Am I dreaming or is this possible? - Family vacation in Emilia Romagna
May 2nd, 2012, 03:45 PM
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Am I dreaming or is this possible? - Family vacation in Emilia Romagna
With a momentous anniversary approaching we are thinking about traveling with our kids and grandkids to Italy and renting a house or "villa" for about 10 days. Grandkids (three of them) would be between the ages of six and thirteen and our kids have said a pool is essential for the summertime. For a variety of reasons we think that Emilia Romagna offers a great location and variety of things to do. The food, the scenery, the nearby options (Verona, Ravenna, Parma, Bologna, etc.) would allow day trips by train or car. It is challenging to find villas in this region - it seems like villa rentals mean Tuscany to most. Am I dreaming? If not, what's the best way to locate a place to rent with four bedrooms, two baths, convenient kitchen and great location? I'd appreciate any help that you can provide.
Years ago we stayed at an agriturismo near Monte San Savino that was perfect - but the location would not be right for this vacation with our varied priorities...
Years ago we stayed at an agriturismo near Monte San Savino that was perfect - but the location would not be right for this vacation with our varied priorities...
May 2nd, 2012, 03:52 PM
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I don't know where you have looked so far, but try rentvillas.com and VRBO.com. Also check ItalyPerfect.com. I seem to remember they had some villas. You could also look near Lucca, which is on the train line and within easy driving distance of the west coast as well as Florence and Chianti.
May 3rd, 2012, 06:29 AM
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I'm getting into the spirit of what sounds like a fabulous idea; found these, and there are a few others in the TripAdvisor rental pages:
http://www.tripadvisor.com/VacationR...na.html#photos
http://www.tripadvisor.com/VacationR...a_Romagna.html
http://www.tripadvisor.com/VacationR...a_Romagna.html
http://www.tripadvisor.com/VacationR...na.html#photos
http://www.tripadvisor.com/VacationR...a_Romagna.html
http://www.tripadvisor.com/VacationR...a_Romagna.html
May 3rd, 2012, 06:35 AM
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Also look at www.slowtrav.com for reviews of villas and villa-renting agencies for this area. And there's a few listings on VRBO.
May 3rd, 2012, 11:15 AM
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ekscrunchy,
Thanks for pointing me to the TripAdvisor reviews - didn't think of looking there for some odd reason! I will pursue with new enthusiasm!
Your ROME..Trip report with emphasis on food..January 2007 is such a classic and was part of my planning for several years! Now I need to look at some of your other reports for other treasures.
Thanks for pointing me to the TripAdvisor reviews - didn't think of looking there for some odd reason! I will pursue with new enthusiasm!
Your ROME..Trip report with emphasis on food..January 2007 is such a classic and was part of my planning for several years! Now I need to look at some of your other reports for other treasures.
Apr 27th, 2014, 02:03 PM
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Just thought I would report back - two years after this topic first appeared. We are closer to the momentous anniversary and plans are actually falling into place.
We are renting a house in Varenna on Lake Como for three nights - deposit done. It will be our third time in Varenna so that will be an easy time. Son and grandsons want to see the villa where a Star Wars episode was filmed so we will return there. Daughter and granddaughter will like the alleys and scenic aspect of Varenna. I wonder if we will still be able to walk to the castle ruins?
Next we will train to Bologna, pick up two cars and drive to the villa we have made deposit for one week. Special thanks to ekscrunchy since we ended up at her third suggestion. Can't thank you enough for that one. It's costly but once everyone saw its features nothing else came close. We are now researching the various options for food tours and fancy cars tours. Everyone insists on having days to just enjoy the pool and house - - maybe a cooking lesson in the great kitchen?
Our final stop is Venice where we have reserved an apartment in the middle of the city for three nights. It will be hot and crowded, but that's what Venice is during the summer. We plan to escape the city and visit Burano and Murano but I bet they will also be hot and crowded! After that we will fly our separate ways but first the not-newlyweds-anymore will go to Naples to finally visit the Archeological Museum that has been closed on our three previous stops (all on Tuesdays) in Naples. Talk about hot and crowded!!!
That should do it. All this happens in June/July 2015 so we still have plenty of time to work out the details for flights, car rentals and activities! I welcome any suggestions or comments to make this memorable event even more so! Thanks again, ekscrunchy!
We are renting a house in Varenna on Lake Como for three nights - deposit done. It will be our third time in Varenna so that will be an easy time. Son and grandsons want to see the villa where a Star Wars episode was filmed so we will return there. Daughter and granddaughter will like the alleys and scenic aspect of Varenna. I wonder if we will still be able to walk to the castle ruins?
