On our own in Italy
 

My husband and I are planning a trip to<BR>Italy next September. <BR>Would like to travel on our own instead of with a tour group.<BR>Would fly from NY to Rome, stay for about<BR>2-3 nights, then rent a car to drive to<BR>Sorrento, Amalfi coast, then Florence, Venice<BR>(return car at Venice area). Would spend<BR>about 2 nights in each. We will then take<BR>the train to Milan to visit my cousin and<BR>drive to the lake region near Milan.<BR>Well, has anyone who does not speak Italian<BR>toured thru Italy on their own?<BR>Please let me have your responses!!!<BR>Thanks....

Sure have and had no big problems. We had car in the lakes area, then dumped it and used train pass to go to Venice, Florence, and Rome. Did not do Almafi coast. Driving, at least in the lakes region and around Milan, is no problem. Parking now that can be difficult. I do not think you will have any big problems. Be aware that the autostradas (like our US interstates) are almost all toll roads, and the Italian drivers can be shall we say aggresive, but with a little common sense and careful driving (that is, stay in that right hand lane at all times) you will be fine. Off the autostradas the roads can be narrow and winding so a small car is nice. Pack light and in the southern parts be more diligent about not leaving anything in car as theft is more of a problem there. However, do not worry too much, you can do it, and you will love Italy.

Did it twice but would HIGHLY recommend that you attempt to learn some basic phrases. You should not expect everyone to speak English to you, and they will be very happy if you attempt to speak some of their language.<BR><BR>Just go and find a language CD or tape and have fun.

You might consider training from Florence to Venice. You don't need a car in Florence and it's a nice easy train ride to Venice. We did this in July and it worked fine. Driving is no problem, just remember that getting lost is an added adventure and approach it that way. You didn't say where in the lake region you are visiting but here again you probably don't need a car. We drove from Malpensa to Bellagio and only used the car once to drive into Como. Again, look into the train option. A car is helpful to drive around in the country side which is what we did in Tuscany.

We did it. I am allergic to driving in big unknown cities, although I have experience driving in NYC, Mexico City, Paris, Berlin etc. So we arrived at the Rome airport, picked up the car at the airport and started our tour by driving north to Tarquinia which has a wonderful Etruscan Museum and decorated underground tombs. We ended our tour in Rome, reserving the last days for that city, but without the car. Neither my wife nor I speak Italian, but I am fluent in French and know some German. One highlight of our trip was getting a pre-Columbian meal at a restaurant where no foreign language was operative. Smiles and hands went far.

I could not have stated it better. The historical center (centro storico) of Florence is closed to traffic and with the train station of Santa Maria Novella so accessible, you should take the train and leave your worries behind (as well as the aggravation of having to park somehwhere legal). And take the 'pendolino' (fast train) from Florence to Venice. It's about 2.25 hours. Reserve first class seats; slightly more than 2nd class but not overly so. If you drive to Venice, you'll have to leave your car in the Piazzale Roma once you get over the causeway which in and of itself would be a waste of money. Training it is much better. You'll save time, money on gas and aggravation. Besides, there are no cars in Venice. Then you can train it to Milan as well. If you are going to the Amalfi coast, just don't go in Summer with the car because the traffic jams south of Naples will have you stuck all day. Rent a car from Milan to go to Bellagio (a dream!) or Como. Have fun but take the train otherwise! Rome to Florence is about 1.5 hours on the 'pendolino' (fast train) and Florence-Venice is about 2.25 hours as I stated above. So you could logically spend two fine days in each location withouth having to get up so early in order to catch the train as they are fairly frequent and the trips are not long. Log onto www.trenitalia.com and click on the English flag. For car rentals, compare prices on www.italiatourusa.com as well as www.avis.com or Hertz but make sure if you are renting a car in Italy, you get the exact opening/closing hours of the rental car offices because they usually close much earlier than in America (in Florence, Avis closes at 6pm sharp!). Have a great trip.

For the cities where you will have to park the car, check with the hotel about a garage. Few hotels have their own garage but they can usually direct you to one. Sometimes the hotel will also charge a little more and park the car for you. It's worth it. Driving through these tiny 1-way city streets could be difficult. The highway system is easy to navigate and the toll booths take credit cards. Make sure you have a good map of each city you will be driving into.