dorapets

My husband, son (15y/o) and I are doing the 9 days Italy's great cities tour with globus. We have never traveled over seas,I know it's a long flight((British Airways).We have a 2 hour layover in London(Heathrow) Does anyone have any helpful info. for me we are going in July. I have been reading all about what not to wear, I really didn't feel like buying all new cloths! Has anyone taken this tour? I'm open for any suggestions. Also my son is 15 and very excited I hope he won't be the only kid on the tour!

Grinisa

Most people on this board are independent travelers although someone might have taken a Globus tour and can tell you what it's like. Generally, tours like that have a large percentage of older people on them. July will be very hot. As for clothes, I'm not sure what you mean by the statement regarding buying new clothes. Do you mean that your summer wardrobe consists largely of shorts and sleeveless tops? If so, you should not wear those into churches. The Vatican especially has a strict dress code. You may find you are cooler in a breezy skirt anyway. Your son will likely want to wear long shorts as most boys that age do. However, he may be denied access into the Vatican wearing that. At least on that day, make sure he and your husband are in long pants.

TexasAggie

Hi dorapets,

I hope you have a wonderful first experience in Europe As the previous poster mentioned, most of the folks posting on Fodors prefer independent travel so there likely isn't going to be a lot of feedback on Globus tours here. You can always try searching by typing "Globus" into the search box at the top left area of the screen. Even if the feedback isn't specific to your specific tour, you might be able to pick up some good general info.

As for the 2 hour layover in Heathrow... personally, I wouldn't risk anything shorter than that! Transferring in Heathrow after an overnight flight has always been an adventure for me and an exercise in patience ;-)

I don't think you'll need to buy an entirely new wardrobe for your trip. As the previous poster mentioned, you will need to have shoulders covered for some of the churches. As it will be hot outside, you might consider bringing a cropped cardigan that you can slip on and off. That way you aren't sweltering all day long or stuck carrying a big, bulky wrap in your bag. Cropped cardigans are lightweight and fairly easy to find at most stores these days.

Here is a link to what I am talking about. I have similar ones in different colors and fabrics and have found them really useful for situations where you need to be covered but don't want to swelter.

http://www.us.redoute.com/clothing/S...PurchaseType=0

dorapets

Thank you for your help. I didn't know this was a site for independant travelers! I was just looking for a little help with some questions. I have read a few things and thought people were very helpful. We live in chicago and yes we wear short and sleeveless shirts, Especially in July, thats why I thought I'd better ask people who would know.
Again Thanks

TexasAggie

Hi again,

Fodors is a site for all travel-lovers It's just that most of the folks seem to engage in more independent travel than organized tours... so you might find less info on the tours than on independent trips. But regardless, there is tons of useful info for your trip!

An alternative to a skirt for the Vatican day would be capri pants in linen or cotton... they meet the modesty requirement yet aren't as heavy and stifiling as denim or khaki pants. Depending on your body type and the way you walk and a number of other factors, wearing a skirt in hot and humid weather might result in a rash on your legs from the friction of skin rubbing. Perhaps a linen skirt, or a skirt of another "breathable" fabric wouldn't cause this though?

dorapets

Thanks! I was going to ask if capri pants would be OK? What about at night, do most resturants have a dress code? From what I understand we will have a most evenings to do what we please... I looked at the site you sent and I think I will get one of those shrugs. Again thank you for being so nice.

jamikins

Welcome to fodors!

We went to Italy this Sept and my hubby and brother and even my dad loved to wear those light cargo pants that have the zip off legs. They are light and cool and allowed them to wear shorts all day, and zip on the legs when we visited churches. And the legs were easy to carry as they fold up very small.

My mom and I wore capris all the time. Most restaurants wont have a dress code. Depends on the level of restaurants you are looking at. We went in jeans almost everywhere, but if you are going somewhere really fancy you may need something more formal.

I am sure you wont have to buy a new wardrobe...work with what you have and spend your $$ on fun!

Enjoy your trip!

TexasAggie

My very first post here back in 2004 was when I was planning my honeymoon (honeymoon was in mid-June) and worrying about what to pack for my husband for our visit to the Vatican. I typed my post in a rush and it ended up being worded along these lines "are there any alternatives for my husband for our Vatican trip besides hot pants". I meant of course that pants would be hot to wear in June... but you should have seen the responses I got wondering why I'd dress my husband in hotpants ;-)

Anyway, some of the very nicest restaurants likely do have dress codes but I have never eaten at them. We normally eat at trattorias, pizzerias, or osterias (casual places with meals more in the 10-25€ per person range). We've often worn jeans and casual shirts (though not t-shirts) and have never felt out of place. Some people were more dressed up than us and there were definitely people more dressed down. On the few occasions where we have indulged in a more upscale restaurant, my husband has worn khaki pants and a button down shirt and I've worn a skirt and blouse. Again, we fit in just fine, falling somewhere in the middle of the "dress up / dress down" scale.

TexasAggie

P.S. If you can figure out what hotels in each city you will be staying at ahead of time, you can post them on Fodors and ask for restaurant suggestions in the neighborhood that are suited to your budget, degree of dressy prefs, style of food, etc.

Be sure to put the city and something like "seeking restaurant recs" in the title of your post so that it's easy for posters with knowledge about the area to see your post and respond. You'll get more results with a specific title

dorapets

Thats a great idea... the zip off pants. Thanks! Nice to know that jeans are ok also, my son will be happy, he doesn't do shorts...he's too cool for that!!

