We had high hopes for this trip and it was even better than we hoped it would be. Our EXCELLENT TOUR GUIDE, Deborah, was knowledgeable, interesting, organized, generous, fun, and very, very nice, and at least five other very knowledgeable tour guides joined us at major sites such as the Vatican and Uffizi. Deborah took us to restaurants that served really DELICIOUS FOODS including some of the best seafood I have ever tasted (Cinque Terre), and she recommended good places to eat on the nights when dinners were not included in the tour. The use of the "BUDDY SYSTEM" helped us to feel very safe and it helped us to meet the wonderful people who joined us on this tour. We didn't know if we would like spending nine days with people we did not know, but being with this group was truly one of the wonderful parts of this tour -- everyone was interesting, friendly, nice, and fun! Some things to consider: this trip has a lot of walking -- I thought I had COMFORTABLE SHOES, but they weren't that comfortable after walking several miles; find the most comfortable shoes you can (even if they aren't that pretty). There are also a lot of steps to climb since Volterra and the Cinque Terre are hill towns, but all led to amazing views and helped us to use up some calories for gelato. ON MY NEXT TRIP, although I will pack light, I will bring a small umbrella, a small hair dryer, and extra adapters (one wasn't enough with cameras and cell phones to charge). Also, it was very helpful that we booked a room and ARRIVED A DAY EARLY, since the long flight over and change of time zones left us feeling very tired on day one; I am glad we had time to rest before the official tour began. So many great sites on this tour -- it is amazing to turn a corner in a museum and catch a first glimpse of Michelangelo's "David" or Botticelli's "Primavera," and the Tuscan country side and the Cinque Terre are breathtakingly beautiful. The only recommendation for change on this tour would be to make it a ten-day tour and add an extra day in the Cinque Terre. Rick Steves' "Heart of Italy" tour was an absolutely wonderful travel experience!
Posted by
Rockville, MD, USA
653 posts
Thanks for the report!
Posted by
oklahoma
1022 posts
glad you liked it. I have been home from my two trips three weeks now. Did my Scotland review and now need to make time to do the Ireland tour. We were also extremely blessed for a great guide and group on our Scotland tour.
I think the 17 day best of Italy is on my bucket list in a few years.
Happy travels
Kim
Posted by
9 posts
Hello!
Can I ask what your favorite restaurant in CT was? We are seafood lovers as well and would love to know what your fave was.
Posted by
New York, NY, USA
11294 posts
Just curious about the hair dryer, since this question comes up often: would you bring your own hair dryer next time because the hotels didn't have one, or because you didn't like the one they had, or some other reason?
Posted by
OP
Philadelphia, PA
8 posts
In the Cinque Terre we ate with the tour at Piccolo Diavolo in Monterrosso. The meal was DELICIOUS and a variety of seafood was served. It was so good we went to the same place the next night, but if I could do it again, (I hope I will!), I would try someplace different on night two. It was still excellent, but not as good as night one; I think they really go out of their way to make sure that everything is perfect for the tours -- and our tour group was great, so eating with the group was a lot of fun. There is a place near the water in Monterrosso that we were told serves an amazing fish stew (sorry, I don't remember the name) -- next time, I am going to try that.
Posted by
OP
Philadelphia, PA
8 posts
Regarding the hair dryer -- all of the hotels had hair dryers, but some of them were not very powerful and most were permanently mounted in the bathrooms, so I couldn't dry my hair in the bedroom if the bathroom or shower was being used. I was fine without my own hair dryer, but I think having a small one would have been more convenient.
Posted by
New York, NY, USA
11294 posts
Thanks for the explanation!
Posted by
Last Frontier aka Alaska 🏔️
3561 posts
Having very thick hair, I bring my own hair dryer! The ones supplied are not very powerful and would take too much of my time! Also, like the OP said, you can’t use in another atea since most are mounted to wall.
Posted by
Northern Minnesota
773 posts
In our Varenna hotel, II wondered why and what housekeeping was vacuuming at 8:30 pm. It went on and on, and I hadn't noticed any carpeting in the hotel. The next day I realized someone in another room was drying her/his hair.
Thanks for the report! I will also bring an umbrella next time (live and learn)!
Posted by
Iowa City, Iowa US
4 posts
We are leaving for our Heart of Italy tour in a week.
Did the tour include tickets for climbing Brunelleschi‘s dome?
Or should I purchase tickets and reserve a time for our free time?
Thanks,
Sheryl
Posted by
OP
Philadelphia, PA
8 posts
Dome tickets were not included, so you will need to purchase a few days ahead of your visit or sooner if you know when you will have free time. We waited until we were in Florence and they were sold out. HAVE A GREAT TRIP!
Posted by
61 posts
Thanks for the positive report. We are going on that tour starting September 9, 2018. Now, thanks to you, we are super excited to take this trip:)!
Did you get into St. Peters through the back door or did you have to stand in the security line? I heard it is hit or miss if the guards let you slip in.
Thanks.
Posted by
OP
Philadelphia, PA
8 posts
We had to pass through security at several places, but we didn't encounter long lines anywhere that I remember. Our tour guide had everything in place and we walked right past most long lines. We were there in mid-May, so it might be more crowded now that summer season has arrived. Maybe it is a little less crowded in mid-sept too. I would go on this very same trip again in an instant. I HOPE YOU HAVE A FANTASTIC TRIP!