Just returned: Summary and lessons learned

We had a wonderful time. We did and saw so much during our stay. No tour - just on our own RS audio tour. Oh yeah - listen to some of the intros in advance of the site - it may give you other helpful admission/skip line tips. Must remember that its impossible to see everything and always be flexible. The museum passes and rsvps saved us a lot of time - I hate lines. Review maps and bus/train/metro schedules to save time and to not get stranded somewehere. Getting lost is inevitable but definitely orienting yourself with maps makes a huge difference. In Rome we found the transport staff and police were not very helpful - you had to be VERY specific with your question and we got steered in the wrong or longer direction a number of times. Review your receipts before paying no matter how rushed or tipsy you are at restaurants. We were double charged at places and learned that the cover charge is for the basket of bread we didnt order or eat. Glad we didn't over pack on the digital devices - I left my netbook at home. Bring multiple converters and remember to charge overnight. Cant say enough about wearing comfortable walking shoes - we walked miles everyday - Italy loves their steps! :-) brought but didn't use water bottles and clothesline - just did laundry at hotel. Overall - common sense and cultural respect goes a long way! 2 free skymiles tickets, over 7 cities, $6k for 2 people and over 2600 pics/videos = awesome anniversary trip!!

Wow,, sounds like you had a great time,, thanks for posting. I especially liked your tip about not waiting till starving to look for restaurants,, you are so right,, hunger makes one pick poorly usually!

Sounds like you had a great trip, I'm so happy for you. I agree about not waiting until you're starving to decide where you are going to eat. Also, about going over your bill before paying.

thanks! RE: the starving and finding places to eat - that goes along with trying to pace activities. The last night I realized we had not seen the spanish steps or trevi fountain. By the time we were done getting from one place to the next restaurants were closing. $ saving for food and gelato - we didn't dine around the main attraction but strolled a few blocks away and dined in places filled with locals. $ saving for lodging - we mostly stayed at RS recommended places and got the discount. We had shared bathroom @ Pensione Guerrato and stayed at a hostel (private suite w bathroom) in Florence because we were out from early morning until late on several days. Loved how everyone in Murren had the RS book :-) Before settling our stuff in the rooms, we used flashlights and inspected the place for potential bed bugs - thankfully all clear! Interesting thing off topic: My husband got to witness Venice sinking. I was inside St Mark's Basilica he was outside in front with his backpack and camera bag. He said that water just started seeping upwards out of the drains (high sea level maybe?). They had to move the line of visitors from the front to the side entrance. By the time I came out the entire front area was flooded with 2-3 inches of water!!! Upon our return it was kinda creepy to find out about the bomb threat and evacuation at the Eiffel Tower and near Notre Dame RER metro (St Michel). We visited these areas at least 3x times and spent many hours in these sites. Makes sense now why there were so many armed military police around the sites.

A canal runs underneath St Marks Square so water does bubble up to a greater or lesser extent most days at high tide.

Salsichica - Glad you had a great time. If you love Michelangelo and want to read about him, try The Agony and the Ecstasy by Irving Stone. Thanks for posting.

Salsachica, what credit card did you use to rent your velib? Was it American Express?

Yes we used Amex for velib rental. Was pretty easy and fun! They had a system in Rome but we never used it because we saw it on our last night. Didn't see many rental/return spots like in Paris.