Italy: Rome, Florence and Venice
Apr 9th, 2015, 04:06 PM
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Italy: Rome, Florence and Venice
We are flying to Rome last week of July. Plan to stay there few days, then take a train to Florence stay there and see Leaning tower of Pisa once day. Take a train from Florence to Venice. Spend a few days in venice and fly back from Venice to US. Has anyone done a similar trip. How was your experience. Any tips would be useful. It will be 2 adults and one child 8 years old traveling together. Thanks.
Apr 9th, 2015, 04:23 PM
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These are the classic three that many people come here asking questions. You are starting the plan late and you are traveling during the peak season.
1. Look at flight situation for into Rome out of Venice as well as into Venice and out of Rome. From most accommodations in Venice, it takes more time to get to the Venice airport than from a Rome hotel to the FCO airport. This is usually compounded by earlier flight departures from Venice.
2. The discount train tickets connecting Venice-Florence-Rome are already for sale for July. More you wait, the higher the prices go because people snatch up the discount tickets first and less the availability. Look at www.trenitalia.com
3. Popular accommodations in these cities - good value at good locations are probably already gone for the most part. If you want to scan the general landscape, use www.booking.com, enter the dates and room type and click the map. You can move your cursor around to get the general feel of availability and prices.
1. Look at flight situation for into Rome out of Venice as well as into Venice and out of Rome. From most accommodations in Venice, it takes more time to get to the Venice airport than from a Rome hotel to the FCO airport. This is usually compounded by earlier flight departures from Venice.
2. The discount train tickets connecting Venice-Florence-Rome are already for sale for July. More you wait, the higher the prices go because people snatch up the discount tickets first and less the availability. Look at www.trenitalia.com
3. Popular accommodations in these cities - good value at good locations are probably already gone for the most part. If you want to scan the general landscape, use www.booking.com, enter the dates and room type and click the map. You can move your cursor around to get the general feel of availability and prices.
Apr 9th, 2015, 04:57 PM
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WARNING! They don't let children climb the leaning tower until they are 9. A good friend's favorite grandchild had a major meltdown. They went to Pisa just so he could do the tower--then he couldn't.
I disagree with greg, because I think flying into Venice is an amazing life experience in itself. Splurge on a water taxi through the lagoon then winding into the city and you child will never forget it. I'm for choosing two of big three but that's personal. Florence is particularly bad at gracefully holding crowds in the summer. In Venice you can go out of crowded area and Rome is a large city. But this writer is seriously crowd avoidant so it's IMO.
I disagree with greg, because I think flying into Venice is an amazing life experience in itself. Splurge on a water taxi through the lagoon then winding into the city and you child will never forget it. I'm for choosing two of big three but that's personal. Florence is particularly bad at gracefully holding crowds in the summer. In Venice you can go out of crowded area and Rome is a large city. But this writer is seriously crowd avoidant so it's IMO.
Apr 9th, 2015, 05:03 PM
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So, you have no dates, no airline tickets, and not sure of how long you plan to stay. I would start there, and soon.
Use Kayak.com to search your open jaw flights. I would start in Venice and end in Rome---I suggest 12 days in Italy for this trip.
Use Kayak.com to search your open jaw flights. I would start in Venice and end in Rome---I suggest 12 days in Italy for this trip.
Apr 10th, 2015, 04:21 AM
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For train info check not only www.trenitalia.com but http://www.italotreno.it/EN - the second being a competitor to the state-woned Trenitalia and also www.raileurope.com as they now often match the prices on Trenitalia and Italo Treno - for lots of good stuff on Italian trains: www.seat61.com - greatinfo on discounted tickets; www.budgeteuropetravel.com and www.ricksteves.com.
Discounted train tickets are train-specific and can't be changed nor refunded so be sure of your dates and times and don't miss the train or you'll then have to buy a full-fare ticket, which is always available IME. But you can save a ton - and IME pay extra for first class - at times discounted tickets in first-class may be just a tad more than 2nd class and IME of years of Italian training first class for someone with luggage is well worth the extra money if not a large sum. Seats bigger - often empty seats vs an oft full 2nd class car.
Discounted train tickets are train-specific and can't be changed nor refunded so be sure of your dates and times and don't miss the train or you'll then have to buy a full-fare ticket, which is always available IME. But you can save a ton - and IME pay extra for first class - at times discounted tickets in first-class may be just a tad more than 2nd class and IME of years of Italian training first class for someone with luggage is well worth the extra money if not a large sum. Seats bigger - often empty seats vs an oft full 2nd class car.
