February 28, 2012 by Stefano's Rome Cabs

Costly Case of Mistaken Identity at Fiumicino Airport (and how to prevent it)

There are many travelers who share same or similar name as yours. Don’t let mistake identity ruin your arrival at Fiumicino Airport in Rome.

Find out how here:

You booked your Airport Transfer from Fiumicino Airport to Rome, and arrived at at FCO exhausted and jet lagged, making your way out of the insanely busy baggage claim area to meet your private driver with whom you booked your hotel transfer.

You see someone holding a sign with your name….or maybe it looks like your name slightly misspelled. Close enough, these Italians must not be so good at spelling. He must be our driver, let’s go!

Whoa!! Hold on right there!

This is a classic case of Mistaken Identity at Rome Fiumicino Airport.

With tens of thousands of travelers coming through Fiuminicino Airport each day, it’s bound that someone else who shares your last name (or something similar to it) booked a private driver.

It’s so easy to go up to the wrong driver assuming he’s the one you booked with. And not all drivers are quick to realize that you are not the party that he was supposed to pick up.

And off you go…with the wrong driver, to the wrong hotel, for the wrong price. Should you be worried? You bet!

Likely you booked a transfer company based on recommendations from sources you trust, extensive research, positive reviews on peer review sites, past experience with them, safety record, or other significant reasons.

Now you’ve unknowingly gotten into a vehicle with an unknown driver from an unknown company who thinks you are a different client taking you to a different destination than the one you booked.

Your personal safety could be at risk because you don’t know if this driver operates a legitimate business, his vehicle is properly maintained and insured, is a safe driver with a clean driving record.

All of a sudden, your vacation could be off to a bad start and you don’t even know it!

For your personal safety and well-being, we urge to keep in mind the following tips next time you arrive in Rome’s Fiumicino Airport.

If you booked your Airport Transfer in Rome with Stefano’s Rome Cabs, you would first receive in your confirmation e-mail a link to a video that shows you exactly where to meet your Rome Cabs driver at the airport.

If you see a driver with a sign bearing your name who is not standing at or near the designated meeting point, he may not your driver.

During the busy season there may be many drivers standing at the Meeting Point holding signs, so make sure you always look for your name on the signs.

Always make sure the driver you see holding up a sign with your name confirms that s/he is from Rome Cabs, knows your final destination and the quoted price.

A driver from a different company would not have this information, only your correct Rome Cabs driver does. Many SCAMMERS will approach you pretending to be “another ” company and take advantage of trusting travelers. Don’t become a victim.

Imposters and copycats actually COPY legitimate companies’ names on fly by night websites and can even copy a company’s logo and name on Name Cards to trick travelers into approaching them based on mere name recognition.

If you are uncertain about the driver, please call us immediately at the number we provide for you in case of an emergency. Keep that number handy as you should always call us if you’re unable to spot your driver, your arrival flight is late, or you a delayed exiting the baggage area.

You’ve come a long way to get to Rome, don’t let a bad case of mistaken identity ruin your first day here.

For more information on Rome Airport Transfers from Fiumicino and Ciampino airports and Port Transfers to Civitavecchia, please visit us at www.RomeCabs.com. We look forward to assisting you in making your arrival to Rome a wonderful welcome to the Eternal City.

Do you have any practical travel and safety tips you’d like to share? We’d love to hear from you in the comments box below.

Sharing is fun: If you found this article helpful, please pass it along to anyone who might benefit from it.

~Stefano’s Rome Cabs Team

Featured

How NOT to Become a Victim of Airport Transfer Scams and Impostor Websites in Rome

Don’t Become a Victim of Airport Transfer Scams and taken for a ride by Fake and Impostor websites in Rome that copy legitimate companies’ names to dupe and mislead tourists.

Copycat websites are not new in the World Wide Web we’ve come to depend on for so much. It’s even more devious when it hits international tourists who don’t know the difference between honest and shady companies abroad. Human nature tends to be trusting, after all, if a someone creates a website, provides a service for a fee, and there is no scandal that surrounds them online, it means they are genuinely operating a sound business. That’s not always the case.

Many companies have invested so much over the years to establish themselves as reliable, recommended and trusted in the industry. Like us, many have cemented a name for themselves based on their sound reputation for operating an honest and dependable business travelers have come to trust and rely on. That’s when fly-by-night unknowns appear on the scene with names and websites very similar to existing companies, and this often confuse travelers in booking with them. How do they do this?