Hotpants....Nice!! Believe me with a 15 (almost)16 year old son who plays baseball and football, we won't be eating at the Fancy big $$$$ resturants. I would like to bring home a few goodies! So inexpensive meals will be just fine, pasta, pizza, salads...nothing too fancy.

dorapets

I do have a list of the hotels we're staying at, thats a great idea!! I will do that and hopefully get some ideas as to where to have some nice authentic meals.
It's nice to know that so many people are willing to be so helpful and to be just really nice.
Again TexasAggie
Thanks...

TexasAggie

Oh my gosh, absolutely! This website has contributed greatly to all the trips I have taken over the past 4 years and it's nice to be able to return the favor and help others out.

You can also look at www.tripadvisor.com for hotel reviews. Sometimes people will post notes about restaurants close to the hotel that they visited with details about the food, price, etc. So that's another resource for you to play around with as you get ready for your trip.

Do you all have your passports yet? There have been reports of long delays, so if not... you might want to get on that sooner rather than later.

A cheap snack for your teenage son will be gelato. There are many gelato stands/shops in Venice, Florence, and Rome where your tour goes. It's become a 3-a-day habit for me while in Italy... Fortunately, all the walking zeroes out the extra calories There are also produce stands and sandwich stands in most of the city centers so that is another way to get him inexpensive snacks.

kybourbon

Americans are used to AC everywhere and that won't be the case in Italy. Many restaurants, museums, churches, hotels won't have AC. The AC that is available in some facilities is not as cool as we are used to in the state. Temps can be in the upper 90's in July and it's not easy to pop in somewhere to cool off. Lightweight fabrics are important, even for your son.

lucy_d

dorapets, It sounds like a great trip. I have not traveled with Globus, but my mother has toured with them twice and had nothing but raves for the company and the tour.

As another poster suggested, you can look at hotel reviews on Trip Advisor. That's a really good idea, but if you read bad reviews, you can't change the hotel that Globus booked. I would also recommend that you google the hotel names and look at their web sites. Again, you can't change the hotel if you don't like what you see, but you can get an idea of what the hotel offers.

As for clothing, do a search on this forum, and you will find many, many threads on the subject.

I hope you and your family have a wonderful time!

letsgo39

I have traveled with Globus several times and they are an excellent company.Try the following and go to the message boards and than the Globus forum. You will be able to get specific information regarding Globus and your tour there. bb.affordabletours.com

vivi

I hope you can convince your son to wear something more lightweight than jeans in Italy in July; he will be miserably hot!

Margo_Chester

You have gotten some good wardrobe advice, so I'll adress the tour part. I have traveled with Brendan who used to partner with Globus - nothing but good experiences! We used them for Italy because we had a limited amount of time to travel and I didn't want to spend the entire vacation either driving and not trying to kill all of us, or trying to figure out the train system, my time would have been on logistics and I really just wanted to experience Italy!

Our tour leader was in a word - amazing. He wanted us to see "his" Italy and helped people get what they wanted to from the trip - he didn't push the extra excursions (if you wanted to go, great; if not, then he helped you do what you wanted to do). He helped people buy CDs in music stores, told us were the good local bars were, got 6 of us right into the Uffizi by having us join in with one of his friend's tour groups when our group didn't have enough people to do the tour because he wasn't going to let those who wanted to go miss out. There was a rock slide blocking a road on the way to Assisi and he got all of us train tickets and got us past the slide (we later crossed paths with a Perillo group who missed Assi because of the slide!) He really went out of his way. Our group was great - ages ranged from a three in their late teens to a few couples in their 70s. Everyone was made to feel welcome and we met some extremely interesting, well traveled people. It was a great experience, we had enough guided time and free time in each city and stayed long enough in each place to get a decent overview. I would not hesitate to recommend it.

nytraveler

In general adults in europe wear shots only at resorts/the beach - and not in cities. So - you can wear them if you want - but will definitely stand out as Americans.

However, the Vatican specifically requires that people be respectfully dressed to enter. This means no shorts, no sleeveless or tank tops - for either men or women. Other churches prefer the same attire - but enforcement is uneven. some places will (unhappily) let you in while others will not. In any case, locals elderly ladies arelikely to make unpleasant comments if they feel you're dressed improperly.

As other have mentioned, it wil be very hot and most places don;t have AC. So - you will be cooler in very light weight - but skirts or Capris or trousers.

More important is sturdy, waterproofed well broken in walking shoes - since you will be walking miles every day - and a good folding umbrella.

USNR

Having traveled with Globus and other tour companies (as well as independently), I can only second many of the recommendations made on this topic.

But more than those, I wish to give you a big pat on the back for including your son in your trip plans. He will see things you miss. He will notice the unusual. And things will appeal to him that completely pass you by. And he will play them all back to you once you get home. We know because we took our daughters with us when they were about that age -- and the dividends were enormous. Travel is a form of continuing education, no matter the age of the travelers.

LoveItaly

Hi dorapets, welcome to Fodor's!

If you pack capri's and a skirt or two and can pack tops that will go with your capri's and skirt(s) you will be fine. Lightweight pants and a button down shirt will sure be dressy enough for your husband at dinner. Actually that is what a lot of men wear during the day too. Nice but casual. Regarding your son, a lot of the young fellows wear those long below the knee shorts. If I were your son I wouldn't take more then one pair of jeans as I think he will find jeans will be too hot during July. But I wouldn't get in a hassle with him about it, part of travelling when young is a good learning experience.

All of you should wear good comfortable shoes as you will no doubt be doing a lot of walking including on cobblestones. I never thought of the cropped sweaters that TexasAggie mentioned. That is a very good idea! BTW, my daughter enjoys wearing sundresses when in Italy so if you have one you like throw (well fold it neatly, lol) in your suitcase.

Your son is at a fantastic age for your trip. You will be making wonderful memories you will all remember forever.