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Trip To Italy 12/20-12/28- Need help w offseason Itinerary!

I'm in need of some advice before I book our hotels for our trip to Italy this Christmas.

Here's what's unmoveable due to flights and prior engagements:

12/20-12/22 Rome
12/27-12/28 Ostia seaside hotel for morning flight back to US from FCO 12/28

Original plan was
12/22-12/24 Florence
12/24-12/26 Cinque Terre
12/26-12/27 Venice

Trains/public transpo to each location.
Preferences: we love hiking, history, old churches, museums, don't like shopping, but enjoy walking long distances and popping into bakeries and caffes. We don't mind the big tourist spots but are more of a take a look at it, then move on kind of travelers. We very much enjoy audio tours preloaded on our phones so we can do walking tours of towns while being told the history- we did this in Madrid and Santiago de Compostela and it was awesome.

I was lured in by the idea of hiking Cinque Terre and possibly a kayak tour, but reading on forums it looks as though it will not be a great place to be those dates- most everything closed down, trails might be closed, rainy weather, water probably too cold to kayak. I'm willing to give up CT on this go round if it's not the right time.

I was told by an Italian friend that I don't want to do Venice and it's a waste of my time and we would enjoy Milan more. I can't help myself though and I must see the canals and history of this unique place. So I'm willing to just give it one night there.

I've been to Florence, but as an 18 year old so I certainly don't mind coming back and appreciating it more. But no more than 2 days for sure. We do have some friends that will be there on Christmas day, so it would be nice if we could arrange it to overlap with that so we can enjoy Christmas together, but that's not a deal breaker.

So, ye the travel-wise, what should we do? Scrap CT and replace it with something else that will be more open at Christmas? Rearrange the itinerary with thought towards what the towns are like during Christmas? I'm looking forward to your great suggestions!

Also,will the trains be running at Christmas? Will we be stranded?? Does everything close down everywhere?

Thanks in advance!!

Posted by
11037 posts

I was told by an Italian friend that I don't want to do Venice and it's a waste of my time and we would enjoy Milan more.

Truly a stunning statement; it is one I disagree with greatly.

CT at that time of year is unlikely to be a wise choice, especially for outdoor activity. Add those days to your other stops.

Posted by
26841 posts

I'm struggling to understand how anyone, especially an Italian, could suggest Milan over Venice. And that unfortunate advice has led you to decide to spend only one night there. In my view, that's perhaps the worst possible decision, because a super-short visit like that pretty much guarantees that you'll spend all your time trying to see the same few places being visited by all the other tourists--San Marco, the Rialto Bridge, etc. It's the heavy crowds that lead so many people to be disappointed in Venice. You need enough time in Venice to be able to wander off the beaten path and enjoy the city without the hordes. With only one night, you won't be doing that. I'd argue that you should either spend more time in Venice or skip it entirely on this trip. I can't tell you which to do because I haven't been to Venice in December. I fear that it will be cold and damp enough to be a not-so-great experience, but I hate-hate-hate chilly, damp weather.

I doubt that Milan will be any warmer than Venice, but I guess it may be less damp. There are lots of places I'd rather go than Milan, though, and some of them are closer to Rome. (We could start with Orvieto, Bologna, and a lot of smaller places in Tuscany and Umbria.)

I don't think you've allowed enough time for Rome. You'll probably be sleep-deprived and jetlagged on your arrival day, so you really only have one sightseeing day there. The time you have allotted to Venice and the Cinque Terre could be used in Rome, which will probably be warmer than northern Italy. If you want a change of scenery, Orvieto is a very good day-trip from Rome. Ostia Antica is even closer and a good option if you want to see a classical site.

I count your trip as just seven days, plus a few trying-to-stay-awake hours on Dec. 20. That is nowhere near enough time to visit four places stretching from Rome to Venice--made worse since you have to get back to Rome for your return flight. Seven days says "no more than two hotels" to me.

You can check train schedules on the Trenitalia website once it has that time period loaded. You'll need to use the Italian spellings of the city names: Roma, Firenze, Venezia, Milano. You can use Vernazza for the Cinque Terre.

There should be trains running on Christmas, but perhaps not as many, and there will probably be heavy demand throughout the period of your trip.

Posted by
7 posts

ha! I thought so, but he felt rather strongly about it. Hmph, CT seems like such a fairytale place. But perhaps it's not the best for this visit. Thanks for the response. Where else would you suggest?

Posted by
7 posts

Thanks for the response, acraven. The short amount of time in Rome is because I've already spent a good amount of time there and my husband will have already been there 7 days before I join him. Not too worried about not getting enough Rome.

hmm, so maybe 2 days in Venice instead. Any other places that we won't have trouble with it being all closed down for the holidays?

Posted by
7 posts

And, kidding, I looked back at his email. He said Verona over Venice. Not Milan. Sorry about that.

