Hotelrome.net Blog : A guide to news and events in Rome

Rome has a – perhaps surprisingly – functional public transport network. Apart from some small inconvenience dictated by the Italian mentality and simply the local way of life, suc as frequent strikes and, at least apparent, absence of time schedules, you usually get quite fluently from a departure point to a destination.

The most reliable means of transport would be the the underground, that is the metro, especially during rush hour, since it is not dependent on the traffic, which can at times delay quite a lot the buses. The underground “network” is very simple: just two lines, A and B crossing each other in the city center at the Termini central station. The line A will take you for example to the Vatican City and the line B to the Colosseum. And when changing lines at Termini you can stop for some shopping right there inside the station, which has great facilities!

At Termini, up on the ground, you can also catch a number of buses or trams to any part of the city, like the number 40 or 64 for the Vatican or Venice Square, the 75 for the famous Porta Portese market, or the bus H to the historical neighbourhood of Trastevere. In the big square in front of the station there’s also an information point of the city transport company ATAC. Also have a look at their web site to find your bus for any destination. Mind you though, for the tickets you’ll need to go to a tabacco shop, they don’t sell them at the info booth. Inside the station and practically at every street corner you can find tabacco shops or news agents that sell tickets, “biglietti”.

As for the city bus tickets, there are different solutions, depending on the lenght of your stay, for example a daily and weekly ticket that comprehend all the city transport, even the underground.

For last, a fair warning before you hop on: beware of the pick pockets, they’re incredibly clever and work especially the lines most used by the tourists, so hold on to your bag or purse!