Port of Civitavecchia, also known as "Port of

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

", or Civitavecchia Port of Rome, is the

seaport A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Hamburg, Manc ...

Civitavecchia Civitavecchia (, meaning "ancient town") is a city and major Port, sea port on the Tyrrhenian Sea west-northwest of Rome. Its legal status is a ''comune'' (municipality) of Metropolitan City of Rome Capital, Rome, Lazio. The harbour is formed by ...

Metropolitan City of Rome Metropolitan City of Rome Capital () is an area of local government at the level of metropolitan city in the Lazio region of Italy. It comprises the territory of the city of Rome and 120 other ''comuni'' (: ''comune'') in the hinterland of the c ...

, Italy. It is an important hub for the maritime transport in Italy, for goods and passengers. The Rome Cruise Terminal is part of the port. Part of the "

Motorways of the Sea Motorways of the Sea is a concept in the transport policy of the European Union, stressing the importance of sea transport. The main aim of these Motorways of the Sea is to improve port communications with peripheral regions of the European conti ...

", it is linked to several

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

ports and represents one of the main links between the Italian mainland and

Sardinia Sardinia ( ; ; ) is the Mediterranean islands#By area, second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, and one of the Regions of Italy, twenty regions of Italy. It is located west of the Italian Peninsula, north of Tunisia an ...

. The port of Civitavecchia, with approximately 3.33 million passengers per year, is the first Italian port for cruise traffic, the first in Europe, the first in the Mediterranean Sea and among the busiest in the world. Rome has two additional yacht harbors/marinas: Marina of Rome in Ostia and Riva di Traiano tourist port also in Civitavecchia, and also the Port of

Fiumicino Fiumicino () is a town and comune in the Metropolitan City of Rome, Lazio, central Italy, with a population of 80,500 (2019). It is known for being the site of Leonardo da Vinci–Fiumicino Airport, the busiest airport in Italy and the ninth-b ...

used as a canal port.

History

The port of Civitavecchia was built at the behest of

Emperor Trajan Trajan ( ; born Marcus Ulpius Traianus, 18 September 53) was a Roman emperor from AD 98 to 117, remembered as the second of the Five Good Emperors of the Nerva–Antonine dynasty. He was a philanthropic ruler and a successful soldie ...

, founder of the city then known as

Centumcellae Civitavecchia (, meaning "ancient town") is a city and major sea port on the Tyrrhenian Sea west-northwest of Rome. Its legal status is a ''comune'' (municipality) of Rome, Lazio. The harbour is formed by two piers and a breakwater on which sta ...

, around 106 AD. For many centuries it represented the fulcrum of exchanges and contacts between the peoples of the ancient "

Mare Nostrum In the Roman Empire, () was a term that referred to the Mediterranean Sea. Meaning "Our Sea" in Latin, it denoted the body of water in the context of borders and policy; Ancient Rome, Rome remains the only state in history to have controlled th ...

". The emperor's idea was to facilitate the food plan for Rome with another safe landing place and the works were designed by the architect

Apollodorus of Damascus Apollodorus of Damascus () was an architect and engineer from Roman Syria, who flourished during the 2nd century AD. As an engineer he authored several technical treatises, and his massive architectural output gained him immense popularity dur ...

. The original layout of the port reflected the architectural criteria of the time with a large, almost circular basin of about 500 metres, two large piers and a

barbican A barbican (from ) is a fortified outpost or fortified gateway, such as at an outer defense perimeter of a city or castle, or any tower situated over a gate or bridge which was used for defensive purposes. Europe Medieval Europeans typically b ...

, an artificial island jutting out into the sea to protect the basin. The entire structure was surmounted by two opposing towers, later called the Bicchiere and the Lazzaretto (still visible, and rebuilt by

Giuliano da Sangallo Giuliano da Sangallo (c. 1445 – 1516) was an Italian sculptor, architect and military engineer active during the Italian Renaissance. He is known primarily for being the favored architect of Lorenzo de' Medici, his patron. In this role, Giuli ...

). After the fall of the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...

, the port of Civitavecchia and the urban settlement of Centumcellae witnessed a succession of dominations and changes of hands, disputed between the papacy, various municipal powers and frequent Saracen incursions. In the 15th century, after the city definitively returned under papal control, the port of Civitavecchia regained strength and importance. First the Rocca was built, a quadrangular fortification, then in 1508

Pope Julius II Pope Julius II (; ; born Giuliano della Rovere; 5 December 144321 February 1513) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 1503 to his death, in February 1513. Nicknamed the Warrior Pope, the Battle Pope or the Fearsome ...

entrusted

Donato Bramante Donato Bramante (1444 – 11 April 1514), born as Donato di Pascuccio d'Antonio and also known as Bramante Lazzari, was an Italian architect and painter. He introduced Renaissance architecture to Milan and the High Renaissance style to Rom ...

with the construction work of Fort Michelangelo, which was built on ancient Roman ruins. The fort was completed in 1537 thanks perhaps to the contribution of

Michelangelo Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (6March 147518February 1564), known mononymously as Michelangelo, was an Italian sculptor, painter, architect, and poet of the High Renaissance. Born in the Republic of Florence, his work was inspir ...

