Italian Vacation

Its not hard to find someone who speaks a little English. You should study the 100 most popular Italian words and you'll be fine

 

Imola was awesome! Great little town with a big beautiful race track. Flew in to Bologna and rented an RV. Stayed in the paddock while the boy raced and then went to Florence. Hit a lot of little towns in between and tried to stay out of the cities when possible. Went to Rome for a day and will never go back...

 

Please explain. I have 2-1/2 days planned in Rome, but might reschedule one of those, somewhere else..

 

Tavullia

 

i spent a week in Rome in 2000 ... it was nice and all, but no reason to return.

rather spend a day in bologna, one in Siena and 2x 1/2 in San Gimignano, Radda, Lucca ...

we will take friends there in May, they have never been outside the US.
found a B&B , right between Firenze and Siena, near Greve... Wine and food galore...

 

Interesting that many suggestions are for the Florence, Siena area. I would have thought the coast line would have been a more desirable location.

My GF and I will be in Italy in mid-August for maybe 4-5 days. Based on the recommendations, we may skip Rome and south all together. Just hit up Florence, Siena area and then spend time at Cinque Terre.

Paris 2 days, Barcelona 2 days, Italy 4-5 days, Rheinland-Pfalz 2-3 days (family)

 

we will stay here: http://www.lecetinelle.it
reasonable cost and seems centrally located....

 

We always felt like the hunted.... You had to be very careful in Rome as the crime rate is out of this world when it comes to tourist becoming the victims of theft and assault. It was a real distraction when you are trying to enjoy yourself and see the sights. You could watch the pickpockets eye up potential targets and start following them.... Rome has a ton of history and things to see but for me it became a hassle to enjoy.

 

If you plan on being there in mid August, anywhere on the coast is going to be jammed with people on holiday...
Remember, All of Italy is on holiday for the month of August. The beach areas along the coast are jammed with tourists and Italians on holiday...

I actually enjoyed hanging in Milano in August when I lived there...

The Piedmonte region near Milano is also nice...good food, great wine...

I can almost guarantee you the Cinque Terra area will be jammed during August...

If the beach is your thing...go to Sardinia!!!

 

You guys are friggin crazy. Rome is one of the great cities of the world, if not the greatest. Just being able to walk into the Pantheon and stare in wonder is something everyone should have on their bucket list. Rome is the super in superlative. It shouldn't be missed. That being said, no way would I go there in June, July or August. Rome is best in Mar/Apr and Oct/Nov.

 

I felt plenty safe, but then again I work in North Long Beach, a couple miles from Compton.

Two summers ago we went to Rome and visited St. Peters Basilica, (my favorite thing in Rome), the coliseum, and other sites throughout the city, also went to Greece and Santorini, which was awesome. Airfare is very cheap if you want to hop over to another area in Europe, I think it was 39 one way?

Then we did a Mediterranean cruise, that went to Naples, Valencia, Barcelona, Pisa, an island in the middle and somewhere in France. Of all those stops my wife loved Barcelona the most, I loved it all and would go back again. Want to see northern Italy next time too.

 

Despite the earthquake, we're going.

We weren't really planning to spend most of our time on beaches, especially not if they are crowded with fat, hairy dudes with gold chains in speedos.
When I said coast I was looking more for that cafe on the cliff overlooking the Mediterranean feel. Less people is better, but not at the expense of great foods and locations.

 

oh and btw, forget the ducati museum as well in august.

closed all month long. learned the hard way.

 

We did 14 days from Rome to cinque terra to Venice back to Rome in June of 2014. We don't get to use trains at all at home, so we just used that and buses and taxis the whole trip. On the train ride from Rome to levanto (one town outside of cinque terra) we stopped in Pisa for lunch and a walk to view the tower. We didn't go up as it didn't really interest us. Overall tho, it still has an old world feel so it was very enjoyable. The train ride that day was incredible, following the coast for the majority.

Levanto was much more relaxed that the other five towns. I really enjoyed the relative quiet in the morning and at night, with a simple quick train ride into monterroso as we felt like it.

On he way to Venice we stopped at Parma, the home of the prosciutto di parma, and had what was ironically some of the worst ham we had all trip. We only stayed for lunch there too but didn't really enjoy it. It seems more modern and artsy, which didn't speak to us.

Venice was the same. We had a shitty airbnb and drizzly weather all three days. It was cool to see, but I don't plan to go back.

We fell in love with Rome. I could live there tomorrow if I had the money. We actually talked about it for a while but the idea of leaving family for such a long time was too great.

We took a day trip from Rome to Pompeii through Naples. Pompeii was with seeing, but the Naples area is nasty and full of the ancestors of the jersey shore.

We like to travel on a whim so we didn't buy a train pass. It was super easy to figure out schedules and I think much cheaper. The high speed train from Venice to Rome was pretty plush too.

I don't really have regrets, but I won't go back to Italy without spending a lot of time in Tuscany. My parents spoke very highly of sienna as well.

Good luck.

 

Good perspective - Thanks Man! We don't get to ride trains here either, so we're doing all our travel by train.

 

Yeah Naples seems to be the suck with the exception of Pompeii.

Across the water in Sorrento is another story as is the Almalfi coast area.

We stayed in Riomaggiore in the Cinque Terra and took the ferry from town to town. The views from the sea were anazing.

 

The trains are the best part of travel around Europe. Last time I was there I took a train from Germany to Rome, with stops in Zurich, Milan, and Bologna. (Yes, the factory tour is well worth the stop)

I had no issues with crime in Rome, and I walked around like a dumb American tourist for a few days. It's an amazing city, and I'll be back at some point.

 

Our trip was over 10 years ago now, but we did Rome for a bit, then up to Florence and then back to Rome. The train was definitely the way to go.

As to the pick pocket stuff, just don't be stupid about where you keep your wallet. Get a travel wallet to carry under your clothes or a money belt, or a Pacsafe to carry your money and passport in. In case you are not familiar with them Pacsafe bags have metal cords in the shoulder straps and metal mesh in the bag to prevent slash and grab, hidden and/or clipped zippers and most also have RFID protection as well. Could a really determined pickpocket get into a Pacsafe? Probably, but why bother when some other tourists is walking around with an open top purse, wallet in the back pocket, or big ass zipper pull on the top of their purse? I am sure there are other brands as well, but our Pacsafe's have been great and have held up really well over time.

 

In Paris we were stopped by some lady on our way to the Louvre. She was asking us to sign a petition. Then a French lady walked by and sternly told us to walk away. Then she explained that it's a diversion and so someone else would come by and try to steal our stuff. Sure enough a guy appeared around this same time that was with the petition girl. I guess they can cut the purse strap or the bottom of your purse or whatever.

 

I didn't start this thread, but thanks for the info. A few more questions.
I know the trains are very good, but they don't go everywhere. What is the best way to get to off the track areas or even to hotels/B&B's? Did you just confine your stays to places close to stops or taxi/bus to the final location?

Also, how does the transportation system purchasing work. I see I can get a EUrail pass to make trains easier, but are buses included, should I have cash or exact change. I know this is way ahead but I just don't want to be that tourist causing delays taking a bus/taxi/train. Any info ahead will help and may change our route selection.

Lastly, I saw a couple hotel/B&B's recommendations posted. If anyone else can vouch for the place they stayed at, please post it up. Planning is in full effect here.

Oh and we may push the visit to September. Appears the weather is still good and it's not the height of vacation season over there.