For alum, any insights on what to do first afternoon/night in the cities vs saving for full day?
Fir tour participants, the tour roster and itinerary with all hotels are posted! Anyone else on going from this forum? Any interest in setting up a Facebook group for sharing ideas and events?
Not sure what sites you’re interested in for each stop, but look to see what is open late on the days you are there. We did this tour in 2022 and had been to Florence, Rome, and Cinque Terre before, so we weren’t looking to see the more popular places. I think that the Academia was open late the night we were there and that could be a possibility in Florence. On a previous trip in 2019 we did the end of the day for the Vatican museum and St.Peter’s Basilica ( 3:30) and they were virtually empty. I think RS may be recommending that. St Mark’s Square was uncrowded in the late afternoon and a totally different experience from mid-morning.Also, in Venice we asked at the meet and greet if anyone wanted to share an evening gondola ride and one couple was up for that. You need to switch places about halfway to be fair. Did your tour documents mention what time they thought you would arrive in each place?
Following this topic as we (a family group of 6) are on the Sept 29 departure. Have noted the arrival times in each city and have booked some evening activities on the first nights.
Question- where are your hotels in Lake Como and Cinque Terre? Some sightseeing plans may depend on location. I realize that our tour may have different hotels than yours, but I’m curious.
Thanks for your help and have a great trip, Charisse. Buon viaggio!
We’re in Monterroso and Como itself. So exciting g to get all the details, now it feels real!
Thanks, Charisse. I just found out from an Italian friend that Como was known for silk production back in the day. There’s a silk factory outside of Como town that does tours. May be worth checking out if you’re a shopper like me. I’ll do the same if we stay there. Enjoy your trip!
