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Trip report Rome, Florence and Venice

Hello everybody! We spent the first 10 days of September in Italy and I would like to share with you some of our experiences. First of all, I want to thank all of you who take the time and energy to share your opinions/experiences with other fellow travelers. I have found a wealth of knowledge and information in this forum, which has helped me plan a wonderful and memorable trip.

To get started, let me tell you that my husband and I did not have a huge budget for this trip. We tried to keep costs under control, particularly with the current exchange rate for the euro.

We flew Swiss from Miami to Zurich, spent a night in Zurich (we chose to do so, but we could have taken a connection to Rome right away). We arrived into Rome and took a car service that was prearranged by our hotel.

ROME:
- B&B: Arco de Lauro, located in the Trastevere area, very affordable (110 euros). It was one of the rooms in an apartment, pretty basic but clean and recently remodeled. The B&B provided vouchers for breakfast at a nearby cafe (cappucino and croissant). Nice touches like a computer with free internet service in the hallway, as well as staples to prepare coffee or tea and cookies. We loved the location. It is outside of the crazyness, within walking distance to some major sights and there is a wonderful atmosphere in the evening (a lot of restaurants, art galleries, etc.)
- Sightseeing: we went to the Caracalla baths and took the audiotour (very interesting). We also did the audiotour at the Roman Forum and took a guided tour of the Coliseum (there are guided tours in English for only 4 euros per person). We purchased our tickets at Palatine Hill for the Forum/Coliseum combo and avoided all the lines at the Coliseum (this was suggested by someone in this forum and it really works). We also visited the Galleria Borghese. We had purchased the tickets online for the 11:00-1:00 pm slot because we wanted to take the 11:10 am guided tour in English (I really recommend this tour; you get so much more out of it). Allow plenty of time to get there because it is far from any other sights. We also booked a guided tour for the Vatican from Tuscany all. It was definitely worthwhile. We paid approximately 33 euros p/p for a 2 1/2 hour guided tour. We went in at 9:30 am (half an hour before the museum opens to the public) and skipped the huge lines (I have never seen such long lines in my life!!!)
And most of the time we just walk and walk. We visited the Spanish steps, Campo di Fiori, Trevi Fountain, etc., etc. It is such a beautiful city! We spent 4 days there and we thought it was a good amount of time to become familiar with the major sights.

FLORENCE:
We took the train from Rome to Florence. We tried to travel at the end of the day (around 5:00 PM) when we were already tired from a whole day of sightseeing because we didn't want to waste any time. We had tried to purchase train tickets back home from the Trenitalia website but, like many of you already said, it was a nightmare. But it was extremely easy to get the tickets once we got there from the computer kiosks at the station.
- Hotel: Alloro B&B. It was a great find, walking distance from the train station. It is like an apartment building where the owners rents the different rooms. Breakfast is brought to your room in a cart five minutes after you call for it. Really nice. We paid around 120 euros per night. The location was very good, within walking distance from all the major sights. We talk a wonderful 3-hr walking tour that we highly recomend (www.italy.artviva.com). Try to do it as soon as you get there because it will give you a general perspective of the city and its history. We liked this company so much that we purchased a walking tour of Tuscany from them. It was really nice to leave the city, museums and churches and hike around Tuscany, visit a villa and have a typical tuscan lunch. We had also purchased tickets online for the Uffizi Gallery. We liked it very much and skipped the lines as well. There is a great and affordable restaurant two blocks from the Duomo that we loved and recommend. Its name is Zio Gigi, the address is Via F. Portinari, 7/R, tel. 055-215584. The owner walks around singing opera and the food is outstanding. We had the best entrecote gorgonzola ever!
Also, have gelato at Vivoli nearby the Santa Croce church. The best gelato we've ever had. Florence was the city that we liked the most. It is spotlessly clean, has a lot of character and we thought it was more upscale than the other places we visited. Definitely worth it.

VENICE:
We took the train again from Florence to Venice.
Hotel: Sandra B&B. This was a true B&B, where the owners actually live in the house and rent 3 rooms to tourists. The house was beautiful, the hosts were very gracious and the breakfast was to die for (homemade pastries, amazing cheeses and cold cuts, homemade fruit salad, etc.). We liked the location because it was a 20 minute walk from the train station, close to the Jewish Ghetto,and a little bit secluded from the San Marco tourist masses. We paid 110 euros per night, a very good deal considering that hotels in Venice are very expensive. Venice is unique but it is very, very crowded. There were masses of tourists everywhere, a lot of them from the cruise ships. Prices are higher than in other places. A one way vaporetto trip is 6 euros per person! We took a guided tour of the Jewish Ghetto that we really liked and we had booked tickets online for the Palazzo Ducale. We had purchased the Secret Itineraries tour, but honestly we didn't feel it was that great. We also walked around a lot, got lost a lot and tried to absorb this unique city.

The weather was beautiful every single day (around 70 something degrees)and we just had a great time. The food is unbelievable pretty much anywhere, so there is no need to make reservation at specific restaurants. We had 2 gelatos a day, we just couldn't get enough. And as far as the budget goes, we didn't think it was so astronomically expensive as some people have said, but you have to be a smart shopper. If you have a capuccino sitting at a table in Plaza San Marco in Venice, you will pay for it; but you can always have the same capuccino standing at the bar and pay a fraction.

This is all for now. If you have any questions, I'll be more than happy to answer them. And again, thank you some much to all of you for your help. This trip was really memorable.

