paigepea
Drama Llama
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Posts: 5,609
Location: BC, Canada
Jun 26, 2014 4:28:55 GMT
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Post by paigepea on Jan 14, 2021 14:43:23 GMT
So nice!
We used Rick steves book to plan everything. In fact we saw him in Orvieto. Italy is wonderful. Most people speak English. We loved the major sites/cities plus Umbria (Orvieto I think) and cinque terra. Take Rick Steve’s suggestions.
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Post by Alexxussss on Jan 14, 2021 15:13:37 GMT
I agree with everything posted so far. Go for as long as you can and you’ll be glad you did. The more you can research beforehand the better off you’ll be (the books and websites recommended here are great). If you must go during the summer, know that their a/c is much different than in the US (in some hotels). Check TripAdvisor for reviews if that would bother you or your husband. Luckily we only had that issue our first night.
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tanya2
Pearl Clutcher
Refupea #1604
Posts: 4,414
Jun 27, 2014 2:27:09 GMT
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Post by tanya2 on Jan 14, 2021 15:36:05 GMT
You definitely need more than one week, especially if you want to do more than one city. Trains are easy to navigate. In the major cities most people speak some english, but not necessarily true in the small towns. Watch your purse/pockets carefully. You might want to do a tour if you've never been to Europe. And I definitely do not recommend going in the summer time! We were there in August 2019 - and it was crazy hot. Like walking on the surface of the sun hot. Oh, and pack a water bottle. There are so many places you can fill your water bottle for free. Also, most churches require that you have your shoulders & knees covered so pack accordingly (just bring a light shawl to cover up with). The vatican is so worth the line up to see!!!! I could easily spend an entire day there seeing St Peters & the museum
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janeinbama
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,164
Location: Alabama
Jan 29, 2015 16:24:49 GMT
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Post by janeinbama on Jan 14, 2021 17:17:43 GMT
I went with a group from church back in 2006. I feel like I could have navigated without being on a tour. Being on a tour does have many perks, never lost, not worried about parking, no language issue, can drink at dinner and not worry about how you are getting back to hotel. One week is not long enough with jet lag and travel days. If you fly into Rome, you won't need a car, there are several drivers mentioned in TripAdvisor to arrange transportation through. I would book a couple of professional tours in Rome and any other large cities. Take the train to Florence and if you decide to go to the countryside, rent a car or hire a driver. This is a vacation and you don't need to stress over driving if it really bothers you.
I would go back in a heartbeat. As I tell my family, I always knew I would visit Italy, I just had no idea once would not be enough.
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Belle
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,309
Jun 28, 2014 4:39:12 GMT
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Post by Belle on Jan 14, 2021 17:18:25 GMT
I just wanted to say I am so glad to see a trip planning thread!!! You have gotten some great advice! We love Rick Steves and his books. I would recommend watching his videos on Italy to see what interests you and make a priority list (#1 Colosseum, #2 David etc). Once you have your list, that will help you plan how many days you will need to see everything. RS's books are great because they give sample itineraries for each city, depending on how many days you have. You can watch his videos on PBS, YouTube or check your local library or you can buy them. #1 tip - Buy a money belt for yourself and DH. Every single trip we have taken to Europe, we run into somebody that has had their purse or wallet stollen. Nobody wants to deal with the hassle of that while on vacation in a foreign country. #2 tip - I really believe if you are going all the way to Italy and have never been to Venice, that you should make a point of going to Venice. Even a short 2 night stay is worth it. I also like flying into Venice from the US. Jet lag the first couple of days has us up and early and that is really the perfect time to see Venice as there won't be crowds or heat, if you are there in the summer. A very nice itinerary is to fly into Venice, train to Florence, train to Rome and fly home from Rome. Forgot to add - You don't need to speak Italian. English is spoken in all of the major cities.
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Post by Darcy Collins on Jan 14, 2021 17:41:26 GMT
So if this is your first trip overseas, my biggest advice is to not try and cram too much in. I think often people think they have to see everything and in the end have a hectic trip that isn't really fun. The best part of Italy for us was scenery and food. Sure we went to Rome and spent 3 days seeing the art/museum/churches/archeology stuff and I wouldn't have skipped it entirely - but the highlight for us was absolutely the week in Tuscany where we had a car and wandered around the small villages. It's just gorgeous and the food is incredibly. Florence is easily accessibly from most of Tuscany - we just did a day trip from our farmhouse. We also ended with 3 days in Venice. It was so damn hot, I'll be honest and say it was hard to enjoy. Just be sure to mix in downtime. My favorite day was probably the one we decided to just stay close to the farmhouse and enjoyed a long leisurely lunch down the road and wine on patio and then a late dinner of woodfired pizza. We needed it after the hectic time in Rome and just felt like we could really soak up Italy.
We only do tours for specific cities/areas - so we arranged a tour of the Vatican for example - which allowed us to avoid the line, so was worth every penny! I don't like bus tours of multiple cities as we like to set our own itinerary - really the planning is half the fun for me. We also don't mind driving as it's one of the few areas where we're go with the flow kind of people and don't stress if we make a wrong turn. But really that's an individual comfort level thing.
