23 Days, 1 Mom + 1 Son - Seeking Foodie Focus Itinerary advice

Westcoast - There's a lot to unpack here. Twenty-two days sounds like a lot of time, but it isn't and really won't be if you are transiting every couple of days. We are also self-proclaimed foodies, and have spent thirty + days in Italy over three trips since early 2023, and will return again in November for another 17 days. I cannot emphasize enough that you don't have to try hard to find amazing food in Italy. Everywhere you go, you can find an amazing food experience. I'd plan to stay in four or five places that really draw you in, then find the food that the place is known for. At a minimum, you should consider Venice, Bologna (take the Italian Days food tour), Florence and Rome. Most find Pisa terribly overrated. If you want to add on a beach destination, you should decide on Cinque Terre or somewhere on the Amalfi coast, but not both. Personally, I'd pick Naples (for the food) and skip the beach (I have been to both Cinque Terre and Positano, and they are great, but I'm not a beach person and the food in Naples will blow your mind). I'd pick Venice over Cinque Terre 100% of the time.
I agree that you should depart FCO for your first destination and return to Rome at the end.
I would not go out of my way for a specific festival. IME those sound better than they actually end up being. Instead, seek out the truly local markets or the little known restaurant that's in a residential neighborhood and tourists almost never find. I've gotten great recommendations from folks here for some off-the-beaten-path places.
So ... which places are you particularly drawn to after your research?

I second pretty much everything that Celeste said. Consolidate your location choices so you aren't bouncing around between areas of the country.

In terms of festivals, going out of your way to visit a certain festival might be a bit of a letdown, or perhaps not. I haven't been to those festivals in particular, but have been to others. Think of any local festival or summer market near you, and any festival in Italy will be similar, though with a local flair of course. I would guess at a fish festival, there will be tons of people, crowded, if you are traveling by car the parking will be difficult. There will be a number of stalls or booths selling fish or fish products, then stalls selling other foods (desserts, meats, cheeses, etc.), and stalls selling various "stuff," similar to the stuff you would see at a market in the U.S. I don't want to be overly negative, just setting expectations. One example, however, we attended the truffle festival in Albi last fall. Mostly we wandered around; we had eaten enough truffles at restaurants (yum yum), cheese, etc. that we didn't buy anything, lots of people-watching. The most interesting thing to me, and it was interesting, was the medieval-themed fair that was on the edge of the truffle fair, with various games and games of chance that everyone seemed to be having a lot of fun watching or participating in. Sometimes it's those things that aren't planned in advance that are the best.

I'm not sure that there's a Ferrari or a Lamborghini museum IN Bologna - check on that. Ferrari is all over Modena, but I don't want to add to your already-long list (though I love Modena). Also, think twice about renting a motorcycle or e-bike and riding them on unfamiliar roads, which are often more narrow than roads in the U.S. Re Pisa, I know a lot of people love going there, but I thought it was a waste of time. And actually, while the Cinque Terre is lovely and even special, it is also a bit of a time suck to get to.

While I loved our two-week trip in Sicily just pre-COVID, it was a little bit of a hassle to get to from our home city in the U.S. I would suggest you visit Sicily as a separate trip.

In terms of Food research, do some internet searches for people who focus on Italian food. Katie Parla is a good resource, primarily in Rome, but there are others.

In planning out your 23 days, be old-fashioned and sit with a calendar on a piece of paper and a pencil. Mark in possible NIGHTS (easier to plan that way) that you would be in a location, starting with more nights in cities like Rome. Keep in mind that every location change takes up roughly half a day, between packing, getting to transport, transporting, getting to hotel at destination, unpacking. As you thinking, keep in mind how much time you might spend in transit vs. actually BEING in a place.

I think @celeste is right on. Festivals are a double edge sword in a lot of ways. They can be neat, cool, and/or just crowded and exhausting. My one universal experience is that they are for locals, and I’ve ended up feeling like an outsider much more than I normally would. And the equation of effort vs reward is not quite there. I went to the Noto flower festival, and while it was cool it also meant places were crowded and busy. I certainly wouldn’t rearrange your entire trip over it.