Clau

what company did you use for the vatican?

vatican tour: www.rome-museum.com

I just went to the website and this is what, in part is on their site:

"IMPORTANT NOTICE: (Restriction only for Guided Tours organized by the Vatican)
The current policy of the Vatican (regarding GUIDED TOURS) consists of providing exclusively a last minute confirmation. This means that we will not receive any answer -- confirmed or not confirmed -- until the day before your requested tour.
Therefore it will not be possible to have an answer prior to 7 pm (Italian time) the day before your requested tour. Tuscany All – RomeMuseum is not responsible for the Vatican's booking procedure and does not have any ability to provide confirmations or availability information more than 24 hours prior to the requested tour."

How did you handle the situation with the confirmations? We will be renting an apartment and will not have access to a fax, I will have my computer but no printer

Clau- Glad to hear you enjoyed your trip. We leave for Italy next week and will be staying at the Alloro B&B in florence,too. Can you tell me if your room had a balcony? Do any of them? thanks.

Clau, I am leaving in a couple of days and am staying at two of the locations that you did, Arco de Lauro in Rome and B&B Alloro in Florence? Tried to stay with Sandra in Venice but she was booked. We are unfortunately going to be hitting rain everyday. Lucky you to have had wonderful weather.
May I ask how far is it to Arco de Lauro from the train station? Do the above B&B's provide the basics like soap and shampoo. I apologize for not knowing but I have never stayed at a B&B before. I have also read in past threads that it is difficult to find Alloro B&B, did you have difficulty once you arrived in Florence? Do you advise taking a taxi, and if you did how much did spend? I just don't want to get taken by a taxi like my cousin did in Florence a couple of years ago. The taxi cab gave them a round about trip around Florence as the meter kept ticketing to find out that they were only a block from the train station. Thank-you in advance and look forward to your reply. Like you we will be watching our spending as well due to the current exchange rate. If you have any restaurants to recommend in Rome that would be great.

Clau - I'm practically in the same boat as Jam - I'm also staying at the Alloro in a couple of weeks! Nice to hear you liked it. It looks pretty close to everything - did you find it convenient?

hi, jam,

we got a cab from the SMN train station in Florence by jsut walking up to the taxi line, where tey have an organiser telling you which cab to get in. [this endures that people with lots of luggage/passengers get the bigger cabs - it may have other fundctions too but I don't know what they are].

the driver took us straight to the apartment and charged us the amount on the meter [8E] which i made up to 10E.

we also took a cab to the theatre, and back to the station. we had no problems with them ripping us off.

I think that your cousin was just unlucky. also there are some one-wat streets which may mean that the direct route is not possible.

regards, ann

Arco de Lauro: you can take a bus (I believe is the H) from the B&B to the train station. As far as toiletries, they supply just soap, but you need to get shampoo, conditioner and anything else you might need.

Alloro B&B: our room did not have a balcony. I don't know about the other ones. They provide all toiletries. If you are travelling without a lot of luggage and are willing to walk, it is a 10 minute walk to the train station. That's what we did. It wasn't hard to find. Just follow the directions on their website. Word of caution: if you are going arriving later in the evening, make sure you let them know. They cover the reception only until 4:00 pm.

Good luck and I welcome any other questions.

Clau

Thanks Clau and Ann, I'm leaving tomorrow so the added information is much appreciated. Clau, do yo have any recommendations for restaurants in the Trastevere area?

We stayed at the Arco Del Lauro last week. We were in their one quad. The taxi fare from thte train station was 12.5 euros. We loved staying there. Lorenza and Daniella are perfect hosts and are very helpful with any questions. It is a short walk to the jewish quarter. Try the fried artichokes. We liked a nearby trattoria, Ponentino. Good pasta...Nice outdoor patio.

there is a good restaurant in the jewish ghetto. I don't remember its name, it starts with a G, something like Giglio and it's right next to the ruins on the first street parallel to the Jewish Museum.
As far as restaurants in Trastevere, there are so many... Just walk around and pick one. The food in Italy is excellent anyway.

Hi Clau, I am glad you had a great time. Could you rate the three b&b you styayed in, we have been in Arco del lauro ,in Rome and certainly if you tell us which one did you prefered it will help us a lot. Thankyou.
How much did you pay for the walking tour in Firenze? TKS

Arco de Lauro was the most basic B&B. Alloro would be second and B&B Sandra was definitely the best one. Alloro was comparable to a nice hotel room and Sandra was a true B&B where the owners serve you breakfast and actually live there.

Florence walking tour was $25 p/p, I think. You can check in their website (included in my trip report).

Clau

Clau- We will be visiting Rome in 2 weeks. We also have booked the 9:30 Vatican tour. Did you visit St. Peters? Did you have to stand in line for that? Did you go up the dome? Thanks.

We are also staying at Alloro B&B next May. (Boy, what word-of-mouth/message-board endorsements can do!) I'd suggest that people be sure to print out or buy a map of Florence that shows the streets around Alloro. It is not very far from the station at all.
We used to stay at Hotel Bellettini, which is now too expensive for us and is about a block further from Alloro. We always walked with luggage to/from the station. We are in our 70s, by the way, for those who are concerned about how difficult it is to make the walk. I don't think you need to pay the equivalent of about $15 to take a taxi.

Now that I have made that statement, I will say that we will be coming from Milan by train on the same day we arrive from San Francisco. So we may be zombies by the time we get there, if we don't sleep thru the stop and travel on to Rome by mistake!

Charnee