Your favorites?

CT - hiking
Venice - hanging out in St. Mark's square
Florence - The David
Rome - soaking up the history

While visiting Venice, my mom & I cruised the Canal & disembarked at a vaporetto stop ('Palanca') in the island of Giudecca far away from Central Venice's popular stops.

As we walked on the narrow streets, away from the canal, we found a grocery store (Coop) where we purchased the best food for a picnic-- freshly baked bread, thinly sliced prosciutto, sweet cherry tomatoes, burrata, cured olives and juicy pears... Yum!

We sat on the steps of a bridge by the waterfront as we enjoyed the spectacular view of Venice and our delicious picnic!

in Florence, check out the central market, they will help you assemble an awesome picnic lunch, (the meat v endor will slice their sausage, the baker will split the buns, etc) there are fountains for drinking water every where, but you will need your own bottle, an I do wish I had brought a collapsible bottle from home. outside one of the galleries there is a free collection of large statues (would also be a good stop in the eveings) and yes, the david and micheangeloes other statues at the same museum "the prisoners" are amazing. follow ricks advice and get advance tickets for when they open, we were at the front of the line!

Venezia: Everything seems romantic as long as you can get away from the masses in San Marco. We really enjoyed Enoteca Artisti for a romantic meal our last visit. Another favorite haunt for us is Torcello for a long, quiet walk.

Cinque Terre: Take the little bus out of Manarola and hike from Volastra to Corniglia, a path less taken. The Santuario di Nostra Signora di Reggio is a nice hike away from people where you are rewarded with a magnificent view. Same with the santuario hike above Riomaggiore.

Roma: Villa Medici gardens, tours at Noon in English I believe; Palazzo Farnese - reserve online a few weeks in advance for Wednesday 5:00PM tour of the French Embassy; Galleria Colonna open Saturday mornings only, no reservation required, English tour at 11:30 last I knew. Hike up the Gianicolo for the view in the evening when the city is golden and rosy.

My favorite walk in Roma is: after visiting the Galleria Borghese, follow signs through the park to the Pincio, linger at the terrace for views of Rome, then take the footpath down to Piazza del Popolo.

From there you can walk to the Pantheon and Piazza Navona, and continue to Saint Peter's Basilica, the Ghetto or Trastevere.

One of my favorite restaurants is Cul de Sac on via del Governo Vecchio.

Favorite little restaurant?
We really enjoyed Mercato Hostaria on Campo Di Fiori in Rome. Based on the Trip Advisor reviews not everyone agrees with me but I thought their porcini mushroom pasta was fantastic and the piazza is very atmospheric in the early evening (though I've heard it can get very rowdy later at night).

In Venice we were pretty disappointed by most of our meals (expensive, small portions and just not quality food). No matter how far we wandered into the back canals the food was just not good. So our last night in Venice we ended up grabbing some very generous slices of pizza to go from Antico Forno and it was the best meal we'd had in 2 days. It cost less than 1/4 what we paid at other restaurants. The service was also very friendly and the place had a nice atmosphere. I still remember the cook dancing around and singing to himself while he prepared our pizza. Perfection.

Favorite location to just sit down and watch people?
Piazza Navona. I sit here to watch the tourists reacting to the street performers...endlessly entertaining. The Tartufo/Gelato Rick recommends in his book nearby is also really yummy.

A romantic garden?
Boboli Gardens in Florence

Any number of side walk cafes all over Italy where I can sit and drink a glass of vino bianco.

Passeggiata in any town.

A "locals" cafe or bar between 6 - 7 when the "locals" stop in for a drink before heading home. This is really best in small Italian hill towns.

People watching over coffee or a drink is a favorite anywhere at all in Italy, as is just wandering about in the early mornings before most other tourists are out of bed.

Venice: been a long time but just exploring the streets away from the tourist hot spots

CT: hiking and climbs up to the cemeteries and churches perched in the upper reaches that the majority of tourists don't venture to; Corniglia very early in the morning before the hordes descend.

Florence: the Fra Angelicos at Museo San Marco; Piazza Santissima Annunziata with the lovely Della Robbia tondos on Ospedale Degli Innocenti, and frescos in the entry cloister of the church of the same name as the piazza; a drink and a gaze from Piazzale Michelangelo, and climb up to very old San Miniato on the Mount above it. The Bargello is a marvelous museum too often overlooked for the Uffizi and Accademia, and Piazza Della Signoria is at its Medieval best at night.

Rome: a day walking the Via Appia Antica: hand's down our best experience in Rome so far. Galleria Borghese is an amazing museum, and our preference over the Vatican's. My favorite "David' (Bernini's) is here: a powerful contrast to Mike's more static version in Florence's Accademia. The park - Villa Borghese - is a nice place for a crowd-escaping walk. There is a little outdoor cafe in Parco Colle Oppio - shouting distance from the Colosseum - which has become a beloved heel-resting spot and destination in-and-of itself.