Onto the itinerary. Take Sicily off the agenda. It’s a major digression and you’ll basically lose two days to transit/airport time. Sicily really needs its own trip. For a “once in a lifetime” trip, you’ll find no shortage of amazing experiences on mainland Italy. Pick either the Cinque Terre or the Amalfi Coast. They tick a lot of the same boxes. Picking one or the other will help clarify the rest of your picture. Naples and the Amalfi Coast are worth a full week and I wouldn’t really try to do less. Everyone has their preferences, but I think the best way to see this area is by staying in nights in Sorrento or Naples to see the Bay of Naples sights, and then to spend a few nights in an Amalfi Coast town. Staying on the actual coast enables you to avoid the day trip crowds and experience it at its best. Alternatively, if you’re going as far north as Bologna, the CT might be a better fit. Of course, there’s nothing that says you have to see the coast either. Italy’s interior holds enough delights for 22 days.

On the food front, I highly recommend taking a food tour. Eating Europe is a popular one. I’ve been on several of their tours and they’re all good, with their Twilight Trastavere (Rome) being the best. Otherwise, keep your eyes/ears open for local markets.

Thank you all so much for your insights. You are all probably right. I do have a habit of wanting to do it all. And no, I don't want to be exhausted and just travelling all the time. We are from southern westcoast BC Canada and get lots of ocean and mountain terrain and travel already. Thank you for your input re the festivals. Yes they might be fun but I do so hate huge crowds (which is why we plan on being at monuments, museams etc by 830am latest). I think the Blue Grotto and Amalfi are big (perhaps bigger than Cinq Terre) but who knows. I was going to limit our nights in Rome due to the expense. Dummy me knew this, but we booked months ago (like mid last year), at which time there weren't a lot of rental rates out yet and we weren't sure of itinerary). Now dummy me has left it so late the prices for rental in Rome are ridiculous.

And you are probably right about Sicily. Sad but true. I guess we have to decide if we want to just work our way down south with side trips. Or elsewhere.

Thank you for your insight on Pisa. We were only interested in the tower and saying we did it. We might forego. However, my daughter and I did Eiffel Tower, knowing it was probably the same thing, but still glad we did. The difference was in Paris, we planted in one spot and did all the major things with limited metro travel.

You have all given us much to think about and a needed reality check (sometime you know, you know, but need someone to nudge you, you know?? ;-)

Will keep you posted

I do not think festivals are the best way to introduce yourselves to the food of a region.

Just do a lot of reading, and mark the restaurants offering regional (not "Italian" but regional, food).

I'm very interested in food and that is what I do....here is an example of a trip to Sicily's Aeolian island of Salina, last fall, focused on food:

https://www.hungryonion.org/t/salina-aeolian-islands-between-calabria-and-mainland-sicily/40448

My one universal experience is that they are for locals, and I’ve ended up feeling like an outsider much more than I normally would.

I wasn't able verbalize it as well as this, but this is my experience, too. I have never had any interaction at a "festival" that is memorable. It's always been those providential moments that happen when you are doing something ordinary that stand out.

I just saw your response post. Regarding room rates, go ahead and book something refundable, but keep looking. I think a lot of people book multiple places while they decide then cancel as it gets closer. Also, consider apartment rentals. You can research via booking.com or AirBnB. You've waited pretty late, though. I've already reserved for our trip in November! But just this week I changed our lodging in Rome (thanks to someone's recommendation here) and am saving 400 euros on three nights.

Ok I am sold. Do NOT book around festivals. Great advice and we will take it!. You're right of course. Not sure why I became so obsessed with it.

@celeste would you mind sharing your find for Rome? And I don't know why I wasn't thinking ahead to book and cancel as needed. That was my original thought process and just poof...lost it.

Oh and also, do you guys find using booking.com to be better than booking directly with the hotel? Originally we were going to do aribnbs (did that in France), but thought it might be just easier to do the hotel route. Thoughts?

Sounds like a wonderful trip!

I also think you need to pull Sicily, you are too far flung. It is great that you have such a good chunk of time, but that can get tiring to be on the go for so long. You will be needing some down time, a couple days to sleep in, do laundry, etc.

I also think you need to start checking on accommodations. You have less than 2 months to pull this together, and if there is a major festival in CT, you may already be too late to get into one of their already limited hotel rooms.

Would you consider renting a car for a few days? The driving there is easy and you could experience a little bit more of Tuscany.
I love the idea of putting out a good old fashioned calendar and paper map and starting to weave this together. Often we have had something we really wanted to do, but in piecing it together, it really wasn't worth the extra time and hassle. Enjoy!

