If they eventually correct the lean of the Tower of Pisa, I wonder how badly that would negatively impact tourism.
It would be amusing watching all the stupid tourists standing around looking confused. “Do you know where the tower is?” “It’s right there, you’re standing in front of it.” “No, not that one, the leaning one…sigh…stupid locals.”
Spend a couple days in Lake Como. I've been to Italy about a dozen times because my in laws live there and Como is still one of my my favourite places. There's a ferry that pops you around to different places around the lake, or what we did was rent a little speed boat for a day and cruise around yourself. It was the best, we brought some wine and food and spent the whole day on the lake. The town itself is really beautiful and quaint. Highly recommend.
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We've been to Italy twice and didn't bother going to Venice or Milan. Milan is just a big modern city with lots of fashion shopping and nightlife (unless you like that stuff). Venice is an overpriced tourist trap. I wouldn't go to Pisa ever again for the same reason.
Florence - re-consider going up the bell tower if you were considering it. The view is nice, but spending 2 hours on the stairs was ridiculously hot and unpleasant. Uffizzi Gallery is impressive, but at some point one can experience an art overdose in Italy, so all churches and museums start looking the same.
Siena is not only beautiful but also very pleasant to walk around and reasonably priced.
We stayed a week in Sorrento and absolutely loved everything about it. Took a day-trip to Capri and hired a small boat for a private ride around the island. Highly recommended.
Rome - there's no way to see it well in less than a couple of weeks; so whatever time you spend there – it's priceless and unforgettable. Vatican is a must, of course.
We really loved Northern Italy - Rapallo and Portofino, but not Cinque Terre (thousands tourists everywhere).
My biggest advice – not to try and see everything. Pick a couple of targets and spend a week at each if you can.
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We did an Italy trip and I agonized over where to go and when. It ultimately was for a wedding in Tuscany so we did have some requirements to be somewhere at a specific time.
I researched a ton of options as we wanted to see as much as we could.
Ended up being a great trip and the research and recommendations really paid off. Did a lot of what was recommended in here. At the end of the day, pick where you definitely want to go and spread out from there and realize you can do all the major cities in one trip.
We flew into Rome for a few nights. Saw the usual sites including a midnight tour of the Coliseum which was amazing. Only a dozen or so people in the entire place.
Took the Italo train to Florence and directly on to Viareggio. This was probably my biggest mistake. Chose it because it was a beach town closest to some other places we wanted to see. This is somewhere Italians go for summer holidays and it was the off season. Next to no English and the locals rolled up the sidewalks at 5pm. I almost got into a fist fight in a beachside burger place who was making fun of my Italian and for some reason wanted to throw down.
We branched out from there to places like Lucca which was awesome as already mentioned.
We took the train to Cinque Terre and stayed in Vernazza for a few nights. Hiked to the some of the other towns during the day. It was not really cruise ship season but the place is totally different in the evening and night when the locals come out. There were bars and cafes that only opened in the evening lol.
We met up with my brother and sister in law and hired a fisherman to take us out and tour the area by sea and show us how they fish. We ended up sitting on his boat and chatting, drinking wine and eating cheese well into the night. He showed us a bunch of Etruscan, Roman, Greek and WWII artifacts he'd collected in his nets over the years.
We went from there to Florence but got off the train in Pisa, checked our bags at the station, took the dumb pictures at the tower and continued on to Florence. Glad we didnt plan anymore time there.
Met up with friends in Florence. My favorite city. Spent a few nights there, ate and drank and experienced so many things we still all talk about.
We did an Italy trip and I agonized over where to go and when. It ultimately was for a wedding in Tuscany so we did have some requirements to be somewhere at a specific time.
Where did you stay? My understanding is that there are no vacancies.
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First question is what country is next/what direction are you heading?
If you’re thinking of Florence and Pisa then consider Lucca. There is a wall around the old town which you can walk or better yet, rent bikes and bike around. It’s city street wide. The old town is so quaint. It’s a day tour destination so if you can, stay overnight, and enjoy it without the bus loads. Pisa I’d say is a let down. It’s the tower and duomo and not much else. Florence would take a day and Como/Garda would be a day just because of the ferries between the various towns. We had one of our most memorable meals in Olcio.
Other than Pisa I’d say all of these are places for slower travel. Milan you could run and gun because it’s just a big city in my books. The other places have more to see and more to offer at a slower pace.
