Roman Holiday? Florentine and Tuscan , too, for that matter ....

[Circe]

I''m excited beyond words - I''m going to Italy! I''m going to be spending 4 days in Rome and 4 days in Florence, give or take (it''s ten days total, but I figure travel is going to eat a little somethin'' something''). I''ve only been to Venice before, and that was glorious, so here, I don''t even know where to start!

I know I want to do the basics, but for those of you who''ve been there - any odd, out of the way, or just plain old unmissable moments or places you''d recommend? Things the guidebooks don''t emphasize sufficiently, or that you loved SO MUCH that you just want to bring them to my attention?

P.S. - Bonus points for anybody with tips on Tuscany - I love the image of basking in the sun with a Chianti before me, but I have no idea of how to find the best place: the guidebooks are too broad, or too generic. Help!

 

[Pandora II]

Date: 4/17/2010 8:26:13 PM
Author:Circe
I''m excited beyond words - I''m going to Italy! I''m going to be spending 4 days in Rome and 4 days in Florence, give or take (it''s ten days total, but I figure travel is going to eat a little somethin'' something''). I''ve only been to Venice before, and that was glorious, so here, I don''t even know where to start!

I know I want to do the basics, but for those of you who''ve been there - any odd, out of the way, or just plain old unmissable moments or places you''d recommend? Things the guidebooks don''t emphasize sufficiently, or that you loved SO MUCH that you just want to bring them to my attention?

P.S. - Bonus points for anybody with tips on Tuscany - I love the image of basking in the sun with a Chianti before me, but I have no idea of how to find the best place: the guidebooks are too broad, or too generic. Help!

Lived there for 6 years...

Montepulciano is beautiful, also like Montalcino which has amazing wine: Brunello di Montalcino - mind you, Vin Nobile in Montepulciano is good too.

Cortona is worth a visit for the view, but is very touristy.

The thermal springs at Saturnia are fun (between Rome & Tuscany).

Arezzo which is on the main trainline from Rome is where I lived and has great frescos by Piero della Francesco. Also has some great restaurants - one I used to practically live in is Antica Osteria L''Agania. The owner is a complete nutter, but they do the most amazing tagliolini al tartufo (truffles) that I still dream about. It''s not chic like some of the other places, but the food is great.

There are loads of places... if you want to suggest places you''d like to visit I''ll see what I can recommend.

Florence I''m not a huge fan of, so can''t help a great deal there - the guidebooks will do it all anyway - but do try and eat a bisteca chianina if you can (Agania does them as well) - you only need one between two unless you have huge appetites!

 

[sba771]

For Italy in general I really recommend Rick Steves. Also, especially for Rome, go to his website and he has free audio guides that you download for an ipod or mp3 player for all the main tourist spots and they are great and save you from renting them at the sites.

 

[Circe]

Date: 4/17/2010 9:16:21 PM
Author: Pandora II

Date: 4/17/2010 8:26:13 PM

Author:Circe

I'm excited beyond words - I'm going to Italy! I'm going to be spending 4 days in Rome and 4 days in Florence, give or take (it's ten days total, but I figure travel is going to eat a little somethin' something'). I've only been to Venice before, and that was glorious, so here, I don't even know where to start!


I know I want to do the basics, but for those of you who've been there - any odd, out of the way, or just plain old unmissable moments or places you'd recommend? Things the guidebooks don't emphasize sufficiently, or that you loved SO MUCH that you just want to bring them to my attention?


P.S. - Bonus points for anybody with tips on Tuscany - I love the image of basking in the sun with a Chianti before me, but I have no idea of how to find the best place: the guidebooks are too broad, or too generic. Help!

Lived there for 6 years...

Montepulciano is beautiful, also like Montalcino which has amazing wine: Brunello di Montalcino - mind you, Vin Nobile in Montepulciano is good too.


Cortona is worth a visit for the view, but is very touristy.


The thermal springs at Saturnia are fun (between Rome & Tuscany).


Arezzo which is on the main trainline from Rome is where I lived and has great frescos by Piero della Francesco. Also has some great restaurants - one I used to practically live in is Antica Osteria L'Agania. The owner is a complete nutter, but they do the most amazing tagliolini al tartufo (truffles) that I still dream about. It's not chic like some of the other places, but the food is great.


