Rome, Florence, Venice in early March
Dec 3rd, 2007, 09:56 AM
#1
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Rome, Florence, Venice in early March
We have 10 days to see these 3 cities. We'll be arriving in Rome (3 nights, taking a train to Florence (3 nights) and train to Venice (3 nights)and departing to the U.S. from there.
We love to walk and would really appreciate your advice on how to make the most of the short time we have there.
Is signing up for walking tours the best thing to do or are there better ways to see the sights? Also, are there any Vatican tours that are small enough to really enjoy without breaking the bank?
Thanks so much!
We love to walk and would really appreciate your advice on how to make the most of the short time we have there.
Is signing up for walking tours the best thing to do or are there better ways to see the sights? Also, are there any Vatican tours that are small enough to really enjoy without breaking the bank?
Thanks so much!
Dec 3rd, 2007, 02:40 PM
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No plan your trip by looking in the DK travel books and picking out what you want to see. Walking tours limit you to their time schedules. Visit my site to see some of the trips we have made. We have been to Venice, Florence, and Rome. emilyandjim.info
Dec 3rd, 2007, 07:11 PM
#3
Read some guidebooks, make lists of what you hope to see, and note the days and hours each is open. (Many things are closed on Mondays, and off-season closing times can be early.) Find the sights on good maps and then plot out each day in a logical path.
Because your trip is early March, I don't think reservations for things like the Uffizi are absolutely necessary, but I still think they're a good idea if only to help you stick to a timetable. You only have two full days in each place, so you'll need to be realistic about how much you can see and disciplined about your timetable.
I'm not a big fan of walking tours, but perhaps others can give you some information.
Because your trip is early March, I don't think reservations for things like the Uffizi are absolutely necessary, but I still think they're a good idea if only to help you stick to a timetable. You only have two full days in each place, so you'll need to be realistic about how much you can see and disciplined about your timetable.
I'm not a big fan of walking tours, but perhaps others can give you some information.
Dec 3rd, 2007, 07:56 PM
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Hi
Maybe you can find some useful info in my trip reports with pictures and and links:
Florence - http://gardkarlsen.com/florence_italy_travelogue.htm
Rome - http://gardkarlsen.com/rome_italy.htm
Venice - http://gardkarlsen.com/italy_venice.htm
Happy planning
Regards
Gard
http://gardkarlsen.com - trip reports and pictures
Maybe you can find some useful info in my trip reports with pictures and and links:
Florence - http://gardkarlsen.com/florence_italy_travelogue.htm
Rome - http://gardkarlsen.com/rome_italy.htm
Venice - http://gardkarlsen.com/italy_venice.htm
Happy planning
Regards
Gard
http://gardkarlsen.com - trip reports and pictures
Dec 4th, 2007, 03:33 PM
#5
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Thank you all so much for your help.
Maria, thank you for the detailed list for Florence. Wow!
Gard, thank you for your links. We really need to narrow down the field since we only have 2.5 days in each city.
Jim and Jean, I appreciated your view on walking tours. I thought it might be a good overview and save time stumbling around on our own, but you're right about the schedule limits. I'll check out emilyandjim.info, too.
One of our days in Florence is a Monday, when the museums are closed. What do you think about the Accidental Tourist Cooking Class for 1/2 day?
Did anyone try Helen Donegan's Vatican Tour? Is it worth all that money??
Thanks again for all your help.
Mairseydotes
Maria, thank you for the detailed list for Florence. Wow!
Gard, thank you for your links. We really need to narrow down the field since we only have 2.5 days in each city.
Jim and Jean, I appreciated your view on walking tours. I thought it might be a good overview and save time stumbling around on our own, but you're right about the schedule limits. I'll check out emilyandjim.info, too.
One of our days in Florence is a Monday, when the museums are closed. What do you think about the Accidental Tourist Cooking Class for 1/2 day?
Did anyone try Helen Donegan's Vatican Tour? Is it worth all that money??
Thanks again for all your help.
Mairseydotes
Dec 4th, 2007, 03:54 PM
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I think walking tours are great if they are specific to something about an area as opposed to seeing the sights. We did a Picasso walking tour in Barcelona which was very interesting but we also walked around and saw the sights on our own. Also we enjoyed the Night Watchmans Tour in Rothenburg ob de Tauber which is so entertaining. My husband however prefers my walking tour where I read from the guidebook suggested walking tour!
Dec 4th, 2007, 04:41 PM
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mairseydotes,
We had only 3 days in Rome and 3 days in Florence so were under similar deadlines. But we did order ahead and your hotels will help you get tickets for the easier ones. You didn't mention the Uffizi or Accademia museums, so that info can be added if you need or want it, later.
