Italy advice

[jai6638]

Hello all.., I needed some advice.. I plan to head to Italy between March 3rd and March 8th. I would appreciate advice on what to check out. Here's what I plan to do with my buddy:

March 3rd - Land into Pisa, check out leaning tower of Pizza and then head to Florence in evening.
March 4th - Tour Florence
March 5th - Take morning train to Naples and reach there at 10am. Spend the day in naples or take a bus trip down the amalfi coast..
March 6th - Take morning trian to Rome. Spend the day in Rome
March 7th - Spend Day in Rome
March 8th - Take 10 am flight back to Boston..

The time is quite tight so would appreciate your advice on if I shud spend more time in Florence and remove Naples, or instead of going to Naples, go somewhere else??

My goal is to explore Italian culture, eat a lot of good food, drink a lot of wine (and possibly hit up a winery if time permits) and explore around the streets.. not a big fan of museums..

Any advice would be much appreciated..

 

[arrfep]

With only a few days, I wouldn't waste so much time in transit. I thought Florence was awesome, and spent three days there when I'd only planned for maybe one. If you're looking to explore Italian culture, IMO Florence is one of the best cities to do that in. It's more or less the Art capital of Italy, and it's less crowded and hectic than Rome. I spent an entire afternoon just wandering back side-streets. I would cut out Naples all together. Split the time between Rome and Florence.

 

[mryellow]

Don't waste too much time in Pisa. Enjoy the architecture, maybe take a walk along the river and check out the open market if it's open and then high tail it outta there!

Florence was better than Rome for me. I stayed in an apt just south of the Ponte Vecchio for about a month and walked around the city every day. Rome was just too large and not my cup of tea, although the Coliseum is truly epic.

Highlights of Florence/Firenze:

The art! The Uffizi and Accademia are must go and sees but there is art and architecture on nearly every corner.

The Duomo is really impressive. I stopped and gawked for a minute when I first saw it.

Perche No, Vivoli, Innocenti - favorite gelaterias. I would eat this stuff literally every day.

sandwich cart that is just down the street from Perche No that sells delicious roast pork and tripe sandwiches for a low price.

There are gyro shops around the town as well. I especially liked one very small shop that was tucked into a side street just north of the Palazzo Vecchio.

I'd recommend staying away from restaurants that are situated directly in the squares. Although they aren't terrible you can find much better just a few blocks/streets away.

If you walk around town at night you are bound to catch a few live performers, usually musical in nature.

 

[The Boston Dangler]

i've been told by italians naples is a shithole. "go do it in naples" is not a compliment.

 

[Farang]

Pisa is a tourist trap. A shame you're landing there so you can't skip it.

Sicily was my favorite part of Italy. But it is a place better suited if you have more time to spend there.

I agree you should just stick to Florence and Rome with the time you have.

 

[DaWhim]

I spent 21 days in italy and saw a lot of city north of naples. your plan is retarded.

if you are gonna do something like this, all you gonna see in italy is their train.

spend a day or two to do cinque terres, about 2 hours from pisa. then go to florence or rome. you probably shouldn't go anywhere else since you can't really see much.

u can do florence + rome. your time only allow you to see 2 cities max.

naples pizza was the best i had.

 

[GTaudiophile]

Typical whirlwind tour.

How about visit Rome+1 other place and give yourself some time to absorb it and enjoy it? You'll come back with a much better appreciation.

Here are some possible day trips from Rome that I found via Google.

I personally have not been to Rome. I can only vouch for Venice, Udine, Milano, Modena, Maranello, Cinque Terre, and Bellagio. (Cinque Terre and Bellagio being my favorite.)

 

[bignateyk]

Unless you are really into art you don't need more than a day in Florence. My wife and I were in Florence for a week and only spent 1 day in the city. We spent the rest of the time touring vineyards and other farms in the chianti region.

Pisa could be done in about an hour. We took a tour up through Pisa, Sienna, San Gimignano in a day. Aside from looking at the tower and taking they touristy picture of you holding it up there really isn't anything to do.

Two days in Rome could be tight...There is alot to do, but it could be done in two long days. We spent about a week there and that was about the right amount of time to see everything in a relaxed fashion.

Is there any way you could start in Venice instead of Pisa?

edit: Saw you aren't a big fan of museums, so if you want to see a vineyard, do that in Florence instead of going into the city. The duomo is cool to check out, but I though touring the vineyards was more enjoyable. If you don't like museums, definitely avoid the Vatican Museum, Academie, Uffizi, etc... It's like being in a cattle herd.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

I'd concentrate on Florence and Rome and forget the rest of your stops.

 

[dullard]

I agree with the others - you are trying to do too much. For example: if you happen to miss the fast train (it was cancelled on the day I tried to take it) between Naples and Florence, that is a 9 hour trip, one way. Even with the fast train, it is several hours. With only 5 days in Italy, that amount of travel time is really, really a waste.

