How much advance planning required in Italy?
Dec 7th, 2006, 05:34 AM
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How much advance planning required in Italy?
hello Fodorites,
I have been reading here for some time and it has got me wondering about all this advance planning. Many years ago when my husband and I traveled to England, Scotland and Ireland, the only reservations we made in advance were for the hotel at our first destination: London.
It was wonderful to have that amount of freedom to stay or go depending on our whim.
Now I am making plans to return to Italy in the Spring. Does anyone do that kind of unplanned travel? I imagine that would be unwise during high season and in the more heavily visited cities, but what about in smaller towns, in April and early May?
What success have you had simply renting a car or traveling by train/bus, and booking accomodation as you go along, or maybe a day or two ahead?
When we did this 20 years ago, we made use of the Tourist Info services in each town, I would think this would be even easier now with the internet, cell phones, etc.
What do you think?
I have been reading here for some time and it has got me wondering about all this advance planning. Many years ago when my husband and I traveled to England, Scotland and Ireland, the only reservations we made in advance were for the hotel at our first destination: London.
It was wonderful to have that amount of freedom to stay or go depending on our whim.
Now I am making plans to return to Italy in the Spring. Does anyone do that kind of unplanned travel? I imagine that would be unwise during high season and in the more heavily visited cities, but what about in smaller towns, in April and early May?
What success have you had simply renting a car or traveling by train/bus, and booking accomodation as you go along, or maybe a day or two ahead?
When we did this 20 years ago, we made use of the Tourist Info services in each town, I would think this would be even easier now with the internet, cell phones, etc.
What do you think?
Dec 7th, 2006, 06:07 AM
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Hi OO,
>What do you think?<
I think that you are now 20 years older and less likely to look upon trekking from hotel to hotel to settle for something less than you want at a price higher than you want to pay as an adventure.
Twenty years ago you didn't have the internet.
However, in early Spring you could probably wing it without much difficulty.
I do suggest that you research where you would want to stay so that you have some idea of what's available.
Enjoy your visit.
>What do you think?<
I think that you are now 20 years older and less likely to look upon trekking from hotel to hotel to settle for something less than you want at a price higher than you want to pay as an adventure.
Twenty years ago you didn't have the internet.
However, in early Spring you could probably wing it without much difficulty.
I do suggest that you research where you would want to stay so that you have some idea of what's available.
Enjoy your visit.
Dec 7th, 2006, 06:15 AM
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I have travelled all over Italy without ever booking anything in advance. Hotels are plentiful. If a particular hotel room with so many stars and a specific view is important to you, then advance booking may be needed, but if you simply want somewhere comfortable to stay, then you will easily find places as you go. The big practical difference between Italy and Britain is the language. If you must stay in hotels where all the staff speak English, then your choices in Italy are more limited, but if you learn rudimentary Italian, I'd say it's easier to travel around Italy without advance bookings than to do the same in the UK.
Dec 7th, 2006, 06:20 AM
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There are certainly two schools of thought on how much planning to do. Usually I think when a lot of people say "I don't want to be tied into a plan" or "I want to go on a whim", what they really mean is that they haven't planned or read about what they might want to do in a certain place. If you do a lot of reading, you will have a very educated guess at how long you might want to stay at a particular destination. In years of long European trips (up to 5 months at a time, and lots and lots of two and three night stops) I can count on one hand the number of times we've wanted to change our plans by leaving a place a day earlier or staying for another day. And in a couple of those cases, we simply did so, by cancelling our next reservation, or adding a night where we were. But be aware that if you add a night to one place, it means you must cut a night or even a whole destination that originally you had thought you wanted to see -- so is it really worth it?
And personally, I'd rather look at hotels, prices, and locations on the internet in advance than spend hours at each location trying to find a place to stay. I much prefer relaxing and seeing the local sights to worrying about a bed to sleep in -- especially since I'm sort of particular about that.
And personally, I'd rather look at hotels, prices, and locations on the internet in advance than spend hours at each location trying to find a place to stay. I much prefer relaxing and seeing the local sights to worrying about a bed to sleep in -- especially since I'm sort of particular about that.
Dec 7th, 2006, 06:28 AM
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>...if you learn rudimentary Italian, I'd say it's easier to travel around Italy without advance bookings than to do the same in the UK.<
That's true. Very few people in the UK speak Italian.
That's true. Very few people in the UK speak Italian.
Dec 7th, 2006, 06:52 AM
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Certainly it can be done. It is just a matter of how much time on your trip you're willing to give to looking for a place to sleep that night, etc.
I am a very minimal planner, only plane tickets and hotel reservations, that all. but I do know ahead of time when and where I'll be staying each night.
I am a very minimal planner, only plane tickets and hotel reservations, that all. but I do know ahead of time when and where I'll be staying each night.
Dec 7th, 2006, 07:21 AM
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Hi Olive,
My personal preference is to plan ahead. I am unwilling to spend any of my precious vacation time hunting for a place to sleep. If I had vacation time in the form of months, not weeks, I would be more willing to wing it.
