Message: My wife and I are taking our 20th in Italy. Our trip will take us from Rome May 20/21, Then on to Milan via trainMay 22/23, Florence May 24/25, We'd like to tour the wine region for a few days, Pisa May 28/29, then back to Rome May 31 to June 2 via Florence by train again. I have several concerns/questions that I would like to ask. I keep hearing about gypsey's and would like to get some advise in handling these people. Given the dates indicated above, are we trying to take in too much. Does any one have an e-mail address for hotels in Florence? Has anyone got any recommendations on tour the wine region around Tuscany

I would skip Pisa & stay longer in Florence & Rome. You must see Michealangelo's David in "Firenze", eat ice cream at Vivoli's & shop for leather,shoes, jewelry on the Ponte Vecchio,etc. Also, Robert & Elizabeth Browning lived in Florence before she died. Their home should be open. Fiesole is on a hill overlooking Florence--nice.

There can be a real problem with pickpocket families, and it is NOT limited to any one ethnic group such as gypsies. We did not have a problem while we were in Italy, but we did follow the following suggestions: (1) don't carry a lot of luggage (the more you have you have, the harder it is to follow suggestion 2); (2) keep aware of where your luggage are at all times; (3) do not keep valuables where someone could take them easily (i.e., nothing in any pockets, fanny packs, back packs, valises on the side), as best you can, carry things on your front; (4) move away from ANYONE approaching you, children as young as three can be trained to be a distraction while the eight year old picks your pocket; (5) don't carry a lot of cash or ANY jewelry; (6) be aware of who is near your, if someone seems to be looking you over, swallow your ego and presume they're looking at your wallet and not your physique; (7) don't EVER fall for ANY variation of the "pigeon drop", where a total stranger comes up with an offer to help. If such a solicitation comes, be rude and back away.


I hope these warnings don't prevent you from enjoying the incredibly romantic beauty of where you will be traveling -- but you can combine a great trip with street smarts!!

In Florence stay at the Porta Rosa. Oldest hotel in Florence, located near the Ponte Vecchio. Nice rooms, friendly staff, a bit worn,,but a very good buy in a country where hotel rooms are outrageous.

We visited Venice, Florence, Piza,Rome, Sienna, Orvieto, Pompeii and ended the trip in Milan. My advice, skip Pompeii and Milan and spend no more than an hour or two in Piza. The excitement of Rome needs to be followed by an afternoon in Orvieto, if for no other reason than to regain your sanity, drink good wine and get away fronm it all.

Florence and Rome were the two highlights of our trip. Venice, in our opinion was great tourist trap and Sienna, near Florence is an absolute delight.

Don not miss David in florence, the Forum in Rome, Orvietto classico in Orvietto and the most wonderful ice cream in the world in Florence.

A good hotel in Rome is the Anglo Americano near the Piaza Bernini.

Hope you enjoy your trip

Lots of good advice about security in the above comments. Would suggest some of the special travel clothing or photo vests with many pockets - I spread my money, passport, Amex. card among several pockets in my clothing and in a pocket concealed under my clothing - then I have nothing to worry about. One person would have to hold me down while someone else unzipped pockets and searched me. The gypsies are pests and evident in many places - especially Rome - if ignoring them doesn't work, be as physical as you have to be without assaulting them. I was in Rome and Sicily by myself for two weeks in late March and was struck by the fact that I didn't see any gypsies on this trip - maybe it was offseason for them, too!

Concur with the above comments. We were all over Italy in late March and had no problems with pickpockets. We did take all the precautions, however. Disagree about Venice being a tourist trap, take two steps away from Piazza San Marco and get yourself lost. You'll love it.

Hello BIG BAD BOB----this is LITTLE BOB. You are
doing your 20th---we are doing our 40th this year.
I plan custom trips to Italy, and you are doing too
much. Skip Milan for sure---too much like Chicago.
Pisa is not worth your time either, but do not miss
a day trip to Siena from Florence. You can either
train down and back, or book a Gray Line tour to
include San Gimignano and perhaps Volterra in the
same deal. If you want another destination, I would
go to Sorrento and do Positano from there.

I was in Italy last July. You've received some good advice that I generally agree with. I would just like to add that I agree that Pisa should really be a day trip (actually a 30 minute viewing of the leaning tower) and then you should head back to Florence. Florence is a wonderful city. As for Milan, while it is very similar to many large american cities I think it is a must. Its a very vibrant friendly town and the shopping is like no other place I've seen. Have fun!

Big Bad Bob:

>Saw your query in the Fodor forum.
>
>Consider the Hotel Hermitage, 1 Vicola Marzio; telephone 287216; fax 212208. The hotel is within 100 feet of the Ponte Vecchio on the Duomo
>side of the bridge and perhaps 250 feet of the Uffiizi galleries. Double >room with bath and breakfast will be around $125-$150. The hotel has
some of the best views of the city from the sixth floor terrace: Ponte Vecchio, Duomo, the Arno and the Palazzo della Signoria.
>
>Staff of young women from all over Europe can direct you to good dining. We were directed to a restaurant in one of the streets of Via del
Parione (Via del Purgatorio, perhaps) and had a superb meal.
>
>In 1995 the Sunday travel section of the New York Times said "Given its location, the efficient, helpful staff and its overall charm, the
Hermitage may be one of Florence's best buys". Based on our experience, we'd agree.
>

I agree with others. There is absolutely nothing to do in Pisa accept to see the Leaning Tower. Can be done in 30 minutes tops. Could easliy be skipped altogether in favor of many other wonderful places. We just got back from grand tour of Italy 2 weeks ago. Consider going to Stresa in Italian Lakes Region for a couple days R&R in between cities. It was absolute paradise with very few tourists. So quiet and relaxing.

I wish that I would have know about this site long ago. Thank you all for some great advice. I'll be discussing all of this with my better half later tonight. We may be making a few changes judging from what you've forwarded to me. Thanks again for your comments. If you have any more advice, please forward and I'll let you all know how the trip went when we return.