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2 weeks in Italy...any and all comments welcome

2 weeks in Italy...any and all comments welcome

Old May 26th, 2006, 05:54 AM
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sylvie80
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2 weeks in Italy...any and all comments welcome

I have been planning a 2 week (well, really 13 day) trip to Italy, and look forward to posting my trip report when I return.

FYI, we are a couple in our mid-twenties, on a budget, though we have enough for the occasional splurge. So, here is the itinerary, which I put together with the great advice on this board. I will try not to repeat too many of the questions I've seen before. And thanks so much for the restaurant suggestions I received in a previous post.

One additional question regarding restaurants in Italy, while I was in Paris I found that avoiding restaurants with English menus, or even translations, lead to 7 days of wonderful restaurant experiences--does this hold true in Italy?

Day 1&2: Venice--Italy plays one of their world cup matches while we are in Venice. Will it be fairly easy to find a place to watch the game with Italian fans? Any suggestions?

Days 3&4: Florence--there is so much to do in only two days!

Day 5: train to Naples, Circumvensia train to Sorrento, Sita bus to our hotel in Atrani. Is there a better way to get to Atrani from Florence? Will the Sita bus go from Sorrento to Atrani or will we have to change to second bus or walk from Amalfi?

Days 6&7: Atrani and Amalfi coast. Right now I think we will just stick to Postiano, Ravello and Amalfi.

Day 8: Capri (overnight)

Days 9: We are planning on leaving Capri in the morning for Sorrento, taking the Circumvensia train to Pompeii, leaving our bags and touring for a few hours, then taking the train to Naples and then to Rome. Is this do-able/advisable? Is there a better way to work Pompeii into our trip?

Days 10-13: Roma We rented a studio apartment in Trastevere off of Piazza Santa Maria. Hopefully four full days will be enough in Rome, though I'm sure we will return--I'll be sure to throw a coin in the Trevi just in case...
Has anyone used the Blue Guide for sights in Rome? I have also seen the Oxford Archaeological Guide recommended.

In addition, I am currently reading---The Dark Heart of Italy by Tobias Jones, which I highly recommend.


 
Old May 26th, 2006, 06:11 AM
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I'll bite off a small piece, and I'm sure others will be able to fill in the rest.
-- The no-English restaurant idea is generally a good one. Of course, there are exceptions. As you noted, there are some good restauant suggestions on this board.
-- Two days in Florence can be a little tight, depending on your interests. It's a great city for walking around, which takes time as well as energy.
-- I'd say 4 days in Rome is about right.
Good luck and have fun.
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Old May 26th, 2006, 06:30 AM
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On the other hand, some very good restaurants in Italy also provide English menu translations. I just use the rule to walk at least five minutes away from any major tourist sight in Rome and Florence (10 minutes in Venice), and you're sure to find a good choice.

I'm not exactly sure where Atrani is along the coast, but it might be better for you to take the train past Naples to Salerno and then connect by bus or boat to Atrani from there.

Sounds like a nice trip.
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Old May 26th, 2006, 08:35 AM
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Hi Sylvie,

You plans sound just great! Day 9 from Capri - Pompeii - Rome will be a long one, but you're doing it in the best way possible. Be sure to take the very earliest boat you can from Capri because just getting to Pompeii from Capri will probably take you at least 2 hours.

Be sure to get a special, free ticket for the Suburban Baths in Pompeii at the ticket window. Very interesting and newly excavated.

Buon viaggio!
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Old May 26th, 2006, 09:54 AM
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www.lacalcina.com is my recommendation for a Venice hotel. All the rooms are nice so I wouldn't pay extra for a canal view, and breakfast is included.
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Old May 26th, 2006, 10:01 AM
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I would suggest making your museum reservations for the Uffizi and the Academie ahead of time. You can see them both on one day easily.

