Planning our Honeymoon

Old Jul 15th, 2015, 07:28 AM
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Planning our Honeymoon

Hi everyone,

My fiancé and I are planning our 16 day honeymoon and have changed where we want to go.
I use this site often and we love hearing everyone's great suggestions.

We are looking to honeymoon July 2016,
We want to go to Positano, Day trip to Capri, Spend some time in Tuscany- we both love wine tasting and would love to spend some time in wine tasting in Chianti. He actually proposed to me at a vineyard in the North Fork. Additionally, we also would love to spend some time in Cinque Terre and Venice.
We would love any information to help us plan our honeymoon.
Thanks!!
JUESnyc is offline  
Old Jul 15th, 2015, 08:02 AM
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In order to maximize the number and "helpfulness" of the responses, it would help if you tell us;

1. Is it 16 days on the ground in Italy or 16 days from the beginning of inter-continental flight #1 to the end of inter-continental flight #2? If the latter, you only have 14 days "on the ground" and the first day may well be shot due to jet lag, etc. Many on this forum would recommend 3 stop maximum for 14 days. If you really have 16 days, your four destinations would work. You will need a car for visiting wineries, but not in Cinque Terra, Amalfi Coast or Venice.

I suggest you pencil out a draft itinerary like this:

Day 1: Leave USA.

Day 2: Arrive Naples; travel to Positano, check into hotel, walk around, eat, sleep.

Day 3-5: Explore Amalfi Coast including day trip to Capri.

Day 6: Travel to Tuscany area.

Day 7-9 Explore Tuscany

Day 10: Travel to CQ.

Day 11-12 Explore CQ.

Day 13. Travel to Venice

Day 14-15 Explore Venice

Day 16 Return to USA

By actually writing it out and leaving time for transit days, you can see how much actual tourist time is left.
Then you can post more focused questions.

2. If you want recommendations for lodging, you best say so. Tell us your budget and whether you prefer in-town, agritourism, B&B's, etc. Tuscany is not a town, but a region as is CQ. If you want recommendations regarding which town to choose to stay in, tell us something about what you are looking for and what "ambiance" you would like.

3. It is still a little early to book air travel, but be sure to look at so-called "open jaw" tickets (described as "multiple destinations" or "Mulit-city" on the travel search websites) so you can fly into Naples and out of Venice (or whatever) and will NOT need to return to Naples just to fly home.

4. TripAdvisor is an invaluable resource for finding lodging. Just take the reviews with a grain of salt and some healthy skepticism. Ignore properties with less than 10 reviews; they may all be from relatives or investors in that property.

5. Since you are limiting this trip to Italy (an EXCELLENT idea!), pick up one or more guide books solely on Italy and read them.

Congratulations on your upcoming wedding!
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Old Jul 15th, 2015, 08:05 AM
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You have 2 threads running. Not sure which is the latest. Maybe post in the older thread referring people to the latest thread.
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Old Jul 15th, 2015, 09:31 AM
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Thank you so much!! This is all really helpful and great information.
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Old Jul 15th, 2015, 10:24 AM
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IMO, that is too much moving around especially for a honeymoon, even if you have 14 days on the ground.

I wouldn't do both the AC and CT - both are seaside destinations and could be a bit redundant. Since Positano and Capri are both on your wishlist, I would choose the AC over CT. Also, Positano IMO is the most picturesque of the villages on the AC (which is why I vacation there for a week each June).

So if you cut out CT, you can add those days to your other locations, however you see fit.

If you add a few more days to Positano, you could look at renting an apartment. An apartment will give you more room to spread out, will save you money and will (usually) allow you to wash your clothes (washer included).
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Old Jul 15th, 2015, 10:55 AM
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I also wouldn't include both the AC and the CT in this trip, although I do think they are not the same type of seaside destination. I think there's more to see and do in the AC.

And while I'm not the biggest fan of Venice, I think two full days there on a first visit isn't enough time.

But to each his/her own. I could happily spend two weeks exploring just Tuscany and Umbria. Or the Dolomites.
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Old Jul 15th, 2015, 10:58 AM
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I agree with ekc, if I were you I would pick just one of the areas and go slow, but that depends on your pace and preferences.

A full itinerary including both is doable too, and the version of it proposed by zorrosf is great.
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Old Jul 15th, 2015, 11:19 AM
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All those places can easily be reached by train and or boat and bus - no need for a car - even Chianti-en-Greve is a short bus ride from Florence as are several iconic Tuscan hill towns - cars are useless in large cities with no go zones everywhere it seems and parking can be hard to find - many hotels don't offer it, etc and public transportation is so good and most are very walkable with the main sights concentrated in a compact area (except Rome) - for lots of good stuff on Italian trains check www.seat61.com - great info on discounted tickets that you can get if you book them weeks in advance; www.budgeteuropetravel.com and www.ricksteves.com.
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Old Jul 15th, 2015, 03:49 PM
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Thank you everyone!! This is great information!
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Old Jul 15th, 2015, 04:42 PM
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Well, parts of Tuscany/Chianti are "reachable" by train and bus, but you're a prisoner of schedules/timetables which usually aren't very good for sightseeing. Nothing beats having a car in Tuscany, especially if you only have a couple of days.
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Old Jul 16th, 2015, 10:56 AM
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Yes a car is better for visiting hill towns of course - you set your own schedule but I've found driving on the side roads tedious with gtrucks and camper vans, etc and parking can be hard in the towns themselves - I remember having to park well down the hills of many towns - I found it best to drive during the long lunch period - noon to 3 or so when there were few cars on the road - otherwise keep your distance expectations lower than you expect.

