Hello there!
My fiance and I are planning a trip to Italy in mid-October for our honeymoon.
We want to see Rome, Cinque Terre and Venice. We are on a budget, and we have a flexible 10 days. We're comfortable traveling in Europe.
We started to book through an agency, and then decided we could save money and create a more specific itinerary if we did it ourselves a la carte.
Is this a reasonable trip, and can anyone make some recommendations on places to stay/see/dine?
So many thanks!
Amanda
If you buy the Italy book, you won't need the ETBD book. But do consider also buying the Rome and Venice books, since they contain some wonderful self-guided tours that aren't available in the Italy book.
I agree with MIchael. You don't need ETBD if you get the Italy book. You are also much better off planning the trip by yourself instead of an agency. A travel agency will put you up in expensive, stale, and boring hotels. You want to stay in mom and pop B&Bs. For Cinque Terre I suggest Manuel's Guesthouse. It was about 60 euro per night when I was there last October. The terrace at his home is amazing. What a view.
Rick has free audio guides for Venice and Rome. Be sure to print the maps before you go. And it's worth it to listen to them ahead of time, especially the Vatican and St. Mark's in Venice, for some time-saving tips.
In Venice I have found the Dorsodura area cheaper than the other side of the Grand Canal (and also quieter, more residential, less touristy). If you find somewhere in the area of the Academia, it's an easy 15-20 minute walk to Piazza San Marco (the "heart" of Venice).
I use Trip Advisor and booking.com for hotel reviews, prices, etc. Then I try to book directly with the hotel, sometimes you get a lower rate, especially via email rather than the hotel website (which they pay a commission on). Some places also give you a discount if you pay cash, it saves them the cc fees.
And congratulations on your nuptials.
Thank you all for your advice!
Amanda
I second the advice for trip advisor. The website was a huge help in planning our trip in Oct of last year. Make sure and use all of the RS guides that are applicable. They can really make your trip, but only if you read them before you go. I met an older woman on our trip that had taken all of the sections out her RS guide that did not pertain to her trip, and removed each section as she finished with it. Talk about traveling light! Take your time, do allot of research, and most of all, enjoy!!! Jeff
Amanda,
I'd also like to add congratulations!
Could you indicate if the 10-day time frame includes your flight day to Italy and the flight home?
As you're "comfortable travelling in Europe", I'm not sure that Europe Through The Back Door will be much help for you. However, I would suggest packing along a copy of the Italy 2010 Guidebook, as it contains a lot of information that will be useful, including lodging suggestions, restaurants, transportation, Museum opening & closing times, etc.
For the sake of efficiency (and assuming you haven't yet bought your airline tickets), using open-jaw flights would be the best idea. You could fly inbound to Rome / FCO and outbound from Venice / VCE.
For the trip from Rome to the CT, there's a direct train from Termini to La Spezia, with a travel time as short as 3H:41M. When you buy your ticket, be sure to specify the village you'll be staying in as the destination, so that you don't have to buy a ticket for the local train when you arrive in La Spezia.
I'm not sure if it will be open in mid-October, but one B&B you might consider is This One in Manarola. It will be a bit of a "splurge" but would be perfect considering the occasion. Send them an E-mail if you're interested. That time of year will be fairly "quiet" in the CT, so you'll probably find a better range of accommodations in Monterosso.
Regarding "recommendations on places to stay/see/dine? ", it would help to have some idea on your interests and what types of things you're most interested in seeing? There are lots of sightseeing possibilities in Rome and Venice, but the "usual" activity in the CT is just relaxing and perhaps hiking the trails between the five villages (depending on the weather, you may have to limit yourself to only the famed Via del'Amore between Manarola and Riomaggiore). The Guidebook covers all the options for that area.
Happy travels!
