Ok, we were thinking Spain, but now thinking Italy?! Any recs?
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Rome. Venice. Florence. But above all, CINQUE TERRE. I had a ball in Sacile, but only because I had friends living there.
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Rome is my favorite so far, but I haven't been to Florence or Venice yet.
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We did the three main cities, but ended our trip in Sorrento and took a day trip to Capri. It was nice to end the trip on a relaxing note.
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What @meganmp: said!!! I spent 2.5 weeks in Italy and it wasnt enough!
Unfortunately, CT had some devastating floods 2 or 3 years ago (think Katrina style for them) and wiped out a few of the towns. Last I heard they are rebuilding but keep that in mind when you are researching accommodations and things.
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Cinque Terre!!!!
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I really loved Rome, thought Florence was meh and the same for Venice though the concept of the city is cool! I would have loved to go to the Amalfi coast! If you go, please share pictures!
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I've only been to Rome & Venice. I would definitely go back to both. If I could only do one I think I'd pick Rome b/c of the history factor. I'm a nerd!
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@tequiero21: you HAVE to go to Florence and Cinque Terre!
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I spent a summer in Siena a few years ago. It's lovely.
What is it that you're looking to do? (museums, beaches, art, food?)
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@sunny: really? I was there in 2010 and just read some recent blog posts and no mention of rebuilding? Looks the same to me.
God, I want to go back so badly!
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Rome is awesome for the astounding amount of history. I lived there for a semester and am happy to give you specific recs if you want them -- there is an overwhelming number of things to see. Florence perhaps if you're an art lover, but I personally think it's skippable. I loved Venice because it has an aura unlike any other BUT I went before it was overcrowded (early April). Verona and Bologna are cool mid-size cities. If you want to visit a beautiful Tuscan hill town, Siena is a neat stop. I haven't been, but I hear most people are underwhelmed by Milan. Oh, and don't go to Naples
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Are you going with kids?
I was meh on Florence, it was nice to see but I would have rather spent more time elsewhere, especially with LO in tow. LO loved biking around Lucca, which is a small town in Tuscany, and I wish I would have gotten to Cinque Terre.
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@regberadaisy: It happened in 2011. It looks like much of the towns has been rebuilt and things are back to normal for the most part.
http://www.ricksteves.com/news/cinque-terre/cinque-terre-disaster.htm
You can see the extent of the devastation to Vernazza on this photo that is high up on the trail.
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Def. anything on the Amalfi Coast! Sorrento, Positano, Amalfi, etc. My parents lived in Naples for 2 years and I got to see a lot of it. Feel free to skip Naples actually. Although I think you have to get to Capri from there. Capri is worth going to if you're going to see the Blue Grotto, it's pretty amazing!
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@tequiero21: YES! Definitely choose Italy over Spain! What time of year are you going, I'd recommend different places depending on the season, but in general you can't go wrong with; Venice, Naples (for Capri, Sorrento & the Amalfi coast), Florence (& Pisa as it's so close) and maybe one of the northern Lakes. I wasn't that impressed with Rome. We backpacked Italy for 3wks recently and have been there several times on shorter trips. Let me know if you want any more tips!
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I also went to Venice in early April a few years ago and loved it. Florence is for art lovers, decided to skip Rome.
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We went to Florence but actually stayed in a small city outside called Sienna. It was so much less touristy and more "real italian". We did a day trip into Florence. I would highly recommend that.
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@tequiero21: PS - Why not spain?
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@Maysprout: sans kids! Woo!
@T.H.O.U.: I'd rAther go to Spain, but hubby would rather go to Italy. I've always wanted to go to Italy too, so I'm good either way.
@illumina: ummm, we are thinking THREE weeks!?!!? Crazy, eh? Was last minute.....any tips greatly appreciated!
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@tequiero21: my family lives in Trento, so even thought I've never been to Italy (
) my cousins would say northern Italy and the Alps!My husband spent ten days in Milan last summer and had nothing but good things to say. I was jealous!
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@Mrs. Jump Rope: I hope he picked u up a bag, at the very least! Lol
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@tequiero21: um, no. He brought me back pasta and coffee.
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@sunny: wow - that's so crazy.
@tequiero21: @TheSwissWifeStyle: I read that the Italian Riviera is the "budget" version of the Amalfi coast! hehe
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Love Italy! Rome, Venice, Pisa (we actually spent a day/night there & really enjoyed it)'and definitely Capri! We spent several days in Capri & it was amazing. I would imagine the time of year you go makes a difference as well...we went in April & the weather was nice & very little crowds.
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If you can get there, I highly HIGHLY recommend going to Capri. It's off the coast of Naples and DH and I had our honeymoon there and like @LMOG47: says, it is AMAZING. Each day was gorgeous, there are so many beautiful cultural spots to visit, delicious food and the people that live there are so nice. DH and I loved it so much that one of our goals in life is to retire there someday. It's the most beautiful place in the world to me!
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I just went to Italy last month!!! The highlight of my trip was sorrento and the almalfi coast. I seriously loved sorrento!!!! We also saw Capri (which is beautiful!!! and my DH's favorite part of the trip), Rome, Florence (with a side trip to Pisa and Lucca) and Venice. On past trips I have also been to Cinque Terre. I think that if you have never been, you have to see Venice. There is no where else like it in the world.