To just see a few hill towns use public transportation to some of the more famous like Siena or San Gimignano - but yes driving can also be fun - stopping at roadside markets, etc.
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Old Jul 16th, 2015, 11:46 AM
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If visiting Venice, Definitely skip CT, because the train ride takes 5-6 hours.
Also you add an hour on either end when changing hotels.
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Old Jul 17th, 2015, 10:21 AM
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Hi All-
Since we got such great help we wanted to ask a few more questions. We have changed around our trip and wanted to see if this plan makes sense- of we are spending enough time in each place.

This is what we are looking at now:
Day 1: Leave USA
Day 2: Arrive Naples; Travel to Positano, check into hotel, walk around, eat, sleep
Day 3-7: Explore Amalfi Coast including a day trip to Capri, Sorrento, Rivello
Day 8: Travel to Tuscany Area
Day 9-13 Explore Tuscany and include a day trip wine tasting in Chianti Region, other wine regions to explore
Day 14: Travel to Venice
Day 15: Explore Venice
Day 16 : Return to USA

The questions we have are:
1) Is spending 1 day in Venice enough?
2) Does Positano, AC area, Tuscany have any nightlife? My fiancé and I are 31 and 35 and definitely enjoy some nightlife besides dinner.
3) We love to relax by the beach/pool. Are these destinations more pool places rather than the beach? I hear the beaches are very rocky.

Looking forward to hearing from everyone!
Thanks so much for all your help!
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Old Jul 17th, 2015, 10:49 AM
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1. Most people here will say "probably not." Minimum three days. That said, I try avoid Venice in midsummer -- just too crowded for me -- but I understand you gotta do what you gotta do.

2. I honestly don't have a lot of experience on this. Positano has lots of beachfront cafes, restaurants, etc. One popular spot on the water is called L'alternativa, I think. And there are a few others. In Tuscany, you're talking about a lot of small towns that are busy with tourists during the day but kind of slow at night. You may have to venture into Pisa or Florence for real nightlife. Others may have better ideas.

3. I always tell people, if you're going to Italy for the beaches, don't go to Italy. There's just nothing extraordinary about them, and some indeed are rocky/pebbly. They're OK for lounging, but a poolside place that overlooks the ocean may be better.
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Old Jul 17th, 2015, 02:10 PM
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Thank you so much- this information is really helpful!
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Old Aug 29th, 2015, 09:50 AM
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Hi All,

We have changed our honeymoon plans around a little and would LOVE your help!

We are going to spend 5 night in Capri, 5 nights in Positano, 4 nights in Tuscany. We want to take day trips to Pompeii, Rivello, and Sorrento.

We are from NYC and are having trouble picking a spot to fly into that makes the most sense for our honeymoon. We would like to begin our honeymoon in Capri. We are not sure if we should fly into Pisa or Rome- and from there we will take the hydrofoil to Capri.

Does anyone have feedback which place is easier to pickup the hydrofoil from?

Thanks!!
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Old Aug 29th, 2015, 11:45 AM
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I think your new plan makes much more sense for a honeymoon. HOWEVER, you can't take a hydrofoil from either Rome or Pisa. Your best bet is to fly into Rome, take the train to Naples and take a ferry from there to Capri then travel from Capri to Positano.
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Old Aug 29th, 2015, 01:17 PM
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You can fly into Rome or NAPLES, which is closer to Capri and the Amalfi Coast. Then take the ferry from Naples to Capri.

However, if you're both wine aficionados, I think I'd balance the trip between Capri/Positano/Amalfi and Tuscany.

And if you're planning day trips, those will be from Positano, not Capri, so you need more time in Positano.

So I'd do:

4NT Capri
4NT Positano
1 day, get a driver for a day trip to Sorrento, Pompeii, and back
1 day, go up to Ravello in the afternoon, enjoy the sights, have dinner there
6NT Tuscany

You could fly back from either FLR or Rome. Check out open-jaw flight possibilities.
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Old Aug 29th, 2015, 05:30 PM
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I really like travel horizons suggested itinerary. It's almost exactly what I would do for a honeymoon having visited both areas twice. The only tweak would depend on how much relaxing on Capri you want versus sightseeing.

If you feel you can use a couple days by the pool on Capri before you do a little sightseeing and boating, perfect. If you would rather have a couple more days to visit Paestum and Naples with the Arch museum, then perhaps take 1 or 2 days from Capri to allow time for more AC area sightseeing.

If staying on Capri for 4 or more days, I would seek out the quietest lodging possible. Hoards of sightseers day trip to Capri. I don't think you want to be two of them on this trip.
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Old Aug 31st, 2015, 10:22 AM
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I though Ischia, an island near Capri, was just as or more interesting than Capri and gets far fewer foreign tourists - maybe 2 days in each.
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