My Italy photo-report is by city and might help you decide what you want to see while there.
http://www.pbase.com/andrys/italy
Since you wanted to get into the Vatican (and Sistine Chapel?) tour, here's a wordy guideline, as it's the hardest place to get into without a long wait and it's not expensive as going through a ticket agency.
It costs about 10 euros add'l each. You can fax the Vatican to register for their own regular "guided tour" with a guide and headphones to hear the guide no matter how far away they might be at the moment.
I faxed them but they don't like to answer until a couple of days before the day you select. When we got to Rome, their confirming fax was waiting for us at the hotel though!
We avoided the long snaking line that went all around St. Peter's and walked up to the guards at the exit doors, who had a signup sheet with our names on it.
And we went right in. The guided tour stops before the Sistine Chapel, where you are on your own as everyone is supposed to be quiet when in there and that's no place for talky guides.
But, as others have pointed out, guards are always shouting to hush people, even when people are barely whispering. It's very bizarre to hear the loud "Silencio!" echoing through the chapel when there's barely much sound in the first place.
Info from the Vatican site re that guided tour: http://mv.vatican.va/3_EN/pages/z-In...zi_Visite.html
===
"GUIDED TOURS FOR INDIVIDUALS:
VATICAN MUSEUMS AND SISTINE CHAPEL (2 hours)
The tour itinerary takes visitors through the most significant cultural and religious areas within the Vatican Museums: the Pio Clementino (classical antiquity), the Geographical Maps and Tapestries Galleries (Renaissance art), the Raphael's Rooms and The Sistine Chapel.
From March through October: from Monday through Friday at: 10.30am - 12.00pm - 2.00pm; on Saturday at: 10.30am and 11.15am
From November through February: everyday but Sundays at 10.30a.m.
Rates: full fare 23.50 [euros]; reduced 18.50 [euros]
The above rates include admission to the Museums, guided tour service and headset. . . . Fax reservation : 06 6988 5100 "
=======
At any rate, Faxing or phoning Italy can be done from the US for about 10c/minute via the 1016868 number that can be dialed as a prefix to the actual number on the site just before country code. They've
added a 39c minimum call charge.
So you'd dial 1016868 39 06 6988 5100 when faxing your request.
They need your names, a fax number to reply to (I gave both my U.S. office and my Rome hotel numbers), and address where you'll be staying whlie in Rome.
They used to reply to email but are not responding to that these days, though they might email you after you fax them, if close enough to the date you'd be visiting.
It was really worth doing this!
I have photos from our experience of the Vatican tour at http://www.pbase.com/andrys/sistine
After the tour, we just stayed inside and went to St. Peter's and did that at our leisure. I'd seen the Pieta in '53 and now it's behind glass but still beautiful.
After I returned, I read the book by Ross King, titled "Michelangelo and the Pope's Ceiling" and it's a fascinating history of the times and especially the intrigue -- Including between competing artists. Some were very unhappy Michelangelo got the commission. I wish I'd read it before going. So I always recommend that.
Also ask your hotel people to help you get advance tickets for tours of the Colosseum etc., as these are easy for them to do and they're usually happy to do it.
- Andrys -- http://www.pbase.com/andrys/italy
We had only 3 days in Rome and 3 days in Florence so were under similar deadlines. But we did order ahead and your hotels will help you get tickets for the easier ones. You didn't mention the Uffizi or Accademia museums, so that info can be added if you need or want it, later.
My Italy photo-report is by city and might help you decide what you want to see while there.
http://www.pbase.com/andrys/italy
Since you wanted to get into the Vatican (and Sistine Chapel?) tour, here's a wordy guideline, as it's the hardest place to get into without a long wait and it's not expensive as going through a ticket agency.
It costs about 10 euros add'l each. You can fax the Vatican to register for their own regular "guided tour" with a guide and headphones to hear the guide no matter how far away they might be at the moment.
I faxed them but they don't like to answer until a couple of days before the day you select. When we got to Rome, their confirming fax was waiting for us at the hotel though!
We avoided the long snaking line that went all around St. Peter's and walked up to the guards at the exit doors, who had a signup sheet with our names on it.
And we went right in. The guided tour stops before the Sistine Chapel, where you are on your own as everyone is supposed to be quiet when in there and that's no place for talky guides.
But, as others have pointed out, guards are always shouting to hush people, even when people are barely whispering. It's very bizarre to hear the loud "Silencio!" echoing through the chapel when there's barely much sound in the first place.
