Formia Guide

Formia Ferry Port

The coastal city of Formia is found in the south Italian province of Latina, midway between Napoli in the south and the sprawling capital of Rome in the north. It stretches in a thin line between a glittering Mediterranean bay and the rugged foothills that mark the edge of the mountainous Aurunci natural park further inland. The city also sits along Appian Way, the first road ever built during the era of Ancient Rome, and is blessed with a rich and absorbing history. The clash of contemporary and classic architecture that exists within Formia is, in itself, a striking exhibit of the various stages of the city’s past. A Roman cistern dating back to the 1st Century BC is found at one end of an old lane just off a bustling roadway, while the looming, hexagonal Castellone tower is the very antithesis of the modern train-station built nearby. The most famous of the area’s historical wonders is the tomb of Cicero on the city outskirts; an imposing structure built to commemorate one of Ancient Rome’s most famous, and controversial, orators. The port of Formia is found at the centre of the city’s coastline. It consists of two piers and a long breakwater that forms a sheltered, square inlet of the Tyrrhenian Sea. The ferry terminal is nestled between the two piers, on a roadway promenade that has been ordered into lanes to ensure the smooth movement of passengers into the port. Facilities inside the small terminal building include a tourist information point and a bar selling hot and cold snacks. Aside from the SS7 motorway that cuts through the centre of the city, the main route into Formia is via train. Lines run from the station in the central district of the city towards settlements along the coast to the north and south, including stops in both Napoli and Rome. Currently two ferry routes leave from the port in Formia. Laziomar lines ferries offer trips south to the islands of Ponza and Ventotene both heading south towards the islands in the Tyrrhenian Sea.