First time Europe travellers, my wife and I have 9 days at the end of September to get back and forth from Nice - Florence. Does anybody know wonderful places to go, towns to see, especially on the Italian side? Does anyone have a great place to stay in Nice? Any suggestions for off-the-beaten-track places kind of away from touristy stuff? Touristy stuff is fine, though. Also - we'll be hungry.
Thanks - Doug

A few years ago I dined at a small, very wonderful restaurant in Old Nice called LA CAVE. It's on Rue Francis Gallo and the fish was superb. Bon Apetit!

My husband and I travelled to europe last summer and visited several bigger cities. We are planning to go again this easter and plan to do some smaller places as well. I would suggest you do Seina which is quite close to Florence and supposed to be a beautifully preserved medieval town. We loved Venice last time. Its very charming and nothing like you've ever seen. Rome and the Vatican are excellent too, though Rome is quite spread out and takes a while to figure out where to go but Venice is easy to get around. Also, there are other smaller places like Bellagio, near lake como and Zermatt in Switzerland (near the Italian border). I was especially impressed by the posting which was a reply to a posting inquiring about Zermatt. They also have a web site which describes 4 places in Europe (including Zermatt, Bellagio, Annecy in France and Venice.)Have fun!Deepa

I have 2 suggestions for you. Stop off at the italian riviera. The famed "cinque terre" (on the train line between Genoa and La Spezia and therfore on your route) is really as beautiful as they say it is. I stopped there 9 years ago when I was 19 and never left. If you like nature,this is paradise and September is a beautiful month. The tourist have mostly gone off and the water is still very warm. If you come by Monterosso al Mare, come see me at my cafe' ,"Bar Paradiso".
Also Tuscany is gorgeous in Sept. If you can rent a car and just drive around the province of Siena to see the rolling hills and the vineyards,you'll love it. That,s where I go on vacation if I have a weekend free. Have fun !
Kate

Thank you Kate for that wonderful information. We will stop at your bar and will look you up and buy you a...what? Cinzano? Cinqueterre looks wonderful on the map, as do Sienna, Lucca, and possibly Perugia in Umbria. But there is so much to see and so little time - how many meals can we eat in only nine days? Thanks again -- Doug