Originally Posted by
rove312
Also, Stewie, since you mention going "with family," depending on how many and what ages, you can consider whether the Leonardo Express is the best way to go.
Kids are under 12, so LEx is not only convenient (for wanting to get to Termini) but also cheapest... thanks for warning though.
Originally Posted by
Perche
The Mercato is very worth visiting, but it's not grab and go food. Pizza and pasta have to be eaten hot, not cold and gloopy. Cold suppli, trappizini, fried artichokes, or Chianina hamburger would not be any fun to eat. You could buy a chunk of cheese at the cheese store, but if you just want to grab a panino to go, you won't find it there. Just go to the nearest bar, they'll be all around you. Save the Mercato for when you can stroll around, sample the different foods, relax, and enjoy it. Trains with tight connections and grab and go food is not the best way to experience La Dolce Vita.
Perche - thanks for this. I was thinking about grabbing the famous trappizini, but I realise that I've been thinking about this with my work travel head on, which is aimed at minimizing waiting time at every junction. This is a holiday. With kids! We'll grab panini from a bar and jump on the train, eat pizza for tea in Naples and maybe spend some time wandering/grazing in the Mercato when we're in Rome ten days later.
Originally Posted by
rove312
You should also note that there's a new bus (or coach as you might say) service directly from FCO to Naples (also to Florence):
http://www.fiumicinoexpress.com/?lang=en . For you, it would leave FCO at 16.20, arriving Naples at 19.07. It has its own complications if you book in advance and miss the coach; you could decide on arrival whether it's worth the wait at FCO to have a direct ride, with the bags in the hold.
I have two boys, aged 7 and 9 - trains are fun and exciting in a way that busses aren't. [Also my wife gets travel sick on busses and three hours on an Italian bus would not be a good way to start the holiday!] Thanks for the option.
Originally Posted by
KLouis
A very difficult question to answer.
a) Intra-Schengen based on tens of A3 flights arriving at ~ 10 am, anything from 5 min. after me getting to the carrousel to 40 min. My average, used for the calculation above, 20-30 min.
b) Extra-Schengen (long-haul and one BA) based on fewer than 10 flights, 20-60 min with an average, again, of 20-30 min.
Careful, though, as with any potential queue at FCO, I've never noticed a pattern such as airline or time of day. My longest wait last November (60 min at the caroussel) was on an AZ flight from AUH that arrived briefly before 6 am: first one of the day that particular day, with luggage from the next two flights being delivered before ours.
Thanks for the insights. Then we'll allow plenty of time, and if we don't need it then I'll have time for a birra at Termini.