okay, i want to go to spain, hubby wants to go to italy.
where would you go? i feel like i'd like spanish food better. is spain known for their food? i feel like both have good history and culture and sites to see. we need to decide asap!
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I am Italian, so I feel bad admitting this, but I love Barcelona. The lifestyle just feels like vacation to me!
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We had some great meals in Spain, but overall I was underwhelmed. It was a whole lot of meat and potatoes. But, it was cheap! For lunch you usually have the option of tapas or Menu del Dia (3 course meal with wine). We usually chose the Menu, because we didn't want to sit at the smoky bar for Tapas.
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I T A L Y !!! So many more places in Italy I want to visit and I want to go back to Cinque Terre!
ETA: I have been to Barcelona, Spain and Bari, Rome, Cinque Terre and Florence, Italy. I still vote Italy!
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I have been to Spain. I would rather go to Italy for a new experience. Italy also has more must-see culturally significant cities and sites.
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I voted for Spain because I have never been there and we have a good friend who is Spanish...but I'm not sure what I'd choose of I hadn't been either place! I wasn't super impressed by most of the food in Italy, but I was a poor student at the time so maybe we weren't choosing the right places. The wine, though, oh the wine!!! If you go to Italy, what cities are you thinking of?
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Um, both? LOL I can't decide, sorry I'm no help!
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I've been to both and would go back to either, but if I had to choose just one, I'd go back to Italy. The food, the wine, the history... To me there is nothing quite like standing in the Colosseum or the Roman Forum and really understanding HOW YOUNG our country truly is.
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@littlebug: mmmm the wine. I couldn't believe that the table wine at any random restaurant really was that good!
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I have visited both countries, would definitely choose Italy. Rome is next on our list of places to go. Mmmmm gelato!
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@PurplePeony: I was thinking maybe Florence and Rome, since we only have a week....or Rome and Capri?
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I lived in Spain for 6 weeks, so I would choose Italy!
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@tequiero21: what time of year are you going?
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ITALY! Do florence, rome, and maybe cinque terre.
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What do you like to do?
Do you want beach, mountains, adventure activity, cities, art?
I'm not sure which I'd choose but if you have a list of things you want to do it might help narrow it down. -
@regberadaisy: What killed me was that it was less expensive to drink wine than to drink water! Drinking wine was smart for my backpacker's budget!
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@jhd: I still have dreams about the gelato I ate in Rome! And the pistachio ice cream. Ughhh....my tummy is growling.
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Do you speak either language? what type of vacation are you looking for? active? relaxing? cultural?
Personally I'm not a huge fan of many Spanish cities. Didn't love Barcelona, Madrid, Valencia. I do like the coast. Costa Brava, Costa Del Sol, etc.
I love italy though!
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hmm.... it depends on what time you are going? I am guessing I would prefer Italy if I were going in the middle of summer (Spain can get very hot and humid), but Barcelona is beautiful if you go in the fall.
My preference would have been Barcelona if I have to choose between Italy or spain.
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I think Spain is great. I love the food there. I actually didn't enjoy Italian food much. Just too much pizza and pasta for my liking. A good spanish Mediterranean paella is something you will never taste anywhere else.
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If you do choose Spain, I hear fabulous things about Barcelona.
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I guess I'm in the minority - wasn't a fan of Barcelona, it was overly touristy. The beach itself was nice enough, but there were lots of touts trying to sell massages etc.
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I voted Spain over Italy. There are many sites to see in both countries, maybe a few more iconic ones in Italy but to be honest, I just didn't love italy when I went. In general, I found the people in Italy to be very unfriendly while the people in Spain were for the most part very nice and welcoming. The food in Spain was amazing! They're both beautiful countries, can't go wrong with either!
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the food in spain was very underwhelming for me. i bet the food in italy is much better!
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@regberadaisy: 3 weeks! So summertime!
@Maysprout: we love the beach, sightseeing, art is ok but don't NEED it. Definitely love to eat good food!
@wheres_c: speak tiny amounts of Spanish. Love to do activities. In Greece and Aruba, we had a blast doing atv, Tom carring, etc.