Posted by
26841 posts

Rome and Florence have a lot of museums. History is everywhere in Italy. Bologna has one of the largest medieval centers in Europe and is comparatively non-touristy. There are beautiful smaller cities all over Italy. I'd start by reading the Rome chapter of at least one guide book and figuring out how many days you'll want in that city. (I'm confident that it will be more than you currently have.) Then you can figure out what is practical in the remaining time. I'm not sure you can improve on Rome + Florence unless you have a preference for smaller cities.

Posted by
26841 posts

Aah--This is not your first visit to Rome. That makes a lot of difference.

With the caveat that I've never been to Europe later than October 12 (and I hope never to do so):

There are two attractive destinations right on the rail line between Venice and Verona: Padua (the larger of the two) and Vicenza. They are both architecturally interesting. Padua has enough to keep you busy for more than one day. I haven't been to Verona, but other people like it. You could set up HQ in one of those three cities and side-trip to the others. You could also visit Padua and Vicenza from Venice, but Venice hotels can be sort of expensive if you're thinking about making day-trips rather than spending all the time in Venice itself. Ferrara gets positive comments on this forum and is also visitable if you base in Padua.

I like Orvieto (much closer to Rome) a great deal. It also is worth an overnight stay, though many people treat it as a day-trip from Rome.

There are many, many nice smaller towns in Umbria and Tuscany. Everyone has favorites, but I don't know what the small places would be like over the Christmas holidays. I think of that as more a time to be in festive cities.

Posted by
7 posts

Great suggestions, acraven, thank you! I've got some research to do. : )

Posted by
7 posts

What about this-
12/22-12/24 Verona (from Rome)
day trip to Venice 12/23

12/24-12/27 Florence
instead of a 3 day here, could make it 12/25-12/27 and hit Bologna for one night on the way back from Verona on 12/24

12/27-12/28 Ostia (this is set.)

Posted by
26841 posts

I wouldn't do Venice as a day-trip from Verona. That puts you even more on the same schedule as all the day-trippers, because you are one. There are many other lovely places in Italy. You don't have to squeeze Venice into this trip. To the extent that you want to move around Venice by some means other than solely your own two feet, your wanderings will be slower, because you'll be depending on boats rather than a subway or buses. And you'll be surrounded by thousands of fellow tourists being funneled through the same (sometimes narrow) streets.

I suspect others may disagree, but I'd prefer a day-trip to Padua or Vicenza rather than a day-trip to Venice, which I fear is doomed to disappoint you to the degree that you'll never want to go back.

Posted by
2098 posts

We were there the 10 days before your dates and found Italy charming in December! We had good weather, we only needed a sweater in the evenings. We had a light rain one evening in Florence, but with the Christmas lights and wet pavement, it was very photogenic. It was much less crowded - we were the only guests at our agriturismo the entire time! They spoiled us.

You’ve gotten good suggestions. I hope you have a great time!

Posted by
7 posts

Oh how fun! Being from Los Angeles, I'm absolutely excited to be somewhere that feels wintery and Christmas this year! Somehow 70 degrees and palm trees doesn't quite do it : )

Husband and I will each be doing our research to see what we think about Venice, Verona and Bologna and will be able to make better informed decisions from there if there's things we cannot miss. Thanks again all!

Posted by
1369 posts

Now that we're retired, we deliberately go to Italy in November and December, especially if it's Rome, Venice, or Florence. It's incredible the difference it makes compared to the high tourist season and the shoulder seasons.

Most days it is cool not cold, even though the Italians are bundled up in down and fur. Humid, though, so my husband the winter-camper suggests not wearing cotton because it absorbs the dampness from the air.

If I were you, with only 8 nights, I would stay just one night in Rome near the train station (just to recover somewhat from your long trip and from jet-lag). You could eat lunch or dinner at the new Mercato Centrale in the train station --- it is fun and good. I would get up super early in the morning and take the train to either Florence or Venice, stay there for 3 nights, then take the train to the other one and stay there for 3 nights. Last night in Ostia.

Skip all the day trips and stopovers. It's 3 1/2 hours between Rome and Venice, so you are already spending a minimum of 7 hours in a train just doing that.

There are plenty, more than plenty, of things to see and do in Venice and Florence, and they are all way more fun than sitting in a train to somewhere else. We have now spent a total of two weeks in Venice and 6 weeks in Florence and still haven't seen all that we want to see.

If you absolutely have to go somewhere else, then spend your very first night in Orvieto. It is a nice place to be jet-lagged in. 1 1/2 hours by train from Rome.

I hope that when you're in Venice you just happen to be there on the day that the Venetian rowers dress up like Santa Claus and have a boat race down the Grand Canal --- it was a complete surprise to us. Maybe you could find out what day that is. You'll also see Christmas trees being delivered by boat and boats decorated with Rudolphs, wreaths, ornaments, and creche scenes.