I think a bit of Italian helps if you're going outside the countryside. I tried to learn some, but found that more often than not I was falling into Spanish instead - it kind of made do. I do recall when we were trying to find a restaurant and asked for some navigating help and my broken Italian/Spanish wasn't working - and then he tried French which we learned my daughter knew much less than we'd hoped- before him trying his third language - English which was of course much better than anything we had going on. I did learn in chatting with the couple that takes care of the farmhouse that English is required in all(most?) schools in Italy so most young people have at least the basics, although their teen daughter wasn't super comfortable speaking at first. I think when she realized how badly we were butchering her language, she realized she couldn't really be embarrassed. They were the nicest people! Went so far as to invite to their garden for some homemade pizza.
We were going to go back in 2020 and combine with Greece, but Covid had other plans. Hopefully soon!
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Post by ktdoesntscrap on Jan 14, 2021 18:53:40 GMT
We were in Rome and Florence just before the lockdown. We had no issues navigating the air ports or trains etc. You do not want to drive in Rome or Florence. But you might if you want to go in the country side. I would look into only renting a car part of the time. Or do a tour of Amalfi or Tuscany.. and do part of it on your own.
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lesmcf
Full Member
Posts: 220
Jul 10, 2014 0:50:47 GMT
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Post by lesmcf on Jan 15, 2021 3:28:52 GMT
I took a solo trip to Italy and loved every minute of it. I stayed in Rome and took day tours from there. I planned the whole trip on American Airlines website. Hotel, tours, transportation, all of it. Lots of planning but so easy on one website. Best part, when I had a problem with the hotel I called AA and they fixed it immediately.
Have fun planning. Don’t over plan. Leave time to just explore the city. I took a cooking class that I loved. Florence and Rome are my favorite places, I’d stick to them. I was able to buy museum tickets in advance also which is a big help. My favorite memory is walking into a restaurant and saying, “Make me something I’ll love.” Best meal ever. Best souvenir to buy, Balsamic Creme. You can use it on anything and it tastes great. Had it on ice cream.
Have fun.
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Post by circusjohnson on Jan 15, 2021 4:37:37 GMT
the trains are a great way to travel around Italy. We spent three weeks and went top to bottom. We only drove in Sicily and it was scary. There is an app for the trains and is awesome. They update the app way better than the signs in the station. Rome is amazing we stayed in Airbnbs the whole time. Our apartment in Rome was about a mile from the train station and we loved it and it had air-conditioning. Lots of places do not have air conditioning so be aware of that. Italy is the best!!!!
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teddyw
Drama Llama
Posts: 6,747
Jun 29, 2014 1:56:04 GMT
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Post by teddyw on Jan 15, 2021 5:04:21 GMT
We went feb 2020. One week was cut short because Covid really kicked in.
We flew into Rome then had a driver take us to Siena. Only because it was an overnight flight and we knew we’d be tired and wouldn’t want to navigate the trains yet. Our driver stopped along the coast and took us to little cafes & towns. He knew a lot of history and was happy to share it. My favorite part was just going around the shops, squares & churches. By shops I mean the groceries, butchers & pharmacies. I like to see how other countries actually live.
We went to Florence but it was exceptionally crowded. We almost felt cheated on our museum tickets because we could not enjoy it.
In Rome we hired our own guide. It was definitely the way to go. We opted to walk most places. Wear comfortable shoes.
Pack layers so you don’t have to over pack.
Next time I’m bringing an extra empty suitcase for boots & shoes. Theirs are such nice quality.
We had to miss the whole southern part of the country. We wanted to see a town- whose name currently escapes me- close to Pompeii that was also ruined by the volcano.
I watched all of Rick Steve’s shows. I’m currently watching another tour person who is female and shows more off the beaten path options. I’m tired and can’t remember her name. I’ll update tomorrow.
We can’t wait to go back.
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Post by beebee on Jan 15, 2021 5:16:36 GMT
Following. Dh has been to Italy numerous times, but I haven't. We are talking about a trip as well when things open up. Thanks for asking!
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iluvpink
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,255
Location: Michigan
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Jul 13, 2014 12:40:31 GMT
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Post by iluvpink on Jan 15, 2021 13:39:07 GMT
Thanks everyone. No, neither of us has been overseas. We've only ever been to Canada and just before quarantine (literally we were there when the U.S. started shutting down in March), Mexico. So this is all very new to us. Heck March was the first time I'd flown since 2006 and it had been longer for dh. We never had money to travel until a little over five years ago and then had only driven. Now we are at the time in our life when we have the money and our dd is grown, so we want to travel. But stupid COVID. Hopefully 2022 will work out. Did most of you stay in rentals or hotels? I despise heat and LOVE air conditioning. So I hope to go in late April/Early May before it gets too hot so the A/C issue isn't such a big deal. Of course I also love ice cold drinks and get really annoyed when drinks don't have lots of ice, but I guess I'll have to suck that up. I don't think we are big tour people, certainly not the whole trip as a tour thing, but maybe a few day tours etc. Hiring a driver at times is a good idea. But we'll probably stick to trains. I guess we (I mean ME) had better learn to pack light!