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@greenebee: *sigh* Your talking about Capri makes me desperately want to go back! It was sooo beautiful & relaxing. You're right about the great people & amazing food.
I would recommend not eating at the main tourist shopping area in Capri, we had awful experiences eating there but had amazing food off the beaten path elsewhere. If I remember correctly, Anacapri had some great places. Just be ready for a heck of a lot of stair climbing. -
A friend had the most wonderful three-city Italian vacation: Venice, Florence and Rome.
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I lived in Italy for a while and went back for 6 month to study there, sooo I'd say:
-Rome (history, museums, vatican, food, fashion, and like 100.000 things that impress)
- Florence (history, museums, markets, tuscany flair)
- Pisa (only if you want to see the tower...)
- Siena (where I went to study.... food, not as expensive as the rest, romantic, history...)
- Lucca (romantic, rather small, towers with trees on top...)
- Perugia (chocolate)
- Venice (just unique, but it looks like there're only tourists in the city over summer, you can get an one day boat pass and go out to the islands, thats really nice)
- cinque terre (so beautiful)
- amalfi coast/capri (to relax)
- Apulia or Calabria (if you want to go south, great food, lots of history and beautiful landscape (different from the north))
- Milan (if you want to spend a lot of money, but there's a lot of the things I want to spend money on.... (I mean: they have amazing fashion, but it is terribly expensive....) I once ate the best pizza there, and they have great sweets and little cakes, but you have to get them as take away or they triple the price....)They used to have bus and/or train passes for a week or more with which you could travel the whole country on a budget.... don't know if they still have them....
sorry this was long
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Venice was amazing!
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I'm going to go against the grain and say Sicily. It's beautiful. A friend and I traveled there on spring break 10 years ago and I lived there for a brief time when I was a kid. The food was delicious (North African influences and some of the most amazing pastries I've ever had), travel was easy, and prices were reasonable. There were amazing Greek ruins at Agrigento and some more in Catania and Taormina. The countryside is just gorgeous and there are beaches, too!
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Visit Capri island!! It was my favourite place when I went to Italy.
Rome is a must go.
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@lil owl: wow, i haven't heard of anyone else studying in siena except the people in my program! i was there for a semester as well! i LOVE siena!
i also recommend florence, venice and rome are kinda must dos, but traveling through tuscany and staying at a house there would be my ideal! capri is pretty amazing, milan you can skip.
you could easily spend 3 weeks in venice, florence/siena/tuscany and rome. easily!
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@birdofafeather: I would love to visit Tuscany.
I totally think Florence can be a day trip.
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@greenebee: I've always wanted to go to Capri from when I first learned about it in geography in eighth grade. Thanks for triggering my memory!
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@LMOG47: YES! Anacapri is where we stayed and the food was fantastic! (DH and I would make noises as we ate because it was so good).
@808love: Glad to bring it back into focus! You should definitely go if you get the chance!
DH and I are just pining to go back!
@tequiero21: Feel free to let me know if you want any recs on where to go/where to eat/where to stay if you end up going to Capri!
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we loved rome! we also really liked Pompeii/mt Vesuvius
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@tequiero21: Ahh so soon then! The Italians will probably be on their holidays by then, as per the rest of Europe, so it'll be pretty busy. It's still a great time to go, we've been in July twice and finding accommodation etc. wasn't a problem even last minute.
I guess one of the main things to consider with where to go is how are you planning to get around? The Italian's are crazy drivers and a lot of the roads pretty narrow, especially around the coast, so I would recommend getting the train. It's relatively cheap and easy and will take you into the centre of most cities.
If you want a couple of destinations, I'd recommend the Amalfi coast and either Rome or Pisa/Florence. Venice is a bit further away on the other side of the country and requires a bit more travel. Also, I have only been to Venice in the Autumn... I've known a few people go in the hot summer months and haven't liked it because of the rubbish/sewage smell etc. and generally how crowded it is.
As others have said, the Amalfi coast would be my top pick. It's absolutely stunning. From Naples, it's very easy to take a boat or the train to Sorrento, which we have always used as a base when visiting the area. From there you can make day trips by boat, train or bus to Amalfi town itself, Positano, Capri island, Mount Vesuvius and the ruins of Pompeii and Herculaneum. (I'm going to PM you a link to my photos from my last trip there so you can get an idea of what these places look like).
From Naples it's not far on the train to Rome, or further up to Pisa. If you want to visit Florence, I'd recommend staying in Pisa as it's less crowded and probably cheaper. It's about 30mins on the train from Pisa to Florence so you can make a day trip. Also nearby towns of Siena and Lucca are worth a visit.
I personally would skip Rome if you had little time. I just didn't find it particularly interesting... apart from the Colosseum and the old ruins of the city.
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@lil owl: recommend any restaurants in Venice, Florence or Rome?
@illumina: we are going to Rome, but I'm afraid it will be like Athens. I was totally unimpressed w Athens.
) my cousins would say northern Italy and the Alps!
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