CT in March?

I think it tastes the same regardless of where it is made, as long as you use authentic traditional ingredients.
Pine nuts, garlic, basil, Parmigiano-Reggiano, salt, olive oil.

I think late March is a good time - next best to April and October perhaps.

Jessica,

Although the "official" start of the season in the Cinque Terre seems to be April 1st, if it's possible to time your visit as late as possible in March, some places will most likely be open. Monterosso is the largest of the five towns so that would be a good place to start. There's a "Pesto Laboratory" in the old town that makes it fresh, if you want to take some home. There are also lots of restaurants there serving Pesto dishes. One of my favourites is Trofie al Pesto at Ristorante L' Alta Marea.

Ooh, thank you for the great info Ken! A pesto laboratory? Fun! Pesto happens to be my husbands favorite dish of all time. We have had it in other parts of Italy, but having it in its birthplace is a dream of his.

Would it be too early to visit CT March 15/16? We are in the preliminary phase of planning, but what we do have is round trip air in and out of Rome (multi-dest flight wasn't doable for us). As of right now we would like to do 5 nights Siena, 2 nights CT, 2 nights Florence and 3 nights Rome. With that itinerary in mind, would it make sense to visit CT at the end of our trip? I was originally thinking of visiting CT between Siena and Florence if it makes sense to do so. Thoughts?

Jessica,

Regarding the questions in your last post.....

Whether March 15 / 16 is too early will most likely depend on whether you can find a hotel that's open at that time. You'll have a better chance by staying in Monterosso, and I'd start checking with hotels there now. If you can find one that's open, that should work. When you book with them, you might also ask them if any of the local restaurants will be open then (they should have at least some idea on that).

I assume you're planning to go directly from Rome / FCO to your first stop as soon as you arrive? I'd probably allocate the time and arrange the order a bit differently.....

• From FCO, take a high speed train direct to Florence (3 nights). It would probably be a good idea to add a night here, as you'll be jet lagged and won't be up to full touring speed.
• From Florence take a Corse Rapide Bus to Siena (drops you right in town rather than at the bottom of the hill (4 nights)
• From Siena travel by train to Monterosso - a departure at 09:18 will get you there at 12:41 (time 3H:23M, 2 changes). It's a bit of an awkward route but not too bad. (2 nights). Arriving in Monterosso that early will give you about 1.5 days for exploring and sampling not only Pesto but also some of the local Sciacchetrà dessert wine.
• From Monterosso travel by train to Rome using one of the high speed direct runs from La Spezia Centrale to Roma Termini. One of the quickest trips will be a departure at 12:42, arriving in Rome at 16:32 (time 3H:50M, one change in La Spezia). (3 nights).

I'm not sure what Siena will be like at that time of year? I've been in that area as early as April, and the weather can sometimes be an issue. You could perhaps consider making Siena 3 nights and adding a night to Rome? If you've been to Rome and have seen most of the sights, use the extra time for a day trip to Orvieto, a beautiful Umbrian hill town.

5 nights Siena, 2 nights CT, 2 nights Florence and 3 nights Rome

While you did not ask...5 nights in Siena is a long time. Do you have an itinerary for how you will use those 4 full days in Siena? While there's a lot of great countryside to see from there, the town itself is not a 4-day stop, IMO. 2 nights in Firenze seems light, as do 3 nights Roma if those are first visits.

Ken and Laurel- thank you so much for your advice and input! I failed to mention we are hoping to make Siena our home base for those 5 days and renting a car so we can visit other Tuscan and Umbrian villages.

And yes Ken- we are hoping to land in FCO and head directly to our next destination. As our flight arrives at 4:20pm I began toying with the idea of getting a rental car at FCO and beginning the trip in Siena and then returning the car in La Spezia. That said, we are open to a more reasonable itinerary. I didn't realize there is a high speed train into Rome from La Spezia- that does make it feasible to do CT later in our trip. I will definitely start looking for hotels now and inquire into restaurant availability. Also, we have been to Florence before and don't wish to revisit its museums or churches (going specifically to revisit a menswear shop and our favorite restaurant). But if you still feel 5 nights in Siena as a jumping off point is too long we could certainly add a day to Florence or another night elsewhere. I would like to visit Orvieto if possible. We have been to Rome before as well.

