2 things were apparent : Rome has so many attractions, a week would not be enough let alone 1 day, if you are taking a ship's tour dont choose any with more than 2 attractions as none will be done justice. Ships tours get preferential treatment at Vatican city as queueing time is wasteful.

Hi, My Wife and I are just back from a cruise on Ventura, we were 1st time cruisers, and visited Rome. We did the Rome on your own option, basically, we got the tour coach into Rome, and then walked from the drop off point to the bus routes. We then paid 19 euro's each for the 24 hour "Hop on Hop off" option and had a great look around Rome. It is too big to see it in one day, so we got off twice, saw what we wanted, and got back on again. You can get the train into rome from Civitavechia which is cheaper, but we were there on a bank holiday, and didn't want the hastle of finding no train to get back to the ship. It was a very good day, we will remember it forever. Good luck. also check out the Web, it gives you good advice on doing this trip.

Though we were a bit nervous to do this, we booked a 'Rome on Your Own' trip. The bus dropped us in St Peters Square about 10am, with a pick up at the same spot at 4.15pm. We had pre planned what we wanted to see and had worked out what was possible in the time available. We got a taxi to the Spanish Steps,(I think £10) and walked our way back from there seeing several sites on the way , using a map and asking directions along the way. We had no problems and got back with time to spare. We think the organised trips are too expensive, and this way with good planning you should have no problems. Remember it is impossible to see it all in a day. Best of luck.

our rome orginised tour with royal carribean was a nightmare, so called luxury train windows so dirty we could not see anything and the guide so small and difficult to understand, also paid extra for the hop on hop off bus, we had to wait an hour for then the earphones on the bus didnt work and we dare not get off or would have had to wait another hour to get on again.

When you get to the port a free bus will take you into the town, go to the train station and get two return tickets for a fraction of the cost of an organised excursion, make sure you get back to the ship in plenty of time,the ship wontwait!!!

We have just come back rom a cruise which included Rome. We booked an excursion called 'Introduction to Rome' intended for first-timers, as we were. It cost £46 each. The coach took us to the Colosseum, and the guide told us all about it and we all walked around the Forums, then we got back in the coach which took us to St Peters Square, where we were left for three hours to do our own thing. We had been recommended to see the Sistine Chapel, and the guide suggested not queueing but going straight through. This was not easy as there were lots of people ambling along and also a lot of organised groups, so it took a while, but from a particular door at the end you could get into the Basilica without queuing. Unfortunately we didn't have time to do anything else after this! But I hope to go again to see what we didn't manage this time!

Although its rather expensive, try to get a group of 4or6 people and contact www.limousinesystem.com. it costs between 400-500euro per vehicle per day. Our driver Manilo(who can be requested) was a wonderful historian and guide, very personable and proffesional. There was no rush. he took us to within yards of all the sites and made sure that we saw most things. He also arranged a stop for a lovely lunch. There was no rush or crazy driving with this man. 7 star rating. Comparing costs with shipboard excursions our day cost 405 euro for 4 persons( we asked for discount and they allowed us10% off), which was cheaper than the Princess tours. Just one tip, if you wish to see the Sisteen Chapel, apply for your tickets on line before you go, other wise you may well be disappointed