I have three questions and hope to get some help, as I am travelling to Italy next July. <BR>1. Is airconditioning vital in hotel rooms? I have been told that it gets very hot in summer. <BR>2. Are the sales as good as they say? <BR>3. How safe/risky is it for a lone woman to visit Rome, Florence and Venice? I won't be able to "blend" in with the locals because I am Asian and look very different from Italians! Any advice will be gratefully received. <BR> <BR>thanks

1. Yes <BR>2. Yes <BR>3. Not a problem.

Dear May, <BR> <BR>The summer is hot. I would NOT want a hotel room without a functoning AC. I was in Florence in Oct. a few years ago. The AC had been turned off for the season,but had it been on, I would have used it. <BR> <BR>I did NOT feel safe in Rome many years ago, when I was with a friend, so I have not returned alone. (I think big cities tend to get worse, not better.) However, I'm sure plenty of people will disagree. It has been so long since I have been in Venice, and so much may have changed, that there's no point commenting on my nice safe experience there. <BR> <BR>I felt quite safe alone in Florence in spring and in fall. (Although no place is absolutely safe of course.) I did not like walking around alone at night and tried to avoid it by eating dinner at lunchtime and just eating fruit and a few groceries for supper after dark. But I'm sure I could have gotten around more at night without incident. The local people in general are not in any way threatening (except on their motorcycles). However, the city is overrun with tourists, and in summer, you may experience trouble from foreigners, rather than from the Florentines. <BR> <BR>Re not blending in as an Asian. In Florence in particular, that may be an interesting question, which I'll try to address based on my limited experience. When I was there not too long ago, there were many many Japanese tourists, i.e. from Japan. They tended to stand out because so many of them traveled in groups. In addition, it was a fad among young Japanese to have their wedding in Florence, followed by a horse and buggy ride around town. In the most expensive shops, many of the signs were in Japanese, just as in the more tacky places, the signs were in English. A Florentine friend of mine said that many people found the Japanese (i.e. from Japan) amusing/annoying because they are so extremely brand conscious, and arrive in Florence with very fixed ideas re certain specific designer items that they absolutely must buy, and tend to go all out for fads, e.g., the Florentine wedding plus buggy ride. Because there are SO MANY Japanese (and Americans) there may be a lot of negative stereotypes about both groups. My guess is that if superficially you look the least bit Japanese, you will be assumed to be Japanese, rather than American, British, Australian, or whatever you happen to be. So you may initially experience just a little bit of whatever negative feeling is directed against Japanese citizens, rather than the negative feeling sometimes directed against American citizens (which, by the way, I did NOT experience, and I don't think that's just because I am, and I look, Italian). However, as a LONE traveler, you may experience neither, because traveling like a "normal" person, rather than like a member of a Japanese or American tourist horde, you will be viewed as an individual most likely. <BR> <BR>In short, don't worry a bit about Florence (except for the excessive #s of foreign tourists). I personally also wouldn't worry about Venice. I'll try to be nice and not comment further about Rome.

Don't even consider a hotel without air conditioning. In Rome, at least, you will be very uncomfortable. I think it's safer to walk around Rome at night than it is in any U.S. city I've ever visited. However, I would certainly avoid the area around the Termini rail station. There are many reasonably priced hotels in this neighborhood, and some people recommend it for that reason, but it's not attractive and I think it's a bit seedy anytime and creepy at night, especially for a woman alone. Stay in the area around the Piazza Navona--Pantheon--Campo dei fiori. This neighborhood is full of people and life until the wee hours (another reason for the air conditioning--you'll want to close your window to get some sleep). I wouldn't hesitate to walk around the streets there at any hour, and I would certainly dine alone in any of the dozens and dozens of restaurants in that neighborhood at the usual Roman hour of 9 or 10 p.m. Another possibility would be the Piazza di Spagna neighborhood. I don't know it as well, but I think it would also be fine. If you are young, alone, and even a little bit attractive, some Roman men can be very annoying in their attentions. A firm refusal to talk to them at all is usually enough to get rid of them, though. Have a great trip.

Though I can't speak from experience (!), I wouldn't be that concerned about traveling alone in Italy. Since the above poster admits that her Rome experience was many years ago, I would tend to discount it. <BR>The advice, which has been given many times on this forum, is simple: Just be careful, as you would in any city. And, I certainly wouldn't be the least concerned about standing out because you are Asian. During the tourist season, the world comes to Italy!

Just returned from Italy and Rome was our last city. I never felt uncomfortable walking around at night, even with my 12 yr. old son...and you know how a Mom can be. I was apprehensive about Rome before I went (like someone going to NY for the first time). I was pleasantly surprised how friendly and beautiful it really was and was as easy to get around as Florence. Enjoy.

I've visited both Florence and Rome alone on a previous trip and experienced no problems. As mentioned before, if you're a younger woman, you may well experience some unwanted agression from men, particularly in Rome, but it does not usually feel too threatening. While I did not feel unsafe, I would not go as far as some of the previous posters by saying that you can walk around at any hour of the night safely. Rome, in particular, is like any other big city, and you have to use your common sense and judgement. While there may not be much by way of physical danger, pickpockets and purse snatchers are a reality in Rome, especially in areas frequented by tourists, so you do need to exercise some caution.