missypie

I don't normally get a lot of exercise, so I've been climbing the fire stairs in my office building to try to get in better shape for our trip to Italy. When I read the description of the various towers and domes that can be climbed in Rome, Florence and Venice, there always seem to be in the neighborhood of 400 steps.

As I climb the fire stairs of my 1985 building, I've found there are 22 stairs per floor. If a tower in Italy has 440 steps, that would be the equivalent of a modern 20 story office building. I can't imagine that the ancient towers are that tall. Do the stairs have a lower rise?

I guess I'm hoping for some reassurance, becuase the most I can do in my office building is about 10 stories.

michellen

We climbed the Duomo in Florence and (I will never forget the #) it was 463 steps. They were very steep and narrow!!! This is not for someone with closterphobia. There is even a sign warning you at the ticket booth that they don't recommend it for those with heart problems. I kept looking back to see if DH was still alive and we're only 30, but it was HARD!

cassparker

I agree with the last post, if you do not like tight spaces this is not for you.

We climbed St. Peter's dome and to me it was fun but, the steps are about 2 feet wide, you are just under the skin of the dome so the inside and outside walls are curved. This requires you to walk up the stairs leaning to one side with your hand on the wall for balance.

If you take it slow it will be fine. When are you going? We were there in early July and it was very hot in the staircase. It's worth the climb....

Have fun!

HowardR

michellen is right on the mark with 463 figure. (I counted them, too!) There are places to stop and rest on the way up. Among the advantages of climbing to the top of the Florence duomo is the chance to see the magnificent artwork on the interior of the dome about halfway up. (A good resting point, as well!)
missypie, keep practicing. It's worth the effort for all the magnificent views you'll have after the climbs....to say nothing of the ego factor after each accomplishment!

wally34949

I always enjoy climbing the towers in Europe. What bothers me the most is all of the graffiti along the way. Please leave the permanent ink at home.

grsing

A lot of the steps have annoyingly short rises for at least part of the way up (the first leg of St. Peter's is definitely like that, the part you skip if you pay the extra to go up the elevator). But some are also really steep (the tower in Bologna was quite steep, and, it's not in Italy, but the town hall in Brugge is extremely steep near the top).

TheVagabondLady

I am a typical overweight, out of shape american who is also a smoker and the Duomo in Florence was too much for me not because of the steps but because I am claustrophobic, I have done the stairs at most places...so it takes me longer...but the duomo was to close for me. I kept thinking there had to be a landing soon and then panic sunk in and I just turned around and went down. I waited for my hubby on the other side and a nice old lady who had passed me was there waiting for her hubby and daughter and she told me she felt so sorry for me that if I had gone one more turn I would have been at the next level where you can decide to either continue up or go down. She said I was really only a matter of steps from that level... wish I had gone.

I have gone to the top of St. Peter's and also Notre Dame....lot of stairs...just took my time...caught my breath and trudged on.

You can do it !!!!

willit

The hardest climb I have made in Italy was the campinale of the Duomo in Florence. Steep and narrow, and the stairs at just the wrong pitch. My dearly beloved really hurt herself climbing - damaged the cartilage of her knees. She is still not 100% right 8 years later. As from the Duomo itself, the views are absolutely stunning, but had I known then what I know now, I would have stuck to the views from Fiesole and Piazza Michaelangelo.

A couple of other famous towers - although you don't mention going there.
The Torre Grossa in San Gimignano - again relatively narrow, with a ladder at the very top. In October I saw a man climbing ho must have weighed 350 pounds. He was a little "puffed" but had no problem.

The Torre del Mangia in Siena is listed as having 503 steps. Because they let you in in groups it can be very claustrophobic climbing narrow stairs with 20 other people. The better view IMO is from the panoramic point of the museo dell'opera near the Duomo - much of the climbing is done on broad staircases inside the museum, with only the final 50 steps or so being a spiral staircase.

rkkwan

The top for many of the climbs - Duomo, Campanile, St. Peter's - are just over 80 meters, or about 270 feet.

Most modern office highrises are about 15ft/floor, so it is similar to climbing 20 floors in terms of height.

[Older buildings like Empire State has lower floors, like around 12ft per, so it'd be similar to climbing 25 of that. Residental buildings or hotels also usually have lower floors.]

sandi_travelnut

The lack of a landing when climbing to the top of Duomo in Florence almost did me in. I felt like I was on a spining stair-master machine. I had to stop because I was actually getting dizzy. Oh, and I didn't have to count the steps because there was a small english boy who decided to count every step outlound from 1-463. Had there been a landing, I would have met up with him and punched him... ;-)

rkkwan

I climbed the Florence Duomo with my parents. My dad, who's very fit, took off and was way ahead. I did it slowly with my mom. About 1/3 up, there's a small platform where one can take a breather and let others pass - some old and newer tools for repairing the dome were displayed there.

