Italy trip in May

Hi there, kaitek25, and welcome to the forum -

Before getting into all of your questions could you clarify something?

We land at fco in May 17 at 7am and will be going to florence first.
We are only in florence May 17 thru 18 From florence we head to Lucca
May 18 thru 21....

This is confusing. "Thru" May 18th would mean that you are staying in Florence the night of the 18th and not moving to Lucca that day, as your 2nd sentence indicates. Same for any other "thru" dates on your itinerary. ???? If indeed you are only staying in Florence the night of the 17th, it really doesn't make much sense to go there at all for just a few, jet-lagged hours.

Also, do you have room reservations in the Cinque Terre?
I have trail info: will pass along after you respond to the above. :O)

Don't want to jinx you, but late May is almost always perfection. Warm days, cool evenings.
The "easy" trail at Cinque Terre is permanently closed. Other trails close based on maintenance needs/weather. See the park website for information:
http://www.parconazionale5terre.it/Eindex.php

While in Lucca, you can check out Pistoia.

From Lucca between May 18 to 21, you can tour the towns of Borgo a Mozzano, Capannori and the tour of the villas, and Pietrasanta.

valadelphia - thanks so much! - that is what we are hoping for
Which one is the easy trail?
I’ll have to check out the site!

RJean - we were considering Pietrasanta - my family is from there and Lucca so thanks for recommending! I haven’t found anyone who has been there yet to recommend it or anything there to us so I appreciate that!

Kathy - we are only spending may 17 in florence and leaving May 18 in the evening. We felt it was worth it because we will be able to do some things may 17 and then may 18 quite early in the morning before all the day trippers arrive. I also have family from there and really wanted to at least see it even if only for a short while.

In the late evening we are on a train from Florence to Lucca.

May 16 - depart US direct flight to FCO
May 17 arrive FCO - arrive Florence approx 1320
May 18 - depart florence for Lucca late evening
May 18 - arrive Lucca late evening
May 21 - depart Lucca in the late morning or early afternoon for CT
May 21 - arrive CT - staying in b n b in vernazza-
May 24 - depart CT approx 10am for Rome
May 24 - arrive Rome
May 28 - depart Rome to US late morning

First a bit of clarification.....

"The "easy" trail at Cinque Terre is permanently closed."

I'm assuming "easy" refers to the Via dell Amore between Manarola and Riomaggiore. The trail is not permanently closed but rather closed until repairs can be made to prevent rock falls from injuring hikers. This resulted from a event which took place in September 2012 which injured four Australian tourists. The trail between Manarola and Corniglia has also been closed for several years due to a large slide. Hopefully both of those will be repaired and open within the next few years.

A few thoughts on your questions.....

It's not advisable to buy advance rail tickets to connect with incoming flights. The rail tickets will often involve express trains such as Freccia or Intercity. These tickets have compulsory seat reservations which are specific to train, date and departure time so if you miss the train because your flight was late or whatever, your advance tickets are useless. With advance tickets for any of the express trains, you must be willing to commit to a specific departure.

However, if you're willing to wait for the 11:08 direct Freccia train to Firenze S.M. Novella, four hours is a reasonably good cushion to accommodate minor delays, so I might consider advance purchase tickets in this case. I wouldn't want to wait that long in a jet lagged state, but your choice. You could always find the nearest coffee place and have 8 - 10 Espresso to keep you awake ;-)

No, you don't need to buy the C.T. card online. Just buy at one of the local stations when you arrive there.

If you're planning to hike the popular Sentiero Azzurro trails, the Monterosso > Vernazza > Corniglia segments will likely be open. Check with your hotel when you arrive there.

One other tip on trains and other public transit.....

If you buy tickets locally for train, bus or metro, these must be validated (time & date stamp) prior to boarding on the day of travel. Failure to do that may result in hefty fines which will be collected on the spot.

Yes I should have said the Via dell’Amore was indefinitely closed--though I am totally willing to take bets on it reopening in the forseeable future, lol.
The area has gotten so crowded, I would definitely head for the most difficult paths you can handle.
The blog A Path to Lunch gives helpful advice on choosing hikes.
https://www.apathtolunch.com/2016/03/cinque-terre-16-tips-for-avoiding-crowds.html

Ken provided most of the info on the you'll need if wanting to hike the open sections (as he said, most likely Monterosso>Vernazza> Corniglia) of the very popular Sentiero Azzurro/SVA2 route. You will need a trekking card for that or you could purchase the combined trekking/Treno card. As each hop on the train in the CT costs 4 euro during tourist season, you might do well with a 2-day card. You only have to validate it the first time you use it.

http://www.parconazionale5terre.it/page.php?id=158

Trail info is on this page of the website. As you will see, there are many other paths besides the SVA2 route, albeit many are longer and more strenuous:

http://www.parconazionale5terre.it/Esentieri-outdoor.php

I'll agree: May is a great weather month in Italy; been there, done that!

Trains: we buy the lowest fare/seat tier on the "fast" trains which require seat reservations. 2nd class or equivalent is perfectly comfortable.