They use website names suspiciously similar to the established company they’re targeting. One example of such practice is, for instance, when you google Rome Cabs, in addition to the official and ONLY Rome Cabs website: www.RomeCabs.com, you will find websites that use variations and added words like transfer or booking after RomeCabs.

Or they employed SEO techinques so their website headliner may read Rome Cab or RomeCabs, but their website address is something completely different! Always compare the website address to the headliner.

Other scam artists spend money on Google adwords and use our company name in the header to mislead clients thinking we are them!

Some also create email addresses bearing the same name or suspiciously similar as the company they target….with a @hotmail, @gmail, @yahoo, or any other variations at the end. People who don’t know the difference can be easily mislead and confused.

When the name of the company, their website address and content do not match, be aware.

HOW DO YOU PROTECT YOURSELVES FROM ONLINE IMPOSTORS and UNRELIABLE COMPANIES?

There are ways to protect yourself from becoming a victim of unscrupulous online companies.
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* ALWAYS book your service with established companies that come highly recommended by sources you trust. When it comes to your and your loved ones’ safety, you should not leave anything to chance.

* NEVER blindly google or search the company name online to obtain their website. This is what copycat websites are counting on because here is where people become confused. The title tag above the website can be influenced by key words, and it may not represent the actual company name.

* ALWAYS make sure you have the correct company website address. When you ask for recommendations, make sure you also receive the website address along with the company name.

* ALWAYS contact the company by typing in their official website on your browser, never based on a search engine search.

* If you accidentally click on the wrong website, pay attention to anything that seems off. If you notice:

the company name on the website is different
the prices are different, the services are different,
the website does not look professional
or they have non-Italian phone numbers
these usually signs that you may be on the wrong website and if you may unintentionally book with the wrong company.

* NEVER book your car service based on cheap and deeply discounted prices. The way most fly-by-night and impostor websites get clients is by offering very low prices compared to most established companies who invest in quality and safe service. .

Please know that when it comes to private car service you really do get what you pay for. A responsible car service company in Rome cannot survive offering cheap and deeply discounted prices below market value without cutting dangerous corners on vehicle safety and proper maintenance, insurance, quality of service, or even breaking laws.

When you are booking car service online from unknown companies and websites offering cheap prices, you can get taken for a ride in more ways than one, and worse: you can potentially put your personal safety at risk!

We have received untold number of calls from desperate travelers stranded at the airport or the cruise port (many of them elderly) because their drivers never showed up. In all these cases, they booked service via cheap copy-cat websites thinking they booked with the REAL Rome Cabs.
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Fly-by-night and copycat websites typically have nothing to lose since they do not depend on their reputation and word of mouth for their business. They often operate on multiple websites, so if they garner enough bad reputation online via one website, they simply shut it down and open another.
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Don’t become a victim of online impostors and unscrupulous companies no matter what type of service you are seeking, protect yourselves and your loved ones on your trips abroad. After all, safety first! There are many honest, established and reputable companies to chose from, so which ever company you select to book with, do so only after careful consideration based on reliable information, and with diligence in making sure you are booking with the intended company.
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For more information on Rome Cabs Transfer to the Airport and Civitavecchia, Tours, and Shore Excursions from Italy’s top Ports of Call, please visit us at www.RomeCabs.com.
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You may also visit our sister company, Stefano Rome Tours, for more exciting Tours and Shore Excursions in Rome and beyond: www.StefanoRomeTours.com
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Do you have any tips to share that helps travelers abroad? We’d love to hear from you in the comments box below.

Sharing is fun: If you found this article helpful, please pass it along to anyone who might benefit from it.

We thank you for visiting our blog, and we look forward to being of service to you in the future. See you soon in Italy!

~The RomeCabs Team.

February 17, 2012 by Stefano's Rome Cabs

How Not to Miss Your Ship and Get Your Cruise Off to a Great Start!

Buon giorno and welcome to Stefano’s RomeCabs travel blog.

In this travel article we address a common question: how not to Miss Your Ship and Get Your Cruise off to a Great Start!

Arriving late and missing your ship can and does happen, and it potentially ruins your vacation because trying to catch up with your ship at the next port of call is never easy. Usually this misfortune happens when you book your arrival flight on the same day as your ship’s departure.