The Amalfi coast is fantastic, especially if it is a romantic trip or a trip for scenery. But, you just don't have the time. Also note that public transportation south of Naples is slow going. The public transit is fantastic, the bus rides are like a roller coaster the metro has a stop in Pompeii, etc. But, you are spending even more hours just travelling instead of enjoying.

I know I'm odd, but Florence had very little of interest to me. I didn't like the museums there (nor the 4+ hour wait in line just to see a couple dozen pieces of art). But, many people love it. Focus on Florence and Rome. Stick in or near the walled city centers, and you'll love just walking the streets. You'll have plenty to do and a fantastic trip.

If you really wanted great food, then Bologna is the food capital of Italy. It is a couple hours north of Florence. But, again, I don't think you have the time.

 

[mb]

Pisa is vastly over rated. Naples kind of is too, but if you are there on a long trip it's nice to spend a day there. But on a short trip I wouldn't bother.

Florence is great - there's a lot to do and see.

Small tip on Rome - the lines to get into the Colosseum can be ridiculously long. Think Disney Land at peak season. There are a lot of groups outside the Colosseum that promise they can get you in faster. I thought it was a scam, but after spending 30 minutes in line and not really moving anywhere, I said F it and joined them and we got in right away.

 

[SearchMaster]

My wife had a short stint in Italy recently, she said Florence was nice but thought the people were rude, her favorite spot was Venice FWIW.

 

[BarkingGhostar]

Hello all.., I needed some advice.. I plan to head to Italy between March 3rd and March 8th. I would appreciate advice on what to check out. Here's what I plan to do with my buddy:

March 3rd - Land into Pisa, check out leaning tower of Pizza and then head to Florence in evening.
March 4th - Tour Florence
March 5th - Take morning train to Naples and reach there at 10am. Spend the day in naples or take a bus trip down the amalfi coast..
March 6th - Take morning trian to Rome. Spend the day in Rome
March 7th - Spend Day in Rome
March 8th - Take 10 am flight back to Boston..

The time is quite tight so would appreciate your advice on if I shud spend more time in Florence and remove Naples, or instead of going to Naples, go somewhere else??

My goal is to explore Italian culture, eat a lot of good food, drink a lot of wine (and possibly hit up a winery if time permits) and explore around the streets.. not a big fan of museums..

Any advice would be much appreciated..

What kind of airfares are you looking at, and from which carrier were you considering? I considered Italy (Rome) last September, but it was way too expensive to fly 1st class.

 

[ViviTheMage]

If it was me, on THAT short of a trip ... pisa for half day, venice for 3, then rome for 2.

 

[Murloc]

you don't have time.
If you miss a train your holiday is messed up. Italian public transport employes have the habit of going on strike (not that french people are any different).
Skip Napoli since it's a shithole (there may be some nice things but it's really not worth it if you haven't seen the other cities yes). It's polluted, jammed with traffic and there's nothing much special about it (maybe it's just me because I saw italy outside of the cities too), you can go to see the volcanoes but you need time, and you'll need a car anyway to move around to see the stuff. You'll see nice stuff anyway in the rest of italy, amalfi coast is nice and all but why bother so much for some landscape (it's hip, but lots of less known other places on the mediterranean are equal).
Five days are really nothing, I'd skip that.

Roma is big (and jammed with traffic too), you'd need more time to visit all the stuff that there's to see, so choose wisely what you want to see.

General tips: if you want to go to a winery and try all the wines, you need time, and be prepared to spend 10€ per glass of wine.
Many places where you can do this and eat well are not in the city (in tuscany you can find lots of these in the country).

To eat well, avoid restaurants close to central touristic places, tourist bus stops, restaurants named internazionale, international or other crap names used to attract tourist, especially if they advertise pasta pomodoro and you see a group of asian or german people inside, who were taken there by their tour operators who take money from the restaurants.
Those are not the places you want to eat in.
Walk a bit further away from the center (again: discovering a city like this, like a real tourist and not a japanese, takes time) while staying in the old city, you'll find a restaurant that looks neat for sure.

 

[acheron]

Small tip on Rome - the lines to get into the Colosseum can be ridiculously long. Think Disney Land at peak season. There are a lot of groups outside the Colosseum that promise they can get you in faster. I thought it was a scam, but after spending 30 minutes in line and not really moving anywhere, I said F it and joined them and we got in right away.

I got there right when it opened (I think 9:00 or something? This was almost 10 years ago.) and didn't have to wait at all. And I got to see most of the place without many people around, which was fantastic. But yeah, once the day gets going it fills up quick.

I was not much of a fan of Florence. But the countryside surrounding is amazing, especially since you said you were interested in trying to go to a winery or something. That's where you want to do it.

I loved Rome, but I am into Roman history and all that, so if you don't have that going for you then you may not need to concentrate there as much.

I wouldn't bother with Naples in the time that you have, like everyone else is saying. Naples kind of sucks, though again if you're into history you can hit up Pompeii down that way.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

OP, you can get a Rome pass that includes most of the major attractions (and lets you avoid lines) along with access to public transportation at no additional cost.