Italy

Jan, To begin with, is this your first trip to Europe? If so I'd highly recommend pre-reading the Guidebook Europe Through The Back Door before you get too far in your planning. Is there a particular reason you want to start in Rome and work north? The culture in Italy tends to become a bit more "intense" from north-to-south (which gets more "intense" further south than Rome). For suggestions on accommodations, sightseeing, transportation, etc., the best source of information is the Italy 2011 Guidebook (available now and currently "on sale"). Investing $20 in the book will save you a LOT of money (especially as you're "budget minded people"). Web addresses are provided for most of the Hotels, so you can contact them directly for reservations. I'd recommend packing the book along, as I've found it a valuable source of reference during trips. If you stay with the original plan, the trip from Rome to the Cinque Terre is very easy! There's a direct train from Roma Termini to La Spezia (southern gateway to the C.T.) with travel time about 3H:45M. The trip to Lago di Como is also easy, but you'll have to go through Milano Centrale (very chaotic, but a necessary "means to an end"). I assume you'll be staying in Varenna, which is a favourite with most here? The trip from Milano Centrale to Varenna is 1H:03M. It's a great "home base" for exploring that area, including the famous resort of Bellagio. continued......

Part 2.... Unless you have a special reason for visiting Milan, you might consider other "more scenic" locations in that area (Stresa, Verona, etc.). Milan is good for a day or two (especially if you want to see The Last Supper). Last time I visited the Duomo, photos were expressly prohibited inside (although lots of people were ignoring the restriction), but there are good opportunities for architecture shots on the roof. I'm also a Photographer, so a few thoughts on that. The only place on your list that covers "landscape shots" is the C.T. The others provide good opportunities for "city shots". For better landscape opportunities, you might consider travel to the Cinque Terre via Tuscany (I attended a Landscape Workshop there in May, and visited some fantastic locations). You could (for example) head north to Orvieto (Umbria) for a day or two and then to Siena or other locations in Tuscany (there are lots of possibilities - Pienza, Montepulciano, Cortona or perhaps Florence). Of course, you may not have time for a "detour" on the way to the C.T. so that will be one consideration. It would be a good idea to pack along one Tripod with a quick-release between for both of you if possible (good for night shots). Be sure to check the Chargers for your Cameras, to ensure these are designed for operation on 230VAC electrical systems. Good luck with your planning!

Dear Jan, You are destined for vague answers. Please try to do a little research and come back for more specifics. For starters: How long is your trip? What does : budget minded" mean to you?
Train or rental car? You will get quality answers here!

Ken
thanks so much your info. Here's a little more info from me. This will be my second trip to Italy. First trip was around the French/Italian Riviera, Florence, Siena, and the Tuscan area. This time around I want to visit Rome and then go north to the other areas mentioned. Land or city scape is fine. I will be buying italy 2011 and will check out your other suggestion. Last time i was toured up and this time we are planning it all so we are on our time schedule. From Rome we will be staying in Lucca and working our way farther north and not going directly from Rome to CT. Also, we will be flying back out from Milan. We are in the beginning planning stages. Thanks again for your input.

Venice is not to be missed. If you are planning to stay three nights in one area, you might want to consider renting an apartment. We've successfully rented through vrbo.com. In Rome, there is a lovely b&b called At Your Place located not far from the Vatican. Very convenient and close to public transportation. Reasonably priced, great breakfasts and wonderful host. You can check it out on Trip Advisor

Of course all of Italy is a photographers paradise. Being a photographer myself I would say the place I found to be the least interesting for photos was Milan, although I had a great time there and loved it. Lake Como and CT, beautiful. Are you considering Venice since you will be north? Both Lake Como and CT may be a bit chilly and I don't know about the flowers being in bloom at the Lake in April...I was there in May. It is still off season so hotels should be reasonable and readily available. Are you traveling by car? For me it is great to have the freedon to stop and take photos whenever I want, or to venture off on a side road to see what is around the next corner. Beautiful drive (but lots of curves) from Milan to Lake Como. I stayed in Allesandria or LaSpezia and left my car at the hotel while I took the train to CT. I did the CT drive a few times but prefer the train.

