Massgirl

Now that everyone has given me some good ideas how do I go about either staying at at hotel or renting a villa- would this be to expensive
I might lean toward venice-tuscany- florence and maybe
Ligurian Coast/Cinque Terre or lake como- I will get a map and guidebook this week- am I booking enough in advance for the end of Sept - we are going 14 days knowing we have a full 12

MFNYC

To get started with hotels, plug your tentative info into Venere.com, and then you can narrow down the list based on more specific criteria (neighborhood, price, stars, etc). You should also look at the reviews there, and also on tripadvisor. You can always come back to this forum with specific questions.

When booking hotels, you can email them directly once you narrow down your list, and ask them specific questions or make specific requests if need be.

I can't help with rentals but, they are not necessarily more expensive. Others here can direct you to some good websites for that.

MFNYC

Here's a thread about Italy rentals: http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...s-in-italy.cfm

You can search this forum for 'Italy Rentals' or similar for lots more.

RainyDay09

Massgirl, I traveled to Italy for the first time in 2009 for 11 days and used Rick Steve's Italy guide. Since you are traveling with another couple, you may want to stay in a couple of places like more experienced Fodorites suggest. I traveled by myself and visited my cousin who was spending a year in Parma. We covered a lot of territory: Rome, Florence, Venice, Cinque Terre, Genoa. It was a bit hectic and I would not recommend hopping around so much. It wasn't a romantic or relaxing trip for me, I was taking advantage of staying with Italians and traveling with a people who speak Italian. Let me know if you have more questions.

Massgirl

What is the best airlines to travel to Italy ? and how soon would you book a flight if you were leaving the end of Sept
Thanks !

Michael

For me, the best airline is the cheapest, although there are some that I would avoid if I experienced particularly bad service. I therefore avoid FinnAir and U.S. Airways.

ellenem

I compare price a schedule, preferring to fly nonstop whenever possible and willing to pay more to do so. Many people complain about Alitalia, but otherwise I think most airlines to Italy are about the same.

ellenem

I compare price and schedule . .

Massgirl

I have an iternary how does this sound please advise:
Option 1.
Fly into Rome - Spend 2 nights - Hotel Imperiale Via..(nice view ) **at night the Trevi Fountain is gorgeous and we can see the Vatican and St Peters Basilica (if choose to)

Then we take the train to Naples -(dont stay there but take a ferry to Sorrento spend 3 nights here - hire Aldo the car service to take us around Amafli Coast, visit a few small towns and see the beautiful coast.. He seems to know the hot spots to visit and good eating places..
.
Then after our three days in Sorrento we can take a train to Siena - spend 3 nights - rent a car and we can tour Tuscany, Chianti, San Giamignano, two other small towns I hear are great are Montepulciano and Montalcino or Lucca.This is where they grow the olives for olive oil, good shopping and good wine tasting places. Then we return the rental car back in Siena

After Siena: take take a train to Venice...Spend 2 nights would be nice to get a Hotel on the Grand Canal...(so might have to book ahead)
St. Mark Square where all the major sites are...Ride on the Canal and wander around the streets, lots of shops and cafe's.
Then we can leave and go home from Venice...I hear its less traffic but the only down fall is...the flights to return home are early...
So if you would rather fly into Venice and go home from Rome then we can switch this itinerary around...

**We should book a few of the Hotels before we leave for Italy...There are Tour Offices in the Train stations where we can book a Hotel if we decide to stay somewhere else...( Its an option)
**as for the wines: Bruello is the best but expensive and the Chianti...you have to look for the rooster on top of the label to know it the real deal...But I was told all the house red wines over there are delicious...no need to spend so much on wine...since we will be drinking alot of it...
I only show 10 nights booked but this way we can have two nights to play with if we decide to stay longer somewhere else...
I will figure out how long some of the train rides are

Jean

Following this proposed itinerary, you only have one full day in both Rome and Venice that are not impacted by arrivals or departures. Your arrival (partial) day in Rome could be a blur if you are jet-lagged, and you've pointed out the downside of your departure from Venice.

If it were my trip and I only had 10 nights, I'd skip either the Amalfi Coast area or Tuscany. I'd arrive Venice and depart Rome (or Naples if you keep the Amalfi Coast) and add a day to both Venice and Rome. If I wanted to see the Amalfi Coast and wasn't interested in Naples or Pompeii, I'd stay on the Amalfi Coast and not in Sorrento.

Massgirl

Hi
It's mass girl never got to take my trip to Italy way back due to personal reasons
My husband and user now trying to go for 14 days oct 2016
Looking for hotels in Rome Florence and Venice that are not to expensive
Looking for suggestions
Thanks

Blueeyedcod

'not too expensive' can be very subjective. Your budget per night in euro would be more helpful.
Hope you make it this time

LindaSM

You might do better to repost this as a new question.
Is your itinerary set and are flights booked?
Give your budget in euros. Your question is a little open ended. Your might want to be a little more specific as to area of city, amenities etc.

Massgirl

Flights prob
10/21 into Venice
Home 11/5 from Rome
Looking for some hotels
To book in Rome Florence Venice

Peter_S_Aus

Get this. Understand this. Note this.

Europeans write dates as day/month. For a European, 11/5 is the eleventh day of May.