There are loads of places... if you want to suggest places you'd like to visit I'll see what I can recommend.


Florence I'm not a huge fan of, so can't help a great deal there - the guidebooks will do it all anyway - but do try and eat a bisteca chianina if you can (Agania does them as well) - you only need one between two unless you have huge appetites!

Pandora, you're a treasure! These are all valuable tips. The trip came on so suddenly (seriously, we bought our tickets two weeks in advance because of a business opportunity) that I'm depressingly vague about what I want to see. I have the mental image, but I'm depending almost entirely on what I can glean from the guides ... and a little help from my friends. All of these are going on the list, ASAP! Especially the springs, which sound mightily intriguing ....

I'll look through my guidebook tonight, and see what I can come up with, list-wise: right now, we're freaking out about finding a hotel in Rome! Everything is either right on top of the train station or just plain depressing ....

 

[Circe]

Date: 4/18/2010 7:24:20 AM
Author: sba771
For Italy in general I really recommend Rick Steves. Also, especially for Rome, go to his website and he has free audio guides that you download for an ipod or mp3 player for all the main tourist spots and they are great and save you from renting them at the sites.

Oh, excellent! Thank you - I always feel vaguely taken when I go for the on-site guides, so this saves me having to schlep 14 thousand travel books along. Much appreciated! Any sites in particular you adored?

 

[winternight]

For Rome, buy tickets in advance for the Galleria Borghese, a fantastic musuem. Rick Steve''s mentions it. Really world class and with timed tickets you don''t get crowded in there.

My favorite place to stay in Rome is by the Spanish Steps. Favorite restaurant by far was Gabrielo''s (also in Rick Steve''s). We ate there twice. Try the clams in white wine sauce.

Have gellato, every day if possible. I liked the one by the Trevi fountain for more unusual and seasonal options.

Rome''s airport has great duty free, Hermes, Gucci, Lora Piana, etc.

Get tickets for Vatician City if you go --- that is pay for the guided tour that keeps you from waiting in line for hours. Also, you get alot more information, well worth it in my opinion.

I personally thought the Carpathian? sp? Monk crypt was surreal, not the taste of all.

By the Forum, Colloseum they have great kids maps that show an overlay of what it looked like then compared to now --- great aid in visualizing.

Sit in an open square and have an espresso at the bar with the Italians --- don''t sit down with the tourists! And enjoy!

 

[Cehrabehra]

The thing about tuscany is there weren''t any bad places lol Last year we drove from Milan to Amalfi and then up to Venice and back to Milan over 11 days and Rome was a winner in the antiquities department for sure, but Florence - ah Florence... I love that city! I thought the food was best in Florence and worst in Rome. Just SITTING at a cafe in Florence or grabbing a pizza is enough - there isn''t as much to do in Florence as in Rome, but it is the best for soaking up Italian vibes and ambiance and just sitting and being in Italy. I would do day trips to Pisa, Sienna, San Giancomo (not sure if that''s spelled correctly), and Assisi. Those smaller towns all are so wonderful! If you rent a car you can go to all of those in a day and soak.it.in. I had to see David while I was there and I''m glad I did.

In Rome make sure you take a day to go to the Vatican.

 

[Mahogany Jewel]

I''m not sure if you consider it as a basic..but you must visit the lost city of Pompeii...

 

[alli_esq]

Oh, how wonderful for you, Circe!! It''s funny, DH and I were just talking with his co-worker who is going to Italy for her honeymoon, which is just what we did for our honeymoon in November/December. It was truly the trip of a lifetime!

I agree with everything that everyone here says--one restaurant that I highly recommend in Rome is Maccherone. The cheese was outstanding, and they might have had the best pasta I have ever eaten. Drink lots of Limoncello (if you drink!) eeeverywhere

Some of our favorite times in Rome were just trying to get lost! It was so fun to weave in and out of those tiny streets! I LOVED the open air markets--DH made so much fun of how excited I would get when I''d see real-life Italian produce, hahaha!

I second the Rick Steves'' audio tours too--they absolutely made our trip, especially his explanation of the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, St. Peter''s Basilica, and in Florence, his Renaissance Walking Tour were so informative and gave us plenty of freedom to do our own thing while still getting a bit of an education.