Next we will train to Bologna, pick up two cars and drive to the villa we have made deposit for one week. Special thanks to ekscrunchy since we ended up at her third suggestion. Can't thank you enough for that one. It's costly but once everyone saw its features nothing else came close. We are now researching the various options for food tours and fancy cars tours. Everyone insists on having days to just enjoy the pool and house - - maybe a cooking lesson in the great kitchen?
Our final stop is Venice where we have reserved an apartment in the middle of the city for three nights. It will be hot and crowded, but that's what Venice is during the summer. We plan to escape the city and visit Burano and Murano but I bet they will also be hot and crowded! After that we will fly our separate ways but first the not-newlyweds-anymore will go to Naples to finally visit the Archeological Museum that has been closed on our three previous stops (all on Tuesdays) in Naples. Talk about hot and crowded!!!
That should do it. All this happens in June/July 2015 so we still have plenty of time to work out the details for flights, car rentals and activities! I welcome any suggestions or comments to make this memorable event even more so! Thanks again, ekscrunchy!
Jul 17th, 2015, 08:06 PM
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So I started this thread in May 2012 about our family trip to Italy in June/July 2015 that has just concluded. Along the way I posted a query every now and then, and also gleaned much useful information from other threads. Sometimes I lost the forest for the trees by focusing on minor details and forgetting about the real purpose of the trip. Our goal was to spend two weeks traveling together and enjoying our time together as much or more than we needed the destinations or attractions. We successfully met our goal thanks to help from the forum and also our willingness to adjust our plans as needed. Initially we planned something every day but fortunately we left many of those plans behind.
Three days in Varenna on Lake Como was intended to recover from jet lag. We did just that but we also climbed to the Vezio castle ruins and took the ferry to Lenno for a visit to the "Star Wars Villa". The rest of the time was wandering through Varenna or relaxing on the patios and terraces of Villa Varenna where we occupied four B*B rooms. It was perfect.
Next was a week at a villa (Il Castello della Collina) which was about 30 minutes south of Castel San Pietro Terme near Bologna. It too was perfect since the accommodations were stunning and the pool and other amusements were exactly what we needed to reach our goal. Perfection did not come cheap but it was worth every penny. We did a few short excursions to Bologna to see the Escher exhibit, to Ravenna, to Dozza, and the water park nearby. The rest of the time we lounged by the pool or found a quiet corner to read, nap or knit! We had a wonderful pasta making lesson and then a chef prepared dinner at the villa to mark our 50th anniversary.
We were then off to Venice for three days since our younger grandson wanted to go to the "place with all the water." It was crowded, hot, and a real change of pace. We went to Burano, visited Piazza San Marco early one morning with "Skip the Line" tickets to the basilica, took a gondola ride, actually in two separate gondolas since there were eight of us, and a wonderful Context Travel walking tour covering "Every Day Life in Venice" - perfectly paced and geared to adults and grandkids. We went up the campanile on Maggiore and splurged at Caffe Florian. Other than that we rode the vaporetti and wandered the calle. Another perfect experience at the Ca de L'Oca apartment near Ca'd'Oro vaporetto stop.
We stopped in Milan for one night so we could walk on the roof terraces at the Duomo. Did not try to do much of anything else except swim in the Hotel Galles pool and have a great final dinner at Alba D'Oro.
We pre-purchased all the train tickets (no validation required), bought the vaporetto passes online, ordered the tickets for Escher, Duomo and Basilica online to make each destination easier to manage. We had a private driver pick us up at MXP and deliver us to Varenna and another one from the Milan hotel to MXP for the departure flight. Yes, it was not cheap, but perfection is never cheap. Sure, we missed most of the published "must sees" but we were happy with what we did experience and we geared our activities to how the kids were reacting and not someone's list of 10 top things to do. The 90 degree temps also impacted us.
Now we need to start planning for the next milestone event in our lives! Thanks for your help.
Three days in Varenna on Lake Como was intended to recover from jet lag. We did just that but we also climbed to the Vezio castle ruins and took the ferry to Lenno for a visit to the "Star Wars Villa". The rest of the time was wandering through Varenna or relaxing on the patios and terraces of Villa Varenna where we occupied four B*B rooms. It was perfect.
Next was a week at a villa (Il Castello della Collina) which was about 30 minutes south of Castel San Pietro Terme near Bologna. It too was perfect since the accommodations were stunning and the pool and other amusements were exactly what we needed to reach our goal. Perfection did not come cheap but it was worth every penny. We did a few short excursions to Bologna to see the Escher exhibit, to Ravenna, to Dozza, and the water park nearby. The rest of the time we lounged by the pool or found a quiet corner to read, nap or knit! We had a wonderful pasta making lesson and then a chef prepared dinner at the villa to mark our 50th anniversary.
