Blow-dry hair referrals in Venice, Florence and Rome?

I spend about 40 minutes getting a haircut, then I don't have to do anything but run a comb through it.

Rosanne - I use google maps - I put in my hotel then use the "nearby" search and enter what I am looking for, ie "hair salon". You will see a list and the locations will be on the map. Then I start reading the reviews and look at their website if they have one.

A Google maps search -- brilliant. If I were my millennial daughter, I would have thought of this myself. Thanks!

Your hair can stay clean for a week?? Wow..I can go max two days and then oil head. I find that if I wash and style my hair at night I do not have to deal with the frizz, plus I bring product from home and I can straighten or curl and it stays in for two days.

Or ask at the hotel desk.

I have just walked by places during my travels and, when my hair was a disaster, gone in for a cut at a place that looked OK and had prices posted. (Had to hope for the best since my French is from college 50 years ago, and my Italian is "buon giorno" -- but it was fun.)

Thanks for all the input. I have an unusual contraption that dries and smooths my hair at the same time, but it's not dual voltage and the research I did on converters led me to conclude that using one will irrevocably damage the tool. So I may use the tips on salons. Normally I don't go a whole week, but desperate times call for desperate measures, like mousse, spray, etc.

If you ask your hotel for a recommendation, the salon and its prices will be suitable for the hotel's usual clientele, and if you're not from a high-cost-of-living area in the US, the price may not please you. I asked the desk staff at my Bolzano hotel for a recommendation when I needed a haircut. I told them I wasn't looking for a fancy place, but that was probably the nicest hotel I've ever had in Europe, and I paid 50 euros in 2015. I would think there's a greater risk of price shock in Rome, Florence and Venice.

I now just keep my eyes open during my jaunts through the non-touristy back streets. I figure the hair will grow back eventually, and no one knows me in Europe, anyway. But the haircuts from my self-selected salons have been fine. And how many tourists have had the experience of getting their hair cut in Plovdiv, Bulgaria?

As a very dedicated "blow dry bar" client in my home city I often book a professional dry when I travel. More time for sightseeing, less time fussing with my hot styling tools, saves space in my luggage. Works for me!

While I did not find any dedicated "blow dry bars" in Italy (the efficient and lovely set-ups here in the US that wash, dry, and style in approximately one hour), I did a bit of research on online review sites, got advice from stylists in my city, and used googlemaps to find salons within a reasonable distance to where we are staying in each city. Another idea is to search for upscale hotels with a spa as these places sometimes have a hair salon.

I called 6 weeks ahead to book appointments and will confirm each the day before.
Venice: Parrucchieri Trolese, San Polo 2876, 30100 Venezia;
Florence: Salon Contrasto 53 Via dei Neri, 53 Florence;
Rome: Noi Salon Piazza del Popolo 3, Rome.

In my phone I keep a note of all of the products that I use at home and have several photos of a recent blow-out to make the process go as smoothly as possible.

For this trip I planned my blow-drys only on the days that we will be going out to a "splurge dinner" and I want to look a bit fancy (this is my honeymoon trip). Most other days I will wear it up/back in some way as the weather will surely be hot in June, but at least it will look clean, dry, and polished until the next blow dry. I am packing only my travel hot-tools for touch-ups if necessary in between blow-drys, and have confirmed with all of our accommodations that a blow-dryer is offered as an amenity (in the event a blow-dry appointment is cancelled, I get caught in the rain, etc.).

As I have not yet visited, I cannot offer any reviews of my experiences but would be glad to update in July upon my return. Hope this helps a bit!

It's amazing the things one learns on the forum. Being of the Zoe type, I had never heard of a "blow out salon," at least not since the 50's or 60's when women went once a week to get their hair done.

But I am fighting the urge to get my hair cut before I go to Rome next month. I want to get it cut there. This thread has been very helpful. Thanks to LC for the salon list. The Noi salon at Piazza del Popolo is within walking distance of my apartment. It looks busy and expensive, but I bet they could do something wonderful with my short, gray, straight here, wavy there hair. Maybe I should make an appointment soon!?

I've used Compagnia Della Bellezza for my own cuts/styles for years in both the US and Italy & they're an international chain. I've definitely used them in Rome but here is there site so you can see where they're located throughout the country: http://www.compagniadellabellezza.com/en/

€50 is pretty normal for a big city, main-street salon. I paid €20 for a shampoo and cut in Palermo, but had to listen to the stylist refer to my short, straight, aging hair as "spaghetti".