Jan, I stayed here in 2005. It's central to everything on a street with a village feel in one of Rome's best neighborhoods. The Spanish Steps is a 2 minutes away by foot. The Trevi Fountain and the Colleseum are just brisk walks too. There's no tv or breakfast but you're not in Rome to watch tv. The Villa Medici and Villa Borghese are short walks away and provide lots of photo ops. http://www.hotelpanda.it/xing/xmain1.asp

What sort of photo gear are you bringing Jan? Is everyone you are traveling with into photography? I am attending a photo workshop in early May in Venice, then traveling to Florence, Siena and C.T. on my own with a friend.

thanks all for the great info! Not sure about renting a car because somewhere along the way i heard not to. Can someone explain why not to because it sounds like a lot of fun and great for taking pictures. I'll be receiving Italy 2011 and will search out hotels, etc as well as checking out what I've learned from my posts. What photography class are you guys talking about in Venice? Have you attended it before and liked it? Has anyone stayed at San Luca Palace Hotel in Lucca? good/ok/no way? thanks so much. Happy travels...

You don't want a car in cities (or anywhere you can reach easily by train). Parking can be an expensive hassle, many towns have limited traffic zones where rental cars get charged extensive fines, and driving in Italy is torture without a GPS. On the other hand, visiting some Tuscan or Umbrian towns that aren't convenient by rail is a great reason to have a rental - be sure to have a GPS.

As someone else who enjoys photography my favorite place for great landscape shots is in the Dolomites. If you do go to Venice and are interested in traveling through the Dolomites it is best done by car. You could rent when you leave Venice and be in Cortina d' Ampezzo in 2-3 hours. Take the Great Dolomite Road and allow yourself 2-3 days in the area. It is beautiful and there are plenty of overviews where you can stop and take photos. Something you will find yourself doing often.
Of course Tuscany is great for landscape photography too and if you do not get as far north as the Dolomites the other suggestions offered are good ones.

In 2009, I visited the following cities, and enjoyed them, Verona, Florence, Lucca, Pisa, Cortona, Arezzo, Bologna, and Milan but I stayed with my cousin in Arezzo (this made it nice) so I only took day trips, except for 2 nights in Verona. Verona is a beautiful city and it is a calming relaxing place to stay. The Piazza Bra with the arena is really nice, and there are many restaurants in front of the arena (similar to the old Colosseum in Rome but smaller.) I stayed at the Holiday Inn about 30 minutes from downtown by bus (the bus is caught at the train station). You probably would want to stay closer to the central part of town if you are arriving by train. I have another cousin in Rome, and of course, I always enjoy Rome. On a 2 hr stopover in Milan, got to see the Duomo and the Galleria and the La Scala Opera House. This was fun too. I would look at a planning map of Italy and see which towns you might want to see, and see how long it might take to travel to them, and weight this against the time you have. Either using a car, or train, or bus. Good luck and have fun.

I can't believe the great info I'm getting from all of these posts. I'll just have to extend my visit to see everything. Here's my photog info ask for earlier-I have a minolta 70 film SLR and 2 lens/70-210 and 28-90 with a macro feature. I have heard before that Americans should not wear is jeans in europe. Any truth to that? Thanks all.

Oh no you didn't Jan! You're getting the jeans vs no jeans discussion started. I wore jeans, I saw lots of people wearing jeans and wil wear jeans again because it's what I like to wear. I did have access to a washer/dryer and was able to wash my jeans that way, I would hate to have to hand wash them, which is the biggest reason why some travelers do not wear jeans on their trips.

Everybody wears jeans over here.

Claudette and Rik
Sorry for opening up the can of worms again but I like your answers! Thanks and I'll be wearing jeans!