Would second the idea of a food tour in Rome. I did Eating Europe’s Testaccio which I thought was a great introduction to a less well known, historic but non-touristy area of Rome that was for years (centuries?) the central food distribution area of Rome. See the Roman roads beneath the new market, which brought imports into Rome from the port of Ostia Antica, or the very impressive stockyard buildings, now converted to a huge arts centre, or Mt, Testaccio, created from millions of broken amphora used to transport olive oil from across the Empire. Other suggestions, Bologna for ham and cheese, Perugia or Turin for chocolate. Naples for pizza and the amazing sfogliatella and other pastries. Consider staying at an agritourismo and taste the food produced by your hosts.

I think word on the street is scrap Sicily. Unfortunate but makes sense. Will break it to my son lol. And scrapping the festivals.

Yes we are open to renting a car. Driving in another country doesn't phase me (I have driven in France in the worst storm ever in what really amounted to a go-cart!). But here in southwest BC, we don't grow old, we rust so rain doesn't phase me. Have driven through the mountains in many a snow storm too. And both of us can drive standard (my son's current car is standard). It's the dang parking that flummoxes me (where to park and how to NOT get a ticket - my weak point).

Yes I left booking accommodations late. Just got so busy and planning was so daunting. But time to put nose to grindstone. We don't even have to stay in middle of cities. Would prefer quaint with easy metro transport (that's what my daughter and I did in France). Just not sure of that system in some of these outlying regions in Italy.

https://www.floraliahomes.com/
It might already be all booked up but you can try!
You might also check Hotel Smeraldo. Great breakfast, location is perfect near Campo dei Fiori (right around the corner from Floralia). There are a lot of other places in this area that folks here recommend.

I only book through booking.com if I can't figure out any way to book direct. I read reviews on booking.com but always google to try to book direct if possible. I've saved quite a bit this way.
You can use the search function on this site to research. On a computer, it's a very obvious grey search box at the top of the page, but on a phone, you have to click the three lines on the top left which then opens the search box.

I always book directly with the hotel; I think it's easier, then, when I have questions or have to make changes. We used AirBnB once in Paris, and it worked out fine, but we prefer having a hotel person right there if we have questions or issues. Kind of a personal decision.

Another thing to check out for your times of travel, there may be various saints' days or other local holidays while you're there, and there are sometimes events relating to that. We were in Portugal and Spain last Spring, and there were a number of celebrations that I didn't have on my radar, but that we got to experience. One was a weekend celebration of Freedom Day (April 25), which occurred on Thursday before we got to Portugal, but life being what it is, many festivities in Lisbon were also being held on the weekend, when we were there. It was mostly locals, but I learned a lot of Portugal's history by being there at that time, and it was very meaningful to me to experience that. Then, a few weeks later, there were random (seemed to me) processions through streets by groups in native dress and playing/singing songs; this seemed to be not a common event, because many Spaniards / Portuguese around us were also delighted and taking lots of pictures.

We spent a month in Italy last summer, and I offer the following opinions, which are worth every penny you paid to read them:

1. The finest food regions of Italy are, in order, Emilia-Romagna, Tuscany, Liguria and Umbria. Puglia is also doggone good, but relatively remote. Seafood in the coastal cities of Puglia and Liguria are the best on the planet.
2. Bologna is unquestionably the culinary capital of Italy, just as Lyon is for France and Munich is for Germany.
3. The pesto in Genoa is something no foodie should miss.
4. The ragu di cinghiale of Umbria is something no foodie should miss.
5. Cavallo is something no foodie should miss. And then should not admit to have ever eaten.
6. Pizza is frankly better in New York and London than anywhere in Italy.
7. Regardless of the above, if you don't enjoy the food you'll eat in Italy, there's something wrong with your tastebuds.

Pizza is frankly better in New York and London than anywhere in Italy.

There should be some kind of disclaimer on this statement, LOL.

"Opinions may vary"
"Depends on where in Italy" (Yes, there's bad pizza in Italy. This is why it's important to eat the food in the place from which it originates.)

You need to add Piemonte to the best eating region!!

I don't think we have better pizza in NYC than in southern Italy. But that's just my take....depends on where you go! I've not been to Pepe in Grani...not sure if its become a tourist attraction by now....