Apr 10th, 2015, 04:38 AM
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With only a week, I would suggest limiting your stops to 2. If you love art, include Florence as one of the 2. Otherwise, choose Venice and Rome. This will mean leaving Pisa off your itinerary for this trip.
Whatever you choose, do it quickly as you are traveling at the hight of the season and things may be expensive and more difficult to reserve. Once you have selected your route, search on this board for ideas for the cities you choose. There are hundreds.
Whatever you choose, do it quickly as you are traveling at the hight of the season and things may be expensive and more difficult to reserve. Once you have selected your route, search on this board for ideas for the cities you choose. There are hundreds.
Apr 10th, 2015, 04:45 AM
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I have no idea why someone attacked you for asking others if the could share their experiences of a similar trip. It is a perfectly wise and useful way to get tips - like the one you received about the Leaning Tower of Pisa.
Has your 8-year-old even been to a foreign country? I live in Italy and many friends of mine come to visit with their children, and it can be very hard to predict what will interest children. Just in general be aware that in some of the famous museums -- like the Vatican museums or the Uffizi in Florence -- the crowds in July can be so thick that children have a very hard time seeing anything at all. They just aren't tall enough.
If you would like to give your child an interesting experience of art in Italy, a trip to the Borghese Gallery might be a very good introduction. The statues there are extremely lively, and the museum controls the number of people who can be let in at any time, so kids can see the stuff. Plus, the museum is located in Rome's largest park with a zoo nearby, so after a quick tour of the most interesting bits of the museum (basically, the first floor), there is a chance to run around and have fun outdoors.
Another good bet for kids + art is the fountains of Rome, which have a cool spray plus also a lot of interesting sculpture as part of the fountain. The piazza Navona is "touristy" to be sure, but it also has a lot of interesting history and is a great window into the social life of Rome, even today.
Kids very often like to climb things, and even if you can't climb the tower of Pisa, your child can climb up into the dome of the Duomo in Florence. If I were taking a smaller child to Florence, instead of going to museums, I would take a peek at the interior of the Bapistery and the chapel of the Ricciardi-Medici. These are more "bite-sized" places of art with a big wow factor, but they only take a few minutes to see.
For Venice, it is very "touristy" to take a gondola ride, but with a child, it's a great way, I think, to introduce them to what an unusual city Venice was in history, a great shipping empire, built entirely on water. Some kids, depending on who they are, enjoy a trip to the naval museum in Venice, while others enjoy the glass-making demonstrations on the island of Murano. The glass factory tours can subject you to pressure to buy, so be prepared for that.
Have a nice time!
Has your 8-year-old even been to a foreign country? I live in Italy and many friends of mine come to visit with their children, and it can be very hard to predict what will interest children. Just in general be aware that in some of the famous museums -- like the Vatican museums or the Uffizi in Florence -- the crowds in July can be so thick that children have a very hard time seeing anything at all. They just aren't tall enough.
If you would like to give your child an interesting experience of art in Italy, a trip to the Borghese Gallery might be a very good introduction. The statues there are extremely lively, and the museum controls the number of people who can be let in at any time, so kids can see the stuff. Plus, the museum is located in Rome's largest park with a zoo nearby, so after a quick tour of the most interesting bits of the museum (basically, the first floor), there is a chance to run around and have fun outdoors.
Another good bet for kids + art is the fountains of Rome, which have a cool spray plus also a lot of interesting sculpture as part of the fountain. The piazza Navona is "touristy" to be sure, but it also has a lot of interesting history and is a great window into the social life of Rome, even today.
Kids very often like to climb things, and even if you can't climb the tower of Pisa, your child can climb up into the dome of the Duomo in Florence. If I were taking a smaller child to Florence, instead of going to museums, I would take a peek at the interior of the Bapistery and the chapel of the Ricciardi-Medici. These are more "bite-sized" places of art with a big wow factor, but they only take a few minutes to see.
For Venice, it is very "touristy" to take a gondola ride, but with a child, it's a great way, I think, to introduce them to what an unusual city Venice was in history, a great shipping empire, built entirely on water. Some kids, depending on who they are, enjoy a trip to the naval museum in Venice, while others enjoy the glass-making demonstrations on the island of Murano. The glass factory tours can subject you to pressure to buy, so be prepared for that.
Have a nice time!
