Italia Recap

We went to Rome, then Florence, then Venice. Which I think is the right way to go. You don't need to go to Milan or Naples based on what I've researched. So when you're doing the big 3, Florence has to be in the middle because of it's geographic position. And for a variety of reasons which I'll get into, it's better to start in Rome than Venice. 

We arrived at our Rome hotel about 8pm, so that first night doesn't really count. So we had planned to have 4 full days in Rome, 5 in Florence, and 1 in Venice. We audibled during the trip to have 4 in Rome, 4 in Florence, and 2 in Venice. The 4-4-2 worked out quite well and allowed us to go at a leisurely pace. If you were short on time/money you do Rome in 3, Florence in 3, and Venice in 1. Counting the night you land, that's 8 nights, 7 days in Italy. The time of year you go is extremely important. I'd heard about how you can wait in 1-3 hour lines at the Vatican/Colosseum/Uffizi during the summer, plus it gets really hot. Going in March, our temperatures were in the 50's and we never waited in line. Conversely, I remember going to Paris over New Year's and it was gray/chilly. Definitely try and avoid June-August, especially August since all the shopkeepers leave because of the heat. 

Rome 

Usually we book hotels through Hotwire.com, and we did for Rome and Venice. In case you don't know, Hotwire saves you a lot of money, in exchange for not knowing the name/location of the hotel. Despite Hotwire getting us great deals in Paris and twice in London, in Italy the deals weren't any better than what they offered directly on their websites. So I would recommend booking directly through websites. You should be able to get something for about 100 euro/night. Between going to the Vatican, the Colosseum, and the Train station, it's beneficial to being near the Metro. We stayed at the Ambra Palace near the Vittorio E. station on Line A. Our hotel was fine, but the neighborhood was sketchy and far. It would be best to try and get a hotel near either the Spagna, Barberini, or Reppublica stop. The main airport FCO is 30 minutes away from the center of Rome. 

Here's what happenned when we tried to get a taxi: 

Taxi guy: Where are you going? 

Me: Ambra Palace. 

Taxi guy: 70 euros. 

Me: No. 40. 

Taxi guy: Okay, 50. 

Me: No. 40. 

Taxi guy: No. 50. 

At that point we walk away and take the Leonardo Express train from FCO to Termini. It was 11 euro a person and just as fast as the taxi. And you don't have to deal with shady taxi guys. From there you can pay 1 euro for a metro to anywhere. 

We went to the Vatican Musuem in the afternoon to avoid the crowd and there literally was no line. If you go in the afternoon, be sure to leave enough time to go into St. Peter's, see the Pieta, and climb the Dome if you want. 

We also went to the Colosseum in the afternoon. We ended up getting a tour guide from Discover Rome. It also covered the Palatine Hill/Roman Forum and we liked that guide (Sean) so much that we went a walking tour with him that night that covered the Pantheon, Trevi Fountain, Spanish Steps and other stuff. 

On our last day we took another Discover Rome guided tour to the Catacombs outside the city walls, which was just okay. 

Basically, I think you need one day for the Vatican, one for the Colosseum/Forum, and one more to just walk around whatever. 

Best Gelato Ever: Della Palma It's up the street north of the Pantheon. You must go here. They have over 100 flavors and it tasted like nothing we had all trip. You must go here. 

Good Pizza: Gallina Bianca 

Best Orange Juice Ever: It was at a fancy cafe kiosk inside a galleria at the corner of Corso/Sabini across from the Piazza Colonna. It was 5 euro which is sort of outrageous, but it was so good that we don't regret it. We've never tasted anything like it. 

Go to Termini a day ahead of time and buy Trenitalia tickets to Florence. We got 2 for 70 euro. (2 hours) 

Florence 

This was our favorite city. We stayed at the Hotel La Venere which was fine, but actually a little creepy. But it had a good location. I'd stay in that area again, 5 minutes north of the Duomo, near the Galleria Academia (Michelangelo's David). Florence is so small that you can walk around everything. But keep in mind where the SMN train station is when you're booking your hotel, so you don't have to lug your bags across town. 

