Italy lodging info request
 

We will be honeymooning in Italy from June 27 through July 9, 2004. I am looking for lodging recommendations for Rome, Florence, Venice, and either Positano or Capri or other nice coastal area. We will definitely want A/C, locations central to attractions, and places nice enough for honeymooners, preferably less than or around $250/night. We don't mind splurging a few nights if we can get other nights cheaper.

Thanks in advance; I'm loving this board!

Elizabeth

Hi Elizabeth,

There have been many recent threads covering this topic. If you do text searches for "Italy and honeymoon", and "CITY and hotel" you will get lots of suggestions.

Elizabeth,

We just went on our honeymoon to all of the places you mentioned (minus Venice), and our budget was around yours. You can read my trip report at:
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...ddict&fid=

BTW, looks like you'll be in Italy for 13 days, but you'll be covering a lot of ground. Given any thought to cutting back to 3 places? The trip from Rome to Positano, for example, will take half a day by itself. Don't know what kind of travelers you and your fiance are, but we wanted to unwind!

We aren't very leisurely people. My fiancé has never been to Europe before, and I have never been to Italy, so we want to get a taste of as much of the country as possible. We are planning to spend 2 nights in Venice, 3 nights in Florence, 4 nights in Rome, and 4 nights somewhere on the coast (we are thinking of Positano or Capri). We're planning on booking an open jaw flight, either into Venice and out of Rome or the opposite way. Suggestions for itineraries are also welcome.

Given your preferences, I think your breakdown between cities sounds good. I'd recommend doing Positano last--it was great to end the honyemoon there, because it was the most breathtaking. I also think doing Florence before Rome makes sense as well--after you see San Pietro, the Duomo is pretty but, well, a little bit of a letdown, IMHO.

One suggestion--if you do open jaw, you should leave out of Naples, not Rome. We made the mistake of booking our return flightout of Rome, instead of Naples, and the difference was the extra cost and time of making it all the way back to Rome from Positano. Try to fly into Venice, work you way south, and fly out of Naples instead.

We spent our honeymoon in Venice in July of 2002 and stayed at La Calcina. We loved the location, which was very close to a vaporetto stop but away from the crowds, so we felt like we had our own private location. The rooms were much larger than I expected (many folks on this site had described Italian hotel rooms as the size of a walk-in closet!) and overlook the canal.

Room 210 at Albergo Miramare in Positano is ideal for honeymooning, and it does have A/C.

Beware though - A/C in Italy is NOTHING like it is in the States. You will most likely be hot even in rooms with air conditioning.

Thanks for your help, everyone. I'm a Tennessee native, and my fiancé grew up in the Philippines, so we are used to hot, humid weather. Even so, we're planning on finding a cheap fan to use while we are there, if possible! We're also hoping to do most of the outdoor activities early in the morning or late in the afternoon and then enjoying the museums in the middle of the day.

Thank you for the suggestion on flying out of Naples. Should I plan or schedule to go something like this:

Fly into Venice - 2 nights
Florence - 3 nights
Rome - 4 nights
Positano - 4 nights
Fly out of Naples

Sound right? We'd like to schedule a day trip out of Florence to somewhere else in Tuscany. Any suggestions? We also would like to have a day trip to Pompeii. Would that be feasible?

Your itinerary looks good to me. Only thing to keep in mind is that you'll probably be pretty jetlagged when you get to Venice, so don't count on seeing that much that first day.

Re: day trips in Tuscany. We went on a half-day walking tour with The Accidental Tourist. Their website: http://www.accidentaltourist.com/index_2.html
We had a great time, and they offer biking, cooking, and nighttime tours as well. They'll pick you up from downtown Florence, drive you into Chianti, make you a home-cooked meal, and speak perfect English. Not cheap, but worth it. Our walking tour had only six people, so it was almost like a private tour. Say hi to Christina (our guide) and Marco (the company owner, who prepares a mean tiramisu) if you go!

Re: Pompeii trip. Perhaps most economical way is to see Pompeii on your way to or from Positano, since Pompeii is in between Naples and Positano. Assuming you train down from Rome to Naples, you can arrange for a driver to stop by Pompeii for a few hours, and then continue on to Positano. I think this may be more economical than arriving in Positano and then doing a day trip. There are lots of threads on recommendations for private drivers. On the advice of this board, we used Tour of Italy, which I highly recommend. Ira recommends another driver--if you do a search I'm sure the threads will come up.

Don't miss out on Ravello when you go to Positano. It was a day trip, but well worth it.

We didn't go to Venice, but one thing I realized is that you arrive in Venice on a Sunday. Maybe ira or some others can help, but are museums or other sites in Venice closed on Mondays?

Our coffeeaddict has a good point. I looked at your schedule.

Are you arriving on Sunday, 6/27 and leaving on Friday, 7/10? Are you planning on spending the night before departure in Positano? If so, what time does your plane leave? Most flights to the US out of Naples are very early.

For opening hours of the sights in Venice see
http://www.seevenice.it/museie.html
See also fodors.com and frommers.com