It takes approximately one hour (pending traffic conditions) from Fiumicino Airport to the Port of Civitavecchia, but even if you have a few hours in between and think you have plenty of time, in all reality any slight flight delay can result in missing your ship.

Even if your flight arrives on time, other things can go wrong. If your luggage is delayed and due to arrive on a different flight after your ship’s departure, it probably won’t find you during your cruise.

And if your luggage gets lost not only you may not have enough time to file the appropriate paperwork for missing luggage, but you won’t have time for any last minute shopping for important items, leaving you having to rely on what’s aboard the ship and make do without your personal belongings.

Ok, so your flight and luggage arrived on time. Great!!! Still, you’ll be arriving in Rome jetlagged and exhausted after a long transcontinental flight. Instead of celebrating your first evening on your cruise, you’ll be spending it in your cabin recuperating from your journey and missing out on enjoyable activities.

With Rome being a top travel destination in Europe with so many incredible things to offer, why not spend a couple of days pre-cruise in the Eternal City to rest, taken in the sights, have lunch at an outdoor cafe, and get get your vacation off to a relaxed and fantastic start. And if you and your luggage arrive in Rome late, you have nothing to lose.

Our advise is: Arrive in Rome at least one day before your cruise departs.

* It relieves the stress of flight and luggage delays.
* Eliminates the risk of missing your ship.
* You have the opportunity to enjoy Rome.
* You will begin your cruise relaxed and refreshed.

For Airport and Port Transfers, Day Trips from Rome, and Shore Excursions from Civitavecchia, Naples and Livorno, please visit us at www.RomeCabs.com.

We’d like to invite you to also visit our sister company, Stefano Rome Tours, for more exciting Tours and Shore Excursions in and around Rome: www.StefanoRomeTours.com.

We are more than happy to assist you with your tour and transfer needs and help make your visit to Italy the vacation of a lifetime!

Do you have any practical travel tips and ideas you’d like to share? We’d love to hear from you in the comments box below.

Sharing is fun: If you found this article helpful, please pass it along to anyone who might benefit from it.

Thank you for stopping by and reading our blog. We look forward to hearing from you and seeing you soon in Italy!!

~The Rome Cabs Team

February 16, 2012 by Stefano's Rome Cabs

Plan Ahead to Avoid Last Minute Travel Headaches

Buon giorno and welcome to Stefano’s RomeCabs travel blog! Our mission is to help and advise visitors and cruisers to Rome make the best of their holiday in Italy!

Below are some practical tips to Plan Ahead to Avoid Last Minute Travel Headaches

When you go out to a popular restaurant on a Tuesday night, usually you don’t need to make reservations. However, if you plan to dine at the same popular restaurant on Friday evening, without advance reservation you may not get the table of your choice, you may encounter a long wait, or not be able to get a table at all.

The same applies to booking private companies for transfers and tours, and it can make the difference between a relaxing and hassle free experience, and a stressful and difficult one.

During the off season months, usually November to March, last minute bookings are usually accommodated in many cases. But during the peak season months, especially May through October, the most reliable and well recommended transfer and tour companies are the first to get fully booked.

As a result you may find yourself fumbling online looking for different car service companies, using airtime minutes to call around if they don’t respond to your email request in time, and then only to find yourself at the mercy of lesser known, unknown, less reputable, or questionable companies that would not have been your first choice at all. And this can make the difference between a carefree, safe, and enjoyable transfer and tour experience, and a frustrating, uncomfortable, and potentially unsafe one.

Waiting until last minute and finding out the most recommended companies are fully booked comes with some unpleasant circumstances.

For one, it leaves many who require transfer services having to rely on taxis and their availability at the airport. This means if you are a party of more than 3 persons, have extra luggage, need a child seat, are wheelchair bound, or need extra service you’re at the mercy of what’s available at the taxi ranks.

You might even require more than 1 taxi if one vehicle cannot accommodate your group or your luggage. All of a sudden, the price of transportation just doubled! And unlike reputable companies that charge clients only the quoted price so you know in advance what you’ll pay, the same cannot be said about all taxis or fly-by-night companies.
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Bad Weather

During rainy weather taxis are in demand and you may have to wait a long time at the taxi rank for cabs to arrive at the airport. Even worse is if you require a taxi to take you to the airport. If you need to make your flight on time, this is a risk not worth taking. With a private car service reserved in advance, these are someone else’s headaches, not yours.

