How to get to Rome from Fiumicino Airport

If you are going to Rome by air it is most likely that you will arrive to Fiumicino airport. When you get out from the security zone to the arrivals hall you will meet a lot of smiling Italians that will offer you taxi. These kind of taxis are illegal and you should know that you will probably get ripped off. They make you pay overprice, they take you to the wrong destination and you may even be robbed.

I have a firsthand encounter with this; when I came to Rome the first time in my life I came to Fiumicino without any kind of organization and planning. I fell for the trick to get an illegal taxi and I asked him if he could take me to a Hotel that was cheap. Sure he said and after a long bumpy ride I arrived at a 4-star hotel that wasn’t cheap but since it was in the middle of the night I had to pay and half of my travel budget was gone!

Here are 2 tips for those of you that come to Rome:

1. Organize your trip before you come to Rome, find and book your Hotel, check possible transportations from the airport.
2. There are plenty of alternative, you can either take the airport buss shuttle or the airport train that will take you directly to termini. Check on the Google ads to the right, often they make publicity for transportations from the airport.

Have a good arrival in Rome

Things to see and do in Rome

In this first post of 2 I will give some advices for you as a visitor. What you can’t miss and what you could miss.

First of all let us get clear with how Rome is structured… In the central of Rome you can always get around by foot and it is not necessary to take the public transportations. Then if you would like to go to the outskirts of Rome then you have to rely on the transports mentioned above.
I suggest that you don’t take any prepaid guided bus tours since they only take on the bus and then drive you quickly pass the monuments. Take a walk instead!

In the centre of Rome you have monuments that you can’t miss and I will list some of them here so you can check them off.

Fontana di Trevi: The most famous fountain in the world. If you don’t know about it you should know that it was built in 1762 and it has figured in the film “La Dolce Vita” with Anita Ekberg. You will find the fountain in Piazza Di Trevi in the central of Rome.


Piazza di Spagna: This is a beautiful post in Rome and all around the year you will see people sitting on the stairs and eating ice cream.

In the piazza you will find the marvelous fountain “Fontana della Barcaccia” which have the form of a giant fish. When you are in the zone take a look at the luxury stores, you will find all the top notch brands like Prada, Gucci and Armani to mention a few.

The Vatican: Take this opportunity to visit the heart of the catholic church and if you are lucky you may even see the pope! But be advised, you are probably not the only one to visit the Vatican so I suggest that you go there early to avoid the big crowds.

Things to see in the Vatican then; well don’t miss the Sistine Chapel and take a tour to see the tombs of the previous popes.
If you go there on a Sunday you will experience the weekly convention where the pope speaks from his balcony.

Villa Borghese: I giant park in the centre of Rome, you can compare it to central park in New York.

Here you find an oasis of green and nature in the sometimes chaotic Rome. There is a Zoo in this park but please take my advice and don’t go there, it’s not worth the time neither the money.

This is the end of part 1 in visiting Rome hope you like it and please leave a comment to let me know what you think and what I can improve... stay tuned for part 2!
Ps. Bring the waliking/jogging shoes