Hello All! I will be traveling to Florence, Cinque Terre and Lake Como with some friends this summer and have some questions about traveling in Italy in general and some location specific questions. Any information or tips is appreciated!
General
- Trains: Which tickets need to be purchased in advance? We will be taking Frecciarossa, Regionale, Regionale Veloce, and Intercity trains during our trip. From what I've read, we should only have to buy the Frecciarossa tickets ahead of time. The other trains should not sell out and the prices are fixed, correct?
Florence
- Firenze Card: We are thinking of getting the card for its flexibility, but I am worried about the lines even with the card. Should we expect a long wait for entrance to the popular attractions (e.g., the Uffizi gallery)?
- Climbing the dome: We will be arriving Sunday afternoon and were planning to climb the dome the first thing the next morning. Last time I was there (Sept 2015) I was able to arrive shortly after it opened and went right up. I've read that a reservation is now required and was wondering how far in advance the reservations are booked. Will we be able to make a reservation for the next day or is there a chance there will be no available reservations?
Cinque Terre
- Trails: We are currently thinking of hiking Monterosso - Vernazza - Corniglia in the morning. From what I could find online, Corniglia - Manarola - Riomaggiore is closed. Can anyone confirm or tell me the best place to find up to date information? Additionally, does 3 - 4 hours to hike Monterosso - Vernazza - Corniglia seem correct?
- Pass: Does the trail pass to hike need to be purchased in advance or can we buy them the day of (or before)? Is there a risk of the passes selling out?
Lake Como
- Getting to our AirBNB: We are planning on arriving at the Como S Giovanni train station and taking a taxi to our AirBNB in Moltrasio. Will grabbing a taxi be an issue?
- Day plans: Lake Como is currently the least "planned" portion of our trip. We were thinking of taking a ferry and exploring the towns around the lake or renting a boat and doing it ourselves. Should any reservations be made in advance or will it be easy to figure it out once we arrive?
Thank you in advance!