Thanks Greg!
That is great advice that did not occur to me!
The trip is not until Sept. but a couple of the hotels I looked at already had no availabilities for those travel dates!
Are you aware of any special occasions or holidays in Italy in mid Sept??
Possibility of flying through Frankfurt on the way home (may be Oct 1 or 2 depending...?) but was not planning on staying.
thanks

Erin,

Over my 4 trips to Italy, I've used these 3 sights to study, review and book. Often I end up booking directly with the hotel as long as their cancellation policy works for me.

venere.com
booking.com
initaly.com

One thing I like about venere.com is that for the listings in Rome, you can sort by neighborhood. Extremely helpful. I haven't used venere since it was purchased by the above-mentioned.

I often use recommendations from other Fodorites, but just as often trust my own instincts - after looking at pictures, reviews, etc. In all my trips I've been very happy with my lodging choices with only 1 exception! Pretty good record.

Don't worry too much. If you do your homework, you will be fine! The planning is a big part of the fun and you will get so much more out of your trip for having done it!

The real metric to pay attention is how the special events are impacting your trip such as accommodation prices, availability, airfare, trains, etc.

If there is something major going on relevant to you, it would show up in availability/price metrics. One way to get idea, use www.booking.com, enter dates and the destination, look at the map view. If you are looking 9 months ahead and you see many central accommodations grayed out with "sold out", investigate more. Probe weeks before and weeks after to rule out if you are looking too far ahead where many accommodations display "sold out" instead of saying "not yet open for booking at www.booking.com". Of course, many charming inns are not bookable from www.booking.com, but you can get a general sense of availability picture. Look at price trend around your target dates. If your target dates show significantly higher price, it is up to you to take them or tinker with your itinerary to land there on different date. Once you hit "buy" button on airfare, much your flexibility to tinker with dates are eliminated.

What is going on inside the city of Frankfurt as a layover city is irrelevant as long as flights through FRA airport is acceptable to you. That particular airport is quite large, but I assume if you are coming from Canada, you would probably be using Air Canada + Lufthansa combinations? The Star Alliance layover at FRA is quite smooth.

Of course, it's a lot simpler to check a guide book, or the Tourist Office site for the town in question for holidays and festivals. I don't stay in the kind of hotels that host convention goers, so I don't have to worry about that. Any good guide book will tell you what times to avoid.

As noted above, if you are looking nine months ahead, then 'sold out' really means they haven't opened their bookings for that time period yet.

If you want to be sure you have some place acceptable then book something that is available but that lets you cancel (usually till a few days ahead of your stay, but read closely cause sometimes the 'best rates' are non-cancelable - even though I am a notorious cheapskate I never book those rates, I pay the few euro more to be sure I can change my mind). Then a few months before the trip look again and see if you find things that you like even better.

I always start my search with booking.com or venere, etc. They have their own reviews which are quite reliable. But then before I book I go to TripAdvisor.com and check those reviews as well.

Given that Tripadvisor has just been fined $500,000 in Italy, I would not suggest using them for a relatively new (to independent) traveller like Erin222.

The reviews on the Booking and Venere sites are at least by people who have actually stayed in the hotels. You can't write a review if you haven't book through the site. Even so Erin you have to read between the lines carefully with any reviews. Italians for example will often post a negative review if a hotel has wall to wall carpeting in the rooms (unhygenic) or lacks bidets in the bathrooms. You might find both acceptable. Americans might complain about rooms being small (common in Europe) on the other hand. Brits might complain if the restaurant doesn't serve beans on toast.

The point is that everyone has their own standards and expectations and unless you know the person writing the review, trusting strangers to suggest what YOU might like is not always going to work. Read the 'factual' points and ignore most of the 'opinion' points.

So now you have decided to go it on your own (which I applaud) and got some ideas of where to look for booking hotels etc. what about what you will do with your time.

Since you hope to make this enjoyable for your husband (having said you'll be happy no matter what), just what is it that will make him happy? What are his interests?

