- Introduction:
After the pick-up at
Civitavecchia port you will reach Ancient Ostia.
- Situated amongst the
cypress and Mediterranean pine trees, the ruins
of Ancient Ostia reveal more
than any other monument in the capital, what
everyday life must have been like in
- ancient times.
- Ostia was founded
around the 4th century BC by King Anco Marzio and
became the harbor of Rome, around which a
flourishing trade and business center developed
throughout the following centuries.
- Until after the
Barbarian invasions, when the port was abandoned
and silted up heralding the decline of Ostia.
- The archaeological
excavations undertaken at the beginning of the
XIX century have brought the
- ancient city back to
life.
-
- Highlights:
- - ‘Via delle
Tombe’ which leads you to the ‘Porta
Romana’, one of the city’s three gates.
This is the beginning of the ‘Decumanus
Maximus’, the main thoroughfare that crosses
the city from north east to south west.
- - ‘Terme di
Nettuno’ where you can admire the beautiful
black and white mosaics representing
- Neptune and
Amphitrite.
- - the principle
public buildings: ‘Il Capitolium’, the
temple of Rome and Augustus, the Basilica and
- the large thermal
baths.
- - the House of Diana
and the ‘Thermopolium’, an ancient
Roman bar with a marble counter and a
- fresco depicting the
fruit and foodstuffs that were sold there.
- - the Museo Ostiense
which displays some of the ancient sculptures.
-
- Your next stop is the
the Etruscan Necropolis in Cerveteri,
which has been declared by Unesco a World
Heritage Site . It covers an area of 400 ha, of
which 10 ha can be visited, encompassing a total
of 1,000 tombs often housed in characteristic
mounds. It is the largest ancient necropolis in
the Mediterranean area. The necropolis contains
tombs organized in a city-like plan, with
streets, small squares and neighbourhoods. The
site contains very different types of tombs:
trenches cut in rock; tumuli; and some, also
carved in rock, in the shape of huts or houses
with a wealth of structural details.
- The enigmatic
Etruscans built cities and ports that have long
since disappeared, but the care and industry they
put into the homes for their dead has resulted in
a lasting monument.
-
-
- Departure
Point: Civitavecchia port
- Return
Details: Tour concludes at Civitavecchia
port
Total time:
8 hours (7 hours visiting + 1 hour stop lunch)
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