Arriving by boat?

Our private shore excursion tours allow you the flexibility of creating your own itinerary based on the suggestions we provide for you, setting your own pace, and enjoying Rome as an intimate group instead of the large group tours organized by the cruise lines.

Our Recommended Itinerary:

Colosseum	Roman Forum	Capitoline Hill	Piazza Venezia	Piazza Navona	Pantheon
Trevi Fountain	Spanish Steps	Vatican Museums	Sistine Chapel	St. Peter's Basilica	St. Peter's Square

Colosseum - Pantheon - Trevi Fountain - Spanish Steps

Depending on the arrival time of your cruise, and your choice of transport to the city, we will arrange for your Real Rome Tours guide to meet you at your arrival point in the city. Your guide will then take you inside the Colosseum, avoiding the lines to get in.

The guide will explain the history of this most famous symbol of Rome, one of the wonders of the Ancient World – the brutal Games and executions that were carried out here, the wonders of novel construction devised by 1st century Roman architects, and the reason it was built in the first place! You will see first-hand the unfortunate decay brought about, not by Nature, but by man, who has neglected, abused and mis-used this ancient stadium for 1500 years.

From here, we follow the route taken by triumphal generals through of Roman Forum, scene of politics, worship of pagan gods and on occasion mob violence. Also a place to conduct business and enjoy free entertainment, such as bloody executions in the days before the Colosseum was built, this was the epicentre of Rome for about 700 years.

We then ascend the Capitoline Hill, locally known as the Campidoglio. This piazza was designed by Michelangelo and offers a stunning view of Piazza Venezia - the site of the Victor Emmanuelle II monument and Mussolini's Palazzo.

Piazza Navona, with its outside-seating restaurants and lively atmosphere, is the next stop. This piazza is home to some of the most beautiful fountains and architecture of the Baroque period, but also had an important function in Ancient Times!

Then it's on to the ancient pagan temple of the Pantheon which today is a Catholic Church. We will cover the construction of the dome not surpassed until 1959 and the Oculus as we wander inside this masterpiece in engineering that has stood intact for almost 2 millennia. From there a short stroll takes us to the beautiful Trevi Fountain to find out the importance of water and fountains in Rome and of course give you time to throw your coins in.

Close by are the 18th-century Spanish Steps, from where we will take a short trip on the metro to a restaurant close to the Vatican, for a typical Italian lunch of pasta or pizza.

Vatican Museums - Sistine Chapel - St. Peter's

After lunch, the afternoon begins with a visit to the Vatican Museums. Once again, we will skip the lines to take you inside the museums with minimum delay, where we take in the major galleries such as the Belvedere Courtyard which houses the ancient and classical pieces that so many artists took their inspiration from as well as: the Room of the Muses, Round Room, Greek Cross Room, Gallery of Tapestries, Gallery of Maps and of course the magnificent Rooms of Raphael before culminating our visit in the Sistine Chapel itself.

Before entering the chapel, your guide will explain in details the meaning of the wonderful frescoes on the walls and ceiling, and explain the difficulties endured by Michelangelo as he made a masterpiece out of a painting commission that he never wanted to accept!

We will then take you inside St Peters Basilica to marvel at the astonishing achievement of some of the greatest Renaissance and Baroque architects, including Bramante, Raphael and Michelangelo. Admire the latter’s magnificence dome, taller than even the Statue of Liberty!

Inside you will also see some beautiful chapels and monuments, and the Tombs of the Popes underneath the floor of the Basilica. The tour finishes in St Peter’s Square, another amazing and beautiful architectural accomplishment, this time the work of Bernini. Marvel at his symbolic design and elegance, and learn the history of the Church in Rome, which existed thanks to the martyrdom of St Peter back in 67AD, on this very spot. Your guide will show you where you can see the smoke rise from the Sistine Chapel on election day, the balcony where the Pope appears as well as His Holiness’ apartments.

A tour of this nature requires approximately 7 hours. The above is a suggested itinerary only. We can allocate a guide to suit your specific needs so please feel free to let us know if you would like to make any changes at all.

Note 1 : The port of Civitavecchia is 85 Kilometres from the centre of Rome. We will meet you at any point in Rome, and can arrange transfers for you with a reliable and professional driver agency if you wish. If you organise your own transportation into the city, please provide us with all details on where to meet you.

Note 2: This is a walking tour. Most people prefer to take the guide's lead and walk around Rome and the Vatican, or may choose to take a taxi from the Historic Centre to the Vatican, but if you would like to hire a driver to stay with you for the entire day, please let us know in advance and we can help you with arranging for a driver for the day.

Tour Fees

Private Tour Fees:

First 2 Adults €450

Each additional Adult €95

Each additional Student €80

Each additional Child €70

• All tickets included in tour fees, and we skip all public lines at entrance sites. A light lunch of pasta/pizza and a drink is included in the fee.
• Metro tickets are also included, but if you choose to take a taxi during the tour instead of the metro, this is an additional expense to be borne by you on the day.

For private groups of over 12 people, contact us for special group rates.

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Private Cruise Shore Excursion Tour	Tour Date:	Month March April May June July August September October   Date 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
Preferred Duration:	7 hours 8 hours 9 hours
No. of participants:	0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Transfer Collection From:	Collection From Civitavecchia Port Fiumicino Airport Ciampino Airport Livorno Port Hotel/Apartment Tivoli Ostia Florence Naples Pompeii	Collection Time Midnight 1am 2am 3am 4am 5am 6am 7am 8am 9am 10am 11am 12 Noon 1pm 2pm 3pm 4pm 5pm 6pm 7pm 8pm 9pm 10pm 11pm
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