Apr 10th, 2015, 07:12 PM
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From the http://www.florence-tickets.com/tower-of-pisa.html#top website
<<Children under 8 years old are not allowed under any circumstances to this visit.>>
<<Children under 8 years old are not allowed under any circumstances to this visit.>>
Apr 11th, 2015, 04:21 AM
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The hundred bucks or so for a gondola ride may be better spent on other things - the public boats that go everywhere may be just as fun for kids - if you want a break from the rigors of sightseeing in an often mobbed Venice take a public boat to the Lido and go for a swim - kids need a break from only sightseeing IMO at times. And take the kid to Murano and see glassblowers at work - a boat ride to the outer islands may also be fun.
Not sure a typical 8-year-old would really appreciate a gondola ride for more than a few minutes - what do they cost?
I rather agree with this post from another travel web site:
Tourist Trap: Gondola ride
The movies would have you believe that a gondola ride along Venice’s canals is incredibly romantic. You envision yourself gliding along a deserted canal as a gondolier in black and white stripes sings in Italian and you steal a kiss with your lover. The reality is a gondola ride will run you around €80 for a 20-minute ride as your gondolier shouts back and forth with his gondolier friends in Italian, leaving you feeling like you’re on a packed ride at Disney World. And the singing? That will cost extra.
Read more: http://www.johnnyjet.com/2013/09/ven...#ixzz3X0DiA9j1
$100 for a 20-minute gondola ride - well I've never taken one nor do I ever wish to do this plastic tourist rip-off IMO - now for older folks on a honeymoon perhaps.
Not sure a typical 8-year-old would really appreciate a gondola ride for more than a few minutes - what do they cost?
I rather agree with this post from another travel web site:
Tourist Trap: Gondola ride
The movies would have you believe that a gondola ride along Venice’s canals is incredibly romantic. You envision yourself gliding along a deserted canal as a gondolier in black and white stripes sings in Italian and you steal a kiss with your lover. The reality is a gondola ride will run you around €80 for a 20-minute ride as your gondolier shouts back and forth with his gondolier friends in Italian, leaving you feeling like you’re on a packed ride at Disney World. And the singing? That will cost extra.
Read more: http://www.johnnyjet.com/2013/09/ven...#ixzz3X0DiA9j1
$100 for a 20-minute gondola ride - well I've never taken one nor do I ever wish to do this plastic tourist rip-off IMO - now for older folks on a honeymoon perhaps.
Apr 11th, 2015, 06:00 AM
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I think a far better value than a gondola ride is to latch onto a group gondola ride, through a local travel office. It's cheaper, longer and better.
Personally, I wouldn't want to drag an 8-year-old through museums, but I can't speak for you or your 8-year-old.
Venice: A glass-blowing demo in Murano might be interesting (and, yes, you will have to resist the high-pressure sales pitch). There's also the gondola shop in Dorsoduro that has some appeal for adults and children.
Florence: Climbing to the top of the Duomo could get a bit tedious for an 8-year-old, but the view is great. Be aware, if you don't do the climb first thing in the a.m., you're likely to face long lines, especially in summer.
Rome, and in general: I've found that some famous sites are better with an informative tour guide who can liven up the tour and keep everyone's interest. (A good example is the Tower of London tour conducted by the Beefeaters. Kids love it.) So if you go to the Colosseum, for instance, it's going to be a lot more interesting with a good guide than just walking around yourself.
Personally, I wouldn't want to drag an 8-year-old through museums, but I can't speak for you or your 8-year-old.
Venice: A glass-blowing demo in Murano might be interesting (and, yes, you will have to resist the high-pressure sales pitch). There's also the gondola shop in Dorsoduro that has some appeal for adults and children.
Florence: Climbing to the top of the Duomo could get a bit tedious for an 8-year-old, but the view is great. Be aware, if you don't do the climb first thing in the a.m., you're likely to face long lines, especially in summer.
Rome, and in general: I've found that some famous sites are better with an informative tour guide who can liven up the tour and keep everyone's interest. (A good example is the Tower of London tour conducted by the Beefeaters. Kids love it.) So if you go to the Colosseum, for instance, it's going to be a lot more interesting with a good guide than just walking around yourself.