My personal preference is to plan ahead. I am unwilling to spend any of my precious vacation time hunting for a place to sleep. If I had vacation time in the form of months, not weeks, I would be more willing to wing it.
Dec 7th, 2006, 07:31 AM
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Nine times out of ten in Italy, I have walked out of the railway station or port, walked into a hotel and booked a room. I have certainly never spent hours looking for a hotel, and rarely more than ten minutes. If one hotel is full, then there's almost always another a few yards away. Venezia is the most difficult city, but there is a hotel booking office at the railway station, and they have always found something suitable.
Why commit yourself to an itinerary when your plans can be affected by strikes, the weather or your own whims?
Why commit yourself to an itinerary when your plans can be affected by strikes, the weather or your own whims?
Dec 7th, 2006, 10:37 AM
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olive_oil, why not mix the two methods. Plan and book the first and last night(s), and a couple of nights in the middle. This gives your trip some outline without being rigid.
Only you know what you like to do best (lie on a beach/admire architecture/eat from dawn to dusk/all of the above). Some research will help in your decisions, even if they are not firm in the way of reservations.
Will you be disappointed? Certainly there will be times when you are shut out from your first choices. But finding a jewel (hotel, restaurant or small town) that no amount of research would have revealed will make it worthwhile.
JQ
Only you know what you like to do best (lie on a beach/admire architecture/eat from dawn to dusk/all of the above). Some research will help in your decisions, even if they are not firm in the way of reservations.
Will you be disappointed? Certainly there will be times when you are shut out from your first choices. But finding a jewel (hotel, restaurant or small town) that no amount of research would have revealed will make it worthwhile.
JQ
Dec 7th, 2006, 10:50 AM
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If you have unlimited time and don;t mind driving or hiking around looking at places to stay - and if you're flexible about where you stay this could work outside of high season.
But - if you have specific hotel requirements - including budget, private bath, bed configuration, location etc - then I would book in advance.
If you do decide to do the unplanned route you really should have a list of hotels picked in advance (to have a good idea of realistic budget if nothing else) that you are willing to stay in. If you want to test this further try one town now - see where you would like to stay and make sure they have plenty of rooms now - it will help you decide how much you want to risk.
But - if you have specific hotel requirements - including budget, private bath, bed configuration, location etc - then I would book in advance.
If you do decide to do the unplanned route you really should have a list of hotels picked in advance (to have a good idea of realistic budget if nothing else) that you are willing to stay in. If you want to test this further try one town now - see where you would like to stay and make sure they have plenty of rooms now - it will help you decide how much you want to risk.
Dec 7th, 2006, 12:16 PM
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Having the internet is a godsend. We tend to stop at an internet cafe at least once in each of our destinations. They are very accessible now and easy to find. Simply pull up available hotels for your next destination and chose as you would at home. We've also rented a car on the spur of the moment through autoeurope. Like others have mentioned, if you're not hell-bent on staying at one particular hotel, then you could easily wing it.
Dec 7th, 2006, 12:42 PM
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It has now been well over 20 years since I did my first European trip, just wandering around and finding accommodation as I wanted - and I still love it.
We did have several trips where everything was bre-booked because we had either left the children behind and wanted them to know exactly where we were or because the entire family had gone and, of course it is logistically much harder when there are 5 instead of 2. Quite simply, we prefer the freedom of the former to the later.
Many people will say that they wouldn't do it because they don't want to spend their precious holiday time looking for a place to say. I think because they have never tried it they don't realise how easy it is. I very rarely find that I spend ages looking for a hotel, traipsing from one place to the next. If all you are after is a comfortable room for a night or two, there shouldn't be any problem. We also really enjoy staying in B&B type accommodation and getting to meet the locals, rather than being isolated in a hotel. We once spent six months in Europe, basicaly never spending more than a coule of nights in each little village and I could count the number of times we had trouble finding accommodation on the one hand (and the reason it was hard because we were on a very strict budget in order to travel so long). We have found some of the most marvellous places from just seeing a sign on the side of the road. If you are driving past a place already you haven't lost any time at all. In fact, I have spent much longer on some occasions when I have had pre-booked accommodation because we can't find it amongst the maze of streets. There were also a couple of memorable occasions when we could see our hotel in the distance but just couldn't work out how to get to it because of the one-way streets. Admittedly this was before via.michelin, mappy.com etc. so you would probably have some printed directions before you get there nowdays, but it was extremely frustrating.
However, I would pre-book accommodation in major cities and I would consider pre-booking if there was a town in which I intended to spend quite a few days. On our trip next May, I will book accommodation for the cities of Prague, Krakow, Budapest and probably Cesky Krumlov (a very popular tourist destination) but will be leaving over two weeks unbooked for the travel between these cities. We have also occasionally spent up big and stayed at castles/chateaus etc. as a treat which have been pre-booked. Mind you, on our last trip to France we didn't pre-book any chateaus and still managed to stay at two of them and at fantastic prices with walk-in rates.
