Landing in Rome
Apparently, “all roads lead to Rome,” and thus, we decided to visit. We took a week off and planned our trip. Truthfully, one week is not enough to see it all, but it gives enough time to grasp Rome’s essence and try out delicious food.
When landing in Rome, the view from the plane will knock your socks off. The 2,500-year-old city spreads beneath you and get’s you excited.
The obvious way to get to Rome is via plane. The city has three airports. We landed at the Rome Ciampino Giovan Battista Pastine Airport. It was opened in 1916 and is one of the oldest airports still in operation.
Getting from the airport to the city
More than one option presents itself, and all will take about 40 minutes from the airport to the city center. Take whatever you prefer.
- Easy, quick, and relatively cheap way to get to the city to Termini Station.
- A little con is that the train operates from the town of Ciampino and you have to take a bus to the city from the airport, where you can board the train.
- Cost: the bus to the town of Ciampino is 1.20€, and the train to Termini Station is 1.50€ – prices might change; please check the official websites of the Italian Railway.
- Frequency: the train runs every 30 minutes from 5:30 am to 10:30 pm.
- A shuttle that stops at Via Marsala 5 (next to Termini Station).
- Cost: 6€ a one-way ticket.
- Frequency: the timetable and frequency vary depending on the season. For detailed information, visit their page.
- We chose this shuttle, and it was perfect. If you decide on this option, also buy a return ticket. We also used it to return to the airport after our trip finished.
For more information on other buses, click
For information on other buses, click here.
Taxis
- First, let me point out that taxi drivers do not have the best reputation in Rome – tourists and locals are being overcharged.
- Compared to other European cities, taxi fares are pretty high.
- The cost from the airport to the city center can go up to 48€. If asked to pay more, refuse as the prices from the airport to the city center are fixed. You can always check with the driver before getting into the car.
- Try using one of the general taxi services like Radio Taxi or Pronto taxi (especially when in the city). You can get a taxi waiting in the taxi line at the airport.
Read also: The Eternal City named Rome
Where to stay when in Rome
Before you can waddle into the ancient streets, make sure you have a place to put your head down when you need to sleep and rest. With over 33 000 hotels to choose from, you will have no problem finding such a place.
Let’s talk money…
The prices depend on the luxury you would like to have. You can have free accommodation using services like Couchsurfing. To save some money, you can also stay at a hostel.
In general, I prefer my accommodations to be pretty inexpensive. Most of the day, I will waddle and not sit inside the hotel anyway.
Hotel prices go from 42€ up to luxury hotels that start from 200€. We paid 306€ for four nights with breakfast included.
We stayed in Clarin Hotel Roma, located quite conveniently to waddle anywhere. It’s close to Termini Station, where the bus from the airport stops. The accommodation is basic with a bed and bathroom, nothing too fancy as we only slept there anyway.
Breakfast in the morning is enough to start the day. We ate a lot of snacks and other food during the day, but their cappuccino was worth it.
- Room type we stayed in – Standard Double Room.
- Number of nights: 4
- Total price: 306€
Book your room now right here with Booking.
Money, money, money, must be funny to have in Rome
Your daily budget once again depends solely on you. People can spend from 30€ a day to 150€ daily or even more. If you are a budget traveler, it will probably be the first one. As a penguin, my income is limited, and thus also, my budget (where the majority usually goes on food).
What is the daily average cost?
If you are like me, doing budget travel, you will have to work with the following.
Food&Beverages
- Breakfast starts at 5€
- Lunch from 10€
- Dinner from 14€
- Treats start from 3€
- Beer starts at 5€, but at the grocery store, it sells for 1.5€
- Cappuccino about 1€
- Gelato about 2€
Travel
- Metro (subway), tram, and bus have one fair – 1.5€ for a single one-way ticket
- 1-day pass 6€
- 3-day pass 16.50€
- week pass 24€
- Waddling is free
However, as mentioned, the daily budget depends on you.
Prepare your feet
One thing is clear. You will waddle a lot. It doesn’t matter whether you have four days or two weeks. The amount of waddling will be extensive. It will not be any chill you like the guy on the left, chilling on his bike. We saw him during our third day waddling with our feet already sore.
Because Rome is such a beautiful city, you will not even realize how much you are going around while enjoying the surroundings.
Of course, the first day was the most challenging one. We always want to see it all!
The distance we waddled the first day was 12.25 km (about 7.6 miles) – quite an achievement for a small penguin; what do you say?
Now the second day looks a little better on the map, but don’t be fooled; it was more challenging looking at the distance.
Distance waddled on the second day was 18.23 km (about 11.3 miles) – I didn’t know I had it in me.
And the next days, honestly, we did not even measure, but the average was the same, although our feet would tell us differently.