Info from the Vatican site re that guided tour: http://mv.vatican.va/3_EN/pages/z-In...zi_Visite.html
===
"GUIDED TOURS FOR INDIVIDUALS:
VATICAN MUSEUMS AND SISTINE CHAPEL (2 hours)
The tour itinerary takes visitors through the most significant cultural and religious areas within the Vatican Museums: the Pio Clementino (classical antiquity), the Geographical Maps and Tapestries Galleries (Renaissance art), the Raphael's Rooms and The Sistine Chapel.
From March through October: from Monday through Friday at: 10.30am - 12.00pm - 2.00pm; on Saturday at: 10.30am and 11.15am
From November through February: everyday but Sundays at 10.30a.m.
Rates: full fare 23.50 [euros]; reduced 18.50 [euros]
The above rates include admission to the Museums, guided tour service and headset. . . . Fax reservation : 06 6988 5100 "
=======
At any rate, Faxing or phoning Italy can be done from the US for about 10c/minute via the 1016868 number that can be dialed as a prefix to the actual number on the site just before country code. They've
added a 39c minimum call charge.
So you'd dial 1016868 39 06 6988 5100 when faxing your request.
They need your names, a fax number to reply to (I gave both my U.S. office and my Rome hotel numbers), and address where you'll be staying whlie in Rome.
They used to reply to email but are not responding to that these days, though they might email you after you fax them, if close enough to the date you'd be visiting.
It was really worth doing this!
I have photos from our experience of the Vatican tour at http://www.pbase.com/andrys/sistine
After the tour, we just stayed inside and went to St. Peter's and did that at our leisure. I'd seen the Pieta in '53 and now it's behind glass but still beautiful.
After I returned, I read the book by Ross King, titled "Michelangelo and the Pope's Ceiling" and it's a fascinating history of the times and especially the intrigue -- Including between competing artists. Some were very unhappy Michelangelo got the commission. I wish I'd read it before going. So I always recommend that.
Also ask your hotel people to help you get advance tickets for tours of the Colosseum etc., as these are easy for them to do and they're usually happy to do it.
- Andrys -- http://www.pbase.com/andrys/italy
Dec 4th, 2007, 05:36 PM
#8
Mario's list for Florence "must sees" is very comprehensive, but I don't think you can realistically see everything on the list. "Must see" is also personal. I, for one, would add the Battistery (inside and out) and the museum of the Duomo.
FYI, the Boboli Gardens can be beautiful but not so much in early March.
FYI, the Boboli Gardens can be beautiful but not so much in early March.
Dec 4th, 2007, 05:39 PM
#9
In addition to "Michelangelo and the Pope's Ceiling," Ross King also wrote "Brunelleschi's Dome" about the design competition and building of the Duomo in Florence. Another great book.
Dec 5th, 2007, 03:06 AM
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Venice:
You can pre-book a time to see the Basilica online. I don't know if the lines will be long in March, but they were in August and we were able to jump the queue. You can book about 2-3 months ahead. Take the printout with you and show it at the head of the line.
We were in Venice for 3.5 days last year. While there we took the time to visit Murano and Burano islands via Vaparetto (public transport boat). It was a nice trip and a break from the crowds of central Venice, especially the St Mark's Square area.
Another thing we did was catch the vaparetto from Vallaresso along the Grand Canal and around to Zattere, Dorsoduro. This gives you a good view at different parts of the city. We then walked through Dorsoduro, across the Accademia bridge and back towards the Rialto Bridge where we were staying. The Dorsoduro area is a lot quieter and more residential than St Mark's.
You can pre-book a time to see the Basilica online. I don't know if the lines will be long in March, but they were in August and we were able to jump the queue. You can book about 2-3 months ahead. Take the printout with you and show it at the head of the line.
We were in Venice for 3.5 days last year. While there we took the time to visit Murano and Burano islands via Vaparetto (public transport boat). It was a nice trip and a break from the crowds of central Venice, especially the St Mark's Square area.
Another thing we did was catch the vaparetto from Vallaresso along the Grand Canal and around to Zattere, Dorsoduro. This gives you a good view at different parts of the city. We then walked through Dorsoduro, across the Accademia bridge and back towards the Rialto Bridge where we were staying. The Dorsoduro area is a lot quieter and more residential than St Mark's.
Dec 5th, 2007, 07:39 AM
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I'm not going to add to some excellent suggestions you've been given. Just a couple of points.
Central Florence is easily walkable as most of the more "usual" sights are very close together. Rome is another story although some places like the Forum obviously lend themselves to that.
