Rome Cruise Terminal: Where It Is & How to Get There
· Updated · BootsnAll
Rome is one of the popular ports of call on many cruises in the Mediterranean. But a quick glance at a map of Italy is enough to see that Rome itself isn’t on the water. So where, exactly is the cruise port in Rome? Do they sail giant cruise ships right up the Tiber River?
(Hint: the answer is no.)
The Rome cruise port is actually in the city of Civitavecchia (pronounced chee|vee|tah|VEHK|kyah), which is on the coast. And whether Rome is a port of call on your cruise or it’s the start/end point of your cruise, you’re going to need to know how to get from the Rome cruise terminal into Rome itself - because although Civitavecchia is, I’m sure, a perfectly nice place, you really don’t want to spend time there when you can be in Rome.
Here, then, is what you need to know about the Rome cruise port - including where it is and how to get there and back.
More useful links for visiting Rome on a cruise:
Location of the Rome Cruise Terminal/Port of Rome
First things first, let’s get acquainted with where Civitavecchia is in relation to a couple other places where you’re likely to go during your trip to Italy. Here’s a map of the region:
As you’ll notice, the so-called “Rome Cruise Terminal” is quite a distance from the city itself. The Fiumicino Airport, which people already complain is too far from the city center, is closer to Rome than Civitavecchia. But because so many visitors come to Rome via cruises, the two destinations are well-connected.
How to Get to Rome from the Rome Cruise Terminal (and vice versa)
Now that we’ve got our bearings, let’s look at the various transportation methods you have available for getting back and forth from Rome to Civitavecchia and the Rome cruise port.
>> And if you’re looking for things to do in Rome on a shore excursion, here’s a list of my suggestions for the top 10 things to do in Rome.
Rome - Rome Cruise Terminal by Train
There are two or three regional trains every hour between Civitavecchia and central Rome, and you don’t even have to go to Rome’s main Termini Station to catch them. The line also stops at Roma San Pietro (the handiest station for the Vatican), Trastevere and Ostiense. The trip takes about 50 to 60 minutes to San Pietro and 75 to 85 minutes to Termini.
Getting to and from one of Rome’s train stations is easy enough using Rome’s city transportation, but to connect the Civitavecchia train station with the actual cruise port you’ll need to use the port’s free shuttle bus. It runs from the cruise terminals to Largo della Pace, a short walk from the train station.
Train tickets between Civitavecchia and Rome are really inexpensive: regional trains charge a flat fare of about €4.60 in 2026. Check times and buy tickets on trenitalia.com.
Rome - Rome Cruise Terminal by Bus
There are also regional buses between Rome and Civitavecchia, run by the Lazio bus company Cotral. The buses are slower than the train, and Rome’s traffic makes the timing less predictable, so for most cruise passengers the train is the better bet. If you want to try the bus, check current routes, stops and fares on the Cotral website.
Rome - Rome Cruise Terminal by Private Shuttle or Taxi
You can hire a private shuttle van or a taxi to get back and forth between the Rome cruise port in Civitavecchia and central Rome, but it’s an expensive proposition. Private vans cost several hundred euros, and even if you pack one with people it’s still more expensive than if you took a train. Not only that, traffic in and out of Rome is often quite bad, which can make what should be a one-hour one-way trip much longer (thereby robbing you of time in Rome). If you’d still like to hire a private shuttle I’d recommend talking to the cruise director on your ship.
How to Get to Fiumicino Airport from the Rome Cruise Terminal (and vice versa)
If Rome isn’t just a port of call on your cruise but is actually the starting or ending point, then it’s not the city of Rome you’re likely to be heading for but the airport instead. The nearest airport to the cruise port is Fiumicino (officially called Leonardo da Vinci Airport), which is about 40 miles (65km) from Civitavecchia by road (see the map at the top of this article).
Here’s what you need to know in order to get from Fiumicino Airport to the Civitavecchia cruise port, or to get from the Civitavecchia cruise port to Fiumicino Airport.
Fiumicino Airport - Rome Cruise Terminal by Train
There aren’t direct trains connecting Fiumicino Airport to Rome’s cruise terminal in Civitavecchia, but to make the trip by train only requires one transfer. From Fiumicino you’ll take the FL1 regional train to Rome’s Ostiense station (a journey of roughly 15-20 minutes), and then a train from Ostiense station to Civitavecchia’s train station (a journey of roughly an hour, plus time spent at Ostiense between trains). Some travelers change at Trastevere instead, which the FL1 and the Civitavecchia trains both serve.
The FL1 ticket from the airport costs about €8 one-way in 2026, and the regional train from Rome to Civitavecchia costs about €4.60. Check connections on trenitalia.com.
Fiumicino Airport - Rome Cruise Terminal by Car
I’m not one to recommend driving in Italy when there’s a suitable transportation alternative, but for those of you who want to make the trip from the Rome cruise terminal in Civitavecchia to Fiumicino Airport (or vice versa) by car, that’s an option, too. With no traffic issues, it should be a 45-60 minute trip one-way - but there’s no accounting for traffic in and around Rome.
For detailed driving directions in Europe I prefer the Via Michelin site. You’ll need to plug in more complete addresses for your starting and ending points to correspond with exactly where you’re going, but just by putting in the general “Civitavecchia” on one end and “Fiumicino” on the other I’m told that the Michelin-recommended route is 66km and will take (with no traffic) 47 minutes, plus a few euros in highway tolls.
Fiumicino Airport - Rome Cruise Terminal by Private Shuttle or Taxi
There are companies that operate private shuttles and taxis back and forth between the Civitavecchia port and the Fiumicino Airport, but as you can imagine it’s not a cheap trip.
Transfer companies usually price the trip per vehicle rather than per person, so it gets more reasonable the more of you there are. Get quotes from a few companies, and ask your cruise line what it charges for its own transfer, before you decide.
There are also taxis that line up outside the cruise port and at the airport, but some cruise passengers report long waits for taxis at the cruise port when ships are arriving because the Civitavecchia taxi supply can’t keep up. You’re not as likely to find the same problem at Fiumicino Airport’s taxi queue.
Homeport Cruise Ships at the Rome Cruise Terminal/Port of Rome
Civitavecchia is one of the busiest cruise ports in the Mediterranean, with well over a million cruise passengers a year, and many ships start or end their cruises here. The port has several cruise terminals, so check with your cruise line which one your ship uses and allow time for the shuttle bus.
>> The port authority’s official website has news about the port (in Italian).
photos, top to bottom, by: Rapidfire, Rome Cruise Terminal website, BigJimInDC, Rome Cruise Terminal website