Public Transportation Strikes

Taxis are also difficult to find at the airport when there is a public transportation strike because they are much in demand in Rome itself. When taxis are busy locally, they will not travel to the airport unless they are dropping off clients they picked up in Rome. When all the train takers need a taxi to get into Rome, the demand for taxis just increased a thousand fold. And once again, if you are in a hurry to get to the airport and there are no taxis readily available, it spells trouble for your trip home.

Taxi Strikes

Hopefully you don’t need a transfer during a taxi strike (which has happened on a few occasions in Rome in January 2012) and be forced to take public transportation when you are among those who find it difficult to do so.

Public Transportation

Public Transportation is a great mode of transportation for many travelers, but may not be a pleasant experience if you’re traveling with a lot of luggage or heavy luggage, children, are elderly, disabled, wheelchair bound, and extremely jetlagged and exhausted.

Taking the Train to Civitavecchia with Luggage

Leonardo Express stops at one of the farthest tracks at Termini Station that requires quite a bit of walking to get to the metro, bus and taxi area. Once you’re there, your choices are once again: metros, buses, or taxis.
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Passengers waiting at FCO Airport for Leonardo Express Train

If you plan to take the bus, you’ll need to know well in advance which bus number to take (there are dozens of buses at the stop, it might take some time walking back and forth to find the right one…only to have to wait for it if it hasn’t arrived yet), which bus stop to get off at, and where exactly is your accommodation from there.

If you are taking the Metro, you will need to know if it’s the A line or the B line, and which direction you need to go….in some cases, you might even have to take an extra bus if the metro stop is not near your accommodation (as it’s often the case with off the beaten path B&B’s, rental apartments, and other types of accommodations).
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If by the time you arrive at Termini station you decide to take a taxi, you’ll have to put your trust in the taxi driver that he will be honest with the fare and the short drive to your hotel won’t cost as much as the transfer from the airport itself.

Tours

ROME COUNTRYSIDE TOUR and Transfer to Civitavecchia ROMECABS

Day Tours and Shore Excursions with RomeCabs

Tours also get booked early during the peak season. This is further impacted when numerous ships arrive in Civitavechiaat once, and thousands of people have booked shore excursions in and around Rome.
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With limited number of professional and experienced English speaking driver guides in Rome, tours get booked up rather fast. This leaves you with very few alternative options.
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Public transportation such as trains and buses are not always convenient, are time consuming, and not very reliable for day trips in many areas outside of Rome – especially in less touristy yet very attractive areas. During the hot summer months it proves to be uncomfortable as well.

There are very few options available, and probably not where you wanted to go. If you are on a shore excursion from Civitavecchia, and there is a public transportation strike, your options of getting to Rome on short notice are very limited (and very expensive if you opt for a taxi).

Renting a car for the day works for some people, but may not be a practical option for many either because it can be an expensive or a time consuming process. If you are on a shore excursion and renting a car, you must be sure not to get lost or delayed in any way that may cause you to miss your ship.

Here are a few tips to consider when planning your vacation.

* Book your airport and port transfers when you book your airline tickets.

* Book your shore excursions once you book your cruise and know the places you’d like to visit.

* Book your day trips after you booked your hotels and once you decide on the places you’d like to visit.

With a little planning in advance and booking early, you will have the peace of mind knowing that you won’t have any last minute hassles booking the services you need with the companies you trust.

For more information on Tours, Shore Excursions and Transfers, please visit us at http://www.RomeCabs.com or click on the OPTIONS below:

AIRPORT TRANSFERS WITH ROMECABS

CIVITAVECCHIA TRANSFERS WITH ROMECABS

DAY TOURS WITH ROMECABS

SHORE EXCURSIONS WITH ROME CABS

You may also visit our sister company Stefano Rome Tours at www.StefanoRomeTours.com.

We’d love to hear from you and help you make your visit to Italy a most memorable experience.

Do you have any practical travel tips and ideas you’d like to share? We’d love to hear from you in the comments box below.

Sharing is fun: If you found this article helpful, please pass it along to anyone who might benefit from it.

Thank you for stopping by and reading our blog. We wish you Happy Travel and hope to see you in Italy soon!

~ The Rome Cabs Team
http://www.RomeCabs.com

P.S. This blog was inspired by stories and experiences shared with us by other travelers. We thought we’d share them with others in order to help them avoid the hassles these folks experienced.