My wife and I will be in Italy for approx. 15 days in September. We are basically going to back pack it and go and do whatever we feel like doing when we wake up each morning with no real agenda. I, however, would like to have 2-3 Unique and Inexpensive Lodging ideas per city so that we don't spend all of our time looking for a place to sleep. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. We are going to Venice, Florence, Rome, C.T. and Sienna. Thanks in advance for your help!
Posted by
DC
209 posts
This article that was posted here a while back might be a good starting point: http://www.cnn.com/2009/TRAVEL/getaways/07/08/italy.lodging.options/
Posted by
Carbondale, IL, USA
1201 posts
while your approach certainly seems at first glance to be great, there may be a couple of problems you'll encounter.
The first one is that you have listed five very popular destinations across Italy to be covered in just two weeks.
In September there will also be a great number of tourists converging on these popular destinations. A lot of them will also be looking for those wonderful inexpesive lodging spots or have already booked them.
Try to find a place early in the day or even call ahead the prior day. Try to find a tourist information booth usually at the train station and get them to help.
Posted by
US Pacific Northwest
10344 posts
Agreeing with Ron's post and adding, for emphasis, that you will likely find that Venice, in particular, is a challenging place in which to find "inexpensive" lodging.
Most experienced travelers suggest booking lodging in advance for Venice, at all times in September and especially weekends. Otherwise there may be a problem with both availability and pricing of what, if anything, is available.
And remembering: You may not always get what you pay for, but you can be pretty sure you won't get what you don't pay for.
Posted by
Napa, CA
3580 posts
A semi-spontaneous way to travel is to call ahead a day in advance for lodging. There is a book available with a list of lodgings for all these places. It's called ITALY 2009, and it's written by Rick Steves. There are other books available. Use the books in the library if you don't want to buy one. Or, follow Rick's advice and show up around 10 am and look for rooms. There is usually a TI somewhere in town.
When I first traveled in Europe 40 years ago, I did the spontaneous thing and always found an inexpensive room when I arrived in a new town, even in September. I think times have changed. Even some hostels are full during the most popular times.
Posted by
Chicago, IL, USA
435 posts
I recently stayed at Locanda Silva in Venice.
It was great and inexpensive, but I'm not certain how far in advance it would fill up. '
Have a great trip!
Posted by
Hamilton, ON, Canada
52 posts
Hi Matt,
I have found a few places that seem really nice and cheap ..
in CT-it is in Ricks book..they hvae a website and reviews on trip advisor are good..
Hotel Souvenir in Monterosso-Db-60E
www.souvenirhotel.eu
Ostello5-Terre in Manorola-Db-55E-
www.hostel5terre.com
You didn't mention Sorrento, but there is an ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL AND CHEAP HOSTEL THERE..
reading reviews, apparently they built it to be a 4*hotel, but couldn't get the permits because there are already too many there, so they had to make it a hostel. check it out..you aren't going to believe how beautiful and cheap. You can get a bus from Rome straight to Sorrento for 16E and the scenery there is unbelievable..
www.ulissedeluxe.com
Good Luck! I will be there the same time as well, I can't wait!! I am also doing cooking classes while I am there..so pumped!
Lisa
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32209 posts
Matt,
I have to agree with Ron and Kent. While the "spontaneous" travel approach is good in theory, you'll probably find the the fall shoulder season is very busy, and a lot of the most popular lodgings will already be booked.
The problems with this approach are that you'll have to spend valuable travel time searching for lodgings when you arrive in a new city, and you may have to accept something that's either in a "dodgy" part of town or far more expensive than you budgeted for. Lodgings are one thing I always plan precisely, as when I arrive in a new city I can check-in, drop my Packs and be touring within half an hour or so.
You didn't provide any pricing guidelines for the "Unique and Inexpensive" Lodgings you want? The term "inexpensive" is somewhat subjective, and your idea on that may be different than mine.
A few suggestions on lodgings in each of the locations you listed:
Venice: Albergo Doni
Florence: Hotel Aldobrandini
Rome: The Beehive, Alessandro Palace Hostel (Termini area), Casa san Guiseppe (Trastevere area).
Cinque Terre: Mar-Mar Rooms (Riomaggiore), La Torretta (Manarola). There's also a Hostel in Manarola, but the rules are VERY restrictive.
Siena: Albergo Bernini
You might want to check the Italy 2009 Guidebook for other listings, as these tend to change a bit from year-to-year. Given your choice to travel spontaneously, packing the Guidebook along would be a REALLY good idea, as it will be a good source of reference when you're trying to find a place to sleep. It also contains lots of information on Museum opening/closing times, costs, etc.
September is not far away, so if you're going to pre-book any rooms you'll need to do it quickly.
Good luck and happy travels!
Posted by
OP
FBG, TX, USA
15 posts
Thank you all for the reponses. This helps a lot! I think we may create a general time line and try to have lodging booked around that agenda. I assuming that as long as I give enough cancellation notice, it wouldn't be a problem if something should change. Also, I just purchased Rick's Italy 2009 on Amazon. Thanks again all!
-Matt