Hi- a quick and urgent question. Tickets are already sold out for the Vatican museum/Sistine chapel in april during my visit. Is the any other way to buy tickets? I can't believe I might miss this! I hope someone has some good advice. Thanks so much.

I don't have an answer to you last question but ooohhh film! how classic! I'd buy film is the states before you go, it must be hard to find film in many places now.

We stayed two nights in Milan. One night by the airport at the Best Western Jet Hotel which had a great buffet breakfast and a shuttle to the airport. The other night in the city at the Best Western Major which was right by a metro stop. We had another great buffet breakfast. Both hotels had free internet. Book online for the best rates. By the way, Best Westerns in Europe are a lot better than in the States.

Jan, As you're using film, be absolutely sure to take it in your carry-on luggage. DO NOT use checked luggage! Ask for hand inspection of the film if possible. Happy travels!

Jan:
I think your best bet for the Vatican/Sistine is a private tour company. We had an excellent experience with http://www.walksofitaly.com. The are dependable, professional, and get you to the Sistine before the crowds.

Hi. I'm back with another question. In mid April this year we will be spending 4 days in the CT area. We are planning a couple of days in the CT then rent a car for day trips into the surrounding area. What towns do you suggest traveling to? Thanks for your advice in advance.

To answer an earlier question the reason people say don't bring jeans to Europe is that they are thick material, heavy and bulky to pack and not easy to wash and dry on the go as would lighter weight cotton or synthetic quick dry travel pants.

Laurel-thank you for suggesting walks of Italy tour guides. We will be seeing the Sistine Chapel and Vatican Museum after all. It sounds like a great tour. Also, Ken and somebody else, thanks for the tips on film.

Jan: So glad that worked out! Yea! And I wore jeans in Italy. I brought two pair of trouser jeans not too heavy in weight, black. They looked great and I could wear them at least two days between laundering. Since they are lighter weight, they usually dried in 24 hours if I could not get to a laundry. I also brought a pair of dressier slacks, but I am rethinking that for my next trip and will most likely go with three trouser jeans. With a nice sweater or blouse, I could go anywhere I wanted to go. And the Italians wear nicely tailored denim all the time. (I did NOT see any slouchy, ragged, mom-jeans, nor men's jeans that sag in the rear like old Lee or Wrangler, though!) BTW, there is a "Lava Secco" (wash and dry) in Campo dei Fiori, Rome, that did a whole 21" roll-aboard full of clothes for 20 euro. Drop 'em off in the morning, pick 'em up late afternoon. Perfect!!!

Thanks again for great info. Terry Kathryn-I hope i got that right. We are staying in Monterosso as home base. Why do you say it's a long and hard drive? We are planning day trips from that point. are you saying the roads are bad or narrow? Are there towns to visit and good scenery? Are we wasting time and money renting a car for that purpose in that area? Thanks.

In Rome, we spent a lovely day walking the Appian Way. Many etruscan and roman ruins without a lot of tourists. Do some research. Cinque Terre is breathtaking and I would not miss it. Vernazza was our home base. Marco met us at train station and led us to quaint, quiet home (60 euros/night) and short but, lovely walk to center. Do the hikes between villages! Tuscany was beautiful. Best stay was at Romantica Pucci in Bagnoreggio. Eat there! Our meals were downright cheap and delicious. Pucci's husband, Lamberto, is a great cook! Short distance to the Civita Bagnoreggio...also a must see. San Gimignano, Volterra, Montelpucciano, Pienza. The drives themselves are a highlight. Bring local cheese, meats, bread and wine for the picnic opportunites along the way. Much less expensive than over priced restaurants and living like a local. This was by far my favorite trip to europe thus far. Let me know if you want more info...I've certainly got it and love sharing. Peg
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Are you planning on using CT as your home base with a car? Not an easy thing to do. Long, difficult drive.
I am also a photographer and after many trips with film (I am digital now) there are many airports that will not hand check your film. I had them open my infrared film and they had little patience with my objections that they would ruin it.