Power adapter for Italy

If it was me, I would just purchase a couple of them here (you never know when one may be accidentally left behind). I don't like to waste valuable time trying hunt down items upon arrival.

All you need are the plug adapters, such as the one shown here: https://store.ricksteves.com/shop/p/european-power-adapter

These are cheap so buy several before you go. Both your MacBook pro and your iPhone are dual voltage.

English adapters can be purchased here. https://store.ricksteves.com/shop/p/uk-power-adapter

Ah I see. I guess I'll order them off of Amazon. I paid $10 for my London adapter. Is that reasonable? I kind of thought they'd be cheaper.

Thanks! Wow, they're so much cheaper on here. The cheapest I was seeing on Amazon was like at least $10.

Are there any free shipping codes from the Ricksteves website that you guys are aware of?

I don't know about the shipping on the Rick Steves ones. If you want Amazon, I have these ones .

I ordered this one

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07QVZGY2B/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

dl,

If you're concerned about shipping costs, check out some of the luggage / travel stores in your area as they will have Plug Adaptors. You should also be able to find Adaptors at Target, Wal-Mart, Best Buy, etc.

I'd suggest using an Adaptor with "V" shaped ends as some outlets will have that profile, so Adaptors with rounded ends may not fit. Have a look at THIS PRODUCT which is reasonably priced for a package of three.

As you may know, Plug Adaptors do not provide any voltage conversion. However your Apple products almost certainly have chargers which are designed for operation from 100 - 240 VAC, so you should have no problems. You can verify that by checking the "fine print" on the chargers.

Thanks all.

@Ken, in that link, I see a specific one for Italy (Type L) as well as for "Most of Europe (Type C)." Would I be good with just the latter?

I've used the "C" type in a number of places in Italy, including Sicily, with no problem.

Maybe I should just get both.

Is C the most common?

I'll be staying in Venice, Rome, Florence, and La Spezia.

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B075VQDWZ7/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I ordered this one. We liked that it has USB ports, so we charge all of our phones at once. It is also good for multiple countries.

Have a great trip!

Thanks! I don't think I'd buy that just for the USB ports. I was planning on charging my phone with my mac actually.

I just remembered that I may also need to charge a portable battery and Philips electric shaver. I can charger the former from my mac, but I may need an actual voltage converter for the latter.

REI sells travel accessories (as does your local AAA):
2450 Charleston Rd
Mountain View, CA 94043
https://www.rei.com/c/electrical-adapters

For un-grounded plugs:
https://www.rei.com/product/129521/lewis-n-clark-adapter-plug-europeasia
Lewis N. Clark Adapter Plug - Europe/Asia
Item #129521
$4.00

If your local REI doesn't have it you can ship to the local store for local pickup with no shipping charge.

Thanks a lot for taking the time to locate that for me. I'll check them out! I may just order it from Amazon.

Do you recommend both a Type C & Type L adapter? I can't seem to find a definitive answer on which one is better based on my searching.

Maybe reading this will ease your mind:
https://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/phones-tech/electric-adapters-converters

...both a Type C & Type L adapter?

The Type C will work for most continental Europe if you only need two prongs (un-grounded).
If you need to ground in Italy (three prongs), then you would need a Type L. Most electronics only need a two conductor plug.

https://www.iec.ch/worldplugs/typeC.htm
https://www.iec.ch/worldplugs/typeL.htm

A Scottish friend told me to bring a surge protector from the us, and then we can plug that in using the adapter, and charge or use all our devices. Is that true?

dl,

The type "L" Plug Adaptor is for grounded appliances (ie: three pins). The devices you'll be travelling with will likely be ungrounded so two pins is all you'll need. NOTE that the grounded Type "L" Plug Adaptor will only work in Italy. Switzerland and other countries in Europe use a different type of grounded Adaptor.

Regarding the other appliances you'll be travelling with.....

• portable battery - that likely charges from a normal USB supply

• Philips electric shaver - you'll need to check the charger / power supply, looking for the words "Input Voltage". If that states "100 - 240 VAC", then it will work with only a Plug Adaptor. If it's only designed for 115 VAC, you won't be able to use it in Europe without a Voltage Converter.

To reiterate my previous comment, it would be better (IMO) to buy Euro plug adaptors with the "V" shaped ends.

"A Scottish friend told me to bring a surge protector from the us, and then we can plug that in using the adapter, and charge or use all our devices. Is that true?"

NO, that is not true! Unless you use a "surge protector" that's specifically designed for 220 VAC electrical systems, the device will probably self destruct in spectacular fashion with sparks and smoke. The "clamping voltage" will be too low so the device won't react well when connected to a higher voltage.

You can us a basic power bar with no surge or spike protection, but you'll still need a Plug Adaptor specific to the countries you're visiting.

Sorry, but what do you mean by a "V" shaped end?
I don't think I've seen one.

Look at the photos of the Plug Adaptors in my previous reply, and compare those with the shape of those in the REI link.

Hmm, if I'm not mistaken, the ones in your Amazon link are more rounded at the prongs, whereas the REI looks to be somewhat flat at the tip fo the prong?

I purchased a 6-pack of Type E/F adapters on Amazon for under $8 and they worked fine for us in Europe

These adapter posts do tend to get over-complicated for such a simple thing...

The v-shape versus rounded shape mentioned above is about the surface the prongs come out of, and the ONLY time that has been a problem for me is with a euro extension cord. I have not run into a wall outlet that required the v-shape, but I would buy that rather than the rounded shape.

dl,

The "V" shape I was referring to was the shape of the housing of the plug adaptor, and not the pins. Many of the outlets you'll encounter in Italy will be flush with the surface, so the size and shape of the Plug Adaptor won't be a problem. However you may encounter some that are recessed, such as this example - https://images.app.goo.gl/zbdZAzEYZ2okDF5x9 (this example is from Switzerland). As you can see, trying to fit a larger rounded plug into this housing is not going to work.

This is a description of the Euro Plug - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Europlug . Note that the housing has "V" shaped ends.

I prefer to use Plug Adaptors which will be as "universal" as possible for all countries. However I usually carry a selection of Adaptors that will work just about anywhere in Europe.

The power adapters are available at $1 to $2 quite often.

I purchased a Type C power adapter with 4 USB ports for under $5 from China. Gearbest.com
It worked so well that I purchased two more for my two sons.
The 2 mobile phones and camera and tablet use up the 4 ports

I've been so happy with THOSE (above) that I bought similar adapters for USA power, when traveling here.