As Back2Italy said, the Boboli Gardens in Florence. You could take a picnic lunch up there.

In Venice, get up really early and take the vaporetto to Piazza San Marco, through the mists. Then watch the sun rise over the lagoon with a few photographers, an artist or two, a street sweeper and some pigeons. Priceless. Then go back to your hotel to shower, dress and eat breakfast! Ride the vaporetto the length of the Grand Canal, getting seats in the very front (not all the vaporetti have seats in the front though), once during the day and once at night. Just relax and watch the city glide past you. (Rick has a free audio tour you can download for this). If you can't get front seats, second best is the very back of the boat. Other than that, just wander through the back canals. One of the nicest areas is "behind" the Jewish Ghetto. Instead of dinner at a restaurant, go for cicchetti (the Venetian version of tapas) at a bar (or several). Rick's Italy book, Venice section, of has a list of good places around the Rialto Bridge. Visit the Basilica between 11.30-12.30 when the mosaics are floodlit.

In the CT, take the ferry in the late afternoon from one end to the other for some of the best views of the villages.

Anywhere in Italy - don't pass by the church, pop in for a look. Most (all?) are art museums - sculptures, paintings . . .

Any time after noon, stop at an outdoor cafe and have an Aperol spritz (it's alcoholic and yummy), rest your feet and people-watch. I can't believe how long it took me to discover this! All those wasted years, sigh.

dag
I concur with doric, we enjoyed the market in Florence. It is fun to engage in the contemporary life of a city like Florence, not just the historic things. Also, the view from the top of the hill at St Miniato's.

Venice - I am sure some people will shake their heads in disapproval, but we enjoyed our evening gondola ride. Yep: full-on tourist mode; Volare singer and all. Its the one thing we still laugh about from our trip. Venice is often described as a "theme park" so you might as well do the most popular ride there. Oh, and lunch in Burano.

I am really enjoying reading the favorites of everyone, since we will be returning to these places his summer!

This is from another website Regarding picnics in Venice:

"Officially, it's illegal to loiter in the street or in public parks while eating, but you're unlikely to be told to move on as long as you observe three cardinal rules:
Don't picnic or sit in the Piazza San Marco.
Don't picnic or sit on bridges and church steps.
Don't drag out a picnic blanket and hamper. (Just nibble your sandwich as a local might do, and remember to toss your litter in a trash receptacle.)"

That said, one of our favorite experiences in CT was a picnic of market food and a bottle of wine, eaten on rented beach chairs in Monterosso. We also greatly enjoyed riding the ferry from one town to another. The views of the 5 Terre from the sea are spectacular!

In Venice, we love just walking around, and riding a vaporetto. Our favorite day was taking one to Murano to see the galleries. Avoid the factory tour where the glassware looks like it was made in China. Go inland for some spectacular galleries. Back in Venice, we were able to buy glass beads for way less than in the US (like Pandora or Zable). Just make sure they say Murano on them. After Murano, we continued to Burano, the most beautiful of the islands. The homes are gorgeous, and really well kept, and the handmade lace is spectacular. I bought a gorgeous scarf with lace edging there, that I still wear often. This trip takes a while - I think it is at least half an hour to Murano, then another 20 to Burano.

In Rome, the early access tours of the Vatican are the way to go to see the Sistine chapel without the hoardes. And do not miss the Borghese Galleria, IMHO, the most wonderful art museum in Italy! Rent bikes in the Villa Borghese, the biggest park in Rome, and as another writer suggested, visit the Piazza del Popolo.

In Florence, there is a stationery store named Il Papiro, that sells hand made paper goods and will demonstrate how they marbleize paper, a traditional Florentine craft, and fantastic souvenir. I buy paper to use for scrapbook background pages, perfect for my trip books.

Everywhere we go, we love to participate in the passeggiata, then have dinner at a little sidewalk cafe and people watch. We love the coffee shops all over and do our best to support the local merchants! As Rick recommends, go off the beaten path, and visit with the locals.

Have a terrific trip!

Jan B

If you go to Burano, take the vaporetto to Torcello, the original settlement of Venezia. Beautiful mosaics in the old church. If you are there on a Saturday, you'll probably run into a wedding party.

Everyone says ride the vaporetto at night, which we weren't really planning on, but then our lats night there it worked out that we eneded up way up by the car park, so we rode it all the way back to Dorsoduro. Could have been the wine and/or that it was our last night of an amazing vaacation and/or that it really was simply beautiful - but I was quite teary. Even my whining exhausted 10 year old couldn't bust the mood!

In Venice, our friend who is from there, took us around. We ended up walking along the bigger canal in Canareggio which was super gorgeous and pretty much deserted!

Thank you everyone for taking the time to reply, these are the kinds of things I was looking for. it has been cool to read through some of of peoples more memorable experiences.

Favorite gelato place is in Rome-Old Bridge near the Vatican. I would definitely add that to the list of musts.

Pesto lasagna at El Castello in Vernazza is also a lifetime favorite.