For EXAMPLE, if he is into cars, instead of a typical tourist day trip from Florence to a Tuscan village, a day trip to Maranello to visit the Museo Ferrari might be of more interest. The ultimate excitement for a car lover might be a chance to drive a Ferrari.

https://www.google.ca/?gfe_rd=cr&ei=...+from+florence

http://www.livitaly.com/en/tours/fer...FccRMwodWQoAcw

You've decided to go it on your own, your husband has however reluctantly agreed to go. Now the goal should be to make him glad he did. So what are his interests? Maybe some posters can give you some ideas that will get him excited about going or allow you to surprise him in a big way.

I, too, convinced an unenthusiastic husband to come to Europe a few years ago, and he loved every minute once he arrived. That said, I planned less crowded days than I would have preferred in order to keep him from getting too tired and grouchy. Even though we were only forty, he was difficult to be around if he didn't eat on schedule, etc.

Even though I was pretty sure he would enjoy the experience in the end, I felt that he should be willing to do something I wanted to do after the endless corporate dinners and gatherings of golf buddies (with wives who discuss only beach trips and recipes) I've endured for him.

So, plan your trip with consideration for him, but be sure to see and do what is important to you as well. Perhaps he will come to appreciate foreign travel, or maybe not. Either way, enjoy the trip without guilt. Marriage is, after all, a series of compromises. Each party sometimes must put aside personal preference to make the other person happy. Your happiness is clearly important to him, and I think he will love that aspect of the trip for sure.

I stand by my advice to use Trip Advisor as well as booking.com and venere.com for hotel reviews. Maybe it was the restaurant reviews that caused the problem but for hotels they are an extremely useful resource. I have been using them for at least a decade (average 2 trips to Europe per year) and find their reviews (given that you have to realize that occasionally someone is ridiculously picky and writes stupid reviews) overwhelmingly give an accurate picture. I am currently planning two trips to Italy for 2015 - 16 nights in March and 33 nights in June/July and I have been reading reviews on both booking.com and Trip Advisor and find they are remarkably similar. I read about the first twenty or so reviews (sometimes there are many more) on each site - when the majority say the same things I believe them to be true.

Thanks isabel,
I actually have been using the site venere.com and have narrowed it down to about 4 hotels in each city. Just have to show the hubby each one and decide but we have picked a date to travel Sept. now and he is getting excited about the trip so I am happy!!! Thrilled actually now that we are going at our own pace!
I like that there are reviews from actual visitors on venere and I find them very helpful with hints and advice etc!

Great news Erin! You are making progress with your planning and your husband. Keep us posted, as you are doing. We can help with refinements as you go.

I've used The Roman Guy for tours in Rome, they also have a planning service.

http://theromanguy.com/travel-planning/

The tour idea is a mere memory!!
I have spent the last week and a half studying the internet, reading valuable forums like this, watching RS videos on Italy, reading reviews etc, and I am thrilled to be planning our own independant trip of Italy!!! NO BUS TOURS FOR ME!

We are going for 10 full days and my husband is actually involved and getting excited about going in Sept! I have booked 3, what looks to be amazing hotels in Venice, Florence and Rome thanks to booking.com. What a great site!! and I am finalising my flights on Monday!!

Just looking into some day trips in Florence and Rome and figuring out the train system (it is still too soon to book this far in advance)

I cant believe that I was so intimidated by the thought of such a big trip and all the plannings that go with it!! Its actually been a blast!
Thanks all!!

Glad to hear of your progress and excitement Erin! With just 10 days for the "big 3", you may find once you get there that you don't want to leave these amazing cities for a day trip. That's OK if that is what you decide. The beauty of day trips is that they can happen on short notice and are fairly easily adjustable depending on weather, etc.

Just remember - Rome is best enjoyed in a non-rushed visit. It's a great city with endless things to see regardless of your specific interests. If you try to "do it all" in just 3 days, you might end up hating it and feeling like it's too crazy.

What has worked well for me is to plan one major high priority tour/site/whatever each day. Then be prepared with nearby other sites to enjoy if you feel like it and time allows. A high priority site would be something that requires advance ticketing/reservations (Borghese Gallery) and that is of most interest to you. A secondary site would be like a nearby church, fountain, etc. Places that are open 24 hours like fountains or churches that don't require reservations. Note that churches are often closed for several hours during the mid-day/religious holidays, or for no particular reason! Stay flexible and have a great time.

