‘The old town’ lives up to its name, because people have lived here for a long time. The city is placed over an earlier Etruscan settlement. It was Emperor Trajan who started constructing the first harbor, at the beginning of the second century AD.
The city was earlier called Centum Cellae, which possibly comes from the hundreds of rooms in the emperor’s villa. The city became part of the Pope’s property in the year 728. A hundred years later, the city was attacked by the Saracens, and the settlement was moved to a safer place. According to tradition, the city was named ‘Civitas Vetus’ when the inhabitants shortly after moved back to the old city. In 1696, the city became a free port under Pope Innocent XII, and Rome’s most important port city.
In earlier times, the city was a shipping port for the mineral alum. Today, tourism is the main source of income, in addition to a large energy factory and the ferry port, with departures to Sardinia, Sicily and various cruise destinations. The city was bombed to pieces during the WWII, but has been nicely rebuilt, including much of the old brickwork. The beaches at Civitavecchia are many and long, the water fresh and clear, so it is really nice to swim here. But please do remember to bring your swimming shoes! There are pebbles and not sand on the beach. But otherwise excellent. And romantic too!
We had a cozy picnic under the palm trees by the beach, and this can be safely recommended.
But: If the children want a little more action, there is a completely different option in Civitavecchia: The Aquafelix water park. Don’t be confused by the slightly depressing entrance – this is a very good bathing place.
Once inside the facility, our daughters immediately threw themselves into the dance. Yes, you read that right: The dance! At Aquafelix there was ‘Dance along’ in the water lead by an energetic DJ. Just great!
Aquafelix is beautifully built and maintained, with paved paths between the facilities. They have built a number of exciting slides, one of which goes through a dark tunnel. For Idun, who is not very enthusiastic about slides, a tour in the current ringpool was more tempting – on a tube. The only concern is therefore this, from Idun: There is no suitable training pool in this water park. But they do have a small fountain, which made up for the disappointment. Finally, Idun could have a fountain bath in Italy!
After the bath, time is just perfect for dinner. We suggest you to head for Piazza Aurelia Saffi. There you can find several cafès, restaurants and pubs, and a beautiful view of the medieval walls. Buon appetito!