I suggest you do make reservations for some of the more popular places when you can, like Uffizzi etc. - especially since your time is limited and you don't want to spend it waiting in line. We were in Rome and Florence in March and they were more crowded than we expected. Turned out we "forgot" about spring break in the US and there were lots of groups on break. We were really glad we had made reservations in advance.
Central Florence is easily walkable as most of the more "usual" sights are very close together. Rome is another story although some places like the Forum obviously lend themselves to that.
I suggest you do make reservations for some of the more popular places when you can, like Uffizzi etc. - especially since your time is limited and you don't want to spend it waiting in line. We were in Rome and Florence in March and they were more crowded than we expected. Turned out we "forgot" about spring break in the US and there were lots of groups on break. We were really glad we had made reservations in advance.
Feb 4th, 2008, 05:32 PM
#14
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I finally found this thread!!! We had our first grandchild just before Christmas and I've been on another planet since then! She's an angel and we are over the moon!
Thank you ALL for your great suggestions; you are an amazing group of people. I am so grateful for all of the good advice and I just wanted you all to know that I'm copying all of it down and getting really excited about our trip. countdown: 28 days!
Thank you ALL for your great suggestions; you are an amazing group of people. I am so grateful for all of the good advice and I just wanted you all to know that I'm copying all of it down and getting really excited about our trip. countdown: 28 days!
Feb 5th, 2008, 04:19 PM
#16
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Thanks for the tip, Tiff! I'm new at this, but loving all the great trip reports and advice from such a well-informed group.
I'll be looking at the posts so that we can get some ideas for itineraries in each city. So little time and so many great places to visit, eat, climb, etc.
I'll be looking at the posts so that we can get some ideas for itineraries in each city. So little time and so many great places to visit, eat, climb, etc.
Feb 18th, 2008, 07:11 PM
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I will be going late March as well. Have you done any more planning since your last post? Feel free to e-mail me [email protected] to discuss.
Feb 29th, 2008, 06:04 PM
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Well, it's only 3 days until we leave on our trip to Rome, Florence and Venice! I've booked reservations for the Scavi, Vatican/Sistine Chapel and Borghese Gallery tours. Do you think that it's worth it to do an evening bus tour of Rome with Enjoy Rome? We haven't really planned much for the evenings and I'm not sure if it's a good idea to just "wander around on our own".
In Florence, we have tickets reserved for the Academia and the Uffizi and are plan to climb the Duomo to see the city.
In Venice, I booked the Doge Palace and Secret Itineraries Tours. Thank you everyone for your great help and for so many wonderful suggestions from packing tips to restaurants!
Does anyone have any last minute advice, tips or see any glaring omissions in our plan?? We are so excited, although the recent decline of the dollar is not helping with the budget! Does anyone have any good, economical restaurants to suggest? One that looks tempting is Franco's favorite in Rome!
In Florence, we have tickets reserved for the Academia and the Uffizi and are plan to climb the Duomo to see the city.
In Venice, I booked the Doge Palace and Secret Itineraries Tours. Thank you everyone for your great help and for so many wonderful suggestions from packing tips to restaurants!
Does anyone have any last minute advice, tips or see any glaring omissions in our plan?? We are so excited, although the recent decline of the dollar is not helping with the budget! Does anyone have any good, economical restaurants to suggest? One that looks tempting is Franco's favorite in Rome!
Feb 29th, 2008, 06:15 PM
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Just my opinion, but I wouldn't do an evening tour with Enjoy Rome. You can easily walk between a few of the things that are nice to see at night (Trevi Fountain to the Pantheon to Piazza Navona, where you can enjoy a drink at one of the cafes while enjoying the action).
Feb 29th, 2008, 06:35 PM
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If it is a lovely night, you must climb up to the Capitoline hill and see the views into the Forum. Really gorgeous.
In Florence, I sguggest Pallotino as a very good and inexpensive restaurant. Their pappa al pomodoro is great on a cold night.
I notice that you didn't reserve Basilica San Marco. You can do this and I think you ought. If it is school trip time, lines can be long. This is Venice, of course.
A la Frasca is good and cheap and out of the way in Venice. Alla Madonna, right near Rialto, is very good with good prices. Don't have dessert. Or if you do, stick to the tiramisu.
In Florence, I sguggest Pallotino as a very good and inexpensive restaurant. Their pappa al pomodoro is great on a cold night.
I notice that you didn't reserve Basilica San Marco. You can do this and I think you ought. If it is school trip time, lines can be long. This is Venice, of course.
A la Frasca is good and cheap and out of the way in Venice. Alla Madonna, right near Rialto, is very good with good prices. Don't have dessert. Or if you do, stick to the tiramisu.