We were then off to Venice for three days since our younger grandson wanted to go to the "place with all the water." It was crowded, hot, and a real change of pace. We went to Burano, visited Piazza San Marco early one morning with "Skip the Line" tickets to the basilica, took a gondola ride, actually in two separate gondolas since there were eight of us, and a wonderful Context Travel walking tour covering "Every Day Life in Venice" - perfectly paced and geared to adults and grandkids. We went up the campanile on Maggiore and splurged at Caffe Florian. Other than that we rode the vaporetti and wandered the calle. Another perfect experience at the Ca de L'Oca apartment near Ca'd'Oro vaporetto stop.
We stopped in Milan for one night so we could walk on the roof terraces at the Duomo. Did not try to do much of anything else except swim in the Hotel Galles pool and have a great final dinner at Alba D'Oro.
We pre-purchased all the train tickets (no validation required), bought the vaporetto passes online, ordered the tickets for Escher, Duomo and Basilica online to make each destination easier to manage. We had a private driver pick us up at MXP and deliver us to Varenna and another one from the Milan hotel to MXP for the departure flight. Yes, it was not cheap, but perfection is never cheap. Sure, we missed most of the published "must sees" but we were happy with what we did experience and we geared our activities to how the kids were reacting and not someone's list of 10 top things to do. The 90 degree temps also impacted us.
Now we need to start planning for the next milestone event in our lives! Thanks for your help.
Jul 18th, 2015, 01:15 AM
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Interesting -- you must be one of the few non-Italians ever to vacation in that part of Emilia-Romagna, which is a very tranquil area, rather deeply sleepy in feeling. Looks like you got out just ahead of the heat!
Jul 18th, 2015, 07:25 AM
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I beg to differ on the idea of insulting Villa Balbianello. In the eyes of my grandsons not much competes with Star Wars; they hold it in the highest regard! Furthermore, my son and husband happen to share that opinion and we will all continue to refer to the villa as the "Star Wars Villa." To each his own!
Jul 18th, 2015, 08:34 AM
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jeep61
it is pretty sad if you relate such a historic and iconic location exclusively with a film.
what about the White House - you think exclusively about the film Independence Day.
sad, sad, sad
it is pretty sad if you relate such a historic and iconic location exclusively with a film.
what about the White House - you think exclusively about the film Independence Day.
sad, sad, sad
Jul 18th, 2015, 10:15 AM
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Oh, I don't know. I think of the historic hotel in the Lido whose name I forget where Death in Venice was filmed as the Death of Venice hotel. I think of the grand hotel where Fellini used to hang out in Rimini (and which he used as a film location) as the Fellini hotel. I think of Fiesole mainly in the context of Room with a View. I think of Shakespeare when I see all the balconies in Verona, even though it is disputed that Shakespeare ever saw them.
Geez, I think of Russell Crowe when I see the Colosseo (plus both versions of Ben Hur). And I think of La Grande Bellezza when I cross the bridges of the Tiber.
It doesn't matter where I go in the world -- London, Paris, New York, Vienna -- I am often reminded of movies that used the world's icons of architectural to great effect. There is nothing wrong or "sad" about that. The ability to make associations and find relationships that transcend time and space and have personal meaning as well as collective is a sign of a flexible brain.
Someday go to the museum of cinema in Torino and learn about the power of movies in international culture.
Geez, I think of Russell Crowe when I see the Colosseo (plus both versions of Ben Hur). And I think of La Grande Bellezza when I cross the bridges of the Tiber.
It doesn't matter where I go in the world -- London, Paris, New York, Vienna -- I am often reminded of movies that used the world's icons of architectural to great effect. There is nothing wrong or "sad" about that. The ability to make associations and find relationships that transcend time and space and have personal meaning as well as collective is a sign of a flexible brain.
Someday go to the museum of cinema in Torino and learn about the power of movies in international culture.
Jul 18th, 2015, 10:18 AM
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Even FAI treasures the cinema history of the villa:
http://www.visitfai.it/villadelbalbi...lla-nel-cinema
http://www.visitfai.it/villadelbalbi...lla-nel-cinema
Jul 18th, 2015, 11:08 AM
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sandralist - Room with a View - the apartment was not in Fiesole but on the Lungarno.
Regarding various locations and their connections with films I recall the film The Thomas Crown Affair. There was a class of school children looking at a Monet and they only showed interest when the teacher said that the painting was worth USD 100 million.
References to films etc should only be used as way to educate children as to the history and culture of the country and city they are visiting.
If for adults ....
Regarding various locations and their connections with films I recall the film The Thomas Crown Affair. There was a class of school children looking at a Monet and they only showed interest when the teacher said that the painting was worth USD 100 million.
References to films etc should only be used as way to educate children as to the history and culture of the country and city they are visiting.
If for adults ....