Vatican: your trip is SOON and the Vatican Museums are Rome's #2 attraction so I'd put the giddiyup on booking a tour.
This is the one I'd probably do:

http://www.museivaticani.va/content/museivaticani/en/visita-i-musei/scegli-la-visita/musei-e-collezioni/musei-vaticani-e-basilica-di-san-pietro/visita-guidata-musei-e-basilica-s--pietro-per-singoli-e-gruppi-.html

If willing to splurge, many RS folks have recommended these early-entrance tours. There is a definite advantage to getting into the Sistine and to some of the other highlights before the mob takes over!

https://theromanguy.com/tours/Rome/Sistine-Chapel-Vatican-Tour
https://www.walksofitaly.com/rome-tours/pristine-sistine-chapel-tour/

Thank you again valadelphia.. super helpful read

Ken.. if we wait to buy tickets there won’t they be much more expensive? We were considering waiting for the 11:08 since it is a direct train right from the airport and required no changes.. we thought that might be easier and we also figured we could grab a quick bite to eat before moving on to our next location
Open to suggestions on other options though regarding the train!

As far as jet lag goes honestly we usually don’t have much issue with that. Maybe that’s an oddball thing. We travel frequently and while it might ruin some people’s day we are usually pretty quick to bounce back. =)

Thanks Kathy!
Is that second tour through an agency instead of direct with the Vatican site?

It seems no one answered your train questions. You should have plenty of time to catch that 11:08 train, unless your flight is delayed a lot. You aren't taking Norwegian, are you? If not, then proceed. You'll only have to go through the passport check. The line can be long but it's pretty fast. I'm referring to US passports--EU citizens breeze through in seconds. There's no customs to speak of. If you check your bags, you'll walk through the terminal and find the luggage carousel for your flight. Count on an hour, maximum and it indeed can be less. I'm assuming the train is a Frecciarossa. The advance purchase discount depends on how far in advance. I think you'd be ok to buy now. The difference between economy and premium economy isn't much. You get a leather seat in premium, and a welcome drink, like Prosecco. Could be fun in the morning... Otherwise, the train car might be slightly less crowded, but otherwise, there's no real difference in seating other than the cloth vs. leather thing. Enjoy your trip!

I'll comment on what to do in Lucca .... my husband is from there, and I've been 4x. I'll be there again in late May.

-Rent bikes and cycle around the wall. Buy some food before and stop for a picnic.
-Eat pizza from Pizzeria da Felice at Via Buia 12 --this is a hole-in-the-wall with no table service, but my husband's parents went on dates there, and his family & friends have been going there since the 1950s. If you're looking for authentic Italian, this is it.
- Pisa - if you want to climb the tower, book ahead. If you don't care about that, I advise to go at off hours for great atmosphere. The first time I saw the tower was at 4:30 AM on a June morning after getting off an overnight train from Naples. We had it all to ourselves, other than the small church youth group sleeping on the cathedral steps (okay, they had sleeping bags, but weren't sleeping). It was magical
- go to the beach - Viareggio, Forte dei Marmi

And if you realize there is something you missed in Florence, it's easy to get back there . . .

Purchasing train tickets to Florence upon arrival will cost 15-20 euro per ticket more based on discounts available for May 17 but, if your plane arrives on schedule and all goes smoothly at passport control and baggage claim, you could be arriving in Florence at about the time the 11:08 train departs. With so little time in Florence and wanting to visit relatives while there, why waste time sitting in the airport? You really should consider adding a second night in Florence if you're going to visit with relatives. Chances of it being a brief get-together are slim, so it would be prudent to allow some extra time. Trains from Florence to Lucca are inexpensive regional trains for which ticket prices don't change, so you'd have the flexibility to depart for Lucca at whatever time you wished on May 19.

kaite,

Regarding your last questions.....

Yes, tickets bought on the day of travel will most likely be more expensive, as all the discounted Economy and Super Economy tickets will probably be sold out. As I mentioned earlier, as you have a four hour "cushion" between flight arrival and train departure, discounted advance purchase tickets might work. However there are no guarantees and if your flight is really late, you'll have to be prepared to buy the more expensive tickets anyway. With a four hour wait, it's a gamble that I would probably take, but of course the decision is yours.

I can't remember what the food options are after passengers exit Passport control. Hopefully one of the others can provide some information on that. You could always walk over to the Rome Airport Hilton and have a fine meal at either the Bar degli Artisti or the Caffè Tevere Bistrò.

Which terminal does your flight arrive at? I found this item on the airport website - http://www.adr.it/web/aeroporti-di-roma-en-/pax-fco-airport-map . If your flight arrives at Terminal 1, getting to the rail station may take longer. They don't say "when" in May this work will be complete.

Is that second tour through an agency instead of direct with the
Vatican site?

I'd linked early-entrance tours offered by two different, highly-regarding tour providers. They are not tours offered by the Vatican itself, and not 3rd-party, middle-man ticketing "agencies" in the sense of, say, Viator. Walks of Italy and The Roman Guy market only their own tours with their own guides so booking with either is booking "direct". As I mentioned before, both receive consistently excellent online reviews and high marks from RS posters who have used them.

