Rick Steves gave just a passing comment about Rimini (city on the Adriatic coast) being a mess. We were there in April and found it delightful. We had a great hotel on the beach (Hotel Continental e dei Congressi) for 39 euros which included a full breakfast. Rimini has some interesting historical stuff, and it's convenient to San Marino if you want to add another country to the trip. The best meal we had in Italy was at the Ristorante Europa in Rimini.
Posted by
Rick Steves' Europe
16895 posts
Rick certainly did give it short shrift in his one-sentence review. Congrats on finding a good, off-season rate for the beach hotel.
Posted by
roswell, ga, usa
1501 posts
Hah! Finally! I've attended two weddings in the Rimini/Riccione area and loved it as well! The absolutely most beautiful sandy beaches that I've seen anywhere in Europe! We (obviously) have family there -- or wouldn't have been invited to weddings! Rick has his own opinion and of course, he's entitled to it. We loved San Leo and San Marino, and the first wedding we went to, we took our then 12 and 8 year old sons and they loved it as well.
We loved that it was 'undiscovered' by Americans. One morning we woke up and there were 12 strollers crammed in the little lobby of the hotel we were staying in! April is much less expensive than when we went for the weddings in August and October, and I'm going to make a note of your hotel! I've told family that we will come back for ANY celebration at all -- even a birthday party for a five year old!
Maybe it's a 'good thing' that Rick disapproves of this region. He's made Cinque Terre so popular the last ten years that you're lucky to find an Italian there at all!
We loved the food in the area as well -- and we were lucky to be invited to several in-home dinner parties. The seafood is fabulous!
The regional specialty bread: piadini is a personal favorite of ours. Last time I was in Rome, I saw it being sold packaged in the grocery stores -- this certainly wasn't the case ten years ago!
Posted by
San Francisco Bay Area (USA)
16240 posts
Different strokes for different folks.
Italy has a lot to offer and one need not follow Rick's advice on everything.
Unfortunately a lot of people get stuck on his likes and don't go anywhere but where he goes.
For example I don't have his love for Montepulciano. Not that it's not a pretty town, but I think that there are several in Tuscany I'd rank above it.
Likewise Varenna and Lake Como aren't necessarily better than the other northern lakes and Kastelruth in my opinion is no way better than the Val Gardena in the Dolomites.
At the same time some other great destinations are totally ignored in his books.
His suggestions are good for the most part, but there comes a point, after your N-th trip to Italy, when you need to explore beyond Vernazza, Varenna, Castelrotto and Montepulciano.
The Romagnola coast (Rimini to Riccione and Cattolica) has its fans and detractors, but it's the most popular tract of coast in Italy (especially with the Germans and the Russians), so there must be something to like about it. For sure in summer it's the most vibrant vacation spot for youngsters, a sort of Miami Beach on steroids.
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
34344 posts
No way can you reasonably call Rimini a mess. Not when I was there.