Having disembarked our cruise ship in Civitavecchia at 9am we arrived just before 10am on our coach transfer, leaving us with around 4 hours to spare on arrival at Rome Fiumicino “Leonardo da Vinci” airport.
Our flight wasn’t until late afternoon, but we didn’t have quite enough time to get into Rome on the Leonardo Express which takes approx 45 mins each way.
We visited Ostia Antica which is only situated 8km away, there’s a stunning archaeological park there which you’ve probably never heard of!
First we visited Terminal 3 Arrivals, via door 6 to find the left baggage office, it’s up a narrow corridor and costs €10 per item to store your cases here. Next, don’t take the main taxi queue they are for passengers heading to Rome with a fixed rate of €50. They told us to take a local taxi (across the road), who weren’t interested in driving us and wanted to charge €45 one way for the pleasure. We ordered an Uber which cost €28 in each direction and took less than 15 minutes. The Uber pick up point is through the car park, opposite the taxi rank.
The Parco Archeologico di Ostia Antica is huge, the ticket office told us to allow 5 hours to walk the full length and take the free shuttle back to the entrance. We didn’t have that much time but we still enjoyed strolling through the Roman ruins and promised ourselves to return in the future. The entrance fee is €18 per adult. They are open from Tuesday to Sunday (closed Monday).
Official website: https://www.ostiaantica.beniculturali.it/
Ostia Antica is about 25 km from Rome, and sits on the River Tiber – it was The Roman’s principle port city. It was established in about 700 years before Christ, and was finally abandoned in the 800’s after Christ.
As well as a huge commercial centre, full of warehousing for goods coming in on galleys from around the Roman empire, it was also HQ for the Roman navy.
By the year 200 AD, there were about 100,000 people living in the city, and it had its own baths and a forum. A viaduct was built to bring water to the city, and it had a very complex mains water system supplying all the houses and baths.
As the empire collapsed, Ostia Antica fell into ruin.
What makes it so special, is that the river silted up and covered the city with a thick layer of sand, which has preserved it almost beyond belief. You can see the most incredibly mosaic floors, street name plaques that are still clearly legible, stunning marble columns and steps.
We got as far as the forum, and walked all through the warehousing district. We had to keep reminding ourselves we were in a place that had been built 2000 years ago. If you ever visit Rome, set time aside to visit Ostia Antica.
We also enjoyed a short wander around the Borgo di Ostia Antica, a small medieval town, situated opposite the park’s main entrance, next to the Castello di Giulio II.
The above certainly beat sitting around a chaotic airport for several hours waiting for our flight. Our tip: don’t bother with the Plaza Premium lounge at FCO Rome airport – it’s the worst airport lounge we’ve ever experienced, and we’ve tried more than a few!
