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A Date With Medieval Rome On The River Tiber
Rome, May 03: Rome`s Tiber river, which winds right through the heart of the city, has for years been more of an environmental problem than a tourist hot spot. But council officials are saying all will change when they launch a riverboat service, offering glimpses of Rome`s medieval past and the chance to dine while floating down the Tiber at night.
Rome, May 03: Rome's Tiber river, which winds right through the heart of the city, has for years been more of an environmental problem than a tourist hot spot. But council officials are saying all will change when they launch a riverboat service, offering glimpses of Rome's medieval past and the chance to dine while floating down the Tiber at night.
Rome's new riverboat service for tourists and local commuters - with six boats running the length of the city - was funded by a private consortium costing 2.5 million euro.
The consortium is also launching a five-strong fleet to move commuters up and down the Tiber for just one euro.
To get the project off the ground, officials hauled 38 tonnes of tree branches and garbage out of the Tiber, scrubbed kilometres of graffiti off the riverbed walls and pulled down tent villages in the northern and southern extremes.
Less than a year ago, thousands of fish were floating belly-up along the Tiber in one of its worst environmental disasters in recent years -- blamed on secret chemical dumping.
"The aim of this (boat service) is to regain something the city has always had but has never taken the opportunity to experience", the city's mayor, Walter Veltroni, said during the inaugural sail on Sunday (APRIL 27)
"This is a river which, through its bridges, crosses hundreds of years of the city's history. There are bridges built by the ancient Romans that are still in perfect use. At the same time, it is an extraordinary opportunity for tourists, but also for Romans who choose to commute via water and not use the roads", he said.
Now, for 10 euros, tourists can drift past Castel Sant Angelo, the Roman mausoleum converted into a papal fortress during the middle ages, gaze on dozens of medieval palazzi lining the river and sail by the oldest bridge in the city built in 142 BC.
"I have been coming to Rome for ten years and I have always thought why isn't there a bateau-mouche (pleasure boat) in Rome. It is a superb idea," said Parisian woman Marie Lenir.
With Paris as their model, officials hope some 15 percent of the seven million tourists who visit Rome each year will be tempted to come and try the river tours. But unlike Paris, Rome's river runs between high walls built in the 1870s to prevent floods, which block many of the spectacular sites that have made the Eternal City famous.
Bureau Report
"The aim of this (boat service) is to regain something the city has always had but has never taken the opportunity to experience", the city's mayor, Walter Veltroni, said during the inaugural sail on Sunday (APRIL 27)
"This is a river which, through its bridges, crosses hundreds of years of the city's history. There are bridges built by the ancient Romans that are still in perfect use. At the same time, it is an extraordinary opportunity for tourists, but also for Romans who choose to commute via water and not use the roads", he said.
Now, for 10 euros, tourists can drift past Castel Sant Angelo, the Roman mausoleum converted into a papal fortress during the middle ages, gaze on dozens of medieval palazzi lining the river and sail by the oldest bridge in the city built in 142 BC.
"I have been coming to Rome for ten years and I have always thought why isn't there a bateau-mouche (pleasure boat) in Rome. It is a superb idea," said Parisian woman Marie Lenir.
With Paris as their model, officials hope some 15 percent of the seven million tourists who visit Rome each year will be tempted to come and try the river tours. But unlike Paris, Rome's river runs between high walls built in the 1870s to prevent floods, which block many of the spectacular sites that have made the Eternal City famous.
Bureau Report