We are taking our first trip to Italy in June for our anniversary. We are flying into Rome Thursday and taking a train to Florence ( right away), spending three nights there, then going to Venice for three nights then down to Rome for three nights. We might be slightly rushed in each city and plan to take in the sights, possibly a tour on 2 of the days in each city and the 3rd in each relaxing. I wondered what would be the best things to see given the time in each city. Also we have booked the Hotel Artemide for Rome, the Hotel Hermitage for Florence. Any experiences with these hotels? Also we are looking for a suggestion for Venice, we would love to get something with a canal view and I am seeing things booking up fast... Any help would be wonderful! Thanks,
Ann
Posted by
Forest Grove, OR
11659 posts
For itinerary help, you cannot beat Rick Steves. His Books have recommended itineraries for Rome and Venice. In fact, the Venice one is here: http://www.ricksteves.com/plan/destinations/italy/venice3.htm, Florence here http://www.ricksteves.com/plan/destinations/italy/florence3.htm, and Rome is here http://www.ricksteves.com/plan/destinations/italy/rome3.htm. These links are under Plan Your Trip - Italy. Lots of resources, but nothing like reading Rick's guides cover to cover!
Posted by
Atlanta, GA, USA
10 posts
Ann no matter where you go see if you can find an Italian restaurant that has only a fixed menu for the evening. These are always wonderful for the travel weary. You simply show up and they feed you! No choices. Just good food. Rick recommends a great one in Rome.
Posted by
Austin
976 posts
+1 for reading a couple of guidebooks. I check them out of the library, jot down the museums or sites that sound interesting and keep reading. I read 5 before last years trip- OK, the DK book has more pictures.....!
Take RS's walks or in the case of Venice the Vaporetto "TOUR" while reading the descriptions. Excellent for the Doges Palace also. We stayed at the Casa Verardo in Venice- it has some canal rooms which are on a QUIET canal- an elevator and A/C. It's in RS's more expensive tier of Venetian hotels- but I wanted a canal room too- had my 22nd anniversary in Venice. We had the green coverlet room that pops up on their site. Do a search on this site for more suggestions= see the first page on how to do a search for the forum. Have a great time!
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32325 posts
ann, First of all congratulations on your anniversary! A trip to Italy is a great way to celebrate! I assume you're leaving next Thursday (March 31?). I would highly recommend packing along a copy of the Italy 2011 Guidebook, as that will provide you with a LOT of good information on things like "the best things to see" in each of the cities. There's also information on opening and closing times of major attractions, hints to get past the queues and good restaurants in each city. You should be able to find copies of the books at larger book stores in your area (I'm sure the 2010 edition would be great also). Happy travels!