For Florence, if you plan to go to the Uffizi museum, make sure that you buy tickets in advance--I believe they sell out around 2 weeks in advance.

Have a WONDERFUL trip, Circe! It was truly the best two weeks I have ever had, being in Italy!

 

[sba771]

Date: 4/19/2010 4:22:41 PM
Author: winternight
For Rome, buy tickets in advance for the Galleria Borghese, a fantastic musuem. Rick Steve''s mentions it. Really world class and with timed tickets you don''t get crowded in there.


My favorite place to stay in Rome is by the Spanish Steps. Favorite restaurant by far was Gabrielo''s (also in Rick Steve''s). We ate there twice. Try the clams in white wine sauce.


Have gellato, every day if possible. I liked the one by the Trevi fountain for more unusual and seasonal options.


Rome''s airport has great duty free, Hermes, Gucci, Lora Piana, etc.


Get tickets for Vatician City if you go --- that is pay for the guided tour that keeps you from waiting in line for hours. Also, you get alot more information, well worth it in my opinion.


I personally thought the Carpathian? sp? Monk crypt was surreal, not the taste of all.


By the Forum, Colloseum they have great kids maps that show an overlay of what it looked like then compared to now --- great aid in visualizing.


Sit in an open square and have an espresso at the bar with the Italians --- don''t sit down with the tourists! And enjoy!

Date: 4/19/2010 4:22:41 PM
Author: winternight
For Rome, buy tickets in advance for the Galleria Borghese, a fantastic musuem. Rick Steve''s mentions it. Really world class and with timed tickets you don''t get crowded in there.


My favorite place to stay in Rome is by the Spanish Steps. Favorite restaurant by far was Gabrielo''s (also in Rick Steve''s). We ate there twice. Try the clams in white wine sauce.


Have gellato, every day if possible. I liked the one by the Trevi fountain for more unusual and seasonal options.


Rome''s airport has great duty free, Hermes, Gucci, Lora Piana, etc.


Get tickets for Vatician City if you go --- that is pay for the guided tour that keeps you from waiting in line for hours. Also, you get alot more information, well worth it in my opinion.


I personally thought the Carpathian? sp? Monk crypt was surreal, not the taste of all.


By the Forum, Colloseum they have great kids maps that show an overlay of what it looked like then compared to now --- great aid in visualizing.


Sit in an open square and have an espresso at the bar with the Italians --- don''t sit down with the tourists! And enjoy!

I was just going to post all this information- so a HUGE ditto to the Vatican tours and the Borghese gallery is a must. I was a classics and art history major so I had been to both and of course loved it, but my FI who finds that stuff boring still can''t stop talking about how amazing those 2 particular sites were.

 

[Circe]

Date: 4/19/2010 4:22:41 PM
Author: winternight
For Rome, buy tickets in advance for the Galleria Borghese, a fantastic musuem. Rick Steve''s mentions it. Really world class and with timed tickets you don''t get crowded in there.


My favorite place to stay in Rome is by the Spanish Steps. Favorite restaurant by far was Gabrielo''s (also in Rick Steve''s). We ate there twice. Try the clams in white wine sauce.


Have gellato, every day if possible. I liked the one by the Trevi fountain for more unusual and seasonal options.


Rome''s airport has great duty free, Hermes, Gucci, Lora Piana, etc.


Get tickets for Vatician City if you go --- that is pay for the guided tour that keeps you from waiting in line for hours. Also, you get alot more information, well worth it in my opinion.


I personally thought the Carpathian? sp? Monk crypt was surreal, not the taste of all.


By the Forum, Colloseum they have great kids maps that show an overlay of what it looked like then compared to now --- great aid in visualizing.


Sit in an open square and have an espresso at the bar with the Italians --- don''t sit down with the tourists! And enjoy!

Such great tips - thanks you! The Galleria Borghese and the crypts are shooting to the top of my lists. The gelato, and the open square, and the glorious attitude of the dolce vita? THAT I am totally down with already!

 

[Circe]

Date: 4/20/2010 12:34:10 AM
Author: Mahogany Jewel
I''m not sure if you consider it as a basic..but you must visit the lost city of Pompeii...

