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REALITY CHECK
FOR PLANNING YOUR ITALY TRIP
- TRAVEL DATES ~ Are you sure about about the date when you arrive in Italy, and your first night in hotel in Italy? For most residents of the USA, Canada and Mexico, you will fly from home on one day, and arrive in Italy on the next calendar day. That's because you are likely to spend your the first night of your trip on the airplane.
- ITINERARY PACE ~ Everyone wants a relaxing trip...where they also get to see everything! It does not happen. You must make tough choices. When traveling companions do not work this out in advance, it causes a lot of tension during the trip. Talk it over before you finalize the itinerary and agree where you will slow down and relax, versus where you're willing to hustle to see a lot. Either way, try to avoid one-night stays anywhere. Having at least two nights for each location is much better. And if it's an important destination, make it three nights.
- AIRPORTS ~ Which airport cities in Italy are best for your itinerary? Italy travel usually works best when you fly into one airport and out of another.
- AIRPORTS/ITINERARY ~ If you bought a round trip ticket through Rome, or Milan, remember that you need to return there and spend your final night in Italy at that city. We DO NOT recommend staying in another city, and planning to travel to your airport city on the day of your departure from Italy -- unless you are prepared for the consequences of missing your flight back home.
- FLIGHTS ~ If you haven't bought your flights yet, be careful to see that you get sufficient connection time. Avoid the connections in foreign cities of an hour, especially the notorious short connections Paris CDG airport. Remember that you will need time for passport checks and security checks that you don't need to worry about when connecting in airports back home.
- FLIGHTS ~ Have you checked to see if hotels are available, at acceptable prices, at each destination before booking flights? Be especially careful about hotel availability if making last-minute travel plans.
- HOTELS ~ Have you checked for availability and cost of flights before committing to hotel reservations that are non-refundable? There are more and more hotel deals offered that cannot be cancelled without losing money?
- HOTELS ~ What are the cancellation policies on each of your hotels? They may all be different. Don't book a hotel without knowing how much in advance your reservation can be cancelled to avoid losing money.
- RENTAL CAR ~ Did you make the reservations based on picking up and dropping your car in the middle of a big city? Or are you sure you want to drive in Rome or Florence, or (please, no!) Naples? If not, look at using smaller towns or airports for picking up or dropping cars. In the case of a car in Tuscany, consider picking it up at the town of Chiusi and dropping it at the Florence airport, instead of picking it up in the middle of Rome and dropping it in the middle of Florence (no way I'd want to spend my vacation).
- TRAINS ~ Planning to get on the trains with each of you dragging a big suitcase? Or worse, a big bag and a couple of smaller ones? Train travel is not very forgiving about big pieces of luggage. If you must take a lot of luggage, do you really want to use the trains? We don't think luggage room is a good tradeoff for the hassle of driving, but sometimes the trunk of a car is the only answer when you must take a lot of luggage.
- HOTELS ~ What matters most -- location, price, size of rooms, views? You might not be able to get them all lined up in one hotel. Where are you willing to give? Our advice to most people...forget about paying for views, and accept that the room will be small, but do try to get a location that's close to the historical center of each city. And don't so spend so much energy trying to pick perfect hotels, or you might miss out on the fun of traveling.
- ITINERARY ~ Tuscany ~ Planning to get your Tuscany fix in one day by renting a car in Florence. That could work, but it's a tough way to do it, due to the hassle of navigating out of the city and back, and the likely disappointment that you won't to see as much as you expected in the time that's left. If a Tuscany drive is important, find room in your itinerary for at least a night or two in a small town location. Radda, south of Florence in the Chianti countryside, is a good choice for that.
- RED FLAG ACTIVITIES ~ If you're expecting to engage in the following activities, do your homework, because we've seen a lot of disappointment trying to work these into an itinerary in Italy -- bicycling, golf, beaches, opera. Those can all be enjoyed in Italy, but not likely to be available both where you want them and in the timeframe you will have available. You need to build your itinerary around these activities to make them work well.
- TRANSFERS ~ We think the single most important transfer for most travelers to Italy is the arrival transfer in Venice. If you are going to Venice for the first time, note that finding your hotel and getting to it with your luggage, can be a BIG pain. A private transfer is costly, but usually worth it, when arriving in Venice, whether by air, train, or cruise ship..
- ITINERARY ~ Planning on one day for visiting Sorrento or the Amalfi Coast from Rome? Lots That's tough timing. Even two days and nights are short for that area, but acceptable. We highly recommend 3 nights for staying at Sorrento or the Amalfi Coast.
- DRIVING ~ Lots of people think it will be a good idea to rent a car for a day, while staying in Florence, to drive into the Tuscany countryside. We don't think so, because when you factor in the hassle of driving in and out of Florence, getting used to driving in Italy, finding parking in the towns, and navigational issues, there is not enough time left to appreciate your day in Tuscany. Better to stay in Tuscany for at least one night, preferably two or three. We suggest the town of Radda, south of Florence. Or, from Florence take a day tour by bus, to the Chianti countryside and a winery, or to the combination of Siena and San Gimignano.
- DRIVING ~ Planning to base yourself in one location, in Tuscany, and make daytrips by car to Rome and Venice? You can do that, but we can't imagine doing it, because so much of your days and your energy will be spent driving, and finding your way, and getting a parking place, that it's not a very efficient, or enjoyable, way to visit those cities.
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