Apr 11th, 2015, 07:01 AM
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What about a traghetto rude instead of the gondola? I'm far too cheap for a gondola, and I loved this.
http://www.reidsitaly.com/destinatio...traghetto.html
http://www.reidsitaly.com/destinatio...traghetto.html
Apr 11th, 2015, 07:19 AM
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The prices and times Palenq posted for gondola rides are incorrect (rides are 40 minutes), and the article quoted is a straw man argument. Not everyone expects a singing gondolier or a corny experience. Many children take gondola rides, and they are not the same as the public water buses, as they go through the quieter back canals, under the small bridges and in the historic untouristy neighborhoods, if that the route you choose, It's probably best to choose an intinerary in advance, which you can do using the website of the gondolier consortium
http://www.gondolavenezia.it/homeng.asp
There are lots of things to do in Venice other than take a gondola ride that kids enjoy, but I wouldn't be bullied out of it by people who've never done it (and who have never traveled with kids in Italy -- not all of whom like gelato).
http://www.gondolavenezia.it/homeng.asp
There are lots of things to do in Venice other than take a gondola ride that kids enjoy, but I wouldn't be bullied out of it by people who've never done it (and who have never traveled with kids in Italy -- not all of whom like gelato).
Apr 11th, 2015, 09:40 AM
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what kid in Italy don't like gelato? then take them to MacDonalds for some proper frozen yoghurt.
I;ve observed gondolas rides a zillion times and many seem very commercial and not as romantic as portrayed - yeh there are some that may go thru remote canals but the main ones just off San Marcos do a pretty simple loop - yeh it you got all kinds of money to throw around fine - if on a budget I'd think about spending that $100 or so for even a 40-minute ride on say.... more gelato!
I;ve observed gondolas rides a zillion times and many seem very commercial and not as romantic as portrayed - yeh there are some that may go thru remote canals but the main ones just off San Marcos do a pretty simple loop - yeh it you got all kinds of money to throw around fine - if on a budget I'd think about spending that $100 or so for even a 40-minute ride on say.... more gelato!
Apr 11th, 2015, 09:43 AM
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Traghetto Crossing on the Grand Canal - Cheap Gondola Alternative
If all you really want to do is get into a gondola, you can take a traghetto across the Grand Canal. A traghetto is an empty gondola used to ferry passengers back and forth across the canal. While it might not be so romantic, it's much cheaper (currently 50 Euro cents) and you get a great view of the Grand Canal. Take a look at this video of crossing the Grand Canal on Traghetto Santa Sofia.>
This from Go Italy site - Yes I have indeed doen a gondola ride - crossing the Grand Canal and if can't afford to do a proper gondola ride at least do this one.
If all you really want to do is get into a gondola, you can take a traghetto across the Grand Canal. A traghetto is an empty gondola used to ferry passengers back and forth across the canal. While it might not be so romantic, it's much cheaper (currently 50 Euro cents) and you get a great view of the Grand Canal. Take a look at this video of crossing the Grand Canal on Traghetto Santa Sofia.>
This from Go Italy site - Yes I have indeed doen a gondola ride - crossing the Grand Canal and if can't afford to do a proper gondola ride at least do this one.
Apr 11th, 2015, 09:54 AM
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There are plenty of children who don't like ice cream or chocolate. Why all the put downs of people who don't fit your stereotypes of what travel should be? I really am skeptical you even know many children or have spent time traveling with them in Italy.
An 8 year old is likely to have an opinion of whether or not he or she would like to go on a gondola ride, and likewise the parents will have an opinion about whether they are willing to pay for it. Venice is a city built on water, and gondolas were historically the primary mode of travel for those who could afford it. Many important buildings in Venice were built to be seen from a gondola eye view, and many engineering aspects of Venice are best understood by getting out on the water in a gondola, not a motor boat.
Rather than stuff kids with more sugar and fat, a ride in a gondola through the back canals might be thought provoking to an 8 year old or just a very special and memorable experience. There is no reason to be campaigning against it for all other people, especially arguing to feed kids gelato instead.
An 8 year old is likely to have an opinion of whether or not he or she would like to go on a gondola ride, and likewise the parents will have an opinion about whether they are willing to pay for it. Venice is a city built on water, and gondolas were historically the primary mode of travel for those who could afford it. Many important buildings in Venice were built to be seen from a gondola eye view, and many engineering aspects of Venice are best understood by getting out on the water in a gondola, not a motor boat.
Rather than stuff kids with more sugar and fat, a ride in a gondola through the back canals might be thought provoking to an 8 year old or just a very special and memorable experience. There is no reason to be campaigning against it for all other people, especially arguing to feed kids gelato instead.
