The good thing about the MSC Splendida's seven-day western Mediterranean itinerary is that the ship visits a new port each day. The bad thing about the MSC Splendida's seven-day western Mediterranean itinerary is that the ship doesn't have a full sea day. There's a half-day at sea in the morning between Barcelona and La Goulette and a half-day at sea between Messina and Civitavecchia, but neither of these allow passengers time to just relax and explore this beautiful ship.
Since Juanda and I had both been to Rome before, we decided to make that day our "sea day". We were lavishly spoiled in the spa, followed by a quiet day on the ship. It was fun and rejuvenating.
While we were being lazy, most of the other passengers on the ship either took a shore excursion from Civitavecchia into Rome on a bus or rode the train into the city on their own. The MSC Splendida offers the same Rome excursions I've seen and enjoyed on other ships. The Rome shore excursions all start with a 1.5 hour ride into Rome. Most were full day tours that included a selection of all the wonderful sights of Rome. Participants just need to choose which ones appeal to them. The sights include the Colosseum, Trevi Fountain, Vatican City, Piazza Navona, Pantheon, the Spanish Steps, and the Forum.
Those who choose to do Rome "on their own" can either ride a bus or the train. The MSC Splendida did not sail for Genoa until 7 pm, allowing everyone a full day to see as much (or as little) as they liked in Rome.
About 1500 passengers disembarked/embarked in Rome, so we had some new faces on the ship that night. The next day we would be in Genoa, in the Liguria region of Italy.
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