Fodor's Travel Talk Forums - Helpful Information: Italy 2

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SITA has changed it web layout.

SITA bus schedules are at http://tinyurl.com/b9mja

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Wagon Wheels in Southern Tuscany - Planning Your Days: http://www.slowtrav.com/italy/tuscany/hs_planning.htm

Italy Trip Report:
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threadselect.jsp?fid=2

gotta get on this train! thanks.

Best Views in Italy: 2nd attempt

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34684413

Not sure why I'm having such a hard time posting links. One oops after another. Sorry Fodorites. I'll keep practicing.

Hi All,

You might find the new RomaPass useful.
You get free admission to 2 museums, free rides on public transport in Rome, and discounts at other museums, etc.

18E for 3 days.

See http://www.romapass.it/index_en.html

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Useful advice for Marozzi Bus.

See http://fodors.com/forums/threadselec...p;tid=34803782

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Hydrofoil from Naples to Sorrento

Steve_James
Date: 05/19/2006, 04:54 am

....hydrofoils are not very frequent, currently:

09.00 - 11.00 - 13.05 - 15.00 ...

For details see:
http://www.consorziolmp.it
(Click LMP)

Fare: € 8.50

You can reach the dock (- Molo Beverello) by tram No.1 or bus 3S from Piazza Garibaldi.

The bus/tram stops are on the far side of Piazza Garibaldi (- near Garibaldi monument).

Get tickets in advance (- from ANM kiosk in piazza) - and validate on boarding.

Hope this helps ...

Steve

Ferries on the Cinque Terre

Author: Huitres
Date: 05/20/2006, 03:47 am
The standard Cinque Terre Card includes busses, elevators, walking trails, and trains in all of the 5 towns between Levanto and La Spezia. These CT Cards are available in 1, 3, and 7 day increments and are sold at the railroad stations (tourist/ticket office) in each town. However, the Cinque Terre Card also has an add-on option (ferry boat) for 1 day's travel only for an additional fee. FYI, children and groups can get discounts on the CT Cards as well. Check out the website for more information on the CT Card: www.parconazionale5terre.it

A local boat company, 5Terre, navigates the waters in the Golfo dei Poeti, with boats leaving hourly (beg. 9:00 am until 7:00 pm, time dependent on what town you are taking a boat to/from). These boats operate from each of the 5 CT towns, going back and forth between them and also Portovenere. A RT ticket between Monterosso (the northernmost CT town) and Riomaggiore (the southernmost town) will cost you approx. 13 euros. A RT ticket between Monterosso and Portovenere (south of La Spezia, in the Golfo dei Poeti) will cost you approx. 16 euros. 5Terre also offers special excursions to see the small islands in the Golfo dei Poeti (Palmaria, Tino, Tinetto), as well as stops in the towns of Portovenere and nearby Lerici. The 5Terre boat company has an office in Monterosso (Via P. Semeria, 32) or you can walk down to the harbor in each of the towns to find the little ticket booth/office selling the boat tickets from that town to another.

Rome: Fiumicino/Leonardo di Vinci/FCO 'Leonardo Express' Train To Termini Directions, Other Options & Info

http://fodors.com/forums/threadselec...p;tid=34808734

Ferries from Naples to Capri, Sorrento and Salerno:

http://www.metrodelmare.com/inglese/home.htm

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Hotel suggestions in Rome and Venice:

Author: bardo1
Date: 07/13/2006, 08:39 am
ROME HOTELS:

budget: http://www.hotelnavona.com
moderate: http://www.albergosantachiara.com/
expensive: http://www.hotelpontesisto.it/web/
splurge: http://www.raphaelhotel.com/

VENICE HOTELS:

budget: http://www.venicelaresidenza.com/
moderate: http://www.sancassiano.it/ or http://www.casaverardo.it/site/index1.php
expensive: http://www.baglionihotels.com/
splurge: http://tinyurl.com/phh8m (Gritti Palace)