Barcelona is after the 4 days in Italy.
Our objective in going to Italy is that we've never been to Europe other than London and Paris. So we're tacking on a small side trip for a few days before meeting up with friends in Barcelona (reason for trip). Objective in Italy is to see the most variety of scenery and architectural styles. My wife and I travel in a way where we can really appreciate the details, but we wouldn't sit down for a long time to soak in the minutae if that makes sense.
+20 to Florence.
We did Amalfi Coast, Capri, Rome, Florence and Venice on our honeymoon and Florence is the place we dream of going back to the most.
Amalfi Coast is incredible too but it's too out of the way for your short trip I think.
Venice is overrated IMO, but I guess you have to see it once. I would do 1 night there, 2 max.
2 Nights in Florence, day trip or 1 night somewhere smaller or coastal, then 1-2 nights in Venice would be my recommendation for 4 nights.
1. Milan is a boring big city.
2. The only reason to go to Milan is to go to Lake Como for a day.
3. I went to an AC Milan soccer game when I was there and it was awesome
4. 1 day in Venice was good enough for me.
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+20 to Florence.
We did Amalfi Coast, Capri, Rome, Florence and Venice on our honeymoon and Florence is the place we dream of going back to the most.
Amalfi Coast is incredible too but it's too out of the way for your short trip I think.
Venice is overrated IMO, but I guess you have to see it once. I would do 1 night there, 2 max.
2 Nights in Florence, day trip or 1 night somewhere smaller or coastal, then 1-2 nights in Venice would be my recommendation for 4 nights.
I did this exact trip 2 years ago, but also with Milan and Lake Como at the end.
Agreed on Florence. Amalfi also amazing. I know many don't agree, but I really liked Naples. It was gritty and had lots of character. Way different than anywhere else we went in the country.
Personally, I'd skip Venice. It's not like what the movies make it look like.
It's super crowded and his hard to find anywhere to get some personal space. At one point, tried to get away from the crowds and stood in front of a restaurant. Then an restaurant owner came out and said we would have to pay him 20 Euros to just stand there. I felt like cattle being herded around the whole time.
Also, the canals and gondolier thing is fun, but in the movies, they make it look romantic and relaxing, but during your tour, you will see mostly buildings with massive advertising murals covering the buildings. Buildings that didn't have advertisements were covered with scaffolding because everything is falling apart.
Also, the main square floods often, so don't wear good shoes and wear pants you can roll up.
For full disclosure, I only went on a day trip. From people I have talked to, the nights are much better once all the day trippers are gone. If you go, it might be worth staying a night or two just so you don't have to experience the daytime mayhem.
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If you are going to visit Florence (we loved Florence) from Milan, I'd recommend stopping in Modena which is on the way. The Enzo Ferrari museum in Modena was worth the time. There is a second Ferrari museum that is more focused on just the cars. I'd recommend it as well.
I'll second Modena, but for a different reason. The food there is incredible (really, anywhere in Emilia-Romagna you'll find the best food in Italy). Stop in for lunch at Hosteria Giusti (they essentially invented balsamic vinegar) or dinner at Francheschetta 58 (Massimo Bottura's more affordable little sister to the best restaurant in the world, Osteria Francescana which is also in Modena).
If you're going to Modena, I recommend stopping in Bologna as well, 20 minutes away. Bologna is 38 minutes from Florence on the high-speed train. Bologna is a very cool town. Very medieval looking and the food there is amazing also. Tortellini in Brodo is my favourite dish and it can be found in my places.
I've been to Venice, not really my thing. Really crowded, food is not the best. Pisa I thought was a waste of time.
If you're going up to Lake Como, Lugano (Switzerland) is a very cool city to stop in. Maybe a 30-40 minute drive from Milan. We spent four days in Lake Como and on our third day we went to Lugano and liked it so much that we spent our fourth day there as well. We also went up to Bellagio and took a boat up the lake. It feels to me a lot like you're in B.C. around that whole region except the cities and towns have a lot more to offer.
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I preface this by acknowledging I have only been to Florence + Area and Venice so I can't really compare it to other areas.
Florence is great and there are a ton of museums and surrounding towns to fill your time. For example, Siena and San Gimignano are great towns in the interior, with Cinque Terre near the coast.
We did a day trip from Florence to Venice and thought that was enough time, although I would like to spend the night in Venice and see it after most of the crowds are gone