. In 1608, under the papacy of

Paul V Pope Paul V (; ) (17 September 1552 – 28 January 1621), born Camillo Borghese, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 16 May 1605 to his death, in January 1621. In 1611, he honored Galileo Galilei as a mem ...

, a lighthouse was erected on the southern end of the breakwater island, 31 meters high. On November 26, 1659, the first stone of the arsenal designed by

Gian Lorenzo Bernini Gian Lorenzo (or Gianlorenzo) Bernini (, ; ; Italian Giovanni Lorenzo; 7 December 1598 – 28 November 1680) was an Italians, Italian sculptor and Italian architect, architect. While a major figure in the world of architecture, he was more prom ...

was laid, which for a long time would form a large part of the city's economy. The crenellated city walls were then built by Pier Paolo Florian, commissioned by Pope

Urban VIII Pope Urban VIII (; ; baptised 5 April 1568 – 29 July 1644), born Maffeo Vincenzo Barberini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 6 August 1623 to his death, in July 1644. As pope, he expanded the papal terri ...

in 1630.

In 1761, commissioned by

Pope Clement XIII Pope Clement XIII (; ; 7 March 1693 – 2 February 1769), born Carlo della Torre di Rezzonico, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 6 July 1758 to his death in February 1769. He was installed on 16 July 1758. ...

, Porta Livorno was built. Some of these structures were destroyed due to bombing during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. In particular, in 1943 the Lighthouse, the Arsenal, the Bramante Fort and the Rocca Vecchia were destroyed.

Information

It is a multifunctional port, divided into two macro areas with different market dynamics: to the south, the one dedicated to

tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the Commerce, commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. World Tourism Organization, UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as ...

yachting Yachting is recreational boating activities using medium/large-sized boats or small ships collectively called yachts. Yachting is distinguished from other forms of boating mainly by the priority focus on comfort and luxury, the dependence on ma ...

and cruises; to the north the area for commercial traffic,

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment (Freshwater ecosystem, freshwater or Marine ecosystem, marine), but may also be caught from Fish stocking, stocked Body of water, ...

and

cabotage Cabotage () is the transport of goods or passengers between two places in the same country. The term originally applied to shipping along coastal routes, port to port, but now applies to aviation, railways, and road transport as well. Cabotage rig ...

; today it can count on approximately 1,900,000 m² of docks, 25 operational berths from 100 to 400 m in length, for approximately 13 km of berths; approximately 11 million tonnes of bulk goods are moved every year; in recent years, coaster services (

) have grown, i.e. scheduled services dedicated to the transport of passengers and goods on

routes.

Terminals

The port is made up of three main terminals divided by service category (ferries, cruises, service centre):

Ground transportation

The port of Civitavecchia can be reached by roads: * A12 motorway * Strada Statale 1 Italia

Strada statale 1 Via Aurelia Strada statale 1 Via Aurelia (SS 1) is an Italian state highway long in Italy located in the regions of Lazio, Tuscany and Liguria. It is one of the most important state highways in Italy and derives from an ancient Roman consular road, the Via ...

Strada statale 675 Umbro-Laziale * Strada_Statale_698_Italia

Strada statale 698 del Porto di Civitavecchia It is served by trains from the

Civitavecchia railway station Civitavecchia railway station () serves the town and ''comune'' of Civitavecchia, the sea port for Rome, in the region of Lazio, central Italy. Opened in 1859, it forms part of the Pisa–Livorno–Rome railway. The station is currently mana ...

: *Civitavecchia Express, dedicated to cruise passengers and with seat reservation, carries out the Civitavecchia-Roma San Pietro-Roma Ostiense itinerary. It is carried out twice a day from 2019 during the tourist season. The connection with the port is guaranteed by Trenitalia's PortLink service.trenitalia.com
/ref> * Ferrovia regionale laziale FL5

Roma Termini - Civitavecchia, of the

FL lines The FL lines, formerly Lazio regional railways (, also ''Ferrovie Laziali'') consist of 8 commuter rail lines operated by Trenitalia, converging on the city of Rome. It operates as a combined suburban railway system that connects the city-centre ...

that connect the port with

Roma Termini Roma Termini (in Italian, ''Stazione Termini'') is the main railway station of Rome, Italy. It is named after the district of the same name, which in turn took its name from ancient Baths of Diocletian (in Latin, ''thermae''), which li ...

, Roma San Pietro, Roma Trastevere,

Roma Ostiense Roma Ostiense is a railway station in Piazza dei Partigiani serving the Ostiense district of Rome, Italy, a short distance from the Porta San Paolo. It is run by the Rete Ferroviaria Italiana arm of the Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane group and the ...

, Roma Tuscolana and the

Rome Metro The Rome Metro () is a rapid transit system that operates in Rome, Italy. It started operation in 1955, making it the oldest in the country. The Metro comprises three lines – A (orange), B (blue) and C (green) – which operate on of rout ...

References

External links

*
Port of Civitavecchia website
*
Port of Civitavecchia information
*
Port of Civitavecchia 2025 Arrival Schedule

The Port Of Rome Guide For Tourist
on theportofrome.com * with 3D reconstruction of roman Port of ''Centumcellae''. {{Authority control Civitavecchia Metropolitan City of Rome Capital