Where to find cruise ship in Venice:

http://tinyurl.com/qpwbl

Durant Imboden's Venice for Visitors http://europeforvisitors.com/venice/ http://europeforvisitors.com/venice/.../vi-sights.htm
http://www.epinions.com/content_135238291076
Michael Broderick, Venicescapes, a small guide service offering five comprehensive guided itineraries that can be shaped to your individual interests for those wanting to fully experience this magical city. Address: Castello 4954, 30122 Venezia. Phone 041-520-6361 (dial 011-39 first from U.S.) E-mail: [email protected]
Secret Gardens of Venice tour, you go to an old convent garden. It has a gallery overlooking the whole lagoon. It is amazing.
Durant Imboden's Venice for Visitors http://europeforvisitors.com/venice/

Venice Secret Gardens tour: I've been on a Secret gardens of Venice walk. You visited three gardens, two of them attached to convents. I also enjoyed the Venice Frari tour walk which had a very interesting and well-informed guide.
http://tours-italy.com/venice/secret_gardens.htm

A guide in Venice http://www.aguideinvenice.com/itinerari/itinerari.html

Venicescapes Cultural Association - reviewed http://www.epinions.com/content_135238291076

Avventure Bellissime tours ghost walk. - wasn't really a ghost walk but very entertaining walk in the company of a charming Italian man, who told us some amusing anecdotes about the city. It made a nice change for one evening - he set a cracking pace. off the beaten track through some small, quiet streets and squares which we might not otherwise have seen.
http://www.tours-italy.com/venice/ghost_walk.htm

Venice Events - really, really liked it. The guides spoke perfect English. Their boat tour was great. Then next evening, we are taking a boat tour around the place. This will be nice and refreshing after being out all day, and the tour shows you so much from the water. The boats are these adorable wooden speed boats. They even give you a cocktail. That tour starts at 5:30 pm.The first morning we are there we are going to take a walking tour of all the highlights and history of Venice. This really gives you an overview of the place. It gets you used to the geography of where everything is and shows you what you might want to go back and see in more depth. The tour is at 11:30 am. The buildings provide a lot of shade. http://www.veniceevents.com

Venicescapes: I doubt you'll find anything more intense than Michael Broderick is a genius, handsome, too. I just wish he could lighten up and have more fun. His custom-made tour books are pure works of art, the finest I've ever seen from anyone. As a collector's piece, it's worth every cent of the cost of a tour, if not more. http://www.venicescapes.org/

Walks in Venice email [email protected] for small groups, charge by the hour, most tours about 3 hours. They have set itineraries, or they will design a tour for you http://www.walksinsidevenice.com/english/introd.html

Organizes English-speaking tours around the city. Tours meet outside Thomas Cook, near the Rialto Bridge on the Grand Canal, every day except Sunday at 1000. Tours take roughly three hours. No reservations are required www.enjoyvenice.com

Venice: Samantha Durell - Venetian Travel Advisory Service
Whatever reason takes you, your family or your friends to Venice, all I can say is - don't miss Samantha. For a fascinating private tour through the back streets and canals of Venice plus an inside peek into how the Venetians live, work, play, love and even die, remember Samantha. If you are a foodie, let Samantha take you under her wing while she guides you through shopping, preparing and eating your Venetian meal in her beautiful apartment overlooking a picturesque lagoon. In addition, if you or anyone you know dreams of a fairytale wedding, or renewal of vows, Samantha can arrange every magnificent detail, including a romantic ride in a wedding gondola. Everyone who has been lucky enough to meet Samantha....even for one day, succumbs to her magic. Please....don't miss Samantha.
See page 239, Great Sleeps Italy

Buying tickets on Trenitalia

sardog10
Date: 09/03/2006, 06:04 am

Just as a follow-up, I was finally able to buy my tickets this morning! Got 3 adult and 1 youth fare for 77 euros on the 12:45 ES* from Rome to Naples. Here's a couple of things I learned along the way.

It would not allow me to use any of the discount codes, ....

Anyway, what I ended up doing was put to three adults and one youth all on one line. When it came to seat selection, I put in seat selection for the three adults, but it wouldn't take anything for the youth. I crossed my fingers and proceeded to "Buy". On the next page it assigned seats to all four of us. I had found a Eurostar seating plan at http://tinyurl.com/ooopq which let me see the seats. They weren't together, so I went back to the previous page and tried again. It gave us different seats, but still not what I wanted. It then locked me out for 15 minutes but the third time was lucky and I got four seats together.

When it came to paying for them I had problems with it accepting the American Express number. I remembered seeing a post on here about putting in the number in sets of four digits with a space in between and that worked.