Also, maybe map out in advance certain shops you want to see. Two days is tight, but three can be a bit too much as well.

have a great time!
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Old May 26th, 2006, 10:14 AM
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Although I usually agree with the "no English" menu rule, we actually had our best meal in Venice at a place with English translations on the menu called La Rivista. It was late and nothing else was serving dinner, so we took a shot. It was definitely not touristy and the food was amazingly gourmet. We lucked out!

http://www.capisanihotel.it/sections/rivista/food.asp
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Old May 27th, 2006, 08:58 AM
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I generally agree about avoiding restaurants with english translations, though they can surprise you. Worse than those are the ones with three or four languages - avoid at all costs!
I have another rule- stay away from restaurants that have peolpe outside to ask you in - no restaurant that attracts the locals needs such an inducement, and it will be full of tourists.
That said, we broke our rule at easter in Rome - Tivoli to be exact - when all the restaurants we could see in the middl;e of town were full, this waiter appeared in front of us and invited us to his restaurant "just 50 metres away". As we were pretty desperate we followed him, and after about 200 metres we found ourselves on a lovely terrace with quite a few locals, and had a lovely meal from a short hand-written menu that changed daily. THey were a bit off the beated track so had to employ someone to entice the tourists - the local already knew about it! Rules are made to be broken!
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Old May 27th, 2006, 09:51 AM
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Avoid restaurants that

are immediately adjacent to tourist attractions

have menus in mutiple languages - the more languages the worse the food

at all costs avoid those that have menus with pictures

And overall - I would do fewer places in so few days. For me you need at least 6 nights (5 days) in Rome and 4 nights in Venice and Florence. We make it a rule never to do less than 2 nights in any hotel - and to do no less than 4 unless it's a really tiny place (and then we usually stay in one place and do day trips). Otherwise you just spend too much time packing/unpacking, checking in and out, finding the hotel, dealing with car/transport and enroute rather than doing stuff.
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Old May 27th, 2006, 12:43 PM
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>I have another rule- stay away from restaurants that have peolpe outside to ask you in - no restaurant that attracts the locals needs such an inducement, and it will be full of tourists.<

On one of our visits to Paris, we stopped outside a small restaurant to look at the menu.

The owner, an Italian, threw open the door and practically dragged us in, exclaiming over and over, "I give you good dinner. You will like".

It was a good dinner. We did like. We were the only customers.

Unfortunately, they weren't in business on our next visit.


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Old Jun 12th, 2006, 12:32 PM
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sylvie80
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Thanks everyone for their suggestions.

The restaurant 'rule' is definently a general one, and it was nice to hear of the wonderful exceptions.

Our trip is a bit 'whirlwind' but this is my fourth time to Italy, (first time in Amalfi, and first time being able to afford real restaurants!) and I know there will be many more; my travel companion is a first-timer in Italy though and wants a preview of the highlights as an introduction.

We leave in a week, I'm so excited!
 
Old Jun 12th, 2006, 12:42 PM
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How much time do you actually have in Venice and Florence. You say that Day 3/4 are in Florence, but if that includes travel time, that'll leave at least 1/2 day less for enjoying the city.
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Old Jun 12th, 2006, 01:28 PM
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If you are going to look for restaurants with no English on the menu, be sure to get the terrific "Eating and Drinking in Italy" book by Andy Herbach and Michael Dillon. We used it constantly and it made our food choices much more adventurous.
If you want to save money on the Venice hotel so you can splurge on the food, take a look at Best Western Hotel Bologna in Mestre on the mainland. Great internet specials. 10 minutes from Mestre train station to Venice train station. We paid 80 euros vs. 150 euros for a "bargain" place on Venice proper. (Okay, now we'll get the posters who say how awful it is to stay outside of Venice!!! Just not my experience, folks.)
Vera
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Old Jun 12th, 2006, 01:35 PM
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sylvie80
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We will have in real time, 1 1/2 days in Venice, and are getting into Florence very early day three and leaving at an unknown time (prob around 12) day 5 from Florence.

Is this the all encompassing trip of a lifetime? Hardly. Its a summer romp around Italia! A taste of Venice and Florence and a whetting of appetites for further trips.

I am sorry to miss out on the wealth of advice on these boards, but what time we do have I know will be enriched because of these comments and those on other threads.
 
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