Rome blog for Bed & Breakfast Chaplin Hostel

Introduction

Since Rome’s metro system, with only 2 lines, is clearly not sufficient for a city the size of Rome, visitors will sometimes find it necessary to take a bus. The bus company, ATAC, has an information office in the middle of the main bus square, Piazza Cinquecento, in front of Rome Termini’s main exit.

Most important bus lines can easily be found near the Bed & Breakfast Chaplin Hostel Rome and the B&B Little Italy Hotel, since both inns are located near Termini.
Tickets

In Rome bus tickets can never be bought on the bus. You always have to acquire them beforehand, at tobacconists and newspaper stands, or at the ATAC kiosks themselves (but the latter are few and far between). Especially if you travel around using single tickets instead of day, 3 day or weekly passes, it is best to always have a couple of tickets ready to use. The tickets are not valid till you have stamped them by inserting them in the yellow machines in the backs of buses.

Piazza Cinquecento

Piazza Cinquecento is Rome’s principal bus square. Upon entering the square from the principal exit of Rome Termini you will first find the taxi stands on your left. Coming out of Termini throught the main entrance you will find the special tourist buses taking you around Rome in one day. Most of the orange city buses are lined up on the left side of the square.

Major local bus lines

Some of the major bus lines are:

(Only the main stops are mentioned. These are not necessarily the beginning and ending points of the lines)

H Roma Termini – Piazza Venezia Trastevere
M Termini – Auditorium Parco della Musica

023 St. Paul’s Outside the Walls – Pza. Risorgimento
032 Ottaviano – Youth Hostel – Olympic Stadium
060 Pza Venezia – Via Nazionale – Via XX Settembre
062 Porta Pia – Piazza San Silvestro – Piazza Venezia – Largo Argentina
064 Rome Termini – Via Nazionale – Piazza Navona – Saint Peter and Vatican City
070 Via Lepanto – P. Cavour – Largo Argentina – V. Nazionale – Santa Maria Maggiore
071 Stazione Tiburtina – V. Giolitti – S. Maria Maggiore – P. San Silvestro
075 Viale Trastevere – Piramide – Colosseum – V. Cavour – Termini – P. Indipendenza
081 S. Giovanni – Colosseum – P. Venezia – V. Cola di Rienzo – P. Risorgimento
084 Repubblica – Termini – V. Cavour – P. Venezia
085 S. Giovanni – Colosseum – P. Venezia – P. San Silvestro
087 S. Giovanni – Colosseum – P. Venezia – P. Cavour
095 Piramide – Mouth Of Truth – P. Venezia – V. Veneto
170 Termini – Repubblica – P. Venezia – Bocca della Verita – Vle. Trastevere
175 Piramide – Colosseum – P. Venezia – V. del Corso – Barberini – Termini
186 S. Giovanni – Colosseum – L. Argentina – P. Cavour
492 Staz. Tiburtina – Termini – S. Silvestro – P. Venezia – P. Cavour – P. Risorgimento

Special tourist buses

The 110 is a hop on & hop off bus taking you past most of Rome’s major attractions in one day. It is run by the local bus company ATAC and, starting from Rome Termini, stops at P. Barberini, P. del Popolo, P. Augusto Imperatore, S. Pietro, P. Venezia, Pl. Ugo la Malfa and the Colosseum, before heading back towards Termini.

Interlocal buses

The interlocal buses do usually not leave from Rome Termini, but from other, smaller stations, like Tiburtina, Ponte Mammolo, Lepanto, Castro Pretorio, etc.

Airport buses

There are some buses to the airport of Fiumicino, but the service is not very regular, since the Leonardo Express train connection (11€, every 30 minutes) is very hard to compete with.

To Rome Ciampino, on the other hand, there are various private bus connections, a.o. COTRAL, SIT and Terravision.

Eurolines

Eurolines is a budget coach company connecting the biggest European tourist towns. Their office and terminal is at Tiburtina railway station.

Theft

On the buses, and particularly on the 64 bus between Rome Termini and the Vatican City it is even more necessary to be careful than on the metro. As on the metro, the pickpockets work in teams, but they have the added advantage that from the buses it is far easier to escape in case they get spotted. Hide your wallets, have your daypacks in front of you, when somebody asks you something make sure that this is not to attract your attention away from what happens behind you, etc.