We are going to Italy in July. Have booked with the Hotel Aberdeen in Rome but have a few questions from seasoned travelers on other Italian city hotels. Please advise if it is best to stay in Sorrento for a 2 day trip to the Amalfi coast (focus is Pompeii and Paesteum). We will take the train from there to Venice. Any moderate hotel recommendations outside of Florence? We plan on three full days and hear that it is cheaper to stay outside the city (Siena?) and take the bus in each day. Same plan for Venice, although we will probably only spend one night and 1 1/2 days in Venice. <BR> <BR>Any other advise on these cities would be appreciated. Also, we are getting the Italy Rail pass. How much are supplements and if we took an overnite from Sorrento/Napoli to Venice do we need to purchase a supplement AND a sleeping pass? Thanks.

We stayed in Montecatini and bused/trained into Florence, about 30 minutes. We stayed at the hotel Biondi, nice place. It's an easy way to see Florence without the hassle. <BR>

To each his own, but I have never understood why it is considered less "hassle" to stay 30 minutes out from a city and have to catch trains or busses, be dependent upon their schedules and getting tickets, then still having to walk blocks in the city to get to the sight you were setting out to see, etc, as opposed to stepping out the door to your hotel in the city where you are focusing your attention and walking a block or two to what you want to see. To me, the least hassle is settling into a city hotel right in the heart of everything you want to see and do. Of course, I do realize that is sometimes a matter of cost, but don't forget about the cost of the bus or train tickets and the loss of valuable time waiting and taking transport. And a midnight stroll in Florence would be a lot more pleasant than catching the last bus back to the suburb and sitting in my remote hotel room at night.

I agree with Patrick on being in the city rather than being "bused in" on their schedule. On the Amalfi Coast we stayed in Positano which was lovely. Two great (but pricy) hotels that we stayed in were La Sirenuse and the San Pietro. But we did alot of walking and went in to several other beautiful 3 star type properties. Sorry, I don't remember the names, but a website could help with that. I just remember there were lots of these lovely, small hotels in Positano that I would certainly like to stay in if I ever return.

Then, for those of you that don't see the advantage to staying outside of Florence, can you recommend moderately (i.e. between $70-&100) hotels in Florence. Or is that price unreasonable. We don't need luxury - just ambiance and a decent/clean double room with bath. Thanks. <BR> <BR>Same for Venice...anyone stay on the Lido side of Venice in the same price range?

We stayed at La Tonnarella in Sorrento last year - highly recommended. All but 2 rooms look out over the Bay of Naples. We drove to both Paestum & Pompeii easily, plus there are bus & train connections in Sorrento. Others on the forum have stayed here also. Their web page is: http://www.geocities.com/HotSprings/3194/

Cindi, Philosophy is probably what you <BR>do not need at this point. Here are <BR>some facts. In Florence, try either the <BR>Casci or the Lombardi. In Venice, try <BR>the Hotel Galleria at the Accademia <BR>bridge in town or the Villa Albertina <BR>at the Lido. In Sorrento, you have good <BR>advise already---add the Lorelei.

Get Fodor's Rivages 3rd edition,Hotels and Country Inns of Character and Charm for pictured listings for Rome, Venice, and Florence, all price categories shown. Sienna seems too far to commute into Florence, but the book lists lots of nearby towns, such as Fiesole. I found the city to be crowded, noisy, and I would stay on the outskirts. Try to stay longer in Venice, as it is so very unique and charming. We stayed at the Pensione Seguso (in book I named)-it was so quaint, and if I remember correctly, for about $150/night,we got a nice breakfast and dinner/or lunch included.

HI Cindi; I am also going to Europe in July with my family, last time Iwent with my wife we stayed at the Hotel Arielle in Florence, about 8 blocks from the heart of the city and very nice, it used to be a Palazzo, the rrom was large and comfortable and less than $90 (itwas winter though). We drove from Rome to Pompei round trip the same day and it was not a good idea it would be better to stay in Naples overnight. In Venice the Lido hotels were a bargain because it was winter. We just stayed one night because it was to cold, probably hotels in Lido will be more expensive in summertime. <BR>Enjoy your trip

topping

How many minutes walk from Hotel Aberdeen to Pza. Navona &amp; Spanish Steps? It's about 100 euro/night diff. between this hotel and Due Torri (&amp; other hotels) which is closer.

If this is a fine area and walking is okay, I'd won't mind: 100 euro is alot of money.

I have found that Rick Steves' book, Best of Europe, has fabulous low cost to mid cost ($$100-130 or so)hotels and all are great locations! I've tried several in all my trips and they are superb!