Also I do think you need to be travelling by car to do this. It would much harder if you were training it and had to carry your luggage everywhere. I do see that Geoff travels by train and says he doesn't have any problems. So, once again, perhaps it comes down to perceptions. Because I have never tried it by train it seems a lot harder to me than it really is.
Obviously there are pros and cons to both sides. I can't guarantee that you won't have a night where you will have trouble finding accommodation. It has happened to us but, on balance, this hasn't been enough to deter us from this type of travelling overall.
As to the suggestion, only people who don't take the time to plan their trip travel this way is quite wrong. I will spend up to a year haunting this board, studying guide books etc. I can be obsessive about where I want to be and what I want to do, to the extent that I don't want to compromise my freedom by being "locked in". And, incidentally, I have NEVER had to forgo a place I wanted to see because I couldn't find acccommodation when I got there. Mind you, travelling off-peak is necessary for this.
In the end it comes down to how important is accommodation to you. To me, travelling overseas is about experiencing the culture and sightseeing. Of course, I like good accommodation but it is not the most important part of the trip. For others, the accommodation is the most important part or, at least, very high on their priorities and hence want it all locked in.
By the way, lack of language was never a problem anywhere we have ever travelled (if you discount the time we managed to get ourselves locked inside our Italian hotel room and had to try an explain the situation over the phone to reception - they had no English, we had no Italian). Any phrasebook will tell you how to ask for a room and, failing that, if you walk into reception and hold up two fingers, I am sure the person behind the counter will assume you are probably looking for a room for two people rather than making rude gestures at him.
Whichever way you decide to do it - have a great time.
We did have several trips where everything was bre-booked because we had either left the children behind and wanted them to know exactly where we were or because the entire family had gone and, of course it is logistically much harder when there are 5 instead of 2. Quite simply, we prefer the freedom of the former to the later.
Many people will say that they wouldn't do it because they don't want to spend their precious holiday time looking for a place to say. I think because they have never tried it they don't realise how easy it is. I very rarely find that I spend ages looking for a hotel, traipsing from one place to the next. If all you are after is a comfortable room for a night or two, there shouldn't be any problem. We also really enjoy staying in B&B type accommodation and getting to meet the locals, rather than being isolated in a hotel. We once spent six months in Europe, basicaly never spending more than a coule of nights in each little village and I could count the number of times we had trouble finding accommodation on the one hand (and the reason it was hard because we were on a very strict budget in order to travel so long). We have found some of the most marvellous places from just seeing a sign on the side of the road. If you are driving past a place already you haven't lost any time at all. In fact, I have spent much longer on some occasions when I have had pre-booked accommodation because we can't find it amongst the maze of streets. There were also a couple of memorable occasions when we could see our hotel in the distance but just couldn't work out how to get to it because of the one-way streets. Admittedly this was before via.michelin, mappy.com etc. so you would probably have some printed directions before you get there nowdays, but it was extremely frustrating.
However, I would pre-book accommodation in major cities and I would consider pre-booking if there was a town in which I intended to spend quite a few days. On our trip next May, I will book accommodation for the cities of Prague, Krakow, Budapest and probably Cesky Krumlov (a very popular tourist destination) but will be leaving over two weeks unbooked for the travel between these cities. We have also occasionally spent up big and stayed at castles/chateaus etc. as a treat which have been pre-booked. Mind you, on our last trip to France we didn't pre-book any chateaus and still managed to stay at two of them and at fantastic prices with walk-in rates.
Also I do think you need to be travelling by car to do this. It would much harder if you were training it and had to carry your luggage everywhere. I do see that Geoff travels by train and says he doesn't have any problems. So, once again, perhaps it comes down to perceptions. Because I have never tried it by train it seems a lot harder to me than it really is.
Obviously there are pros and cons to both sides. I can't guarantee that you won't have a night where you will have trouble finding accommodation. It has happened to us but, on balance, this hasn't been enough to deter us from this type of travelling overall.
As to the suggestion, only people who don't take the time to plan their trip travel this way is quite wrong. I will spend up to a year haunting this board, studying guide books etc. I can be obsessive about where I want to be and what I want to do, to the extent that I don't want to compromise my freedom by being "locked in". And, incidentally, I have NEVER had to forgo a place I wanted to see because I couldn't find acccommodation when I got there. Mind you, travelling off-peak is necessary for this.
In the end it comes down to how important is accommodation to you. To me, travelling overseas is about experiencing the culture and sightseeing. Of course, I like good accommodation but it is not the most important part of the trip. For others, the accommodation is the most important part or, at least, very high on their priorities and hence want it all locked in.
By the way, lack of language was never a problem anywhere we have ever travelled (if you discount the time we managed to get ourselves locked inside our Italian hotel room and had to try an explain the situation over the phone to reception - they had no English, we had no Italian). Any phrasebook will tell you how to ask for a room and, failing that, if you walk into reception and hold up two fingers, I am sure the person behind the counter will assume you are probably looking for a room for two people rather than making rude gestures at him.
Whichever way you decide to do it - have a great time.
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