We are mid 30's looking for great experiences in Italy with as little exposure to the "usual tourist sights". We are looking for the best beaches, best hip hotels, great nightclubs, restuarants(great at any price, gourmet,authentic, locals, not touristy!!!), BEACHES,(best mix of people, party, nude). Best beach town. WE want to hear great experiences.. Are only plans are to fly in and out of ROME with 14 day's to play.

ya sound more like college kids on spring break than 30-yr old adults!

fly to Jamaica or Cancun but NOT Rome bcuz ya seem more like the Hedonism resort type

&gt

Posterguru,

Your response to Uh_no_ying1 tells me that you REALLY do need a vacation...a little stressed, are you????

Go ahead....call me a little bitch too....

RE: posterguru

You'll have to excuse the negative replies - the forum doesn't see many folks who missed the local high school graduation trip to Mexico and want to play catch up in the wrong region.

Dear Luca,

Please stop advertising. Your post has nothing to do with the request.

Given the criterion you posted, I am curious as to why you would pick Italy as a destination. With no disrespect intended, I believe your need to whoop it up would be better fulfilled elsewhere. Key West comes to mind.

sounds like a perfectly valid question to me. not every traveller is a culture maven or necessarily needs to do all the "must dos" from the tour book.

if you want night life rome, milan and, to some extent, venice are your best alternatives. they roll up the streets fairly early in the major cities of tuscany (florence) and umbria (perugia).

for beaches, the italians, themselves, seem to prefer the amalfi coast altho there are some popular places on the adriatic and the italian riviera. positano would seem right up your alley in so far as it has an okay beach and some trendy nightlife.

your best bet would be to consult a map and search threads on this site vis a vis a given town.

but for god's sake don't let on that you want to have fun on your vacation!!!

subcon,
thanks for the useful reply, night life is an important part of our trip.. Seems most are happy with the tour bus, planned events, and a nice americanized hotel. We seek hotels, restuarants, and sights off the beaten path.
Thanks once again.

If you read most people's advice here on Fodors you will see that the majority are not into tours or anything more organized that walking tours. You are asking other tourists for non-touristy places remember too.

The Lido di Ostia outside of Roma is pretty lively, I got lost there one time looking for an airport hotel, and was the only American in the area it seemed. Most the the beach was covered with partying youngish people, but maybe younger than you, but try it.

Positano might be too laid back for you, why don't you look at Let's Go or one of the other college type guide books for hints of party towns, maybe Lonely Planet too.

Your best bet might be to go where no one on this board has every trod before and then you will be real adventurers.
Don't take this wrong, but if you are asking here, you will get a place where a tourist has been before.

dumas, touche and bravo for the fine riposte. My thoughts exactly.

posterguru, seriously, why DID you chose Italy? I mean, it's known for its art, architecture, landscape, not so much for its beaches and nightlife (not that those do not exist). I'd say Thailand would be a much better fit, Bangkok for the nightlife and the islands for the beaches.

Aw, come on, thirty-somethings wanna have fun, too. They have to live it up before they hit 40!

I was just reading last night about the famous photographer Tazio Secchiaroli who photographed the wild life in Italy in the 1950's and 60's. He was the original paparazzi and there were some wild parties on the Via Veneto....then.

There is still alot of fun to be had in Italy, not everyone is into museums and churches. I am sure posterguru can party with the young hip Italian crowd and have alot of fun and memories.

The question seems to be "why am I going to Rome to with expectations of night life and beaches". I have been to Rome several times over the past 3 years on business. We have been taken to quite a few of the great Landmarks, and sights by our hosts. Our next trip to Rome will be a "deal closure" for us and we are ready to celebrate. We have always had our entire trips planned for us and now it's our time...

I hear you, posterguru. Good for y'all! Sounds like a blast. That's (almost) exactly the kind of trip to Italy I'm planning. (Or it would be, if I weren't going alone and shy about clubbing by myself.) I want to learn about and meet people from a different culture in addition to catching an opera, ogling a masterpiece, or touring the Coliseum.

Let's Go and Lonely Planet are okay, but they can only take you so far. Folks like us would like to make use of the depth of knowledge of the people on this website, too!

Different strokes for different folks, people. You may like a certain type of Italian trip (food, wine, art, etc.). Bully for you. Just ignore the trolls, answer the question posterguru asked and stop sniping, for heaven's sake.

Sicula, I find your reply...

"Given the criterion you posted, I am curious as to why you would pick Italy as a destination. With no disrespect intended, I believe your need to whoop it up would be better fulfilled elsewhere. Key West comes to mind."

...very interesting.

Do you think that Italians, or other Europeans, never pick Italy as a place to "whoop it up"?

Hey, I'm on your side, posterguru! I think the best bet would be to ask some locals when you get there, they would know the latest "in" places.

Afterall, all of those young people on Vespas are rushing off to get "somewhere", just find out where and have a great trip.

Rimini and Riccione. 50 kilometers of non stop party. All ages and from points all over. Makes Ft.Lauderdale/Daytona/Cancun/ whatever look like kiddies camp. Better food too. Broad range of hotels and MASSIVE nighclubs.

If you are a little more flush (ok, a lot more), Costa Smeralda in Sardinia. Bring a yacht and start your own party or hang out at Hotel Cala di Volpe and be invited onto someone else's. The crowd here gives a whole new meaning to the word "chic" and makes you realize the so called "hip"
hotels like the Mondrian in LA etc are Disneyland by comparison. This is the real deal, not the "Wild On" crowd.

Porto Ercole worth a peak for well heeled Italians.

In Rome the "es.hotel". Molto hip. Great pool. The staff will get you into the hottest restos and nightclubs.

Milan stay at the Four Seasons and have the concierge do the rest. Just hanging out in the lobby there will be an experience i.e drop dead good looking men and woman.

The Calabrian beaches are stunning and more "local" --- you won't find anywhere near as many non-Italian tourists (OK, the Germans are everywhere). Lots of great restos.

I disagree with Positano and Venice. I mean I love both places but Positano is not that lively and Venice is packed with tourists.


Nothing wrong with your question btw. Italians enjoy a good time too (in fact, last fall in Naples I had to take my NEOPOLITAN relatives to various and sundry museums etc which they'd NEVER BEEN IN. Whereas they new where to get the best plate of seafood and the perfect pastry and which bar had the coolest jazz combo etc etc).

Have fun.

johnc,
Great insight, thanks!!

Postguru & Linds - I'll be traveling to Rome solo in Sept. I'd love to know where the fun places are. I plan on doing the tour-thing, but I'm a single woman and I want to have fun. And, fun to me includes (among other things) drinking a bit, dancing a bit, and generally whooping it up. So, please pass on the fun spots to me.

Linds - if you'll be in Rome in Sept, I'd be happy to hang out with you.

[email protected]

Oh and by the way, I'm 40 y.o.