Travel

By Car

FCO airport → LNGS

  • From Fiumicino, take the A91 toward Rome (10 km)
  • Following the signs for "Grande Raccordo Anulare/E80/L'Aquila," take the "Firenze/Aurelia" exit to the R and merge onto A90/E80 (30 km)
  • Take exit 14 to merge onto the A24 toll road east towards L'Aquila/Teramo (100 km)
  • Take the Assergi exit (toll: €10.60)
  • Take the first R after exiting the toll booth
  • After going ~ 200 m, take the first R onto a smaller 2-lane road
  • After traveling 500 m the LNGS guard gate will appear on your L

Public Transportation

FCO airport → L'Aquila

OPTION 1: Train + bus

  1. Take a train from Fiumicino airport → Roma Tiburtina rail station:

    • Follow the signs at the airport to the train station just outside the terminals.

    • Buy a ticket for the local commuter train FR1 to Tiburtina station. (cost: €8.00. You can just ask for a ticket to Tiburtina station.)

    • A train to Tiburtina departs roughly every 15 minutes
    • Validate your ticket in one of the yellow machines before boarding the train! Your ticket is valid for 90 minutes after being stamped.
    • The train makes a lot of stops and takes approximately 40 minutes to reach Tiburtina

    • Note: The main train station in Rome is Termini, while Tiburtina is the second largest. If you're arriving in Rome by train, or if you plan to stay overnight in Rome before continuing on to L'Aquila, you'll probably be going to Termini first. For those arriving at FCO, the Leonardo Express train runs directly from FCO to Termini without stops, departing every half hour. To get from Termini to Tiburtina, take the Metro ("Linea B", cost: €1).

  2. Take an ARPA bus from the Roma Tiburtina bus station → L'Aquila:

    • The ARPA bus station is located across the street from the Tiburtina train station (satellite-photo map)

    • Go to the "Solo Abruzzo" counter (Biglietteria C) and buy a ticket for the bus to L'Aquila (cost: €9.10). Just say "L'Aquila" to get the correct ticket.

    • A bus departs for L'Aquila roughly every hour (schedule). The buses are parked in a line just outside the ticket counters, and the L'Aquila bus is usually the first or second in the row. It will have a sign or electronic display on the front reading "L'Aquila."

    • The lower luggage compartment is generally left open until the bus departs. Usually no one checks your ticket when you board the bus, though someone may check it during the ride.
    • The bus ride takes ~ 1 hour 40 minutes unless there is heavy traffic.

    • There's no bathroom on the bus — prepare accordingly

    • The bus goes directly to L'Aquila. It makes a few quick stops in L'Aquila before arriving at the main bus terminal (Collemaggio) where you should exit. Arrival at the bus terminal will be fairly obvious, as it will be a large parking lot and all the remaining passengers will disembark. The bus station is located HERE.

 

OPTION 2: Direct bus

  • The Gaspari company offers direct bus service between Fiumicino (FCO) airport and L'Aquila. (The bus also stops at Rome's Ciampino (CIA) airport along the way.) Depending on the timing of your arrival/departure, this can be a fast and convenient option. The cost is roughly the same as taking the train + an ARPA bus.

  • Picture of the Gaspari Bus

  • There are six buses each way per day for a roughly 2 hour trip:

    • FCO → L'Aquila (Hotel Amiternum)

      Departs: 09:00, 11:00, 14:00,16:00,19:00, 21:30

    • (Note: The bus departs FCO from the bus parking area near the exit of the Terminal 3 arrivals gate: exit T3 to the street outside, turn right, and walk until you see a bunch of buses. It stops at Ciampino airport (CIA) roughly a half hour after departing FCO.)
       

    • L'Aquila (Hotel Amiternum) → FCO

      Departs: 03:00, 05:00, 08:00, 10:00, 13:00, 16:00

    • (Note: The bus stops at Ciampino airport (CIA) roughly a half hour before arriving at FCO.)

  • A one-way ticket costs €16.
  • Be aware that L'Aquila is just one stop along the bus's route between FCO and the Adriatic coast. The bus stops at the Hotel Amiternum, near the A24 "L'Aquila Ovest" exit. The ARPA bus to/from L'Aquila's Collemaggio station also stops at the Amiternum.

  • You can buy a ticket on the bus (cash only, I think), or online in advance.

L'Aquila → Assergi/LNGS

  • The easiest option is to call someone at the lab in advance and have them pick you up.
  • Another easy option is to take a taxi. There are usually taxis waiting at Amiternum and Collemaggio. The trip from Amiternum to LNGS is between 25 and 30 Euro depending on if the driver charges you for the toll. Depending on the opportunity cost of somebody stopping work to come out of the tunnel to pick you up this might be cheaper than the first option.
  • Another option is to take a local bus — either the M6 or the 76 — to LNGS. The M6 runs from the Collemaggio station to Assergi Monday-Friday. Note: that this bus does not stop at Amiternum. There is another bus that runs from Amiternum to Collemaggio. On Saturday and Sunday the M6F runs from L'Aquilone (the shopping center) to Assergi through Collemaggio.

  • The bus service's website provides a route map and schedules; here are direct links to the #76 and M6 weekday schedule ("orario feriale," for Monday through Saturday) and the M6 holiday schedule ("orario festivo," for Sundays and holidays).

  • Note: The schedules can be a little confusing. If you look at the weekday schedule, page 1 contains the timetable for buses from L'Aquila to Assergi, and page 2 has the timetables for Assergi to L'Aquila. The relevant stops are "Terminalbus" (Collemaggio bus station), "Assergi," and "INFN" (i.e., LNGS). Note that the schedule is divided by a solid line at Paganica, which indicates the 76 bus only goes as far as Paganica; there you have to transfer to the smaller M6 bus. (You will know you are in Paganica because it is the end of the line and everyone gets off the bus.) The 6/6D/6S buses continue through Paganica (so no transfer is necessary), but note that they make different stops. Finally, before boarding a 76 bus at the terminal, check the schedule to make sure it is going in the right direction!

  • If taking the bus, buy a ticket at the Collemaggio terminal (cost: €1.00). If you expect to ride the local buses in the future, you can buy a book of 11 tickets ("undici biglietti") for €9.90.
  • No one checks your ticket when you board the bus. Instead you need to insert the ticket into a machine on the bus that puts a time stamp on it. Someone may or may not check your ticket during the bus ride.
  • The ride from L'Aquila to LNGS takes roughly 30 minutes.