Marianne

My husband and I are thinking of going to Italy for 15 or 20 days in May or September, 1998. Do not know language, etc. Interested in seeing at least Rome, Venice, Lake Como, Amalfi Coast and open to suggestions. Would planning on our own be way to go or an organized tour? If so, what tours recommended. Not on a budget but no need to be super deluxe. Looking for help on way to go and "must see" stops.

BOB THE NAVIGATOR

Marianne, You can do it on your own, given some good
help and using the right web resources. The best
places to start are www.initaly.com and www.itwg.com
Start your homework there---it will take you hours--
and then give me a holler and perhaps I can also help. If you are resouceful there is no need to fear
independent travel. We have done it every year for
the past 10 years---including 5 trips to Italy--
and the planning is half of the fun. The exposure is
trying to do too much in too little time. Let me
know if I can help.

Nicole

I've been to Venice 3 times now and loved it each time. I'm sure you will have no problem finding info. on Venice...one book I highly recommend is "Venice and the Veneto" by Eyewitness Travel Books. It's a very thorough book on Venice and its region, with detailed street maps, info on regional food, hotels, museums, etc. As for Lake Como, I visited it for the first time last summer and stayed in Bellagio -- a beautiful village I would highly recommend. We stayed in the Hotel Belvedere there which I would also recommend -- we had a clean large room with a huge patio overlooking the Lake. Check out my personal travelogue of our trip at http://www.lunadesigns.com/travels/. There are photos, descriptions, and links to hotels. And email me if you have any questions. Have fun!

Anna Marie Foradori

Ciao, Marianne,
I am planning a trip to Milan, Italy. While checking out Fodor's, I came upon your inquiry. I have been to Italy many times and I have visited every one of the places that you have listed. Italy is wonderful, not only is it a country, it is another planet!!!
I love visiting there. My husbnd and I were in Rome in July, 1996. It was his first time there. He was like a kid! Rome is, well, Rome! nobody stops for red lights and the mopeds are all over the place!
It is absolutely beautiful, though. Most of the times that I was there, I traveled with Italians.
I just sat back and enjoyed the trip! The lake region is awesome. You should include Lake Garda. It is the largest of the lakes. the drive along the Almafi is reputed to be the most beautiful in the world; it is! It is also very dangerous to drive and very, very tiring for the driver. Watch out for the goats! I have only wonderful memories of my trips to Italy. I read about it all the time. I can tell you what to read and about all the different
travel books and where to find tons and tons of info on the www.
I must go now. By the way, Donna Leone's mysteries set in Venice are a good way to get to know Venice.
Anna Marie

Joe Lomax

Practical language advice: 1) Dove il gabinetto? (Doe-vay eel gab-in-ay-toe), Where is the bathroom? 2) the numbers to ten, 3) directions; N-S-E-W, L/R, train station, etc... 4) All the rest of your time on food: remember, if you eat you survive, and there is no place better to survive than Italy. If nothing else, get some tapes and listen to them in the car until your trip. Try to use as many Italian words as you can when talking to Italians, and link them with English words when you can't remember or do not know a word. If they talk back to you in English, feel freer to use more English words, but still try to use the Italian, unless it is clear they would rather you not. One extra suggestion on places, go to Assisi. The town has survived the earthquake, but not the bad press. This is probably the only time you will be able go to an uncrowded Assisi and the best of the Basilica of S. Francis (the Lower Basilica) is still open. There is also talk of being able to watch the restoration in progress.

Richard

Since you have the option, go in September, you don't have enough time to research your trip for a May visit. I would strongly suggest not using a
tour. My wife and I have been to Italy 6 times in the past 10 years, on bicycles and self-driving, from the Ticino to Palermo, Naples to the Gargano and we still feel there is much to see. Go to the library and bookstore, check out Fodor, Frommer, Rick Steves and of course the Michelin green guide. "Must see" is subjective, for me it's the Cinque Terre, for others Florence. Driving in Italy is no big deal, I just wouldn't do it in big cities, e.g. Rome or Naples. Driving the Amalfi coast is fun, if you enjoy DRIVING!! When she wasn't punching me and telling me to SLOW DOWN she really enjoyed the views. I'm sure you'll be getting lots of comments, I look forward to reading them. Last word, research, research, research. Bob (above) is right, planning is half the fun!

Sue

Dear Richard: I saw your reply to the Italy posting and am writing you concerning the Amalfi Coast. My husband and I are planning to go in September and I have done a lot of research regarding where I want to stay, what I want to see and some ideas of where to eat. I LOVE to research trips and have been "studying" this area for over 6 months. My question and fear though is the language (we speak no Italian) and how to get from point A to point B. I figure we would have to fly into Rome and take the train to Naples and reboard another to get to Sorrento (right?). Once in Sorrento I thought we would stay a couple of nights there using it as a base to go to Pompeii and to Capri (maybe overnight on Capri). Then want to stay in Positano a couple of nights taking in Ravello, etc. Would we rent a car or just take taxis or what to get around while staying in Positano? Next, I thought we would ferry across to Sicily for a week there and, obviously, have to rent a car there and then fly out of Palmero back to Rome and then home. Do you have any suggestions on car rentals there and how to set it up ahead of time. Another big question is trying to find decent airfare prices from Michigan to Rome. The tours are not the way I want to go, but the cost I think would much less through them versus independently. The problem with that though is that I have done so much research I am afraid I would be so disappointed with where a tour would take you and not take you. To sum up all this, would greatly appreciate help with (1) Air fare deals you would possibly know of; (2) Do we need to rent a car for Amalfi Coast; (3) Will we have a lot of difficulty with getting around not knowing the language. Thank you so much for any suggestions you can offer. Sue

Monica

Dear Sue, I read your posting. You're just like me that LOVES to research for trips. I've been doing this for several years now. You can go in May (I'm going the last 2 weeks) since you have a great itenerary already and have been researching for so long now. Also September will still be hot and crowded whereas May will be warm, but the tour season is beginning. I got my airline tickets from Air France, which were much better than the consolidators! I'm going from Dulles Intl. (Wash. D.C.) to Rome then from Milan back to Dulles Intl. PLEASE learn some Italian. I just started my languages classes (first class last night) at the local community college. It's 10 classes (last class I'll be in Italy) 1/2 on grammer and 1/2 on conversation. Otherwise get some tapes and learn the basics. You'll be appreciated more if you speak a little Italian. We'll be going to Naples (home base with my husands relatives). We'll do day trips to Capri and also drive and see the towns on the Amalfi coast. Hope this helps you! Ciao.

Sharon

Joe-thanks for the necessary language advice!! Which prompts me to ask perhaps a silly question- What bathrooms are available when touring around Venice & FLorence? Will any restaurant/business let you use their bathroom or are there public bathrooms? I remember in Paris seeing freestanding pay toilets in acouple of areas! THanks for this "essential" info!! Sharon