One last (and very important) thing to mention is that we will be traveling with my mother and our infant son. I realize we will be less mobile with an infant, which makes the rental car in Tuscany even more vital.

With all of this in mind is the best route still to go Florence-Siena-CT-Rome? Thanks for your continued help! :)

Jessica

Another thought- would it be better to do 4 nights in Lucca with day trips to CT and Florence instead?

I would advise against getting your rental car at FCO. You will be tired and jetlagged, especially since you mentioned you have an infant. Not the best time to start driving in a foreign country. Take Ken's suggestion and get the train to Florence, spend a night or two (you said you have been there before) then pick up your car and go to Siena.

Good point Charlotte! Thanks

Jessica,

Thanks for the additional information, as that certainly clarifies your situation. I agree with the point mentioned by Charlotte about driving after a long international flight, something which has been compared to driving while impaired.

A few other points to mention about driving is that each driver will require the compulsory International Driver's Permit, which is used with your home D.L. Most rental contracts also want each driver stipulated. You'll also have to be vigilant to avoid the dreaded ZTL (limited traffic) areas which exist in many Italian towns. Do NOT drive in Florence as it's just about saturated with automated ZTL cameras, and EACH pass through one will result in a violation ticket. Even small towns like Monterosso have ZTL areas.

Regarding the high speed trains I mentioned from the Cinque Terre, there are only a few of the direct runs each day, so you'll have to time your departure to connect with one of those. There are many other solutions on that route which involve one or more changes and different classes of trains (ie: Regionale, InterCity, Freccia).

I'll have to give some further thought to your proposed Itinerary, and will post further comments if I think of anything else.

Ken- you really are quite a gem on this forum. I appreciate your help so very much! I am familiar with the international drivers permit, I will be sure to have my husband visit AAA to get that- he will be our driver. I also know about the ZTL in Florence. We definitely do not want to have a car in Florence, CT or Rome. One other point to mention is we would prefer apartments so we have access to a refrigerator and washer/dryer. If you come up with more suggestions, do send them my way. Thanks again Ken (and others).

Jessica

Hi Jessica,
Re: Pesto in the CT, I've only been there in Sept. and early Oct. and I'm wondering if Basil is even in season in March for Pesto making. At home I make it in Sept. and freeze it for use thru' the winter and spring. Maybe others can comment on this. Buon viaggio, Sherry

Sherry- oh my gosh why didn't I think of that?!? Good point. Hope others have insight on basil availability in March. Thank you.

Jessica,

Have a look at these websites, which have some encouraging news.....

http://www.liguriaguide.com/genovese-basil.html

http://www.ilpestodipra.com/greenhouses-along-the-sea/greenhouses-along-the-sea.htm

Hopefully this means that you can find fresh Basil in the Cinque Terre even in March.

Buon Appetito!

I'm sure they grow basil year round in hot houses.
However, I bet it tastes better in summer.

Ken- helpful once again! Thank you! I will share these articles with my husband- he will be quite happy to learn this!

Jessica

Jessica,

No guarantees, but I suspect you'll still be able to get fresh Pesto in March. I'm usually there in September (which was the case this year), so I've never thought about the availability of fresh Basil in March.

The best thing about fresh pesto is its vibrant green colour. This is lost over time with oxidation by exposure to the air. Make sure you pour a thin layer of olive oil over the top of the pesto in its jar. This helps reduce the discolouring.

Jessica,
If you can't find fresh pesto, find a coop grocery store. I generally makes own thru the summer and freeze it. This one is about as good as my own.
Made by Barilla, alla Genovese. Made in Parma. Nothing like the Barilla we get here. Daughter lives in Italy and ships it back for me.

FWIW, Genoa would claim that pesto was their invention. Check out the Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pesto

Michael,

That's the impression I have on the origin of Pesto. I usually state that it was invented in that area (meaning Liguria). It's one of my favourites, but I wish the restaurants here wouldn't mix it with cream.

Does it get so cold (below freezing) in the CT in winter that basil wouldn't survive outside? Not according to wunderground.com. It's a hardy plant.