The one must do for Italy is to have gellato every day :-)

One of the joys of Rome is just seeing the world go by. In the small piazza opposite the entrance to the Pantheon there are a couple of cafes perfect for relaxing in the late afternoon. We have sat there several times with a glass of wine or campari and soda, munching the free snacks, watching both locals and tourists wander by - and a couple of times listening to glorious music from one of the nearby churches (choir practice?) before going back to the hotel to change for dinner.

You know, I travel independently on my own almost every year and this year is no exception. I've been on 3 Rick Steve's tours including Italy and enjoyed each one thoroughly. This Summer before going to France solo, I'm taking a Rick Steve's tour of Scotland and I can't wait. I love to plan my trips and I do a good job, but sometimes I want someone else to do the planning. I can't speak for other tour companies but Steve's tours are not rushed. The bus isn't crowded, nor are there long hours on the bus. Everyone is casual and there is always time on your own every day. If you don't want to do something don't, but most things you'll want to do. The average tour member is middle aged. But what I like best? Everything is arranged maximizing time. There is never a rush, yet everything happens on time. There will be MANY local guides that Steves' has discovered, places you won't normally have access to. I don't work for them I just think they have an amazing product ESPECIALLY for a first time traveler to Europe. You could easily visit all of those Italian cities on your own without a car and plan amazing sites to visit. I'm using Rick Steve's tours for Scotlamd this Summer because I know I will truly see the
country and it's people in the limited time I have. Yeah, sometimes you're on the bus early but it's rarely more than every 3rd day. Oh, and there's no shopping stops or extra fees for additional tours. And no guide tips either.

Yes, Chevre that sounds great for your visit to Scotland and I did consider the RS tour of Italy then decided against it this time but I am considering it for sure next year when I plan to take my daughter to Paris. I think RS would be perfect for that but knowing my hubby, I think what we have planned now will be perfect and yes gelato will be a daily habit I am sure!!
We are actually staying at a hotel a block or 2 from the Pantheon and I am looking forward to staying in the area. We actually now have 4 days in Rome so thought a trip to Pompeii would be amazing?? Has anyone here done the day tour there??
Sounds like Italy is so relaxed vs the rushed and frazzled lives many of us have here in North America. I think they are on to something!!

Consider Ostia Antica instead of Pompeii. It's a lot closer.

Have you been there thursdayd?? if so.... did you take a tour bus/group or catch a train there and tour it on your own??
Just looked it up.... sounds interesting!

Hi Erin, wow, I am very impressed w/ how far you have gone in planning your tour on your own! Good for you and it is fun when you decide what you want to see and do.

Rather than make the trip to Pompeii I would like to suggest you visit Ostia Antica along w/ thursdaysd recommendation. It is so much closer than the ride to Pompeii and think you would enjoy seeing.

Look at Rick Steeves website and comparisons of Pompeii and Ostia Antica. We have been to Pompeii and it is amazing to see. However, given the time you have in Rome think you would enjoy being close to Ostia Antica and if you really like it then you can plan a trip to Pompeii for some other time. Pompeii is all open and no shade trees so can get hot. Still could be hot in Sept. when you are planning to visit.

https://community.ricksteves.com/tra...r-ostia-antica

I would also like to suggest a nice tour to Ostia Antica from Rome. We have done several tours w/ AngelToursRome.com when we have been to Rome and loved them all. They did not offer the Ostia Antica tour or we would have taken that. It would be a nice boat ride to the site and you would have sufficient time to visit.

http://angeltours.eu/rome/ostia-antica-tour

https://justblitherblather.wordpress...-ostia-antica/
(has some nice slide presentation of Ostia.)

Up to you, of course, and I know you have decided not to book tours but this would be a nice relaxing way to visit there.
Otherwise you could take the train.

I will definitely visit Ostia next time we go to Rome. We love those ruins!

If your departure flight is out of Rome later in the day, you can visit Ostia Antica then as it is close to FCO.