YES! Very definitely a must. Thanks for reminding me to put that up at the tops of my list ....

 

[Circe]

Date: 4/19/2010 8:18:54 PM
Author: Cehrabehra
The thing about tuscany is there weren''t any bad places lol Last year we drove from Milan to Amalfi and then up to Venice and back to Milan over 11 days and Rome was a winner in the antiquities department for sure, but Florence - ah Florence... I love that city! I thought the food was best in Florence and worst in Rome. Just SITTING at a cafe in Florence or grabbing a pizza is enough - there isn''t as much to do in Florence as in Rome, but it is the best for soaking up Italian vibes and ambiance and just sitting and being in Italy. I would do day trips to Pisa, Sienna, San Giancomo (not sure if that''s spelled correctly), and Assisi. Those smaller towns all are so wonderful! If you rent a car you can go to all of those in a day and soak.it.in. I had to see David while I was there and I''m glad I did.


In Rome make sure you take a day to go to the Vatican.

I find this very reassuring! I''m a city gal, so I feel comfortable with the idea of a city, and how to explore it properly, so Rome and Florence aren''t wigging me out too badly, but I''ve been dithering about how to squeeze Tuscany in properly (which is, like, the antithesis of the experience I want to have there - NO STRESS!). So if it''s all beautiful, perhaps I''ll just hop in the rental car and cruise through the beauty ....

... but I think I''ll make note of the specific recommendation.

All in one day? Really?

 

[doodle]

If there''s any way you can make it out to the Cinque Terre, it''s GORGEOUS. One of my absolute favorites was Chiesa di Ognissanti in Florence. It''s totally not a touristy church at all, just really pretty and serene. Some art in there by Botticelli, too (and if you''re familiar with Giotto''s Madonna screen that''s at the Uffizi now, it was originally painted for Ognissanti). Really though, churches are easy targets in Italy if you''re looking for something pretty--they''re all amazing! I second the other suggestions as well, particularly the gelato. Florence is one of my all-time favorite cities--truly beautiful. Make sure you get a skyline picture with the cathedral dome! Santa Croce was a must for me, too (lot of notable people are buried within the church--Michelangelo, Galileo, Rossini, Macchiavelli, etc), and it''s pretty. Via de'' Tornabuoni is great to do some window-shopping (or real shopping if your budget is Armani friendly!). As for Rome, most of the must-sees there are more obvious tourist attractions. The colosseum, the Vatican, the Forum (go at sunset where you can take pics from Palatine Hill--beautiful, and it''ll take you all of 15 minutes to gush over it then carry on your merry way), Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore, the Pantheon (we saw it at night--I thought our guide was nuts, but it wasn''t nearly as crowded, and it was still amazing. She also said her favorite time to visit is when it''s raining because the rain coming through the oculus is really cool. Just throwing that out there. Trevi Fountain is also amazing at night), Castel Sant Angelo, etc etc. Ya know what? All iffy fiction-writing aside, Dan Brown''s Angels and Demons is a pretty good crash course in notable Italian sites, haha! Anywho, you''re going to have an AH-MAY-ZING time!!!

 

[Circe]

We''re leaving in three hours! So, to finish the list of Things to Do ....

Mahogany Jewel - Pompeii is definitely a must! Ooo, I''m excited.

Alli_esq: this is going to be our second time in Italy, and I really do think of our first visit as one of the happiest and most beautiful periods of my life. It was a week in Venice, and the whole thing is just overlaid by this glorious golden haze .... So, going off of the expertise of someone who loved Rome as much as I loved Venice, adding Maccherone to the list of must-sees, Rick Stevens, check, and soaking up the atmosphere, double-check!

Sba771 - that is good to know! I was part art history major, too, but my husband is, um, aesthetically challenged (though a huge history buff, which makes me think he should love Rome regardless). But knowing there are some compromise choices that I can''t miss that he''ll love, too ... win!

Doodle - those suggestions are awesome! Some of those hadn''t even crossed my radar: thanks so much!

Now to resume hyperventilating ... why do I freak out when I travel?

 

[Mahogany Jewel]

Have fun!! I loved Italy..I can only hope for a second trip!!