Italian Vacation delemma
 

I am seriously considering taking a trip to italy next Febuary. I would like to know is it even possible to find inexpensive plane tickets to Rome from NYC? (inexpensive meaning around $350) if so where can I find them? I also heard flying out of Toronto is very cheap. I would like to visit italy during presidents week. What should be the highlights of a one week trip. I am renting a car so traveling is no problem. Is it warm in the South during that time of year? I would like to sit on a beach. Any information would be a big help.

- Thanks

PetHead - I think it is very possible that with patience you will find airfare for that price to fly to Rome in February. Our tickets from Pittsburgh to Rome, with a connection in Newark, flying on Tuesdays in Mid-March, came to $384 per person with all taxes & fees, direct from the Continental website.

The tickets were not part of an advertised "Sale" per se. I just happened upon them over New Years weekend. You have to become very familiar with all the ways to search for prices, and you have to search often. There are all kinds of resources out there to help you. Check out www.smarterliving.com for more info.

I never like giving these kinds of negative answers, but I sense some very real misconceptions in your wanting to plan this.

1. Air travel for _under_ $350? I wouldn't count on it. With taxes on all Europe travel now running about $120, I think you should not plan on finding under FOUR hundred-fifty. But is that going to make a difference in whether this trip is going to happen? Your whole trip is likely going to cost over $1000 (and that's not even thinking about a rental car). Is the trip not affordable to you if it costs $1200 instead of $1100?

2. You want to rent a car? for what sounds like (perhaps) your first trip to Italy? Where is your actual intended destination "in the south"? At the expense of not seeing Rome? (or not much?) And time allocation aside, there is a certain paradox in trying to find such a bottom-of-the-barrel flight and then turning around nd dropping what will be a considerable sum of money on a rental car - - when there is so much to see without ever leaving Rome (or using the train to places like Florence for very little money).

3. Warm? in February? to sit on a beach? The latitude of Rome is farther north than Poughkeepsie, you know! Now, admittedly, it is generally warmer in Rome than in upstate New York - - but not THAT much. The Mediterranean is not the Caribbean. Even if you went all the way to the tip of the "toe" of Italy - - Reggio di Calabria - - the average HIGH in February is only 58 degrees, and on average, only ONE day per month above 65 in February.

I have never been to Italy in February (nor anywhere in Europe), but I have the feeling that the idea of catching those "mid-winter bargains" is something that works on an impulse. That doesn't mean that they are somehow reserved only for the enjoyment of experienced travelers - - but as I foresee it, with the general nature of your questions, you are going to possibly risk some startling unexpected surprises (and they could render your trip not the bargain you are hoping for) by setting your sights on a very low-priced trip, planned with some substantially "off-the beaten-path" elements.

Best wishes,

Rex

If you are looking for low air fares, try GoToday http://www.gotoday.com

You can get either air only or air and hotel. They have a choice of hotels. Their rates are amazing.

Also check Expedia.com, Orbitz, Cheaptickets, etc. and the specific airline web sites for their own specials. I've been told early Weds. morning is the best time to look for bargains, but I have no idea if that is true or not.

Keep checking. One day something will pop up and you can grab it. I'm not sure I would plan to sit on a beach in February, but I haven't visited the south of Italy in February. You might check one of the many weather sites and look at current weather for comparison. Obviously, it won't be the same, but you'll be in the ball park since it is February right now!

Good luck.

Second thought . . . Have you considered one of the French speaking islands in the Caribbean if you truly want to sit on a beach (and presumably enjoy it)? You would have French colonial architecture, French cuisine along with palm trees and sandy beaches.

Just a thought.

I heard Rome is great in Feburary. Weather is in the upper 40's and 50s and the place is empty of tourists. Several people have posted here saying how great it is to have Rome to themsevles.
IF you are renting a car(which you are NUTS to do so in Rome or Naples) head north - Tuscany. it is realitvily easy to drive in the hills. Stay out of the cities, I smashed up my car when I rented one driving back to our hotel in Florence. (scraped up the side on a gate) Full insurance is madatory in italy - a car rental can cost as much a $90 a day and gas and tolls are very expensive. So if you do drive plan out where you are going.
Use www.mappy.com and try www.autoeurope.com for rate.

I have been to Italy in February and froze my *** off. I did not find it to be at all pleasant weather-wise!

As for airfare, check all sites, every day... maybe you'll get lucky. I agree with those who say $350 is a bit unreasonable...

Agree with above posters...while the weather here in the south (of Italy, Abruzze/Puglia) this year has been exceptionally mild and there was a day or two when we actually strolled on the beach in sunshine, this is a real rarity. It also snowed in February in the same locale...

Do check out gasoline prices and Autostrade tolls before deciding that you can successfully budget for a car-rental.

I booked some great airfares back in the fall (I think October) for Europe this spring (3 legs: NYC - Madrid - London - NYC for <$400, this price quadrupled within a couple of weeks of booking). I think you may hit a good deals on a RT to Rome from NYC. You have time, wait unil the fall and check fares every so often on Expedia (or other booking sites). If you see a good fare (I would say anything under $400 would be a bargain), book.

I don't know how far south you'd have to go for good beach weather, but I don't think you'll find it on the Amalfi coast. Check Worldlclimate.com to get an idea of the weather in different cities.

I just came back from Presidents' week in Rome. The weather was certainly warmer than it is here in Massachusetts, but no one was sitting on the beach. It was in the fifties most days, forties at night. Fine for sitting outside for lunch or in cafes with outdoor heat.

I wouldn't say we had Rome to ourselves. Lots of tourists, possibly because of school vacations in many American regions as well as in England. I encountered longer lines at the Vatican Museums than I saw last year in March.

As far as finding cheap aifare, it has been my long and painful experience that for those of us who can only travel during February vacation, bargains are few and far between.

We are flying into Rome and out of Venice in March. Got a complete price for a nonstop flight to Rome from JFK of 412. from Delta website. Good luck! h

Some basic truths:
1. It's much much too early to find any bargains for next February. And, it's too early to predict what bargains, if any, will be available then. As other posters have written, keep checking. Often there are spur-of-the-moment bargains during the winter months.
2. Are you putting the cart before the horse? You should set an itinerary before you decide on whether or not you'll rent a car.
3. Forget about the beach in Italy in February. Again, as previous posters have noted, the temperature is not even close for beach weather.