I am going to Florence and Tuscany as well as Venice and Verona the end of November beginning of December. I would love to purchase some Italian pottery if I can find a good price?
Also, is a gondala rida at that time of year a bad idea?
Thanks.
Posted by
San Diego
1540 posts
I am in Italy now - we stopped in Deruta in Umbria and it seems the whole town was dedicated to pottery.
I would recommend it - also most places will ship your purchases home for you.
Posted by
Media, PA, USA
11 posts
You'll find lots of places for pottery and in this economy will probably be able to negotiate a good price as well. In Venice the Murano glass is also noteworthy and smaller to carry.
Posted by
mooseheart, IL
8 posts
Orvieto is on the main train line between Florence and Rome. It is a beautiful hill town and also has a lot of pottery in the etruscan style.
Posted by
Centennial, CO, USA
1893 posts
Deruta is the ceramics "capital" of Italy. You can shop the new/lower town in the "factories" or the original hill top town (original artists $$$$$)
Or, Orvieto has nice shops, but do shop them all before you buy for the best deal. Assisi has a nice store too - it's just on the corner of the piazza.
Don't buy in Florence, they will mark it up, and they just buy it from the shops in the smaller towns.
Also, you probably won't be that far down the boot, but Ravello has 2 wonderful shops/same family, but wonderful pieces in there - the best I've seen in 5 trips to Italy!
Really, any of the smaller towns have ceramic shops. Even Montepulciano has their own - it's not a pretty in my eye, but still Italian ceramica! In Tuscany, you can find some nice pieces in Greve too.
Posted by
Bay Area
3551 posts
Deruta, San Gimignano, have very nice pottery. I would suggest you shop in US first to know prices and styles you like. All was in my opinion very expensive and then if you must ship even more costly. Most of the Deruta you can get easily here in US. However, a small piece that you can pack in your luggage as a memento is a good idea. I purchased in Sorrento and Ravello since these styles are not commonly found in US. Alot you can see and price on the internet also to see if its woeth it to you. I would take a gondola ride anytime if I could afford $125 for a ride.
Posted by
Henson, Florida, USA
466 posts
If you plan on shipping, which is costly, make sure you watch them wrap everything in bubble wrap. I shipped back ceramics and they arrived broken because they did not pack them well enough. Also, my parents shipped back some things that never arrived. Be careful. I suggest that whatever you buy, bring it back yourself.