Gail T

Florence is to Rome as Boston is to NYC. Florence is feels safe, is comfortable, walkable, wonderful. Rome is noisy, polluted, very big.<BR><BR>In Florence, the thick, hot chocolate con panna (ordered anywhere) makes a fabulous dessert, the Hotel Silla on the Arno is the place to stay (wait till you meet charming Laura at the front desk!) and the Piazzale di Michelangelo is a must see at sunset. Also visit Neri's gelato on Via Neri. the gelato is much better and much cheaper than vivolo (or whatever the name of that tourist trap is).<BR><BR><BR>I've been to Florence many times. Several times alone with my husband, once with him when i was 6 1/2 months pregnant and twice with our son (age 8 months the first time and later at 7 years). we ALL cannot wait to return in april for our first 3 nights of 16 in italy!! (alex particularly liked the huge bowls of pasta he devoured each nite and the preserved middle finger of Galileo in the Science Museum. he insists this time on buying the wooden puppet i talked him out of outside the Uffizi last Sept.)<BR><BR>Please add florence to the top of your itinerary on your next visit. you won't regret it!!<BR><BR>Ciao!

wayne

I went to Florence just to go to Vivoli, the best gelato r'rant in the world!

Art

As you can see Alicia, people have very different opinions. I loved Venice for its uniqueness and romance, Florence for its art and most of all Rome for its history. Of course Venice is crowded with tourists, for good reason. Rome and Venice are cities that I fell in love with. I thoroughly enjoyed Florence for reasons stated above. <BR>

Alicia

Just checking back in from my last post. <BR>Thanks again for everyones info.<BR><BR>Yes I chose Naples over Florence, I would choose Naples over anywhere. If I could only go one place in Italy it would be Naples. Everyone I have ever spoken to who has spent time in Naples has loved it. It has to be Italy with a pulse!! I have many times heard it referred to as being as much Italian as there could possibly be. <BR><BR>I also chose Naples so I can day-trip to Pompeii, Ercolano, Capri, Paestum, and I plan to hike to the crater of Vesuvius. (By the way my father was a vulcanologist) I can't miss Vesuvius!!<BR><BR>Thanks again, Alicia

xxxx

Alicia,<BR>You don't have to defend yourself with your choice of Naples. It only makes sense to go to Naples if your trip is centered around the Amalfi Coast. I think your itinerary is perfect. Adding anything else is too much, and it is best to concentrate on one region, and save the other regions for another visit.<BR>On another note, I am into art and so Florence was a must see for me but my friend who was not as interested but more into cafe sitting and people watching probably would have enjoyed someplace like Milan better. Although she did go to the Uffrizi and contemplated going to see David, it was not important and she only felt like she had to go because it was famous- it didn't touch her heart like mine. So go to places that YOU would enjoy. Everyone has different tastes.

JAGIRL

I don't think Firenze is a MUST. I mean yes the food is the bomb. And yes the shopping -esp. the leather- is also the bomb. And yes the museums are great...and so is the Duomo - especially the facade and the view (MY GOD THE VIEW!!!) from the top of the Duomo (well worth the nearly 400 steps you'll need to climb) and the inside and doors of the Baptistry...and of course the Boboli Gardens and the Bargello, the Ponte Vecchio...all great. But Italy has so very much to offer and so many things to see...I doubt it can be fair to say that there are MUST SEE's in Italy...because if we were to start a list I'm sure that everyone could come up with at least a thousand must see's. I know I sure can!! Go to Italy...see what YOU WANT to see...do what YOU WANT to do. You have a lifetime to return to Italy (which you probably will) and can do Florence whenever you want.

Sue

Alicia, I think Diane and others have hit it on the head - it's your trip, and the only thing you must do, is follow your own heart.<BR><BR>However, you did ask about Florence. I think you need to go and see for yourself some time. For me, the magic words are: Brunelleschi (the Duomo) and Botticelli (at the Uffizi.) Even for people who aren't into art, seeing Botticelli's works are like seeing the IMAX of paintings. Enjoy your trip.<BR>

rar

the food here in bologna beats the florentine food hands down. florence is a nice city, good for art lovers. but I do not see it as being an essential stop in italy. those would belong to such places as venice, trento region, cinque terre, rome, assisi, and campania (amalfi, naples, pompei). oh and bologna is awfully nice as well

monica

Alicia, more power to you for standing up to the type of person who thinks this forum is their opportunity to wax didactic about what they want to do on THEIR vacation. <BR>I just returned from 2 weeks in Tuscany, and did love Florence. All the things to love about it are well-stated above. But I'll also tell you this was my 3d trip to Italy and the first time I made it to Florence. I did like it better than Rome, but that's my taste. I like smaller less hectic places on vacation, because big cities with cars zooming all around me feel too much like work & not all that different from big cities anywhere else. But that's MY taste. <BR>Please be sure to post a trip report & tell us about your favorite moments. I haven't been south, so will be eager to hear about Vesuvius.

Flo

BECAUSE you won't get the true experience of Italy till you've been to Florence. Just imagine what you're missing:<BR>1. THE INCREDIBLE LONG LINES TO THE OVERCROWDED MUSEUMS.<BR>2. THE FRUSTRATED RUDE ITALIANS WHO ARE FED UP WITH INVADING TOURISTS.

xxx

<BR><BR>Alicia, no one "has" to see Florence when they travel in Italy. Historically, it is very important--being the cradle of the Renaissance--and it has a wealth of art, but as Italy's major tourist cities go, I have found both Rome and Venice to be far more fascinating.

Ann

To Flo: If you really knew Florence (historic center and outskirts) you would know that the tourist is the bread an butter for the rude Italians. Yes, they are more rude in Florence and many don't like the tourists, but if the tourists were gone, they'd be out of luck. Florence is a major must see some time in ones life. Whether it's now or later it souldn't be missed. I always recommend reading the Agony and the Ecstasy by Irving Stone before going. You will enjoy the city more.

igk

We just got back from Italy -- Venice, Florence, Tuscany and Rome.<BR>Florence is grungy, dark, dirty, but what art, what history! It was my least favorite place, but my husband liked it a lot more than Rome. I loved Rome. Go figure.<BR>

diane

Alicia,<BR>Just returned from 3 weeks in Italy. I did Florence on the last trip. This year I did Rome, Naples and the coast. Each of the cities is worth exploring. Choosing one over the other is tough. I happen to love architecture....but I love the old small village architecture as much as the beautiful Duomos. Expectations of certain locations tend to make them hard to live up to. Don't expect anything and then find your own pulse in the city you are in.<BR>I fell in love with Naples. It isn't clean. It has interesting architecture and monuments but nothing compared to Rome and Florence. It has laundry hanging from windows and police who are more sinister looking than the people they want to protect you from, and very interesting taxi drivers who overcharge you. The people are earthy and loud and the bay is beautiful and the pizza is the best on earth. I took more pictures of Naples than anywhere else we visited because it is unique from the rest of Italy. I accidentally ventured into a very bad section of the city and was escorted out by the police...but not before I argued with them about how safe I felt. I know I got more than a few odd looks from the fruit vendors and the people who lived there as I was berating the poor police for chasing me out of this distract when they were only trying to look after my best interests. I used a lot of hand gestures and let my Italian temper flare. I can only atttribute it to feeling very comfortable in that city and with it's people.<BR>Enjoy your trip. Save Florence (and the leather or shearling shopping) for another trip. You will not be disappointed with Naples as long as you are not expecting it to be quaint or quiet. I miss it already and just returned yesterday. Don't miss Spaccanopili. If you are looking for a pulse, you will find it there.