Then, we stopped again at the viewing gallery, which is about 2/3 of the way up. There's very little place to stop there, but if you step to the LEFT once you get out to that gallery (the path continues to the right), a few people can stand in that dead-end to rest, and you are not blocking others.

Enjoy the fresco of the interior of the dome there, and rest well before the final climb.

In my opinion, the hardest part is the lower portion of the climb, as there are lots of spiral staircases that just keep going up and up. In the upper portion, and in the dome itself, there are more flat portions among the stairs.

enzian

I love climbing towers in Europe and it's a family joke that seek them out. My favorite is the spiral climb around the church spire in Copenhagen. However, my son advised me not to climb the Duomo because he knows I am slightly claustrophobic. We climbed Giotto's belltower (414 steps) instead, and it was fine. The views from the top were amazing.

Missiepie, to answer your question---the steps up those towers do indeed have a lower rise. Most towers list the total height someplace, and you can go by that. You are probably climbing 120 to 150 feet in ten stories in your office building, so you are close. Keep on practicing and you'll make it!

JennaZ

Many towers and domes in Europe really do take quite a bit of stamina and nerves to climb. However, typically, the resulting views are worth it.

Personally, I try to improve my fitness as much as I can before a trip. To me, extra time on the stairmaster or treadmill is small price to pay for an improved vacation experience. When you're in better shape, you have the energy to see more and do more. Obviously, this may not be possible if you have limiting health issues. However, if you are able, a European vacation is a great incentive to get in shape.

LeeParis

We did Giotto's tower (the Duomo's bell tower) rather than the Duomo climb because the lines were a little shorter. It is still a haul but the views are fabulous. It is somewhat tight going, though. Luckily, there were a couple of places where you could get off the stairs and get lovely views from the middle of the tower. I believe we could have gone back down at that point if we weren't up for the rest of the climb. We did go to the top.
I've done Notre Dame -- which has some pretty narrow stairways once you get up past those gargoyles. Did a tower at Warwick Castle and climbed St. Paul's dome in London. After that, climbing the tower at the Westerkerk in Amsterdam was almost child's play. Still, there were delightful views from up there. Not sure how much longer I can do it but the experiences were wonderful.

LeeParis

missypie

Thanks for the encouragement, everyone! When we took the kids to Paris, that's one of the things they loved - anything that could be climbed to the top of and looked out of. I skipped Sacre Coeur (my messenger bag was too heavy!) but did Notre Dame and the Arc de Triomphe.

The rest of the family gets lots of exercise - DS15 rides his bike to school several miles every day; DD13 takes 7 dance classes a week; DD10 does 13 hours a week of gymnastics; and DH does 6 hours a week on the elyptical (sp!). Only dear old mom, who spends long hours at the office supporting the lot of them, gets no exercise. I'll keep working at it and try to get in shape for the climbs. (Before the Paris trip I could do 13 floors and I did pretty well on the trip.)

ejkonz

Relax, Missypie, you will do fine. I was in Europe with my fit 20 something daughter in 2004 and we climbed EVERYTHING! I am 50 something and although not all that much overweight I am out of shape and a smoker ... and I did just fine. I discovered that being in shape doesn't mean that you can necessarily climb stairs (something about stair climbing being an "anerobic" activity ... whatever that means!) At any rate we climbed the Eiffel Tower (in stages with rests at each level), the Arc de Triumph, all over the streets of Monmarte, in cluding Sacre Coeur. We did the Duomo in Florence and St. Peter's Dome. Our final stop was London and we did the trek to the top of St. Pauls.

kraspa

Is there a tower or dome in Venice that I can climb? Have never done this before and since I will be traveling alone, would enjoy the chance.

Statia

Although you can't climb it, there is an elevator to the top of the campanile in St. Mark's Piazza for great views over Venice. You can climb to the top of the basilica, but it's not all that far up.

sandi_travelnut

Beautiful views at the top of the Venetian campenille indeed! Worth the few eruos and then some. (Have an expensive coffee at the Florian close by too)

j_999_9

You can do it the Duomo in Florence, since as others have noted there are a couple of resting places.

BTW, unless I'm mistaken, stairclimbing is defintitely an aerobic activity, so you're conditioning does matter. An anaerobic activity would be weightlifting, for instance.