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Post by ntsf on Jan 15, 2021 17:04:30 GMT
one carry on bag and small backpack. you can do it. no one cares if you wear something over and over.
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Post by betsyg on Jan 15, 2021 21:20:59 GMT
We rescheduled our trip to the Amalfi Coast with GoAhead Tours (goaheadtours.com) from last May to this May (and may reschedule again). This is a very reputable tour company and they offer tours all over Italy (all over the world really). It may give you peace of mind to work with a travel company. Their parent company is EF Tours. We're adding 5 days in Rome as well on our own, but I have been there and feel confident that we can navigate that part of the trip on our own.
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teddyw
Drama Llama
Posts: 6,747
Jun 29, 2014 1:56:04 GMT
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Post by teddyw on Jan 15, 2021 22:58:18 GMT
Dream of Italy is the show I mentioned other than Rick Steves. It’s on Amazon Prime. I bet it’s on YouTube also. She has less popular places to see. Our tours were day tours only. Just us and our guide. If we wanted to leave early we could. We stayed here in Siena. www.starhotelscollezione.com/en/our-hotels/grand-hotel-continental-siena/We had an apartment in Rome through Airbnb but because of Covid they consolidated everyone into their hotel at the Campi Fiori plaza. Good location. Small rooms.
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Post by imkat on Jan 15, 2021 23:36:49 GMT
Definitely recommend Venice too. Unlike anyplace else I’ve been with the canals. The trains are great. I would not want to drive.
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Post by smasonnc on Jan 16, 2021 2:23:36 GMT
#1 tip - Buy a money belt for yourself and DH. Every single trip we have taken to Europe, we run into somebody that has had their purse or wallet stollen. Nobody wants to deal with the hassle of that while on vacation in a foreign country. #2 tip - I really believe if you are going all the way to Italy and have never been to Venice, that you should make a point of going to Venice. Even a short 2 night stay is worth it. I also like flying into Venice from the US. Jet lag the first couple of days has us up and early and that is really the perfect time to see Venice as there won't be crowds or heat, if you are there in the summer. A very nice itinerary is to fly into Venice, train to Florence, train to Rome and fly home from Rome. Forgot to add - You don't need to speak Italian. English is spoken in all of the major cities. This is great advice. The trains are awesome. We've never driven when we went there. You definitely need more than a week. You'll take a couple of days just to get over the jet lag. Make sure to pack light. Rick Steves has great packing advice. We each only take a carry-on and it's so much easier getting on and off public transportation. You can do it. You'll never see the people again so you don't need 20 outfits for 14 days. The best advice we got was to stay in Santa Margherita. The town is just down the hill from the train station. It's a 15 minute bus ride to Portofino but Santa Margherita is more charming and lots less expensive. From there, you can take the train to Cinque Terre as a day trip. Buy a ticket for the train that goes among the 5 lands and you can hop on and off all day. We like the last two, Manarola and Riomaggiore best. Venice is a must do. Skip the Guggenheim. Don't eat and drink in St. Mark's Square. Around the corner are charming restaurants that are a fraction of the price. The same goes for Rome. The major squares and piazzas are tourist traps. While I was jet lagged, I got up early and took photos before the crowds got there. It was just me and the Instagrammers. And their boyfriends taking their pictures.
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Post by koontz on Jan 17, 2021 17:46:42 GMT
You will have the best time. i went once and cant stop. I wont go back without staying here, we finished our trip with them but i would move in if they let me. their tours are phenomenal. www.casalespietro.com/Oh this looks amazing! Thank you so much, this would be perfect for DH and me in the fall....or spring 2022. Love that they offer cooking masterclasses too.
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Post by koontz on Jan 17, 2021 17:53:15 GMT
I think you’ve received some great advice. I would prefer not to drive in Rome either, but it would be nice to have a car for Tuscany.
There are some very nice natural thermal spas, such as Sartunia, that are amazing. If you like opera, please also look at the Arena in Verona. Amazing! Two weeks would be great and definitely get tickets (I.e. to the Colosseum) beforehand. It is quite easy online. Have fun planning!
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Post by SockMonkey on Jan 17, 2021 18:03:42 GMT
We did Rome and Florence, and aside from Mexico it was our first trip out of the countyr/overseas. While this was many years ago now, over a decade, a lot of the advice you've gotten holds true. We used the high speed Eurostar train to get from Rome to Florence, and literally walked from the train station in Florence to our hotel. We stayed at a small place right near the Duomo, on recommendation of a friend. This is where we stayed: www.hotelcentralefirenze.it/en/. We used Context tours in both Rome and Florence, great especially for the Vatican, which was super helpful because you skip the line and you learn a lot! www.contexttravel.com/cities/rome/tours/arte-vaticana-vatican-museums-tour-with-skip-the-line-ticketsMy best advice to you is to bring the most comfortable walking shoes you can; you're going to do TONS of it!
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