Rome Ciampino Airport

Not Verified | Poor seating arrangement. There were lots of flights taking off, and therefore lots of people were waiting for their flight. But there were not enough seats for everyone. People were forced to sit on the floor, which was also not very clean. At some point, it looked like a refugee camp. I would have rated the seating condition in negative, if I could.

✅ Trip Verified | This is one of the worst airports I’ve ever been to. It is extremely small and you have to get something to eat and drink before you go through passport control. If you don’t, you can’t go back and you’ll be stuck with buying stuff from vending machines that claims to take cards but doesn’t. We had to wait in line for a visa check, which was also the same lime as bag drop. There were only a few people working and at least 100 people in line. Our flight was delayed for 5 hours and no one was communicating anything with us. Avoid the airport and save yourself the dissapointment!

❎ Not Verified | Eat and drink before you go through passport control as there’s only vending machines. No coffee or tea. No snacks or sandwich etc. Girl cleaning near the very busy coffee/panini place before passport control told us there was food places on other side - there is nothing. And they won’t let you back through. Stuck now for 1 hour 40mins with no coins to have even a water. Watching everyone boarding their plane.

❎ Not Verified | 3/10 Why? So much potential but poor service. Flew with Ryanair. Queue of 70-80 people and only 1 person working on baggage check in. Airside 2 cafeterias - 1 has 3 staff, serving sandwiches and coffee; the other has 2 staff and serves waffles and chocolate and coffee. There are at least 900 people here and 8 or more flights are delayed by more than an hour. At least 300 people standing or sitting against the walls (people are competing for wall spaces to lean back on) because there are far too few seats. WH Smith has a poor selection of English magazines and no magazines to help you study Italian. Duty Free hidden within the clouds of perfume scent is the sour aroma of damp, festering within the brick and plaster of the building. Other shops a ridiculous shop where they price iPad sleeves at €130. Also damp smelling. A 'design' shop that sells rubbish. For people who are bored and 'need to buy something'. There is a lot more opportunity to install another food Caffe, make the waffles part of the other caffes and get to of half of the duty free shop and install a playspace for kids. That said, there is a piano to play, which is quite cool. Naturally though, all you can hear is plinky plonky noise from bored kids bashing away at the keys because they're desperate for something to do. Finally, Ciampino cannot cater for passengers when there are delays. The weather is really miserable, rain pouring down and visibility is low. Of course there are delays. It is only a small airport, dominated by Ryanair. And Ryanair do not invest more than the absolute bare minimum, in order to maximise profit. To reflect the truth, it should just be called Ryanairport Roma.

❎ Not Verified | Absolutely horrible airport. The mens bathroom has no urinals, and the toilets have seats that automatically go down. Gross! The terminal has almost no seats, meaning everyone has to stand while they wait for their flight. Would avoid this airport at all costs!

✅ Trip Verified | I encountered such a problem by the first time: the airport closes during the night from 00.00 to 04.00 in the morning. Passengers are not allowed to wait for their morning flight in the airport and are kicked out on to the street. It doesn't matter it rains, if it's -5 degrees C or that it is simply night! No hotels nearby, taxi costs minimum 50 euros and simply no low cost solution to this situation, only freezing outside. I could not understand the reasons they treat people like animals, the airport itself is full of lights, and the personnel are still inside the building. As a conclusion, don't even think to spend the night at Ciampino, it will be your worst travel experience.

✅ Trip Verified | Having seen the negative reviews I was really concerned about using this airport as I was travelling with children but had to choose this airport due to convenience. My family and I found the staff very helpful and no issues with either arrival or departure. As long as you are organised and give yourself time to check in everything seems to run smoothly and efficiently. I noticed they seem to have a policy of pulling aside women wearing a headscarf to have a detailed search and scarf removed. This was done in a side room with a lady security guard who was polite throughout and treated me and my daughter very well. Food before security was a small restaurant with meat dishes, lasagne, risottos, side dishes and salads. Food after security was OK, a coffee shop that sells croissants, crepes, waffles and gelatos and a sandwich bar - the kids were happy with the selection and options. Small duty free area with the usual perfumes, chocolates, pasta and souvenirs. WHSmiths both sides of security, small but had sufficient items for a short haul flight. There was easy access to toilets and security line queues were very short at the the time of our fully booked flight which was 2pm. I was travelling with a toddler and at no time were we kept waiting or in any difficulty. Due to going through passport control with at least 60 minutes before the flight departure we managed to all get seats (family of 5) but I could see that those who came later about 30 mins before departure had to stand or sit on the floor. There is not enough seating but the flight was running on time so not long to wait if standing. I would use this airport again.

❎ Not Verified | There is no denying that Ciampino is your typical low cost airport with all that this entails. Having said that the arrival experience is not bad and you typically can be on your bus/taxi 10-15 minutes after landing. The transport options are varied but I recommend giving a miss to the overpriced Terravision bus and take instead the shuttle bus to Ciampino town station (1.50 Euros) and from there a local train to Termini station (one every 15 minutes. Fare 1.50 Euros: remember to stamp your ticket). Taxi is a fixed 30 Euros to the centre and if you are 4 people travelling it makes sense to hire one. Departure is a typically overcrowded experience with limited or non-existing seating and just a small bar with a huge queue. Duty free shops are pathetic and security long and stressful. No fingers to the plane available: it´s a small airport and you just walk to the aircraft stairs.

✅ Verified Review | At arrival, (2am due to delays), there was no option except Taxis to get to City Center. The taxi driver charged us 60 Euros for driving us only to the nearest accommodation (5km). All the taxi drivers there asked for the same price, when the usual one was €30. Bus ticket machines not accepting credit cards and no paper cash (broken), only coins worked, which we had none. On return, we had our flight at 6am, and had to arrive early (1am), because of the fact that there is no public transport available after midnight. Buses do not stop at stations if you do not push the request to stop button. We ended up in the middle of nowhere at 11:.40pm, missed our last bus connection, with no option but hitchhiking (we we're lucky that we found a Romanian fella who drove us to the airport). After arriving at the airport, we had to wait outside, in the cold, until 4am when the airport opens. It was horrible. Some staff was inside, but the departures section was closed. Awful service and no respect for humankind.

✅ Verified Review | Lovely and quiet, sat outside on grass for a bit as early. Places to eat before checking in and a WHSmiths! Didn't need to queue barely at all for security. Lovely snack shop in departures with excellent vegetarian options and also drinks / snacks to take onboard! Duty free shop nice size too. Good prices.