Rome

We have been to Rome a number of times before, both via cruises and under our own steam  This time, we decided to spend our time in and around the Palatine Hill and the Colosseum.  We caught the train from the port at Civitavecchia, and an hour later we were buying our entrance tickets.  Note that the queues at the Colosseum are usually very long.  It is typically much quicker to buy a ticket at the Palatine Hill entrance, just around the corner.  Note also that it is imperative to allow plenty of time to catch your train back to the port.  Minor train delays are not uncommon, and if you are on the last scheduled train back before ship departure, you are running a realistic risk.  A number of people on our cruise had a late running train...  We have always given ourselves a margin in Rome of a minimum of two additional later trains, and it paid off today.