mgfit

Hi All,

First of all, thanks to all the great advice from everyone! As listed above, we leave in a few weeks and we are looking for any other advice based on those of you that have travelled to any locations we are going to visit. Just for reference, we have already been to Rome and Florence on our last trip to Italy. Here's our itinerary:

Sept 2nd Arrive Rome, Train to Florence.
Sept 3 - day trip to San Giminango
Sept 4 - day trip to Lucca
Sept 5 - travel to Positano and at leisure
Sept 6 - day trip to Naples (paperwork for wedding and see a few sites)
Sept 7 - Visit florist in Positano in the am and Photographer in PM in Amalfi. Afternoon in Amalfi
Sept 8 - day trip to Paestrum and Agropoli (my great grandma is from there)
Sept 9 - day trip to Capri
Sept 10 - wedding at 11am. photos til 1pm and lunch overlooking water at 1pm. Evening and dinner in Sorrento.
Sept 11 - travel to Spoleto/at leisure
Sept 12 - Spoleto
Sept 13 - early train to Rome (airport hotel). Free shuttle to Rome city center...day shopping/at leisure in Rome.
Sept 14 - fly home.

If you have any GREAT recommendations....let us know. We welcome restaurants, sites, shopping advice! We already have all of our hotels booked. WE CAN'T WAIT!!!

Lorac1127

Congratulations on your upcoming marriage!

One restaurnt which we really enjoyed was Restaurant Nettuno on the grounds of Paestum. It is a lovingly restored old building, the setting is beautiful and the food was excellent. Our cousins who live in Salerno took us there. Here is the Web site: http://www.ristoratori.it/nettuno/ which you will need for directions.

Capri is a delight and should be in full bloom in early September.

Have a wonderful time.

SeaUrchin

Personally I think you are overextending yourselves. I would skip Spoleto and spend a few days relaxing on the Amalfi Coast. You are spending a few days arranging the ceremony and then leaving the next day? I would take those days to visit Capri or Pasteum at my leasure. What is your rush? Relax, you are supposed to be enjoying your wedding days.

awbaker

I'm going to miss you in Positano by a week (we'll be there Aug 27-31.) I wish I could wish you well there!

I agree with SeaUrchin. I planned a long-distance wedding too, and I realized how exhausted I was the day after the wedding. It was so nice to relax and enjoy leisurely lunches/dinners and long conversations with my husband on the honeymoon. Maybe you could just spend those nights in Capri or Ravello?

sognatrice

I also think you should keep Spoleto for a future trip. The day after the wedding could be spent relaxing in each other's company in a beautiful surrounding. Hoping you just relax and enjoy the Amalfi Coast, giving it the time it deserves.

chicagolori

I think it would be a shame if you did not see Ravello while on the Amalfi Coast. The views are spectacular and there are two gorgeous villas you can tour. (Villa Cimbrione and Rufolo). Both have beautiful gardens and BREATHTAKING vistas. If it were me, i would skip Capri for Ravello. There is a bus you can board in Amalfi - very short ride up the hill - or you can get a taxi on either end. Ravello was our favorite town on the AC - not as touristy, lovely people, etc.

I agree with the Spoleto comments. Its pretty far away from the AC. BUt it sounds like a dreamy trip. Enjoy!

Lorac1127

Since you indicated that all the hotels were booked, I hesitated to mention eliminating Spoleto.

However, staying on the Coast will eliminate travel time and allow you more leisure time to enjoy those last few days to wander through Ravello, Praino, Vietri and possibly even venture to Ischia.

Lorac1127

I just came across this...breathtaking!

http://www.vladi-private-islands.de/...1_galli_1.html

sognatrice

Llorac1127,
Thanks for that link, I am just about to go to sleep, and now I know what to dream about!!!

mgfit

THANKS for the info....we did already book Spoleto. There are a few reasons things are a bit weird with our itinerary...we were trying to trade or timeshare and coordinate the wedding and planned for the time share to work... then it didn't come through....long story, but anyway we have already booked all the hotels.

We chose Spoleto because we read how truely romantic it is suppose to be...how perfect to end our trip. (we loved Umbria and Tuscany on our last visit and have to get back there....) Also, my FI loves to cook so I am trying to arrange a cooking lesson for him as a surprise while we are there. If you can't tell....we are both completely "type A" and hyper! Last year when we went to Italy we did a TON and we loved it. I guess that is why we were up for doing so much....we are use to it. Not only that, but we usually take 2 "relaxing" beach vacations a year where we do NOTHING. We are up for everything on this trip!

The wedding stuff we are doing shouldn't take very long. In fact, I would opt to avoid spending the day in Naples (just do our paperwork as soon as they open and leave) and head to Amalfi or Ravello for the rest of the day. I am not really to keen on Naples from what I read.

If there are any other restaurants...sites....advice, let me know. Thanks again for all of your help.

sognatrice

I am smiling at your last post, coming from a whole family of type As myself, I highly congratulate you for pausing long enough in the fast lane to actually fit in a wedding! I did have one suggestion of a wonderful place to lunch, but it requires that you slow down long enough to enjoy it, anyway, here it is-Ristorante San Giovanni in Pontone, just near Ravello with a magnificent panoramic view from the Terrazza.

Best wishes to you both, and I can't help it, but I still hope you don't let the Amalfi Coast go by in a blur while rushing through on your way back North!!
And in Italy, sometimes the road has a strange way of curving quite suddenly and magically to the left when you had carefully planned to turn right, especially in the south.

Enjoy your trip..

mgfit

Thanks for the kind words and suggestions....we'll have to check it out! Look for my long post after our return!

platzer

Don't waste your time going to Lucca.

mgfit

What was your experience in Lucca? What didn't you like? Any suggestions appreciated. If we don't go there....where else should we go?

zee123

Ilearn so much everytime someone else asks a question! I believe I will add Ravello to our schedule!
Congratulations on your upcoming wedding

tuscanlifeedit

I think Lucca is fine for a day trip. You can go in the morning, rent a bike and ride the walls, visit a site or two, lunch and head back to Florence for evening walking and dinner. I think it is a nice way to spend a day.

I can recommend several activities or sights in Lucca, if I knew what sort of things you enjoy. We like the Cathedral, the nearby museum (nicely done) the old Roman amphitheater that is now a square... there is also a nice botanical garden.

Have fun and congratulations

sognatrice

Dear platzer-
I wonder why you think Lucca is a waste of time? LOL, Perhaps we should ask the ghost of Marcello Mastroianni, who had a home there! He must have found something you may have missed.....

mgfit

We are very active so the bike ride sounds wonderful. We like art, churches, wine, gardens and are pretty open to suggestions. We are pretty well travelled and always read alot to research before we get there to make sure we don't miss the things that sound most appealing. Give me all of your suggestions....we are open minded!

Oh - we do love great food...any great places for lunch after that long bike ride??

Thanks in advance....we leave Sept 1st...I can't beleive it!

drdkc

September 1!!!! not soon enough

Congratulations...and don't miss Ravello

mamc

I assume that you have been to Florence before and that is why you are using all of your time there for day trips. If you have been to Florence, OK. But if you haven't been to Florence, I suggest skipping Lucca and even San Gimignano. Though I loved San Gimignano, I wouldn't trade a day in Florence for a trip to Lucca. Happy marriage and many more exciting trips to you both.