The early-entrance option offered by the Vatican is this one:

http://www.museivaticani.va/content/museivaticani/en/visita-i-musei/scegli-la-visita/musei-e-collezioni/colazione-ai-musei-vaticani/ingresso-anticipato-ai-musei---colazione.html

While it provides an audioguide, It is not otherwise a guided tour (what they mean by an "open" tour). My issue with this one is the audioguide: last I knew those had to be returned at the entrance to the museum, which means a looooong trek back from the Sistine to do that and losing the ability to proceed directly into the basilica via the tour exit from the chapel.

Thank you all!

We will definitely look those places up in Lucca

We are flying Alitalia and have been told those flights are usually on time
Unsure which terminal we arrive at. I think 3 but I could be mistaken.

The feedback about the trains is most helpful so we really appreciate that! We may see about taking an earlier train since it seems we will be wasting a lot of time.. it just seemed easiest

If I want to book to florence from the airport and do so ahead of time do I use the airport as my starting point? Or the main station in Rome? Another reason we were going to wait for the direct train from the airport was because we weren’t sure how long the train from the airport to the main station in Rome takes and it seemed more expensive taking 2 trains. I could be wrong.

Frank.. thank you. We actually don’t have family there at present. That’s one of the places where they are from. We already have all our accommodation booked so we will only be spending a night in florence. If we take an earlier train from the airport we will arrive late morning approx 11am or at the latest early afternoon. We don’t plan on visiting museums this time.. we will most likely just be site seeing and visiting the bardini gardens.

To look at train schedules, use Fiumicino Aeroporto as your departure location and Firenze S.M.Novella as your arrival location. That will show you connections via Roma Termini and Roma Tiburtina stations. I suggest using a connection via Roma Termini as the regional trains to Roma Tiburtina sometimes run behind schedule cutting into the already-tight 15 minute connection times. The Leonardo Express trains to Roma Termini generally run on time and the connection times are slightly longer, so less stress. The Base (full) price for the direct train to Florence is now exactly the same as those with a connection at Roma Termini (64 euro). The direct train only avoids an easy change and is just a few minutes faster, which imo isn't worth a 2-3 hour wait at FCO.

kaitek,

"If I want to book to florence from the airport and do so ahead of time do I use the airport as my starting point? Or the main station in Rome? Another reason we were going to wait for the direct train from the airport was because we weren’t sure how long the train from the airport to the main station in Rome takes"

To book the train from FCO to Florence on the direct train, you'll need to specify your departure point as Fiumicino Aeroporto and your arrival station as Firenze Santa Maria Novella. If you take an earlier train that involves a connection at either Roma Termini or Roma Tiburtina, there are a few things to be aware of. For example......

There are two Regionale trains serving the airport, the Leonardo Express and the FL-1. If using locally purchased tickets, be sure to validate your tickets prior to boarding the train or you'll be subject to hefty fines which will be collected on the spot. The FL-1 takes 48 minutes to Tiburtina and the L.E. takes 32 minutes to Termini. It doesn't really matter which one you use, but it IS important to be sure to board the train that you have tickets for!

This might sound rather complicated but in reality it's quite easy. If you decide not to wait for the direct train, simply go to one of the staffed ticket booths at the airport and buy tickets on the next train to Florence. I suggested using a ticket booth rather than a Kiosk as it might be easier if you're a bit tired from the flight. You'll be provided with two tickets, one for the train to Rome and the other for the high speed train to Florence. Validate your Regionale ticket, get on the correct train and change when you get to Rome. After that you can sit back and enjoy the view on the trip to Florence at 300 km/h. Note that your tickets for the Freccia train will come with compulsory seat reservations and your Carrozza (coach no.) and Posti (seat no's.) will be printed on the ticket.

Hope this helps.

When you say locally purchased tickets what do you mean?

I am looking to buy earlier tickets now.. 0930 or later.. I assume that is giving me plenty of time after our flight..
it looks like most connect thru tiburtina

if I buy the tickets on the Trenitalia app how do I validate them? Print the paper and bring with us?

I’m sorry I’m probably making this way more confusing than it needs to be. We travel a lot but I’ve heard the Italian train system can be quite stressful the first time you use it. I just want to make sure I’m buying the right tickets

Thank you all so much for you help

I copied these replies from past forums/questions here.

"No need to print anything anymore if you have a phone or tablet. Either use the Trenit app to buy the tickets in the app or save the PDF file of the ticket on your device and show that (in case you don't have service in Italy, though you should if you have a smart phone - doesn't really cost much). Just make sure you get the PDF of the actual ticket with a bar code."

"If you wish to buy tickets online for other journeys you'll be making, you might give www.trainline.eu a try, as it's a very user friendly website."

I used trainline.eu all throughout Italy, it is very easy, just show the conductor the ticket you receive in the app. The conductor actually showed me how to use it the first time! They are used to it.

If I buy these tickets ahead of time via app how do we validate them?

I’m a bit nervous to buy in advance since they’ll be useless if we are delayed but they are substantially cheaper than if we buy them on the spot!