I've heard very mixed feelings about Spanish food, which disappoints me. I'd love me some sangria! But at this time, I think I'm leaning towards Rome and either Capri or Florence. Will definitely visit Spain in my lifetime tho!
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@littlebug i know! i had the most amazing kiwi gelato. seriously one of the best things i ever ate in my life!
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If you've never been to either, I vote Italy. Try to get out of Rome if you can. Rome is great, but nothing compares to the Tuscan countryside! I also love Sorrento and Capri. You can take the high-speed train to Florence to see The David statue and museums, and to Naples for the day to go to the Uffizi gallery (where Venus on the Half Shell is displayed).
Not sure if anyone has already said this, but the food in Italy is very different from American-Italian (like Olive Garden). It's not all heavy sauces and tons of melty cheese over everything like here. Lots of fresh seafood, lots of ligher pastas, meats, etc. - just very little "cheese on everything". I can't imagine anyone being disappointed with the food in Italy, but it is different than our version of Italian.
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@tequiero21: what season? if it's during summer, i would go to spain because there is NO AC in italy - not even in cafes!! there is in spain though.
i am partial to spain because i studied abroad there, but i also looove italy so much. it's hard to decide and you really can't go wrong with either!
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Italy! I loved Cinque Terre and Florence!
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spain has great food (paella, yum!) but you just can't beat the history and romanticism of ITALY. i've been to several cities in italy and it never gets old. and the italian food in italy cannot be beat!!
ETA my favourites are rome of course, and the amalfi coast / naples / sorrento. florence is also beautiful and more serene.
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Italy. Spain has been hit HARD by the recession the past few years, so im not sure nows the time to go.
Plus... Why would pass up Italy? Lol
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We had an amazing time in Italy and I can't wait to go back someday! I haven't been to Spain so I can't compare.
Btw the Uffizi gallery is in Florence.
For 1 week I would fly into Rome and split your time between Rome and Florence. Although I could totally spend a whole week in Rome... I think it's one of my favorite cities.
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We went to both on our honeymoon - while Italy has cool places, I felt the people were very rude there, and I got a whole vibe of "dirty" while I was there.
Spain was gorgeous - we went to Barcelona, and had so much to do! Plus, the public transit in Spain is much easier and faster than in Italy. And even though it was touristy, that meant there were lots of things to do! lol
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@sunny: recommend any restaurants? @AmandaB8: @zippylef: @SupernovaJ: going to Florence, Venice n Rome.
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@tequiero21: We enjoyed these ones... these were the ones that appeared on our credit card statements. I don't recall the names of the ones where we paid cash unfortunately!
In general, avoid the cute restaurants that have patios in the piazzas. We ate at one in Florence and it was the WORST meal of the entire trip. The pasta was basically bad reheated cafeteria food. In Venice, our B&B host told us to avoid the restaurants along the grand canal since they were overpriced and the food wasn't good.
One thing to note -- if you are buying art as a souvenir, I think Florence is the best place for buying original art. Many artists paint watercolor right in front of you. In Venice, the artists sell oil canvasses, but I suspect they are actually painted in China by students and then passed off as original work by scammers.
I really regret not buying a small piece of art in Florence!
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I've been to both, but have traveled more extensively in Italy. I would go back to Italy before Spain, but either way they are both pretty fabulous.
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@sunny: wow, thx for the great tips! I will definitely be picking up a watercolor! We picked up one from Greece and I love it!
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@locavore_mama: u changed your name! We stopped by cinque terre for a day trip and it was so beautiful. We are thinking of going back sometime in the future, although almafi coast may be next on my list!
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@sunny: thx to u we picked up 3 paintings in Florence! Lol. The ones in Rome are obviously painted in china... Soooo beautiful for really cheap.
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@tequiero21: ahhhhhhhh. It's so beautiful. We want to go back for a week. We're hoping 5 year anniversary and take the LOs.
Share pictures!
I really regret not buying a small piece of art in Florence!
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42 comments