Michelangelo's David was absolutely stunning and is a must-see. You can do that with the Duomo, and the Piazza del Signoria and Ponte Vecchio all in one day. We climbed the Duomo and it was worth it for the views, but a less-claustrophobic option would be to climb the bell tower attached to it. I chose to climb the Duomo over the bell tower for the chance to see the inside of the painted dome on the way up, but I don't know if that made up for the narrow, circular steps. I suppose you also have to do the Uffizi, but I don't think it was worth the hype. To avoid the 2-hour line even in the offseason, buy them in person at the Pallazo Pitti across the river. At least it's cheap. 

After the Uffizi we took the #7 bus to Fiesole for amazing views. People also recommend taking the #12 bus to Piazzale Michelangelo. We loved Fiesole and wish we got there well before sunset, instead of as the sun was almost down. (The bus tickets are just regular city bus tickets that cost $1.20 and can be bought from shopkeepers.) 

On our last day we went on a Chianti wine tasting trip through Viator (booked ahead of time) for $50/person. They took us out to this Castle (Castello il Palagio) and we got to taste 4 wines: a chardonnay, some basic red, the special Chianti Classico Reserva, and a desert wine, along with cheese, salami, olive-oil covered bread, and almond cookies. (Funny side note: The castle owner made a big deal about how the Reserva is so special and how it has to have 90% of this grape...blah blah blah...and then she told us to dip the almond cookies in the dessert wine because they are so hard. So this clueless American woman next to us dips her olive-oil soaked bread into the Reserva and eats it. If the owner would have seen that I bet she would have had a heart attack.) 

BEST PANINI EVER!: Antico Noe I already wrote a whole post on them. Best sandwich of my life. 

Best Dinner in Italy: Lo Scudo I had the Bistecca Fiorentina and Brittany had broccoli tortelli. Amazing. We went back for more. Just behind the Duomo on Oriliuo on the way to Antico Noe.

Best Gelato in Florence: Festival del Gelato on Corso, just off Calizoli. 

Thick, rich hot chocolate and handy restroom: Rivoire This is a nice cafe where you can sit outside, inside, or go up to the counter to get everything half-off. Also handy because it's in the Piazza del Signoria and it's hard to find a restroom when you're out. 

Two Trenitalia tickets from SMN Florence to Venice were under 70 euro. (2.5 hours) 

Venice 

So there's not much to do in Venice. You see the Rialto bridge/Grand Canal. Then you go in St. Mark's Basilica and square and you're done in about 2 hours. You spend the rest of your time walking through alleys. There's a reason that people take day-trips, or just stay 1 night. We stayed at the Hotel Santa Maria which is the only hotel we stayed at that I would recommend. It was centrally located between the Rialto, St. Mark's, and the pier that takes you to the airport. We got a classic room for 80 euro (special low-season rate) directly through their website and it was a great room. 

 The hotel offered a free trip to Murano for a glass-making demonstration. Notice I said "to" as in one-way. The ride there was a private taxi on a speedboat which was half the fun. The glass demo lasted 5 minutes and was cool. But then they take you through their showcase/gift shop for 20 minutes and you're own your own to take the water bus back. (13 euro for both of us) Oh yeah, and since the only thing in Venice is glass shops and other tourist stores, when they close at 7pm, the whole city looks shut down and it's a little strange. I ended up watching soccer in the hotel in Venice and we ate at pizza stands on the street. I would recommend staying a night there, maybe two if you have your heart set on seeing 5-minutes of glass making. 

Summary

You go to Venice to see the canals. You go to Rome to see the important/historic attractions. You go to Florence eat, drink, tour the countryside, soak up the culture, and love Italy. 

Post Script 

We had a night in London on the way back and it was enlightening. Because we spent 5 days in London a year ago, it was interesting to see how we felt about it. We saw the Tower of London and Parliament/Big Ben, went to afternoon tea, had fish and chips, saw Stomp in the West End, and walked around. The Tower and Parliament felt boring, like I was just there. But the tea, the fish, the theater, was as fun as ever. It's a good lens to examine Italy though. I feel as though I've seen Venice and Rome enough to not go back until I'm 50, but I would love to go back to Florence anytime.